20 Reasons Decluttering Should Be A Priority, Starting With Financial Freedom And The Environment

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Decluttering is hard, there is no doubt about it, finding the time is a challenge, but the benefits are huge and life changing, so why are you putting it off?

I started on my journey of decluttering my life and mind two years ago during a career break. Juggling an executive career and young family I’d never been able to get to it. I wasn’t quite prepared for the emotional impact of having to face up to my past behaviours, all the excess stuff I had bought over the years often fuelled by missplaced beliefs about what I thought I NEEDED or SHOULD have to be happy in life.

The benefits are MASSIVE and it is this reason that I am compelled to help others on this journey.

  1. Financial freedom: Being stuck in a job you hate to fund mortgage payments on a larger house that you moved to for extra storage space for your excess belongings is not a place you want to be! If you’ve ever staged your property for sale you may have spent several weeks wondering why you hadn’t always lived that way. It is possible, when you only keep the things that you really need and love.

  2. Environment: the damage we are doing to our planet from overconsumption is ENORMOUS, changing our attitude towards consumption requires us to declutter so that we can recognise past habits and make a change for the long term. We owe it to our children.

  3. Productivity : Ability to concentrate and productivity are significantly reduced when you can’t find things or are distracted by clutter.

  4. Career or life goals: Increased productivity and focus will enable you to achieve things that you couldn’t before.

  5. Reduce family stress levels: Stress levels are much lower when everything has its place and can easily be found by all family members.

  6. Freedom: When you are confronted with looking at your excess and recognising the behaviours that led to this you will change your attitude towards purchasing for the long term. Understanding that it is not your stuff that defines you but what’s inside will give you an amazing sense of freedom.

  7. You will buy less going forward: When you have enjoyed living in a fully decluttered home you will not want to go back, you will question whether you need things and you will buy less. You will also buy less duplicates as you will be able to find your stuff.

  8. Curating your home: getting rid of your clutter gives you the opportunity to curate your home to be somewhere that is visually appealing, that stimulates your senses and where you can truly relax.

  9. More time: managing the excess in our life consumes time, shopping time, finding stuff time, tidying up time, distraction time. Time that you could be using to do things that actually bring you happiness and wellness.

  10. Letting go of the past: sometimes it can be hard to move on when we are reminded of the past by the things that are around us. Life changes like divorce, death, marriage, birth, moving house bring with them the opportunity to reassess and take only the things we really need and love into our future.

  11. You will feel happier: the burden of our clutter weighs us down, removing this will make you feel happier and lighter day to day.

  12. Role modelling to our children: Children form habits during childhood. Teaching children healthy habits towards spending, consumption and organising are life skills that will set them up well for the future.

  13. More money to spend on things that can actually change your life: Many people choose to spend money on buying more material things thinking this will make them happy. Owning less frees up more money to spend on understanding yourself, working out your goals and passions and developing yourself to be the best version of you.

  14. Build empathy for others: When you have stopped and looked at your own behaviours and understood them, you will recognise similar behaviors in others. This can help you be more empathetic and supportive in helping others in their own journey.

  15. Sleep: decluttering your home and life from the things that distract you will help you sleep better.

  16. Exercise: it has been shown that people who live in less cluttered environments are more likely to exercise regularly.

  17. Nutrition: Having an organised and uncluttered kitchen is more likely to encourage you to cook healthy meals and eat less takeaway.

  18. Relationships: Clutter creates stress and stress within your home can damage relationships with partners and children.

  19. Charity: If you think about all the time effort and resources that went into making something that you are not using, it’s such a waste. Knowing that you are giving away the things that you don’t use to people who value them is a great feeling.

  20. Less cleaning: Yes please! Less dust gathering items on your surfaces and floors results in a significant (25%+) reduction in the time taken to clean. My cleaner loves me as she can do her job properly and clean deeply in areas she never used to have time to get to.