WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:14.364 --> 00:00:18.514 The other day, my husband and I were driving down the road, we were, yet again, 00:00:18.524 --> 00:00:21.174 heading out of town for a baseball game. 00:00:21.564 --> 00:00:24.134 And we were going a way, that was a road we hadn't been 00:00:24.134 --> 00:00:25.244 on in probably a few months. 00:00:25.884 --> 00:00:27.154 And we were coming up on this road. 00:00:27.484 --> 00:00:31.454 It's basically a field that had just been vacant for years and years and 00:00:31.544 --> 00:00:33.554 they were clearly building something. 00:00:33.574 --> 00:00:38.224 And so we looked to see if there was a sign as to what it was, and there 00:00:38.224 --> 00:00:45.134 was, and it was going to be yet another storage unit facility, which we have 00:00:45.324 --> 00:00:47.664 tons of them in our, in our county. 00:00:47.694 --> 00:00:54.254 So we both got tickled and just started reminiscing about the times in our 00:00:54.254 --> 00:00:58.144 lives when we were storage unit people. 00:00:58.244 --> 00:01:04.834 So we had a time, gosh, it was at least a decade, that we were storage unit type 00:01:04.854 --> 00:01:08.414 people because we had so much stuff. 00:01:08.634 --> 00:01:12.674 And I am not coming from a place of judgment here on this. 00:01:12.704 --> 00:01:18.914 I'm definitely coming from a place of empathy because I was a overwhelmed by 00:01:18.944 --> 00:01:22.744 too much stuff for a very, very long time. 00:01:22.954 --> 00:01:25.414 And it was so overwhelming and stressful. 00:01:25.954 --> 00:01:31.114 Didn't even know where to begin to try to rectify the situation. 00:01:31.194 --> 00:01:33.854 So, I've definitely made some big strides. 00:01:34.304 --> 00:01:39.884 I am by no means a minimalist, so I'm not going to try to go to that 00:01:40.354 --> 00:01:46.824 extreme, but I've definitely found a sense of calm and just less stress 00:01:46.824 --> 00:01:53.204 and overwhelm in our home by having less stuff and clutter everywhere. 00:01:53.214 --> 00:01:58.464 So here are some interesting statistics about storage units. 00:01:59.094 --> 00:02:07.049 So in the U.S., there are over 50,000 storage unit facilities, which 00:02:07.109 --> 00:02:11.189 equates to about 23 million units. 00:02:11.799 --> 00:02:16.449 So that is a unit for one in every 14 Americans. 00:02:17.089 --> 00:02:24.084 Now those more than 50,000 facilities- this, this is mind blowing to me- that 00:02:24.104 --> 00:02:30.354 is, there are more storage unit facilities in the United States than there are 00:02:30.504 --> 00:02:35.024 McDonald's and Starbucks combined. 00:02:35.714 --> 00:02:39.094 So, if that doesn't tell you that we've got a lot of stuff, 00:02:39.704 --> 00:02:41.824 then I don't know what would. 00:02:42.324 --> 00:02:46.524 So, 54 percent of Gen Xers have a storage unit. 00:02:47.224 --> 00:02:51.714 51 percent of Baby Boomers have a storage unit. 00:02:52.214 --> 00:02:55.804 And only 14 percent of Millennials have one. 00:02:56.064 --> 00:03:02.444 However, last year, they went from 21 percent to 25 percent of the market share. 00:03:02.744 --> 00:03:08.804 As they are becoming older, they are becoming a bigger user of storage units. 00:03:09.304 --> 00:03:15.974 This next stat, I fell into it, so 18 percent of storage unit users 00:03:16.364 --> 00:03:22.948 have a four bedroom or larger home, and 46 percent of storage unit 00:03:22.948 --> 00:03:26.003 users have it for the long term. 00:03:26.073 --> 00:03:30.223 So yes, sometimes people will rent them for 30 or 60 days because 00:03:30.223 --> 00:03:31.683 they're getting ready to move. 00:03:31.953 --> 00:03:36.093 You know, trying to stage their home or whatever, but 46 percent of storage 00:03:36.093 --> 00:03:39.313 unit users have it for the long term. 00:03:39.813 --> 00:03:44.898 So I'm going to go back and tell you about my as I call them storage unit days. 00:03:45.558 --> 00:03:50.628 So when I was pregnant, my husband and I moved into a larger home 00:03:50.628 --> 00:03:52.838 to prepare for, you know, kids. 00:03:53.028 --> 00:03:55.598 At the time we didn't know how many we would end up having. 