What IS Clutter?
(When You Know, Your Clutter Control
Is Much Easier) 

Most people have significant misconceptions about clutter; your clutter control will be much easier when you understand what it really is.

Most of us lead lives with too much clutter, too many obligations, too many activities, too much information, too many emails, text messages and voice mails, and way too much stuff.

When we wake up in the morning, we often feel like we’re already behind because we are so overwhelmed.

Whether you have jam-packed drawers or attics, cluttered closets, unwanted gifts you have been given by people you love, things you have been saving ‘just in case’ or for when your kids grow up, a basement of unfinished projects, or expensive, beautiful things that you no longer use, all of this stuff is no longer serving you.

You may break out in a cold sweat at the very thought of someone dropping in to visit…or maybe it takes you a stressful two weeks just to get ready for planned company.

And when you’re a small business owner or entrepreneur, you may also have clients that you don’t really like working with, piles of papers covering your desk, overflowing or disorganized filing cabinets, and lots of business building books, tools, and programs that you no longer use – all this stuff is no longer serving you, either.

And that’s because when something is no longer serving you and the person you are today (and the person you want to be tomorrow), it is actually holding you back from becoming that person. In that case, every single time, it is clutter (and for most people, it’s about 75% of what surrounds them.)

Clutter Is Not Always Obvious

You may also think that clutter is obvious, like piles of junk in the attic or stacks of untidy boxes in the garage or hundreds of newspapers covering the floor of the living room.  

And yes, I certainly consider that clutter.

But what I’ve often seen is that the most impactful clutter is invisible. It may be organized beautifully. It may be expensive and have sentimental value. It may once have held a place of great honor in your home or your business or in your heart. Yet it is still clutter, even though it doesn’t have a big yellow sign on it that says ‘I am clutter.’

It may be friendships that no longer support you, even though they are nice, loving, caring people.

In many cases, the clutter is non-tangible, like being on a committee that you used to love, but now completely drains your energy. Or a hobby that doesn’t give you that zest for life that it once did.

The psychology of clutter means that when something is no longer serving you and the person you are today (and the person you want to be tomorrow), that clutter control is actually holding you back from becoming that person.

And in that case, every single time, it is clutter. To have clutter control, you need to learn to let go of each time.

Types of Clutter

So for clutter control, understand the types of clutter and how they are impacting you...you'll be much more motivated to clear it all out!

---