Day 2 -

Problem Solving

There are many bumps that we can hit when we try to get organised. The most common area (After not getting started!) is ATTACHMENT.

Attachment is a powerful emotion. That super, strong feeling that hits you when you are asking yourself “Should it stay or go?” can easily derail your good intentions.

Decluttering is about relieving yourself of many of those things from the past that hold you back and clog up minds. Understanding what is the trigger for YOU can help you deal with it. As you read through the following categories consider your own position and HOW the issues KEEP you STUCK.

> Aspirational clutter – items to help towards the best version of you. You’re hanging onto some of these because you hope, one day, that you will get them into action -exercise kit you don’t use, fancy clothing you don’t wear, books that you had planned to read. We may believe that keeping them MOTIVATES us but so often what it really does is make us feel guilty and ashamed that we haven’t yet dealt with it.

> “You never know” clutter ! We rationalize that we might need it one day! These are those “just in case” things. I’m thinking of all those cables or electrical bits that we don’t even know what they are or the oven instruction booklet. We can store some things but there comes a point that stuff gets in the way of you getting to the bits you really do need. And all this stuff fills up our heads and weighs us down.

> The sentimental pieces – Those things that pull on the heartstrings. We feel that perhaps if we let these go then we are discarding the memory of the person who made them or gave them. Remember -memories and stuff are not the same.

> Potentially valuable - We also may think something is valuable and keep it to sell at some point in the future. At times it can be a good strategy to pick out items that may earn us a few £’s or more. Unfortunately, most of these things are not that valuable as material things are so abundant. Check Facebook buy, swap & sell, ebay, gumtree or a specialist site like Vintage Cash Cow / CEX . Even if something can be sold for a good price you still have to weigh up if it is worth you listing, corresponding, packaging, posting and paying any seller fees. Often a fine balance.

> It cost a lot ! – At times we feel bad about the money we have spent on things and so hold onto them. It’s happened. The money was spent when you bought it. Now if we can’t re-sell then we will still need to let go. Here’s where we need to learn from our buying behaviour and adjust – are you a spur of the moment shopper, do you love a sale, do you go shopping as a hobby ? The good news is decluttering will help form better shopping habits. Be honest when you are exploring your relationship with “shopping” as this will help you work out how to manage it.

> Don’t want to be wasteful – this can be a real dilemma. You want to get rid of it, you’re not going to use it but you feel it is super wasteful. You are probably pretty concerned with the environmental impact too. The key is to finding the best match for disposing your stuff. As well as all the negative impacts of waste we see around the globe there are indeed a lot of fabulous programs going on to reduce wastefulness. like Nike Re-use a shoe – they will take worn-out athletic shoes and turn them into “Grind” – a material for playgrounds and athletics surfaces." Zero Waste Scotland" is a great resource for keeping up to date with what’s happening in this field. (Whatever country you live in will have a similar venture).

> Abundance clutter – stocking up or being prepared. This may have become more prominent during the pandemic as we have had concerns around supplies. We know that all “stores” have a cost. And it’s not just the purchase price. Keeping unnecessary items in your home takes up space, can create waste and requires energy to manage. It’s back to balance again and working out what is the optimal level for your home.

> And lastly !

Sometimes we just aren’t fending off the flow which keeps on coming in ! if there is no consistent and systematic work being done on incoming “stuff” then we end up inadvertently holding onto things. I am constantly amazed at how many items can cross the threshold UNINTENTIONALLY – freebies that the kids pick up, junk mail, well-meaning friends passing on “useful” stuff etc. etc.

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Have you identified with any of the reasons we hold onto things?

It is critical to work out your own triggers, as these can turn into your roadblocks. Letting go is not easy and takes courage, Once you have worked out which one (Or ones) that apply most to you then it is so important to dig into HOW you can overcome and deal with this.

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