Today, I’m sharing with you 6 easy things to declutter to simplify your life and get more organized.
I’m a minimalist in every aspect of my life and I absolutely love decluttering, so I wanted to share with you some ideas to get on top of things and bring more peace into your life.
You know that saying, messy environment = messy mind. So let’s see what are some simple things to declutter that will make you more calm when you reduce the unnecessary mess.
Before we dive into today’s topic, I suggest you start small so that you build momentum without feeling overwhelmed. You can add each item on this list to declutter throughout the next 6 days.
And, since minimalism can be quite triggering for some people (as I’ve learned from my previous posts on minimalism), I’m just going to put a little disclaimer right here, these are my suggestions based on what has been working for me.
Minimalism has helped me in many different aspects of my life, one of which is that it helped me keep my life organized and my mind calm. These recommendations may not work for you, and that’s okay.
Now let’s dive in!
1. declutter your wallet
“But when we really delve into the reasons for why we can’t let something go, there are only two: an attachment to the past or a fear for the future.”
― Marie Kondo
The first thing I suggest you declutter to start living a more organized life is your wallet.
I know a lot of people use their wallet as a photo album and a storage space for all their receipts. I remember a girl from my high school who had pictures of more than 10 people in her wallet, all family, and close friends. Think about it, do you ever stop and look at those pictures? Or are you so used to having them that you don’t even notice them anymore?
I’m all about being intentional with your life and the things you do. So, sure keep the items you love having in your wallet, but at least get rid of all the receipts you collected in there. As well as bus tickets, concert tickets, and stuff like that.
You use your wallet every day and the main thing it does is that it keeps your money organized. Ask yourself what kind of relationship you want to develop with money. Just like everything else, money is also energy. Therefore I suggest appreciating your money and making sure it’s organized.
So dedicate 10 minutes today to decluttering your wallet. It’s very beneficial if you want to start getting on top of your finances.
2. declutter your bags/purses
“I felt that days, weeks, months, and years of my life were wasted by the removal of stuff. There were more important things I would rather have been doing. But I continued, and eventually, I felt lighter and freer than I had ever felt in the years of big houses with each room filled to the brim.”
― Lisa J. Shultz
Thing number 2 to declutter is your bag. Or your purse or whatever you use most often.
I rotate between 3 bags and I got into the habit of emptying my bag and decluttering it right when I get home. That way I don’t run around the house searching for things that are supposed to be in my bag next time I go out. Instead, I just put in a few things I need and that’s it.
I’m sure you’ve experienced the situation when you open your bag after a while of not using it and find things in there that you thought you lost or had no idea you even had.
Therefore, in order to live a more organized life, I recommend you get into the habit of decluttering your bags at least once a week.
3. get your email inbox to zero
The next thing to declutter is your email inbox. Dedicate an hour to go through your emails and unsubscribe from all the newsletters that you don’t even read (or leave that for the 6th step).
Personally, I’m only subscribed to a few of my favorite blogs because that’s the only way I get notified when they publish a new blog post.
Every Sunday I go through my inbox and make sure I get it to zero. I answer emails that I need to answer, move important ones in a separate folder, and delete the rest.
The longer you wait to declutter your inbox, the more you’ll have to declutter, and the more you’ll feel overwhelmed.
Tackle the urgent/important emails right away, keep ones you want to keep in a separate folder, and then just delete, delete, delete.
4. minimize your to-do list
“I asked myself, “Who would I be if I weren’t busy? What would be left of my life and me after I removed excess stuff from my home and allowed my day to have unscheduled open spaces?”
― Lisa J. Shultz
The 4th thing to declutter is your to-do list. What I suggest you do is brain dump every task that’s been on your mind lately. Write a list of all appointments you want to schedule, all the repairs you need to do around the house, work-related things you need to do, just everything that’s been on your mind recently that you’ve been meaning to get to.
And then start decluttering.
Everything that you can get done in 5 minutes or less, do it today.
Things that are not important or urgent, eliminate them from your list.
Things that you can get someone else to do for you, feel free to delegate.
And put the important and urgent tasks on your to-do list for the next few days and just get it over with.
Read next:
3 Ways Minimalism Will Make You More Productive
5. declutter your phone
The 5th thing to declutter is your phone. The first step is to delete all the apps you don’t use. Next, if you still think you have too many apps, you can put them in the designated folders. One for social media, one for finances, one for fitness, and so on.
Then, go through your photos and videos. Once a month I transfer all the photos and videos to my laptop and delete them from my phone.
I just love the feeling of having almost nothing on my phone. Plus, I never go through those photos anyway, so why would I keep them? That’s just my opinion.
I also delete messages and all the other things on my phone that I don’t have any use out of.
As I’ve said, if I don’t need something, I remove it.
Whether that’s phone numbers of people I never hang out with anymore, notes I never check, apps I haven’t used in weeks, photos I don’t really like… Delete. Remove. Declutter.
Things to declutter on your phone:
– photos/videos
– notes
– contacts
– apps you haven’t used in months
6. unfollow/unsubscribe (newsletters, social media)
“The first step in crafting the life you want is to get rid of everything you don’t.”
― Joshua Becker
The 6th thing to declutter to give yourself peace of mind is the list of people you’re following or are subscribed to. If someone’s account doesn’t make you feel better, let go of it.
You choose what you let into your life, so be more intentional with it. I’m subscribed to a few YouTubers whose content always makes me do something productive and one ASMR reiki channel that I find relaxing, and that’s all.
Social media things to declutter:
– Instagram
– YouTube subscriptions
– podcasts you haven’t listened to in months
– Facebook (friends, groups, pages)
– email newsletters
The point is, choose what kind of energy and what kind of people you let into your life. Be more intentional when it comes to the way you spend your time.
It’s your life, after all. Make sure you edit it however you want.
Cut some things out, add things that bring you joy, and be more intentional about how you live it.
If you’d like to get more into minimalism, check out these posts I wrote all about minimalism and decluttering:
Minimalism for Beginners: How to Start a Minimalist Lifestyle
10 Things I Stopped Buying as a Minimalist
15 Things I Don’t Buy Anymore (pt. 2)
Until the next time,
Ivana
decluttering ideas minimalism minimalist lifestyle minimalist tips
Awesome declutter tips!! I love it!!!