9 Reasons to Declutter – TPW455

Let's talk about some very good reasons to declutter your space, your time, and your mind. Decluttering can lead to better peace of mind and free up time for what really matters Maybe it’s just me, but this time of year I am thinking about simplifying my life, which in my case led me to think more about decluttering--purging my space, my schedule, and my mind of stuff that’s not adding value to my life.   We’ve talked about dealing with clutter in previous episodes. Check out, for example, episode 163, where we talked about Clutter, Stress & Simplicity, episode 83, where I talked about The Art of Decluttering with friends and fellow podcasters in France and Israel, and episode 277, where we looked at 10 Things to Declutter. We’ll link to these episodes--and others where we talked about clutter--in the show notes in case you’re looking for more inspiration.  This week, let’s take a very quick look at some good reasons to declutter. I'm mostly talking about decluttering our physical space, but the same applies to our digital life, our calendars, and every other area of our life in a day and age where “more is better” seems to be the guiding principle.  What is clutter? “Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor, it’s anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living.” ~ Peter Walsh Decluttering doesn’t require you to get rid of everything and live in sparse, spartan surroundings or even to become a minimalist. Maybe a better way to think of it is simplifying your life by simplifying your space.  Remember, too, that one woman’s clutter is another woman’s treasure. In other words, whether something constitutes clutter is very situational, depending on the person and the circumstances. 9 good reasons to declutter One: You'll save time for what matters most to you The less stuff you own, the less time you have to spend caring for it, cleaning it, moving it to clean around and under it, looking for it Two: You can foster peace of mind, even in a busy life Consider the impact of cluttered space on our minds. An article on an Australian website for physicians discussed various studies regarding the effects of clutter on our minds: “The visual distraction of clutter increases cognitive overload and can reduce our working memory.” “Clutter can make us feel stressed, anxious and depressed. Research from the United States in 2009, for instance, found the levels of the stress hormone cortisol were higher in mothers whose home environment was cluttered. A chronically cluttered home environment can lead to a constant low-grade fight or flight response, taxing our resources designed for survival.  This response can trigger physical and psychological changes that affect how we fight bugs and digest food, as well as leaving us at greater risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.” . . . People who sleep in cluttered rooms are more likely to have sleep problems, including difficulty falling asleep and being disturbed during the night.”