00:03:55.978 --> 00:04:00.428 So we went ahead and we found this great family home with four bedrooms. 00:04:00.878 --> 00:04:03.278 And we moved in shortly before my son was born. 00:04:03.988 --> 00:04:08.593 And we thought that it had all the space in the world because we came 00:04:08.593 --> 00:04:15.433 from a pretty small little bungalow, but very, very quickly things changed. 00:04:15.633 --> 00:04:21.443 So my son was not only, and still is, the only grandchild on either side. 00:04:21.453 --> 00:04:28.703 So you can imagine the gift overload and kids come with lots of big stuff, right? 00:04:28.703 --> 00:04:29.893 And it takes up a lot of space. 00:04:30.593 --> 00:04:35.753 I also grew up with a dad who didn't like to get rid of things, so I had 00:04:35.753 --> 00:04:41.173 it kind of instilled in me that I could justify some kind of reason 00:04:41.173 --> 00:04:43.593 for pretty much keeping everything. 00:04:43.933 --> 00:04:50.133 It drove my husband crazy, he finally gave up, and the clutter started to build. 00:04:50.633 --> 00:04:52.843 And my mom was a huge gift giver. 00:04:52.863 --> 00:04:57.363 And so when Christmas would roll around I drove a Suburban and my husband 00:04:57.363 --> 00:05:01.603 drove a pickup truck and we would drive separately to their house for Christmas. 00:05:02.213 --> 00:05:03.643 And we still couldn't fit all the stuff in. 00:05:03.663 --> 00:05:08.443 So all of this stuff just starts accumulating in our 00:05:08.443 --> 00:05:10.553 home and taking up space. 00:05:11.053 --> 00:05:15.283 Somewhere during this time when my son was young, we got a storage 00:05:15.283 --> 00:05:18.813 unit right down the road to start putting some of this extra stuff in. 00:05:19.003 --> 00:05:24.373 If I remember correctly, we moved the Christmas decorations to the storage unit 00:05:24.863 --> 00:05:30.533 and out of the garage because the kid toys and the tricycles and all that kind 00:05:30.533 --> 00:05:32.433 of stuff were taking over in the garage. 00:05:32.933 --> 00:05:39.063 And then when my son was like toddler age, I went and stayed with a cousin of mine. 00:05:39.283 --> 00:05:41.713 She didn't have children, just she and her husband. 00:05:42.173 --> 00:05:48.403 And she had two guest rooms upstairs and she told me I was 00:05:48.403 --> 00:05:50.443 welcome to stay in either one. 00:05:50.963 --> 00:05:56.893 But I go up there and not only can you not get to the bed in either room 00:05:56.893 --> 00:06:00.953 because there's so much stuff you have to climb over, I had to turn 00:06:01.023 --> 00:06:05.353 sideways to walk down the hall to get to the bathroom because there was so 00:06:05.353 --> 00:06:07.863 much stuff stacked in the hallways. 00:06:08.253 --> 00:06:14.143 And it was during this time that I really realized I did not want to turn into 00:06:14.243 --> 00:06:19.893 this person that has this much stuff and clutter and overwhelm in their homes. 00:06:19.923 --> 00:06:23.183 And so I started to try to do something about it. 00:06:23.753 --> 00:06:28.043 But it was very, very hard with the constant influx of stuff coming in, 00:06:28.393 --> 00:06:32.833 mostly for us in the way of gifts, but it also came in other ways, 00:06:33.063 --> 00:06:36.233 shopping, buying things you don't need, all of that kind of stuff. 00:06:36.733 --> 00:06:42.178 When my son was, I think he was about four or five, we actually moved to a 00:06:42.178 --> 00:06:47.868 different house and when we moved, I got everything from the storage unit 00:06:47.918 --> 00:06:51.858 because the garage space was a little bigger in this new house and I was like, 00:06:51.928 --> 00:06:53.798 we'll have room for it in the garage. 00:06:54.808 --> 00:06:57.258 Well, very quickly, it overtook the garage. 00:06:57.328 --> 00:07:01.388 I was never able to park in the garage and all of that stuff was there. 