Over the years of living in a house, you collect so many things along the way. Some of it is valuable, important and even meaningful sentimentally, and a lot of other stuff you really don’t need and should probably get rid of. The only problem is how do you separate the things you need and should keep from the things that really need to go? It’s such a hard decision to make!  

We live in an age of excess, an age of having as many things as possible to show off on social media and to feel successful, but there is such a thing as having too many possessions. This is why so many people have chosen to adopt a minimalist lifestyle so they can learn to value the fewer things they have in their lives. 

Actually cleaning up your house and removing clutter is one of the things that can completely transform your home and make a big impact visually. It isn’t just about minimalism, it’s about what looks good. So if you want to become more of minimalist and reduce your possession footprint so that it’s more manageable, how do you do it? Where do you even put the stuff? How do you sift through all your stuff and find out what you really want and what can have better use elsewhere? Here are some tips for decluttering your home. 

The first thing you need to do is gather all the things and create distinct piles for you to figure out where things are going to go. It’s going to be easy for you to choose to keep as many things as possible, but try to start with what you don’t need anymore. 

Ask yourself these questions;

● Does this piece of clothing still fit?

● Is this item something you have worn/used in the last 6 months?

● Is there someone in your life who could appreciate this item?

● Would somebody less fortunate get better use of this item? 

● Is this item to old/damaged to be kept or given away? 

So now you can create the following categories, things to donate to charity, things to give to your family friends and things to throw away. There will be sentimental items that you want to keep but be careful not to go overboard on those. A lot of people end up hoarding because of holding onto the sentimental value of too many people, so there is a line you need to watch out for. 

Things to throw away are going to be the easiest pile because those things are pretty obvious. You might find yourself wanting to hold onto things you don’t really have much use for but remember, it’s all about being happier with less stuff. 

A professional cleaning service can be very useful at a time where you have to sift through all the things you own. This maid service in Atlanta can help you clean up the rooms with all the stuff so you can see everything better, which will help you make better decisions and ultimately create more order, harmony and beauty in your home. It will also give you peace of mind. The company, Amazon Cleaning says, “We have a competitive system where our cleaning crews must continually demonstrate high-level performance.” So you know your house and your possessions will be in good hands.  

Remember the epic scene on the Sex and the City movie where Carrie has to figure out which clothes to keep when she was moving out of her apartment? The girls made a whole party out of it with drinks and loud music and Carrie modelled all the clothes while the girls judged what she had to get rid of. You can do the exact same thing with your friends. Make it a special occasion and have fun with it. Even better, whether it’s clothes or household items you can actually do trades and swaps so it feels like you’re shopping.  

One thing you will learn is that you don’t have to have all the possessions in the world to live a happy life. Actually, a lot of people who have chosen to have less are actually more fulfilled and appreciative of everything they have. Everyone can benefit from reducing the things you own and perhaps blessing someone else with things they need but can’t afford. All it takes is some time and some real honesty about what you really need and what you just want. Here’s to embracing a minimalist life in the new year!