If you’re feeling a bit stressed in your own home, then it may be time to declutter your environment and reap the mental health benefits. Getting rid of excess ‘stuff’ can really have a positive impact on you emotionally, helping you to feel calmer, more relaxed and able to switch off after a busy day.
Mental health benefits of a tidy home
Better focus
Having a cluttered home makes it difficult to concentrate, and also to find what you need. If you work from home, it can distract you from your job too. Getting rid of visual clutter can really help you to focus on the task in hand!
Higher self-esteem
When you’re having difficulty staying organised within your own home environment, you may feel like you’re out of control. By improving your living space, you’ll likely feel happier in yourself and more confident.
More house-proud
For what it’s worth, you’ll likely feel a lot more house-proud if your home is lovely and clutter-free. This means that when guests come round, there won’t be a quick dash to shove everything in cupboards – you’ll just be able to sit back, relax and wait for your guests to arrive.
Improved lifestyle and general wellbeing
For one, it’s much easier to prepare healthy, nutritious meals in an organised kitchen – and you’ll probably enjoy doing it too! People also tend to sleep better when they’re in a tidy environment, as it enables you to fully switch off.
Better relationships
A lot of arguments between families are triggered by mess, especially if it’s one person in particular contributing to the disorder. By working together to get rid of any unnecessary clutter, you could even improve your relationships!
Top tips to declutter your home, once and for all
When you decide to declutter your home, it can be pretty overwhelming – where do you even start?! Rest assured, we’re here to help; we’ve put together our top tips based on our years of experience in the removals industry.
Pick the right time to make a start
There’s no point starting your declutter when you’re exhausted after a long day out, or a tiring week at work. If you can, try to choose a time where you’ve got less planned in your diary for that week, so you’ll have enough energy to really be able to have a good sort out.
If you can, we’d even go as far as booking a few days off work to really set aside some time to make great progress in your clear out. If you’ve used some time off work, you’re more likely to be motivated and more productive, than if you’ve just got in after a busy day!
Break the tasks down into smaller, more manageable sections
Decluttering an entire house takes a lot of time, effort and energy – both physically and mentally, so we’d recommend breaking down your tasks into smaller chunks so that it’s more manageable.
Many people tend to go room by room, often starting with a small room and working your way up to the bigger, more daunting tasks. We’d also suggest making a list of what you’re planning to tackle; even that small action of ticking something off can give you the motivation you need to keep going!
Use the ‘three pile’ method; keep, donate, recycle
The simplest way to sort out your clutter is to separate it into three separate sections; items you wish to keep, those good enough to either donate to charity or sell, and things that need to be thrown away – and recycled, wherever possible.
Once you’ve got your three piles in the room, you can then give your furniture a clean and start putting back those items you’re keeping in a more organised, clutter-free manner (i.e. not overfilling those drawers!). This way, you’re more likely to want to keep your furniture tidy and organised down the line.
If you need to, invest in more storage
If you’re finding that you’re ‘keep’ pile is stacking up and you’ve got a lot of ‘stuff’ out on the side in your home, this may be the perfect time to invest in some savvy storage solutions to keep your items organised and dust-free.
If you’ve got a lot of important paper documents hanging around, it may be worth investing in a filing cabinet to keep everything organised. If you’ve got lots of children’s toys, consider some easy-access storage to keep them tidy, but still accessible on a daily basis.
You might also have some items that go unused for long periods – like bicycles, skiing equipment or even a whole vehicle – you can put them into storage so they aren’t taking up space in your home.
Could you benefit from a helping hand with your decluttering? At Ballards, we have a team of professionals available to help you make a fresh start!
Visit our house clearance page to find out more, or give us a call on 01777 871871.