“How does this add value to my life?”
This is the question I’ve been asking myself countless times in the past few weeks I’ve spent getting rid of personal belongings to declutter my living space.
If I didn’t have an answer to that question, into the donation bin it goes. I did this for every single personal item I own as I packed up all the things in my 4 bedroom home to move into a smaller living space below my means.
And here’s the thing: it felt amazing. As I got got rid of the first few things that I’ve held for years and never used, it created a snowball effect. The dopamine kicked in as I scanned the house looking for more stuff to get rid of. After donating everything, I didn’t feel sad or like I had lost anything of value, I felt a huge relief. I did this 2 more times during my moving process and will continue decluttering as I move into my new RV.
A really great approach I learned from the podcast The Minimalists is to pack everything up into labeled boxes and only remove items from the boxes as needed. Whatever is still in boxes after 2-3 months, consider getting rid of it.
So here are 3 lessons I learned through this process that have helped me to gain more mental clarity and find insane focus in my life.
- The memories that you connect with your personal items are not stored in the items themselves – they are in your mind. Associating your priceless memories with objects can make you value the objects more than the memories themselves, creating both visual and mental clutter.
- You need much less living space than you think. A recent survey showed that 1 out of 4 Americans will outgrow their living space every 2 years, yet another survey revealed that the average American uses only 40% of their living space at most. That means Americans are acquiring more stuff, more debt, more material pleasures. We often think of having a large living space with lots of impressive things as a status symbol or a sign that you are well off. The bigger the better; that is the American way. But as Will Rogers once said, “Too many people spend money they haven’t earned to buy things they don’t want to impress people they don’t like.” “Less is more” is a cliche phrase we’ve all heard, but actually practicing this simple concept helps to maintain a more focused and intentional life.
- The more things you have, the more time you spend managing them. If you do spend more time cleaning, moving, or organizing your things, you own too many things. Your personal items should either serve a purpose to add value to your life, or else they are distractions.
For me, the hardest things to get rid of have been my books and vinyl records. I am slowly selling off my records and I’ve gotten rid of about 30% of my book collection, although I have much more to downsize.
My new space might look tiny but its exactly what I need to maintain a more focused life, free of clutter and more intentional, surrounded only by my necessities and knowledge that inspires me.
I encourage you to start considering some of these realizations I had about material possessions. You don’t have to take such drastic measures as moving to a tiny home, but you can start in your bedroom, then make your way to your living room and kitchen. Start small, I am confident the rewarding experience of decluttering your life even from the little things will inspire you to go bigger as you gain more clarity and focus.