I have been doing a lot of organizational/clutter clearing jobs lately and what I am noticing and responding to is too much stuff is being kept on hand. Everything from cans of soup to shopping bags to Christmas decorations to shoes. When there is proper storage space for all of our stuff, there may not be a problem. But when our overstock of canned goods are being stored in the laundry, that is a sign that there is just too much.
Sandy called me because she was overwhelmed. It sounds funny, but she did not know what to cook for dinner. She would go to the supermarket every day, often to Costco, while her kitchen cupboards, cabinets, and refrigerator were over stocked with food. I realized that her anxiety over dinner was a direct result of having too much on hand. It seemed easier to buy something new every day then try to go through her crowded cabinets. We organized her pantry and cabinets so that all like products were grouped together to make it easier to see what she had and how many she had. Considering her family and lifestyle, we then determined what would be an adequate number of each item to keep on hand.
- I used to think that happiness was a full pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. But cans expire, produce rots and old freezer food burns, …money and resources wasted. With few exceptions, my rule of thumb is to keep a week’s worth of food inventory on hand. Reserve a day to plan the week’s meals. Keep a shopping list and shop from it when you go to the store. When shopping in bulk at places like Costco, be mindful of your goods-to-storage ratio!
Visiting my daughter Sarah when she was a sophomore in college, I noticed that she had ten boxes of brownie mix. I asked her if the supermarket had a buy 10 for 10 dollars deal, to which she laughed and nodded her head. My client Susan had 10 cans of pineapple slices on her shelf…apparently not an uncommon problem.
- Do not be fooled by those supermarket discounts! You can still get the discount even if you buy two boxes instead of all ten. Buy what you need or what makes sense for you or your family.
When organizing Tony’s cluttered family room, I realized that valuable storage space was taken up by an excess of magazines. He was storing magazines on shelves, in cabinets, in places that were not easily accessible, and as a result, not reading them and creating more clutter.
- Have magazine and newspaper subscriptions for the amount you really read. If you are receiving new issues before reading ones you have, it is time to cut down and cancel. You can always go online to read and research. Donate to your local library. Cut out the articles you want to save – you do not need to keep the whole magazine!
Amy had too many clothes for her closets and drawers. Clothes covered the floor, were piled all over her room, and spilled in to other rooms. Moreover, her 3 month old baby had twice the amount of clothes she could possibly wear crowded into a small closet.
- If the clothes you have do not fit in your drawers or closets easily, then you have too much and it is time to donate or discard. It is said that people wear 20% of their clothes 80% of the time. Buy only what you have room for. For example, if you have room for three pairs of black shoes in your closet, and you buy a new black pair, then REPLACE one of the old pairs.
Whether we realize it or not, our mind is constantly accounting for our things. When we have less to account for, we free up space and energy in our selves along with our surroundings. When we start to downsize, there is a change in energy and movement is created. I have seen clients lose weight, take on new projects, and feel lighter with clarity and control.