00:07:01.448 --> 00:07:06.433 So every time I went in the garage, it was total overwhelm, stress, because 00:07:06.433 --> 00:07:13.143 there was so much stuff, and it was so bad, I didn't see a starting point 00:07:13.183 --> 00:07:18.063 anywhere, and so it just got ignored, and then it continued to build. 00:07:18.563 --> 00:07:22.873 All of this stuff was constantly in my face, it poured over into the house. 00:07:23.423 --> 00:07:29.273 And it was very, very stressful every time you walked into a room or opened 00:07:29.273 --> 00:07:30.823 a closet or any of these things. 00:07:30.833 --> 00:07:37.443 It was just overwhelming, filled with anxiety because there was so much stuff. 00:07:37.443 --> 00:07:39.763 It's almost like a claustrophobic kind of feel. 00:07:40.263 --> 00:07:45.963 So according to Psychology Today, too much stuff, clutter, whichever you want 00:07:45.963 --> 00:07:53.058 to call it, creates a visual stimuli to the brain that work hasn't been completed. 00:07:53.088 --> 00:07:57.698 And that is what causes that anxiety and that overwhelm and that stress. 00:07:58.198 --> 00:08:00.098 And that's exactly how I felt. 00:08:00.118 --> 00:08:02.638 And I'm a checklist person. 00:08:02.688 --> 00:08:04.948 I love to check tasks off my list. 00:08:05.338 --> 00:08:09.478 And so that really made me realize that my brain was having trouble 00:08:09.478 --> 00:08:13.918 processing all of the stuff because my brain likes to know things are done. 00:08:14.238 --> 00:08:18.958 And I was constantly telling my brain that all of this stuff hasn't 00:08:18.958 --> 00:08:24.663 been done and you have all of this to do and overwhelm, it sets in. 00:08:25.163 --> 00:08:30.743 So here are some interesting stats on the mental effects of the clutter. 00:08:31.206 --> 00:08:37.056 If you declutter, you'll reduce your housework time by 40% because when 00:08:37.056 --> 00:08:41.406 you have clutter everywhere, you have to move it to clean around it. 00:08:41.906 --> 00:08:44.996 Productivity is higher in a clutter free space. 00:08:45.166 --> 00:08:46.896 So think of your desk space. 00:08:46.926 --> 00:08:51.036 I have it, you know, being an accountant, there's a lot of paper and so I'll have 00:08:51.036 --> 00:08:54.216 papers everywhere and then sometimes I'll just get to a point where it's too 00:08:54.216 --> 00:08:59.156 much and I have to clean up and kind of start fresh with a clean slate and that 00:08:59.156 --> 00:09:04.096 makes me so much more productive when I have that less cluttered workspace. 00:09:04.998 --> 00:09:11.718 If you have a cluttered bedroom, you are more likely to have problems sleeping. 00:09:11.758 --> 00:09:15.748 So think back to that stimuli to your brain as you're getting in the 00:09:15.748 --> 00:09:19.528 bed, your brain is processing all of this work that hasn't been done. 00:09:19.748 --> 00:09:21.258 And then you're trying to go to sleep. 00:09:21.338 --> 00:09:25.588 So it makes a ton of sense as to why it would hinder good sleep. 00:09:26.088 --> 00:09:27.818 And this one is really interesting. 00:09:27.828 --> 00:09:34.758 So, a cluttered space makes you more likely to make a poor eating choice. 00:09:35.698 --> 00:09:40.318 So, you walk in the kitchen, and you have all intentions of making this big, pretty 00:09:40.318 --> 00:09:46.993 salad, but there's mail and catalogs, and book bags and all these things all over 00:09:46.993 --> 00:09:52.693 the countertop, and so instead of cleaning that up to make space to take all the food 00:09:52.693 --> 00:09:56.863 out of the fridge and prep this salad, you just grab some chips or something else. 00:09:56.973 --> 00:10:02.383 So it makes sense, but it really is crazy how much clutter can 00:10:02.393 --> 00:10:05.383 negatively affect us mentally. 00:10:05.903 --> 00:10:11.123 In fact, people with a cluttered home are 77 percent negative 00:10:11.448 --> 00:10:13.508 more likely to be overweight. 00:10:14.008 --> 00:10:16.418 And here's some other little interesting stats. 00:10:16.768 --> 00:10:22.238 So, 80 percent of the items people keep are items they never use. 00:10:22.598 --> 00:10:26.908 So, go ahead and get rid of that stuff you know you're not going to use. 00:10:27.208 --> 00:10:29.698 Let someone who could use it have it. 00:10:30.198 --> 00:10:34.418 54 percent of Americans are overwhelmed by their clutter. 