It can happen in any room, in or out of your home or office. Overtime, the problem piles up with the accumulation of more stuff—or clutter. When you start to feel the walls closing in or that you’re drowning under unorganized belongings, it’s time to declutter. Luckily there are plenty of decluttering methods that help clear and organize the space. Pick the method that’s right for you and start enjoying the freedom of fresh air in an open area.

The Key to Clearing Clutter

Cleaning any space can become overwhelming, especially if the room is packed with stuff. Clearing the space doesn’t have to happen overnight. Make it a progressive process by going room by room, item by item. The key is to start somewhere. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help.

1. Assess. Consider the room you’re about to declutter. What’s it’s purpose and design layout? This will help you prioritize what should stay or go. For instance, a foyer closet should have hanging space for in-season coats and shelves to organize accessories. Make sure anything needed now is within reach. Removing clutter creates a more functional space that’s visually appealing.
2. Sort. The most common form of decluttering is identifying items that you want to keep, donate, and discard. Organize anything you want to keep by season and function. Store items you won’t need this season. Sell or donate stuff you won’t use again. Discard whatever is broken or unfixable.
3. Organize. Everything should have its place. Designate specific areas in appropriate rooms for clothes, tools, decor, and more.

Some items are easier to get rid of than others. The desire to hold on to something “just in case” or for sentimental reasons can be the start of a clutter. But there are several methods many people have adopted to help sort through piles and make a decision about an item.

Decluttering Methods

If you’re torn on whether a certain item should go back in the room or out on the curb, try one of these methods that range from making a split decision to a more comprehensive approach to decluttering.

• Five Second Rule. If you can’t immediately decide to keep an item, it’s probably something worth giving up.
• 10-10 Method. Spend 10 minutes getting rid of 10 items from a specific area. Adjust this method to fit your time frame. Have an extra five minutes? Get rid of five items.
• 12-12-12 Method. Choose 12 items to keep, 12 to donate, and 12 to throw away. You can also associate this rule to the day of the month. For instance, on the first, get rid of one item, donate one item, and keep one item.
• 50% Rule. For rooms with a lot of clutter, make it a goal to reduce half of what’s there, either by donating, selling, or trashing.

Setting a timer and decluttering until the buzzer goes off gives you less opportunities to overthink things and helps optimize your time.

If you’re looking for more structured decluttering techniques, try these:

• KonMari Method. Focus on a specific category (clothes, books, papers, and sentimental items) and keep only items that “spark joy”.
• Swedish Death Cleaning. Keep in mind that no one wants to go through all your belongings once you’re gone. Decluttering now helps minimize the burden on surviving loved ones.
• One In, One Out. For every new item you acquire, remove one from your home or office.
• Reverse Hanger Trick. When decluttering your closet, turn hangers backward. Once you wear an item, turn the hanger the other way. Any hanger than remains backward at the end of the season is a candidate for donation.

By regularly decluttering and maintaining organized spaces, there’s less of a chance you’ll be drowning in stuff any time soon. If you still find yourself overwhelmed, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Family and friends are good sounding boards for helping to sort. You can also host swap events to get rid of items you no longer use.

When it comes time to get rid of piles from your rooms JDog Junk Removal & Hauling is also here to help. Contact 844-GET-JDOG to schedule a pickup of anything you want to let go of. We make it a point to donate and recycle as many items as possible to keep landfills clear. From large appliances and furniture to yard waste and scrap metal, we’ll help declutter your residential or commercial spaces, indoors and out.