Maggie Titus | March 27, 2023
Stay Focused. When you're moving, there's a sense of urgency that keeps you motivated and helps you make quicker decisions about what to keep and what to toss. With that moving truck looming in the not-too-distant future, there isn't much time to deliberate. Channeling a similar energy can power you through the decluttering process. (But then take a deep breath and rejoice in the fact that you don't actually have to move at the moment.)
Try the Cardboard Box Test. Unless you're the type of person who unpacks the day they move in (I salute you), then you may be familiar with the fact that some of the items you packed will sit in a box for months, completely untouched, until you finally get around to unpacking them. But the fact that months went by and you never reached for those belongings is pretty telling. Maybe you don't need to keep them at all? If there are items you're thinking about decluttering but are having a difficult time letting go, try this: pack them up in a cardboard box, write a date on the box (it can be three months from now or nine months from now) and set a calendar reminder for yourself on your phone or Alexa. When the day comes, if you haven't already needed to grab any of the items in the box, you can donate them without hesitation.
Break It Down. You don't have to declutter your entire house at once. Take it in chunks—the pantry one weekend, the bedroom closet another. Just set a time constraint for each space and keep the moving mentality in mind.
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