00:10:34.638 --> 00:10:37.938 Wouldn't be surprised if that's actually higher, but people really 00:10:37.938 --> 00:10:42.698 don't want to admit that their clutter is wreaking havoc on their lives. 00:10:43.073 --> 00:10:45.803 I was in denial for a long time myself. 00:10:46.303 --> 00:10:47.303 And this one's crazy. 00:10:47.673 --> 00:10:54.243 2.7 billion a year is spent on purchasing items that you know you 00:10:54.243 --> 00:10:56.493 already have, but you can't find. 00:10:57.153 --> 00:11:00.023 Because there's so much stuff, you don't know where it is. 00:11:00.143 --> 00:11:05.298 So, the screwdriver, the tape measure that's somewhere in the garage, can't find 00:11:05.298 --> 00:11:08.208 it, off to Lowe's you go to buy a new one. 00:11:08.568 --> 00:11:13.068 And what's really interesting is that financial issues are the 00:11:13.068 --> 00:11:15.788 number one stressor of families. 00:11:16.378 --> 00:11:19.898 And it's interesting to see how as credit card debt and these kinds of 00:11:19.928 --> 00:11:24.958 things have, have increased over the years so has the use of storage units. 00:11:25.438 --> 00:11:29.828 Now, I'm not saying that the increase of storage unit is directly correlated to 00:11:30.098 --> 00:11:34.938 all credit card debt, but it's interesting to see people are buying more and more 00:11:34.938 --> 00:11:40.538 things that they actually can't afford, thus the credit card debt increasing and 00:11:40.538 --> 00:11:47.008 the storage unit, the place to put all that stuff, those are increasing in usage. 00:11:47.168 --> 00:11:51.818 So, the stuff is stressful, money is stressful, and then you're kind 00:11:51.818 --> 00:11:54.258 of commingling them, so to speak. 00:11:54.308 --> 00:11:59.418 So, a lot of times, that stuff that people are purchasing that is actually 00:11:59.418 --> 00:12:03.648 stressing them out, it's also stressing them out from a financial standpoint 00:12:03.748 --> 00:12:05.228 when the credit card bill comes in. 00:12:05.728 --> 00:12:10.518 So, like I said, I can completely relate to that with all of the mental effects 00:12:10.758 --> 00:12:17.268 of the clutter overwhelm, and I finally, finally, finally started to get my arms 00:12:17.268 --> 00:12:19.718 around it when we moved a few years ago. 00:12:20.208 --> 00:12:26.008 So we had to move, home was damage from hurricanes, long story; we actually ended 00:12:26.008 --> 00:12:31.948 up being able to move basically next door, and we didn't know that COVID was about to 00:12:31.948 --> 00:12:37.828 happen, but the move occurred right before COVID, and because of the situation with 00:12:37.848 --> 00:12:43.458 our house, it was not going to be able to be sold we were able to have, I call it a 00:12:43.768 --> 00:12:49.818 slow move, and so we just moved the stop, the furniture that had an exact place, and 00:12:49.818 --> 00:12:53.658 we moved you know, the favorite clothes, the kitchen stuff we used every day. 00:12:53.708 --> 00:12:59.648 So we moved all the stuff we used daily, and then kind of as we found 00:12:59.658 --> 00:13:04.138 things we were missing, we would go and pack up a box and bring it back. 00:13:04.438 --> 00:13:09.058 But at the end of the day, we got the new home, everything in it we needed. 00:13:09.598 --> 00:13:10.728 Nothing we didn't. 00:13:11.208 --> 00:13:17.568 And we went back and there's still so much stuff and I was just overwhelmed. 00:13:17.568 --> 00:13:19.708 I'm like, what are we supposed to do with all this stuff? 00:13:19.718 --> 00:13:24.198 We have everything we need and use in the new home. 00:13:24.428 --> 00:13:28.938 And so we took the opportunity to actually let a charity come 00:13:28.938 --> 00:13:31.468 in and take it all themselves. 00:13:31.528 --> 00:13:34.358 They came multiple truckloads and they got the furniture 00:13:34.358 --> 00:13:35.648 that we weren't going to use. 00:13:35.658 --> 00:13:37.668 They got clothing we weren't going to wear. 00:13:37.948 --> 00:13:40.918 They got sports equipment that my son had outgrown. 