Our Top 5 tips for a Successful New Year clear out!
While there are some people in the world who love a good clear out, there are also people (like me!) who…well….don’t. The mess, the effort, the sorrow of parting with all of the junk I’ve kept safely in boxes, in cupboards, in the loft, on shelves etc… through the years. It gives me a headache just thinking about it! That’s why I rallied the troops and they have helped me put together our top 5 tips on how to avoid stress, screaming and hair pulling during the inevitable ‘OH NO! We haven’t got enough space!!’ Post-Christmas clear out…
5. The first point is to make a list – whether it’s vague, for example a list of rooms to sort through or (like mine) it’s detailed right down to coffee breaks and how long each task should take…a list is a good place to start. However you choose to do it, making a written list that you can cross off as you go makes you feel productive and is a great way to visually see how much you’re getting done! (TIP: put something on there that you’ve already done so you can cross it off straight away – ‘eat packet of crisps’ DONE!)
4. Take regular breaks – think of the troublesome sorting and cleaning bits as stepping stones to your next cup of coffee/snack break and it will go much faster!
3. Ask somebody to help you – It’s easy to slack off when no-one’s watching and it’s even easier to convince yourself when alone that you really do need that box full of electrical cables, plugs and chargers that you haven’t used or even thought about in years…and do you
still even have your old Nokia 3310? You sometimes need somebody there to tell you ‘if you haven’t used it in over a year – bin it!’
2. Sort everything into categories as you go – a bag for the charity shop, a bag for the bin, and a bag for storage if you really can’t let go! It might sound like a simple tip (and, well, yes you’re right it is…) but again it’s a way to really quickly see your work coming together. It’s never fun to work for an hour, think you’ve done masses and then find out it actually looks worse than when you started! Sorting into piles will at least contain the mess as you go along. (WARNING: it will almost certainly get messier before it gets tidier, sorry about that folks)
1. Our number one tip for a successful sorting out day though is to be ruthless! – It’s hard to throw or give things away but if you haven’t used it in over a year, the chances are you won’t miss it. If you really are struggling, try to think about how much joy and excitement your old belongings could bring to somebody else.
These tips are simple but effective ways of making your clear out a success. And if it turns out there are some things you just can’t, no matter how hard you try, get rid of?..
Well that’s what we’re here for.
