5 Ways to Declutter for a Move When You Don’t Have Time
Mayhap you’re a military spouse or working mother facing a move. Mixed emotions can deplete your energy and enthusiasm. The sheer amount of stuff you have has you feeling overwhelmed and unsure where to start.
DECLUTTERING – the place to start
There’s nothing worse than boxing up all the piddly stuff then taking it to your new home only to realize ⅔’s of it you don’t love or use! You only kept it because you didn’t know what to do with it.
That’s a lot of expensive real estate in your new home (or storage unit) when you drag past clutter with you!
You’ll make the actual move, along with unpacking/new home set-up, easier if you first declutter for a move. Use these 5 ways and you’ll breeze through.
Declutter for a move roadmap
1. Mindset – Practice the REFRAME technique
Louise Hay says, “It’s only a thought, and a thought can be changed.”
Focus on the positives for your move.
Declutter your mind by observing your thoughts. Switch negative thoughts to positive motivating thoughts.
Procrastination will melt away, along with a dumpster of weighty clutter.
Example: Anxiety Thought: “I should go through all the clothes and donate some of them, but I don’t have time.”
REFRAME: “I choose to go through one drawer of clothes for 10 minutes and donate 5 items. I’ll be giving new life to those less fortunate and making room for our new life. This is exciting!”
2. Baby Step it!
I don’t know about you, but when I plow ahead, determined to change something about my life or self, I start out strong at 7am! Only to lose momentum by 11.
Start with baby steps and short blocks of time, even 10 minutes. You’ll make better progress if you choose to empty one bookshelf instead of the entire bookcase.
Start a donation box and resolve to fill it, coming back to it with each daily declutter.
3. Limit your decisions
Make one decision: Keep or Get Rid Of
To Let go of things, ask yourself:
- Who do we want to be in our new home?
- Do I want to unpack this again?
Declutter Actions:
- Take a photo of nostalgic items and let go of the item itself
- Declutter 10 things a day
- Put Donations in your car – drop off on your next errand run
- Find boxes that you never unpacked from your last move? Out they go
- List to Sell items on:
- Craigslist.org
- ebay.com
- Local Facebook online tag sales
- Letgo.com (US only)
3. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
It’s tempting to dump a drawer of small stuff into a box or bag, delaying the sorting for when you are at the new house.
Instead, I recommend making a commitment to let go of as much of the piddly stuff as you can. What you keep, sort into snack/sandwich size plastic zip bags. At your new home, you’ll only need to unpack and assign homes for small pieces.
- Put furniture hardware in a labeled plastic zip bag – tape to furniture
- Set a timer and race through a declutter session
- Don’t get lost in the details
5. Engage Help
- Get your spouse, kids, family and friends decluttering/packing
- Lineup playdates so you’re kid-free to focus on the move
- Hire a professional organizer, like me, for an stress-free move
When I work with clients on a move, I give the big picture strategy, so they can focus on important decisions. I work on client moves in-person and via Skype. I support them step-by-step helping with the entire move start to finish.
You may think, “But I can’t afford to hire a professional to help for my move. I’ll just do it myself.”
Guess what? The money you’ll save from not having to shell out for a storage unit, hire for last minute concerns or pay in emotional stress is mind boggling!
My biggest tip for undertaking a move –
Don’t do it alone!
Your turn! Share your best tip to declutter for a move.
This is a RIGHT-ON-TIME article, Jul’s! We’re a military family preparing for move #5 to take place in the next 30 days or so, and thus, it’s time to seriously declutter before we pack up. I love the idea of reframing how I approach the process and limiting my decisions. Just those two tweaks alone have been really helpful in jumping into decluttering and deciding what will actually go with us. Thanks for the decluttering sanity!!!
I love it! Decluttering Sanity!!! You are so welcome Cachet and good luck with the move!!!
i went through a HUGE decluttering/transition when we moved from washington state to idaho 4 years ago. it was intense. i’m a memory keeper, and i parted with many many things that tore me apart emotionally (especially related to my beloved late mom and my 2 now-grown sons). it was hard, very hard. but . . . i was extremely happy as a result, when it was time to pack up our belongings and move from the u.s. to italy last october. i don’t think i’ve ever experienced an easier move (even though technically it was the most difficult). i still marvel at that! 🙂
I feel proud for you April with that Huge decluttering and move! I can only imagine how wonderful it must have felt to at least have the packing be so much easier because of your previous move 4 years prior helping you decide what really mattered to keep in your home. It’s amazing how much “stuff” we all accumulate—even me, and I am not a packrat, but I too, as a mama, can get into the memory keeping. I shall have to post some strategies for that! Thanks for your comments as always!
So agree with #2 and #5. Last minute packing and decluttering can be stressful. Great tips on starting small and planing ahead, and that give us more time to communicate with friends and family for support, so we will have the moving under control and not to get stress out.
You and I are the same wavelength Erin! I am not a massive planner like some peeps I know, but for things I don’t do often…move…I can get anxious about the mountain of unknowns, so doing a little bit even now, when I am not planning a move…makes me feel more free!
LOVE this Jul’s! One of the things I’ve found fun to do in the past is to challenge myself to declutter 100 items. That totally changes the focus of the decluttering and it becomes a bit of a game. I wish I’d read this post before my last move!
Oh I love your personal challenge! 100 items, I am up for that 😉 I play games with myself all the time….and hmmmn I don’t mean it that way lol! But I have a bit of a rebel in me…the side that doesn’t want to organize or tidy or do the “shoulds” so making games out of my tasks can keep me doing and with a spirit of fun!
Jul’s, my mind is BLOWN!! These are awesome tips that apply to more than just a move. You just made me make a mental mindshift in general – and I’m not even moving. I love the timer idea!! It’s amazing how much one small 60 second burst of organizing and decluttering can do for the soul!! Wonderful post as always!!!
I am so happy you found my post helpful! Indeed, we don’t have to wait for a move to help us make mind shifts and declutter mentally and physically. Thank you for your kindness!
Such great advice, Jul’s! I know I paid to ship boxes with stuff that needed to just be thrown out. Such an expensive waste! I wish I had read this before I packed!
Also, I love this advice even for a regular cleaning practice around the house – especially setting a timer and being very honest about what you have and what can go. I have 3 sets of measuring cups – one is melted. I know what I need to do. Maybe I’ll go set a timer now… 🙂
You go Sue! Melted measuring cups…I agree set 3 could use a new home…elsewhere! Timers can motivate many of us. I use mine frequently to get started organizing or decluttering on days I feel like procrastinating.
Great list Jul’s. I especially appreciate the idea of changing the mindset. In my old career I moved 7 times in 15 years. It was a great way to keep decluttered. Now I’ve been in the same place for 4 years with no intention of going anywhere and I’m realizing how easily things stack up over time. I’m going to try the do one drawer and donate 5 things trick. Love it!
Hey Christy! Yes it is amazing how things seem to stack up without our even noticing. Seems like when we have space, we fill it, sometimes with what ends up being clutter. Excited to hear your going to do one drawer…woo hoo! Donate to a lighter life!