00:13:41.208 --> 00:13:46.808 All of these things, they were removed from our clutter overwhelm 00:13:47.258 --> 00:13:50.238 and they went to good use. 00:13:50.568 --> 00:13:52.188 So that's a total win win. 00:13:52.438 --> 00:13:55.268 We have a two car garage in the new house and guess what? 00:13:55.548 --> 00:13:59.263 There are two vehicles comfortably parked in there that you can open 00:13:59.263 --> 00:14:02.683 the doors and walk all the way around because there's not stuff everywhere. 00:14:03.073 --> 00:14:07.863 And it is a really great feeling when it's 30 degrees outside or pouring down 00:14:07.863 --> 00:14:14.013 rain or 95 degrees outside to not have to go outside to get in and out of the car. 00:14:14.113 --> 00:14:21.113 So, just being able to park in the garage now is a huge win from getting rid of all 00:14:21.113 --> 00:14:25.753 that stuff, because had it come to the new house, it would have gone straight 00:14:25.763 --> 00:14:28.213 to the garage and I'd be parking outside. 00:14:28.713 --> 00:14:33.693 So once I was in the new home, I wanted to make sure that I kept it this way. 00:14:34.233 --> 00:14:37.773 I'm not going to say it stays perfect all the time, but nowadays when 00:14:37.853 --> 00:14:42.463 clutter starts to kind of take over, I do something about it immediately. 00:14:42.503 --> 00:14:44.243 So every little action helps. 00:14:44.963 --> 00:14:48.623 One thing I do do is I kind of call it the hanger method. 00:14:49.188 --> 00:14:53.978 So if I buy a new piece of clothing, when I go to put it in the closet, it 00:14:53.988 --> 00:14:57.008 has to go on an already used hanger. 00:14:57.068 --> 00:15:01.598 So something in the closet has to go for the new piece to go in there. 00:15:02.098 --> 00:15:05.658 And I don't know about you, but I get a lot of junk mail catalogs. 00:15:05.728 --> 00:15:08.868 I've tried to go on every one of those lists or whatever you 00:15:08.868 --> 00:15:12.358 can sign up to to stop getting them, but they still keep coming. 00:15:12.758 --> 00:15:17.258 And the allure of them, and it's why they send them, is oh, the cover looks pretty. 00:15:17.258 --> 00:15:19.488 Maybe I need to look through this and see if I need anything. 00:15:20.188 --> 00:15:25.958 But if you don't actively need anything, then don't even look through them. 00:15:26.168 --> 00:15:31.203 Straight to the recycle bin they go, and so that they don't Take up 00:15:31.203 --> 00:15:32.803 a ton of space on your countertop. 00:15:32.803 --> 00:15:37.913 I mean, our old house, we had literally stacks like this tall of catalogs and 00:15:37.913 --> 00:15:41.723 magazines and all of the stuff that we were never going to go through. 00:15:41.953 --> 00:15:43.303 So, go ahead. 00:15:43.383 --> 00:15:45.563 Don't let them become clutter, clutter overwhelmed. 00:15:46.563 --> 00:15:50.573 Don't let them entice you to order something that you don't need that 00:15:50.583 --> 00:15:55.053 then becomes a new form of clutter overwhelm and possibly credit card debt. 00:15:55.173 --> 00:15:58.873 So go ahead and pitch those right off the kitchen counter. 00:15:59.373 --> 00:16:01.323 And this one's pretty hard for women. 00:16:01.393 --> 00:16:07.278 I'm gonna just admit it, but just because it's on sale, doesn't mean you need it. 00:16:07.578 --> 00:16:11.048 So that really applies to the clothes and the shoes and the 00:16:11.048 --> 00:16:12.538 handbags and that kind of stuff. 00:16:12.878 --> 00:16:16.008 I guess it also applies to men and some power tools kind of 00:16:16.008 --> 00:16:20.218 thing, but just because it's on sale doesn't mean you need it. 00:16:20.228 --> 00:16:24.318 If you don't have a reason or purpose for purchasing it, don't. 00:16:24.348 --> 00:16:28.318 It's just going to accumulate dust with the rest of the extra stuff. 