Is It Hard for You to Get Rid of Things?

For those that find decluttering a challenge, these techniques might move you in the right direction.

One of the most popular categories of posts on Between Carpools are our organizing tips. And lots of those tips involve helping you get rid of stuff.

From knowing what makeup to toss, to teaching your child to organize his/her own backpack using the SPACE system (it’s a good technique for anyone!), to organizing those toys (yes, it involves purging first), to Shulamis Weil’s tips on what to do BEFORE you buy those bins or containers (yes, more purging). Even back in 2017, when Marie Kondo was a thing, we loved throwing things out. 

We all know the light feeling we have after we clear out that closet. We know how good it feels. It clutters the mind to keep looking at things that you will “one day” use. 

But what if it’s hard for you? These techniques might help. 

1. Make a “One Day” Box. 

If it’s really hard for you, remove it to a “One Day” box in the attic with a date on it. If you don’t use any of the items within “X” time, donate or get rid of it. Determine for yourself how long you are going to give yourself. Taking this step gives you the bonus of having items out of the way, without the tossing anxiety. BUT–if you use this technique, don’t keep that box in the attic. It must go on the date you listed!

2. Crafts/Projects/Letters Solution.

When we shared the ‘One Day’ box on social media, a BCP reader asked about paper-based items that are hard to part with–and we have two solutions. There’s already posts with instructions on these two methods here on BCP. One, create a file box to store a curated selection of kids projects and memories (i.e. the ones with the cute photos or those report cards they’re so proud of). 

The second solution is to scan items and save digitally, not physically. If you have an iPhone, you can use your phone to scan items into PDF files easily; the instructions are in this post.

3. Mail Solutions

Most mail these days is, let’s face it, junk. But when you don’t deal with it immediately upon bringing it in, it adds up and overwhelms you. One, bring the mail in at the time that you are ready to sort it. You MUST get rid of the junk immediately. Place dates and locations of simchas on your calendar. And add anything that’s actionable to your planner/ to-do list (i.e. forms to fill out, bills to pay). One of us has one small box in a downstairs closet for “any random papers in the house.” It’s only that one spot that any random papers left around end up. If anyone is missing something, they know where to look. If there ends up being mail you don’t deal with, it ends up there. But, because the box is not so big, it must get emptied and dealt with every one or two weeks and it doesn’t get out of hand.