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Declutter Your Home in 5 Minutes a Day

The task of decluttering can be daunting!  After a massive purging of all the things you haven’t used in 10 years, you would think it would be done, and you’d never have to do it again! At least that is what Konmari teaches.  She claims decluttering is a one time event.

declutter in 5 minutes a day

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However, in the real world, the creep sets in. Suddenly you have dead batteries, poor fitting clothes, and books you never read collecting dust.  

How to Declutter in Five Minutes a Day

So, how can you keep that under control so your next vacation isn’t spent int he trenches of yet another decluttering marathon?  Simply by taking 5 minutes a day to do the following

Follow the One Touch Rule for Decluttering

You’ve all heard the one touch rule- if you have something in your hands, rather than putting it down anywhere, always directly put it in it’s designated spot.  That way, your house doesn’t get into disarray in the first place. This one touch rule can also apply to decuttering.  

If you have junk mail, don’t even bring it in the  house, if your recycle bin is waiting for it. If you get a vegetable peeler out, and notice you  have 5, take it straight to a donation box.  You can tackle a junk drawer one item at a time as you notice them, without waiting to tackle the entire drawer.

Become a clothing minimalist

It became overwhelmingly clear to me that the amount of clothes my kids owned, was directly impacting their ability to keep heir rooms clean.  We happen to be the recipient of much appreciated hand me downs.  There is really no reason for a 6 year old to have 12 pairs of jeans.

 While we appreciated the generosity of family and friends, we decided to keep the kids rooms clean and uncluttered, we needed to take the items that fit the best, and donate the rest.  With 3-4 pairs of jeans, the drawers are never too full to clothes.

 So, 5 minutes each day, evaluate how much clothes you REALLY need, and follow the minimalist closet mindset.

Scan or File Something

Chances are, paper is still encroaching on your life. Bills, warranty’s, school projects, little league assignments and more!  Although we are so dependent on digital information these days, it’s shocking how much we still use paper.  

Every time you come across a piece of paper, decide if it can be filed or scanned and stored in a digital folder, or tossed!  I’ve loved doing this.  Just this morning I found a piece of paper on the counter ( a packing list for summer camp).  I couldn’t toss it, so I took a picture of it with m y phone and stored it digitally- then I tossed it!

It’s not a paper I’ll need beyond August, so filing it seemed unnecessary.   Once my daughter is ready to pack for camp, I’ll text it to her and she can pack!! Paper gone!

Designate a Charity Corner

We have a large black box in our garage that is our constant dump site for everything we plan to donate.  Once it’s full, we take a load to the thrift store.

This makes it super easy to put one thing at a time in the box as we come across it, rather than planning a clean out day to find all the stuff we don’t need any longer.

Stick to a Daily Routine

Based on your new minimalist attitude (or as I call it, the easiest way to keep my house clean). My daily to-do list involves keeping specific areas of the house clean.  

With a clean kitchen, bathroom, living area etc., it’s easy to see when excess stuff is getting in the way of the room looking clean. Without a daily routine of picking up, the accumulation of stuff happens gradually, and usually without notice.

 Stick to your daily routine and keep things clean.

Have a clutter free home truly is the best way to keep it clean with the least amount of work!  I saw it first hand when we got rid of 3/4 of my daughters clothes.  We literally had trashbags full of clothes handed down to us that we hadn’t even looked at.

 No room left in her closet was an understatement. We had to stuff clothes under her bed and in the corners. Once the clutter got under control, her room stayed clean with minimal effort. This can be true for the rest of your house as well.

Following a few simple daily concepts, decluttering will never be a marathon event again.

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