7 Tips for Beating Clutter Forever

The January 2009 issue of Better Homes and Gardens had an article titled "7 Tips for Beating Clutter Forever" by Donna Smallin. Here are the ones I mentioned on the Sunday 19, 2009 WRAF Broadcast.

Tip 1: Start with the easy stuff. Go through your home room by room in search of trash. Grab a recycling bine and toss outdated coupons, flyers, calendars, old newspapers, magazines, and catalogs. Shred paid utility bills and other statements not needed for tax purposes. Fill bags or boxes with clothing and linens and donate.

Tip 2: Set small goals. say to yourself: Today I'm going to clean out my junk drawer and then I'm going to stop. Or set a timer for 15 minutes and go to it. You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish in these mini decluttering sessions. Seeing each project through gives you confidence for the next one.

Tip 3: Give everything a home. A big reason why clutter accumulates is because items are homeless. A good home for a frequently used item is one that makes it easy to retrieve and return. Oven mitts for example, are ideally stored in a waist-height drawer near the stove, but the best home for a roasting pan might be in the garage, freeing up cabinet space for more regularly used items.

Tip 4: Give yourself permission to let go. If you had only 10 minutes to evacuate your home, what would you grab? Make a decision to surround yourself with only beloved and useful objects and let go of the rest. Have a garage sale, donate or post items on freecycle.org, an online exchange.

Tip 5: Deal with clutter hot spots. You can't hide all clutter, but you can contain it. Look at where it collects and set up attractive ways to deal with it, like a large bowl on the kitchen counter to collect keys, or a big basket by the door for shoes. Discount stores and office supply houses have everything from patterned folders for storing bills to wicker, fabric, and leather boxes to match our decor.

Tip 6: Declutter daily. It's easier to keep up than to catch up, so eastablish a daily routine. Grab a a laundry basket and make the rounds, tossing in anything to be put away. Also purge periodically. As you sort through off-season clothing, get rid of what you didn't wear. Clean out filing cabinets at year's end.

Tipe 7 Be a good gatekeeper: Think twice before you bring home something new. Ask yourself, Do I really need this? Where will I pute It Becoming a more conscious consumer goes a long way toward cutting clutter. Also cancel unwanted catalogs and switch to online bill-paying.