If you are having a hard time figuring out what to keep when decluttering or what to let go of as you declutter, use these 10 helpful questions to ask yourself in the process.
We all have different reasons as to why we keep certain items in our homes. Sometimes long after they have served their purpose. Maybe it was a gift from someone you love or you’ve spent a lot of money on it and would feel guilty getting rid of it. But the truth is we don’t have an endless amount of space in our lives for unused or unwanted items. Sometimes we need to be a bit ruthless when it comes to the decluttering process.
I know it can be a difficult process to go through all your belongings. But armed with the tools necessary you’ll get to your end goal, a clutter-free and simplified home. Decluttering can help improve mood, ease anxiety, and improve productivity.
I’ve come up with a list of 10 questions to help you declutter your home. Questions I found were helpful in my own journey towards a more simple lifestyle. They will really help you to decide what you should keep and what you should get rid of.
10 QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU DECLUTTER
1. Is this item something I’m currently using?
There are many things in our homes that we don’t even realize we own.
Have you ever gone through your home and found random items hiding in the back of a cupboard or closet? These are often things that we don’t really need, and yet somehow ended up with them anyway. Ask yourself, have I used this item in the past year? If your answer is no, there’s no excuse to keep these things around if you haven’t used them or don’t plan on using them. For things, you do use, but only occasionally, that might be ok – but only if you actually do use it often enough for it to be worthy to keep around.
For example, if you have golf clubs in your garage and they haven’t seen the light of day since last summer, you should get rid of them. However, if they are an important part of your exercise routine — such as your favourite form of cardio — then those clubs should stay in storage until next spring when you will use them again.
2. Do I love looking at or using this item?
The previous question helps us determine what we no longer use. This question, however, will help dictate what we keep. Is it something you enjoy using? Not everything in our life has to be particularly useful. We also need to surround ourselves with the things we enjoy. Both are things we enjoy using and enjoy looking at. The goal of minimalism is not to have our homes look like a blank canvas but rather to decorate to our needs and enjoyment. So, if the item is something you particularly enjoy keep it around. Ask yourself how you feel when you see the item. Take note and keep or let go accordingly. We don’t want or need to keep items that make us feel bad or discouraged.”
3. Does it fit me or my home?
As you consider the items in your life that you love, think about whether they fit your lifestyle. This is especially applicable to clothes and sporting equipment. We all change over time, whether that’s through weight gain or loss, physical changes due to pregnancy or building muscle through exercise. Whatever the reason for your physical change, it’s important to remember that we all grow and develop new skills and hobbies as time goes on. Your environment should reflect who you are at this stage in your life. Ask yourself if you’ll use these clothes again – perhaps you were a big rock climber a few years ago but now work indoors; if so, do you still need those old climbing shoes?
4. Why do I feel like I need to keep it?
Usually, we have a reason why we want to keep an item. Oftentimes it’s for practical reasons. We need our pots and pans to cook and our towels to dry off after a shower. Of course, we want to keep things related to our daily life and also our hobbies and passions.
But sometimes we don’t really know why something is kept in our home. Take a few minutes to reflect on why you keep those items and try to get down to the root of why you allow them to stay.
5. Is the thought of wasting money keeping me from getting rid of this item?
The thing is if you’re holding on to something because it was expensive and you don’t want to feel like you wasted your money, then you’re just being silly. It’s more wasteful to not use the item and let it sit in a cupboard or storage. Move on! Keeping it around for the reason that you’ve spent money on it is only depriving yourself of having a clutter-free home. And chances are every time you lay your eyes on it, you’ll be reminded of how much money you wasted when you bought it. So do yourself a favour and just let it go!
6. Am I holding onto this item for sentimental reasons?
Are you holding onto something from your childhood just for the sake of having it? Think about why you want to keep it. Does it hold special memories?
Think about why you want to keep your childhood memorabilia. Are you keeping it because it holds special memories for you? If so, how can you find ways to display these items so that you can enjoy them and be reminded of those memories? If you feel like there are items that don’t hold any value for you anymore, think about how to let go of them without feeling guilt or shame.
It can be incredibly hard to let go of items belonging to people who have passed away, but one thing you should remember is that objects are not special. It’s the people we associate with these items that give them value. When you put stuff in boxes in an attempt to hold onto a memory of someone, you are not treating those items with respect. Letting go of an item is not the same as letting go of a person or a memory of a person.
7. Does it contribute to the life I want?
One good tip for decluttering is to sit down and consider what you want in life. Visualise your dream home, how it looks, and what items are in it, and then consider whether your possessions contribute to that vision. If not, give them away.
Sit down and consider what you want in your life, what adds value to it? What are your priorities? What kind of home do you want to live in? Does this item contribute to that vision? If not, consider giving that item to someone else.
8. If I were moving to a new home, would I want to take this item with me?
When you’re deciding what to keep and what to get rid of, ask yourself whether you would take the time to pack the item carefully and find a place for it in your new home.
9. Do I have multiples of this item?
Do you have any duplicates in your home? Too many hairbrushes in your bathroom drawer? Or so many glasses in your kitchen cupboard that you could take a new one for each drink for a week and still not run out? In order to live with the fewest items possible, we must ask ourselves what is essential and what is not. I can’t tell you how many glasses you need and there is no rule on how many glasses a person may own. You need to decide this based on your needs. The same goes for everything else in your home.
If you have a similar item(s) that serves the same purpose, then get rid of one of them. In most cases, you don’t need multiples of the same item and you’ll likely not miss the duplicates at all.
10. Does it feel like mine?
Most of us have several “hand-me-down” items or furniture pieces in our homes. Things that have been gifted to us by relatives or we have inherited. Some of these things you might love and cherish, but chances are you are holding to some of these things for guilt or because you feel obligated to keep them around.
As you can see, the process of decluttering is more complicated than just tossing out anything that no longer has a place in your life. First, you must identify what to keep, and then you must decide how you’re going to make sure these items stay where they belong instead of piling up. It takes some organization, but it’s mostly about making sure you truly want a given item before allowing it into your life. With a little patience and determination, you can declutter your life for good!
The process of decluttering your home will help you significantly simplify your life and make it easier to enjoy your home.