00:16:28.818 --> 00:16:33.128 And most of y'all know I'm huge into meal planning, but meal planning or 00:16:33.128 --> 00:16:38.868 shopping with a very specific list of what you need will help keep the overwhelm 00:16:38.878 --> 00:16:43.048 in the pantry, which it can get out of hand and disorganized really fast. 00:16:43.498 --> 00:16:47.638 It will keep you from buying items that end up going bad and you throw 00:16:47.638 --> 00:16:50.858 out because you have duplicates, because the pantry's disorganized, 00:16:50.858 --> 00:16:51.928 because there's so much in there. 00:16:51.968 --> 00:16:57.408 So, being very intentional of the food you purchase and not having too much 00:16:57.458 --> 00:17:00.288 in the pantry or the refrigerator. 00:17:00.478 --> 00:17:05.348 This is another one us ladies are guilty of is the love of our throw pillows. 00:17:05.828 --> 00:17:10.078 So if you love to change out your throw pillows seasonally like I do. 00:17:10.308 --> 00:17:14.708 Now granted I do actually try to make a lot of mine, so it makes this process 00:17:14.708 --> 00:17:21.718 I do a little easier, but I try to only purchase covers instead of full pillows. 00:17:21.988 --> 00:17:27.168 So the linen closet doesn't get overwhelmed with a gazillion seasonal 00:17:27.168 --> 00:17:30.038 pillows that are going to fall out every time you open the door. 00:17:30.298 --> 00:17:33.608 Instead, I have one shelf with neatly folded pillow covers 00:17:33.898 --> 00:17:35.418 that I change those out. 00:17:35.973 --> 00:17:39.543 Throughout the year, and then I don't have all of these throw 00:17:39.543 --> 00:17:41.363 pillows taking up extra space. 00:17:41.753 --> 00:17:45.513 So that's just one example of something that easily takes over closets. 00:17:46.403 --> 00:17:48.653 Christmas decorations can do the same. 00:17:48.663 --> 00:17:53.273 I have a closet that's my Christmas decorations, and every year when I pull 00:17:53.273 --> 00:17:57.873 out my decorations, if there are things in there that I've decided I don't really 00:17:57.873 --> 00:18:02.608 want to use that anymore, I go ahead and donate it right then as I'm pulling 00:18:02.608 --> 00:18:06.128 everything out; it's the start of the Christmas season, somebody else can use 00:18:06.128 --> 00:18:11.088 it, and I get it out of that closet, so that it's just not sitting there 00:18:11.088 --> 00:18:13.528 taking up space and never being used. 00:18:14.028 --> 00:18:19.418 So if you are overwhelmed with your stuff like I was, here are some tips for getting 00:18:19.538 --> 00:18:25.398 started because that starting point, I understand it is a It's so difficult to 00:18:25.428 --> 00:18:30.758 define a starting point, so if you are one of those that has the stacks of catalogs 00:18:30.758 --> 00:18:35.213 and everything on your kitchen counter, walk in there right now, pick them up, and 00:18:35.213 --> 00:18:36.623 take them straight to the recycling bin. 00:18:36.893 --> 00:18:39.503 You are making progress if you do that. 00:18:39.513 --> 00:18:42.093 That one little bitty thing, then you're like, "Oh my gosh, 00:18:42.093 --> 00:18:43.173 I have my countertops back. 00:18:43.173 --> 00:18:43.753 This is great." 00:18:44.043 --> 00:18:47.903 It will motivate you to kind of keep going and do some other things. 00:18:48.403 --> 00:18:54.523 Maybe your garage is overloaded with sports equipment you don't use, strollers 00:18:54.523 --> 00:18:57.633 that you don't use because your kids are too old now, any of those things. 00:18:58.103 --> 00:19:02.143 And I like to, when I'm especially with big items that I'm going to get rid of, 00:19:02.553 --> 00:19:08.063 when I am getting them all together, go ahead and load them in your car. 00:19:08.083 --> 00:19:11.618 And I know we've all driven around with the like small bag of some 00:19:11.618 --> 00:19:14.598 clothes we're going to donate and it rides around for like a year. 00:19:15.048 --> 00:19:19.568 But big items especially, go ahead and load them in your car 00:19:19.828 --> 00:19:24.068 because you can't even pick up groceries until you go unload them. 00:19:25.368 --> 00:19:29.798 Instead of just putting them all in a box or gathering them all together, put it all 00:19:29.798 --> 00:19:33.338 straight in the car and that way the next time you're out and about you're pretty 00:19:33.338 --> 00:19:36.488 much forced to go donate them somewhere. 