The Art of Organizing: Tackling Little to Mild Clutter like a Pro (with 3 Expert Tips)
This blog post is for you if you’re living your best life with all the conveniences, softness, and peace that come with minimal clutter, have spent years perfecting your space and want to keep it that way.
The 3 tips I’m sharing are a sort of warning. Cause joyful consumption can quickly turn into clutter. So, depending on where you are in life, these tips can help prevent or mitigate when your things get the best of your space (which is the opposite of luxury).
So, what is Little to Mild Clutter?
If you have a clean space but have hidden bouts of disorganization, you have little to mild clutter. Having little to mild clutter also means you don’t play about protecting your peace cause in order to maintain a clean, comfortable, and organized home, strong boundaries are required. Of course this doesn’t mean things are perfect, it just means you’re closer to living in your home goals then you’ve ever been. And the backdrop of these tips is to focus on being unapologetic about doing what’s best for you and your household.
Now for your your first Spring Cleaning task or tip that you can apply all year round:
Spring Cleaning Task #1
Mindfully shop
I’m talking to you if you live minimally by choice but can easily go wild on the organizing products, or just stuff in general. You might’ve been there, done that and you’re slowing down cause you realize none of that stuff matters. When you can purchase whatever you want, it is easy to not think about why you’re really buying something, try this:
Get real about your true intentions (and values) because you know deep down that you don’t need anything. You can momentarily get caught up in the Amazon finds or GRWM like anybody else. Cause if you’re being real, something happened that triggered something in you and now you need to remedy it with retail therapy. Before making a purchase make sure that’s not happening. And if you find yourself making an impulsive purchase but decide against it, don’t think of it as limiting a joyful moment, see it as a preventative measure that could disrupt the peace in your home. Don’t be afraid to be highly selective about what you bring into your space.
Spring Cleaning Task #2
Take inventory of purchases
Living into your values is a concept I picked up from Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead where she tells us to use our values as guideposts to all our decisions. Although clutter is not your current issue, you still can’t be too careful with how irresistible overconsumption is which is one of the main paths to a cluttered home, so, try this:
Pick one room, drawer, or bin to review everything you purchased last year. Then, take inventory of how often you used an item in the last 6-12 months. I have a free tool to help you do this, it’s my Life Inventory worksheet, which is a part of my Organize My Life mini-course. If you click here you’ll get the Life Inventory worksheet for free!
Spring Cleaning Task #3
Pack a give-back box
If you do find yourself with more clutter than you’d like but you’re not sure what to do with it, I have a three-in-one tip for you. We’re human so of course we get caught up with Amazon, that site really has all of us in a chokehold. Instead of letting your recycle pile up or let hidden bouts remain hidden, try this instead:
Go to GiveBackBox.com, look up different charities you’d like to donate
Purchase the shipping label for the specific charity/cause
Then gather those items and fill up an Amazon box
Drop off your Give-back box of donations to any Khols location
Why Aunt Viv?
It's a blessing to be able to buy what you want when you want for yourself or your loved ones. You’re experiencing a reality your parents didn’t have. Andd, having a healthy balance between things coming into your home and leaving is how you keep clutter at bay.
I use Aunt Viv from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to represent a woman who doesn’t play about her family or having order in her home. She’s fierce, unapologetic, and has clear boundaries. These qualities are what I believe are a result of clearing out your mental, emotional, and physical clutter.
Maybe you’re starting a family, expanding one, moving to a more senior role, or getting serious about your mental-emotional health. Regardless, all of these are interconnect with your personal space and will ultimately dictate how you manage it. Aunt Viv is who Joan is working towards. So, use the essence of Aunt Viv to focus on standing 10 toes down in the boundaries necessary to maintain your space (and peace of mind).
Now, Let’s Summarize
Your Spring Cleaning tasks or year-round focus are:
Mindfully shopping- get real about your true intentions (and values) because you know deep down that you don’t need anything.
Take inventory of purchases- Pick one room, drawer, or bin to review everything you purchased last year. Then, take inventory of how often you used an item in the last 6-12 months. Download the free Life Inventory worksheet here to help.
Pack a give-back box- go to GiveBackBox.com, look up different charities you’d like to donate to, and pack your Amazon box with old clothes, shoes, and accessories
For Additional Support?
Whether you’re a student, mom, business owner, or someone diving deeper into the organization world, the Master Plan offers personalized guidance, clear direction, and the right tools for you. It’s like a rite of passion for productivity. With strategy, reassurance, and concrete steps toward your home goals, my virtual organizing program will help you make exponential steps in your space. Here’s what you get in the Master Plan:
Two 60-minute 1-on-one sessions with just you and me *or another organizer
Access to our monthly meetings with others in the Master plan, me, *and/or expert organizers
Ability to ask questions live on Zoom with myself or another organizer
plus after completing the program you’ll:
emerge refreshed and restored
have a newfound confidence in your home
have more patience for yourself and your household
be more grounded and assured of your boundaries
You can purchase the Master Plan as a monthly program or make a one-time payment to join.
And if you want to learn more about my virtual organizing program and its other plans, click here.
Hey you, I’m Rebekah
I'm a home therapist or professional organizer lol. And I’m a proud member of your home goals support system.
I create home-organizing tools for women who want to break generational curses. I help them declutter with intention so they can create a safe home. I’m on a personal mission to help Black women and families (me and mines included) have more structure, order, and peace in our homes. Welcome to the revolution.
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