5 Easy Decluttering Tips to Transform Your Home

1. Before and after photos

It bugs me that I do not have any photos to show you from before I started decluttering. My home was so chaotic. Maybe I was embarrassed, or maybe I just did not really think it was worth doing, but it would have been really nice to have those minimalist declutter before and after pictures and know that I have made progress.

Once I started taking pictures, I could see the visual change more clearly, see the difference I have made in each area, and that affected how I felt about decluttering and boosted my motivation.

I would definitely recommend taking before and after photos, or videos, so you can really see how much you have impacted on that area.

2. Clear the visual clutter first

Looking back, I realize I started by decluttering my wardrobe, and since this is not something that you see on a daily basis, I did not feel the impact that quickly. I felt the difference as I was making decisions when getting clothes ready in the morning, but I didn't have that visual impact of how the room made me feel.

If I had a do-over, I would definitely consider clearing all the surfaces first, making sure that they were clear of clutter, and then looking at the stuff that was hidden.

I believe this would have made a huge difference to how I felt in the environment, although it may have hidden what was going on behind closed doors, i.e. in the cupboards.

Still, I think I would have felt more motivated because I could have seen the potential end result a little bit quicker. I think that starting with the visual clutter is going to help keep you motivated and quickly make you feel more calm and relaxed within the space, as you have found the aesthetic you were looking for.

3. Have four different boxes

The four boxes are “keep”, “donate”, “sell” and “trash”, which can also just be a bag. Without the boxes, I ended up with four piles of stuff each time I decluttered, and had to spend time moving the stuff afterwards, which was overwhelming. It almost felt like I was doing two different jobs: decluttering and then moving that clutter.

This made me less motivated to keep going because I knew that it would mean another job after. Creating those four boxes meant that I had a clear system and I knew where each box would go after I finished. I did not have to pick things up anymore.

4. Little acts of decluttering

I definitely was somebody that started by trying to declutter the whole room, and it was extremely overwhelming. I would start in one area, get distracted by another, and it all made decluttering such a big job that I then did absolutely nothing for age. Stuff kept accumulating, and I was not dealing with it.

Since I started work on one small area, getting that finished, then moving on, decluttering became so much easier to manage. This also means that you can spend more time on that area because when I did a whole room, I ended up giving up halfway. I did not make careful decisions about things, I was not thinking things through, so I ended up keeping more stuff than I truly needed. Going through one little area at a time thoroughly means that you can really think about the items in that area and know that you are actually going to make the right decision.

By decluttering in little portions, you are also creating those daily acts of decluttering, that daily habit that means that you are becoming better at decluttering and decision-making. This is something I would definitely recommend doing from the get-go.

5. Time blocking

I wish I had blocked out or scheduled out 15 minutes every day to do my little acts of decluttering.

Allocating a specific time to decluttering means you know you do not have to spend more or less than that, and you have a time that truly suits you, rather than having to do things last minute.

It gives some structure to the decluttering and keeps you accountable.

Without time-blocking, I can just sit there on the couch and not really do much in a day. But if I know that I have scheduled out the next day, I am more likely to achieve those things on the list. I know that at this time, I do need to start doing this.

This helps you get together a bit of a schedule, and you know that you are keeping on top of the decluttering and chipping away at it.

Decluttering tips

I hope you have found my minimalist declutter tips useful and now understand a little better how to declutter your home and where to get started.

What are the strategies that have helped you declutter your home? Share your experience in the comments and help others!

Next, learn How to Stop Wasting Money: 5 Ways to Use a Minimalist Approach.