00:19:36.548 --> 00:19:39.908 And then you've got big items checked off your list. 00:19:40.408 --> 00:19:44.468 And another one is, when you decide to do a declutter task, 00:19:44.858 --> 00:19:47.648 make sure you stay focused on it. 00:19:47.958 --> 00:19:54.108 Don't move those catalogs from the kitchen counter to the dining room table. 00:19:54.168 --> 00:19:55.408 I know it's tempting. 00:19:55.418 --> 00:19:58.468 The dining room table can be a really great catch all because 00:19:58.468 --> 00:19:59.818 you never use it, right? 00:20:00.258 --> 00:20:05.448 So, don't move things from one room to another and then all of a sudden see 00:20:05.448 --> 00:20:08.388 something in that room and be like, "Oh, that's what I'm going to do now." 00:20:08.408 --> 00:20:10.318 And then you never finish any of the tasks. 00:20:10.798 --> 00:20:14.408 So decide a task you're going to do, finish it, and it'll 00:20:14.418 --> 00:20:15.728 motivate you to do another one. 00:20:15.728 --> 00:20:19.328 But don't start a whole bunch of different ones and leave them unfinished 00:20:19.368 --> 00:20:22.478 because it will just frustrate you and you won't start making 00:20:22.478 --> 00:20:24.838 progress on actually decluttering. 00:20:25.338 --> 00:20:29.008 And this one's hard to do because when you get in that mood to purge 00:20:29.578 --> 00:20:32.658 and organize, you're like, "Oh, I'm going to make it look like 00:20:32.668 --> 00:20:34.588 Pinterest or a catalog or something." 00:20:34.598 --> 00:20:38.868 The problem with going and buying bins and baskets before you declutter is, 00:20:39.198 --> 00:20:43.738 one, you will either end up just filling them up with the clutter and trying 00:20:43.738 --> 00:20:45.598 to make it look prettier than it did. 00:20:46.408 --> 00:20:51.428 Or, you'll have a bunch of bins and baskets that don't work for your new 00:20:51.458 --> 00:20:54.728 organization once all the clutter is gone. 00:20:54.968 --> 00:20:59.878 So, it's, it can be hard to do because I love cute baskets too, but wait until 00:20:59.878 --> 00:21:05.168 you have the decluttering stuff done and you know your organizational needs before 00:21:05.168 --> 00:21:07.718 you go spend money on bins and baskets. 00:21:08.218 --> 00:21:12.658 And lastly, if you really need help taking action, there are professional 00:21:12.658 --> 00:21:16.048 organizers out there that will come in and they'll kind of hold your hand 00:21:16.048 --> 00:21:20.428 and force you to ask hard yourself hard questions and get rid of things. 00:21:20.718 --> 00:21:24.908 Maybe you don't need quite that much help; given the accountability partner 00:21:24.908 --> 00:21:27.968 and y'all can hold each other accountable and, you know, go to each other's 00:21:27.968 --> 00:21:29.453 houses and help each other kind of do. 00:21:29.953 --> 00:21:31.233 That's what friends are for, right? 00:21:31.363 --> 00:21:37.623 So it can be a very, very rewarding journey to get rid of 00:21:37.683 --> 00:21:39.713 all the extra stuff in your house. 00:21:40.393 --> 00:21:44.373 Like I said, I am by no means a minimalist now, and my house doesn't 00:21:44.873 --> 00:21:50.753 always look perfect, but I've really, really been mindful of when I start 00:21:50.753 --> 00:21:56.807 to see any kind of clutter that I go ahead and address it before it 00:21:56.837 --> 00:22:03.462 becomes that overwhelm and anxiety and stress of too much stuff everywhere. 00:22:04.682 --> 00:22:09.852 So, if you are one of these people that are like I was, and maybe you even have a 00:22:09.852 --> 00:22:15.612 storage unit really make a plan and start, start with some little things to get you 00:22:15.612 --> 00:22:17.802 motivated to keep doing more and more. 00:22:18.162 --> 00:22:22.822 And the amount of stress and overwhelm it will take out of your life to have a 00:22:22.832 --> 00:22:30.202 home environment and a space that is not cluttered will really change your life.