Dealing With Clutter Starts With Understanding Clutter

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Clutter is something that we all have to manage, but I find it essential to understand clutter. I would even go on to say that before we can effectively manage clutter, we have to understand clutter.

Doing so isn’t hard, really, it’s just looking at the madness behind the mess so to speak.

With that, I’ve got five truths to understand before beginning to tackle clutter.

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1. Dealing with clutter takes a commitment

If we are to tackle clutter once and for all, we can’t just think that tackling clutter is a nice thought to have. Tackling clutter takes a commitment, which is an action that we must do. Tackling clutter can’t be passive. Tackling clutter requires us to do something, and it is important and essential to embrace this truth if we are to be successful at it. If we approach tackling clutter as a nice thought and leave it there, we will fail.

2. Tackling clutter takes discipline

I enjoy cleaning, organizing, and making progress, I really do, but I can still say that tackling clutter isn’t really all that fun. I don’t know about you, but when I have to do things that I don’t think are fun, it takes an awful lot of discipline to do so. Doing things that I don’t particularly want to do means that most times I have to gear up to do them, I have to motivate myself to keep going, and I have to keep the end goal in mind. In this case, that is having a lot less clutter around.

3. Taking on clutter is an ongoing process

I think the more people you live with the more this statement is true, but the truth of the matter is that even if you live alone tackling clutter will always be an ongoing process. You won’t ever get a handle on the clutter and then be able to say, “Phew! I’m glad that’s over!”

Sure, certain parts of it may be over and your clutter may be tamed for the moment, but it is only for the moment. Just like eating and sleeping, eventually you will have to do it again at some point.

I think keeping this in mind from the beginning can make the ongoing nature of dealing with clutter a little less overwhelming. Sometimes when we know the hard part of something can make it easier to face when it comes our way. I find this to be true with clutter.

4. Developing a well thought out plan and solution that addresses your specific clutter challenge is key

Realistically speaking, your clutter challenges and your clutter goals will be different from mine. What drives me crazy as it relates to clutter will most likely not be the exact same thing that drives you crazy about clutter. The areas of my home that must be clutter free for my sanity are probably different from your hot button areas.

Deciding on your biggest clutter challenge and problem comes first, and then deciding how best to solve that specific problem is second.
Just like anything, the problem needs to be defined before the solution can be found and eventually applied. Define what your greatest problem is with clutter and then attack it.

5. If clutter is to be adequately tackled, you must stay on top of it

Of course there will be times, there will be seasons, and there will be circumstances when staying on top of clutter just won’t be a priority when there are other things that are screaming for our attention. But, when it comes to tackling clutter on a regular basis and when it comes to staying on top of clutter, it will need to be dealt with regularly. In most cases, this means daily to at least some extent.

I have discovered, and maybe you have, too, that nothing multiplies quite like clutter. You can have just a small area that is cluttered, and seemingly in a moment the whole house can resemble a war zone. If you’ve ever lived with a toddler I think you know exactly what I mean.

Finding a viable solution, maybe not the best longterm solution, but finding a solution that makes clutter tolerable and applying that in your daily life is an essential truth to know and then to fully embrace.

This idea is more fully illustrated in some of the solutions that I share in Five Simple Strategies For Hiding Clutter. Notice the word “hide.” There are times when the clutter needs to be conquered, and then there are times when clutter simply needs to be dealt with for sanity purposes. That post shows you exactly what I mean.

However, the point here is that you must stay on top of clutter the majority of the time. Otherwise, it just might take over your life,

Clutter must certainly be dealt with, but the first step in dealing with it is understanding it. Read, understand, and internalize these five concepts behind clutter. Then, you can move forward in how to actually deal with it.

Looking for more? You might also like Living With Kids Doesn’t Have to Mean Living With Clutter or 10 Ways Smart People Control Clutter, 10 Steps to Controlling Clutter, and Eliminating Clutter.