How to Set Up a Customized Decluttering Plan

Finding a way to keep your home neat instead of messy can be a tall order for any busy person to fill. That is why you need a decluttering system. A way to keep this task on the forefront of your daily to-do list so your home stays free of mess and chaos going forward.

How to declutter with a plan and a system in place that will put things on auto-pilot.

Do you often struggle with clutter in your home? Does it feel like it’s taking up too much time, energy, and space to try and find solutions that will help keep things neat and organized? If you’re nodding your head right now, then you’re certainly not alone – many people are experiencing the same issue. That is why today we’re going to set you up with tips on how to set up an effective decluttering system for your home.

Use this tailored approach to decluttering so you can stay one step ahead of the chaos. From a comprehensive sorting strategy to where best to make donations, this article will walk through everything you need to know about creating a stress-free environment.

What is a decluttering system?

A decluttering system is a plan that is custom-tailored to your time of life and the state of your home right now. It allows you to incorporate decluttering as a daily habit, allowing you to stay one step ahead. Just like making the bed, doing a little clean-out of the excess stuff every day will help you to keep your home neater and more organized.

How to Set Up a Decluttering System

Before we begin, there is a bit of prework we will need to do first. Grab a notebook and pen and answer the following questions.

#1. On a scale of 1-10, how cluttered is your home now?

The higher the number, the more clutter you have to work on. This will better help you understand how intentional you will need to be with your plan and our focus going forward.

#2. How much time you can dedicate to decluttering?

If you listed a high number in the previous question, you will want to specify more time here. As a guide, use this:

For numbers ranging from 1 to 3, plan on 10 minutes a day declutteirng.
For numbers ranging from 4 to 7, plan on 15 minutes a day decluttering.
For numbers ranging from 8 to 10, plan on 20 minutes a day decluttering.

No matter what your daily total time is, you can break it down into easier bite-sized pieces. So, if you need to do 20 minutes of decluttering daily, you can do three 7-minute work sessions.

#3. What key areas in your home need decluttering?

Rather than doing your entire home at once, it is best to plan out the main areas you want to focus on first. List out three rooms that you want to really work on over the next month. List them out in the order of importance and put your focus on just one room before moving on to the next. This will help you to make progress, motivating you to keep going. Progress is the key driver to folks cleaning out their entire homes from start to finish.

#4. What makes clutter accumulate in your home?

All homes have areas that tend to get messy routinely. I call these clutter hot spots, and knowing where they are can help you to stop the mess from taking over your room.

a blue basket filled with mail and random papers on a wood counter

A few clutter hot spots and easy solutions:

The counter in your kitchen – put a shallow basket for holding random papers and incoming mail.
The table next to your chair in the family room – use a hanging tote to hold books or magazines you are reading.
The nightstand in your bedroom – use a pretty tray to hold lotions, lip balm, and tissues.
The top of your dresser – use an organizer to hold changed, misc items, and receipts.

Easy Solutions for Clutter Hotspots

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Create a Decluttering Plan

Now that you know where you are, let’s set up a plan to get you and your home where you want it to be.

Choosing a method that works for you

There are different ways to declutter, and choosing the one that will work best for you all depends on how to think and approach projects. Let’s look at a few of the most common.

Minimalism

One of the most popular decluttering methods is minimalism. This approach focuses on owning fewer possessions and reducing excess clutter in your home. It encourages you only to keep things that add value to your life, whether it be practical or sentimental. Minimalism also promotes a sense of mindfulness, making intentional choices about what to keep and what to let go. It can be a great way to free yourself from the burden of excess stuff and create more space and clarity in your home.

The KonMari Method

We’ve all heard of Marie Kondo, the Japanese organizing consultant who became famous for her decluttering method known as the KonMari Method. This approach centers around the idea of keeping only items that “spark joy” and discarding those that do not. By focusing on what brings you happiness and letting go of items that no longer serve a purpose, this method can help create a more joyful and organized living space.

a woman in a teal shirt smiling at herself in a mirror

Swedish Death Cleaning

While the name may sound morbid, Swedish death cleaning is actually a thoughtful and proactive approach to decluttering. The idea behind this method is that you should declutter not just for yourself but also for your loved ones.

By going through your possessions and getting rid of items that hold no sentimental or practical value, you are making things easier for those who will have to sort through your belongings after you’re gone. It’s a way to reduce the burden on your loved ones and leave behind only meaningful items.

Declutter in Minutes

Declutter in Minutes is our own unique approach to decluttering a home and the one I used to transform our hot mess of a living area into a space we all love to be in. Rather than all at once, you will work in small areas that take just a few minutes to complete all the way to done.

This will help you to break down the decluttering process into manageable tasks that take just a few minutes. More specifically, ten-minute projects that you can do without being overwhelmed yet still give you the desired motivation with a job well done. Here are a few ideas:

Easy 10-Minute Decluttering Projects

A drawer in your bedroom dresser
A cabinet in your kitchen
The floor of your entryway closet
The top 2 shelves in a linen closet
The table in your laundry room
Your purse
The trunk of your car

By listing out a bunch of 10-minute projects that you can do in your own home, you can pick one each time you have a decluttering session come up in your day. This removes the guesswork that can often keep us stuck, never making progress with the mess.

woman sitting on the floor writing in a notebook on a table

Putting Your Decluttering Plan Into Action

Once you have a plan selected, it’s time to get started. Let’s map out a plan that you can use to help you create a daily decluttering system.

Choose a project to work on first. For example, the top shelf of your linen closet.
Gather all the supplies that you’ll need to complete your project. In this case, you might need a trash bag and a box for donation items.
Set a timer for ten minutes.
Start at one end of the shelf and work your way down, making quick decisions on each item you come across.
Once the timer goes off, step back and admire your decluttered shelf.
Sort through any items in your donation box to determine what can be donated and what should be thrown away.
Place items that you want to keep neatly back on the shelf.
Repeat this process for each ten-minute project until you have completed all of them for the day.
At the end of each decluttering session, take a moment to appreciate your progress and pat yourself on the back for a job well done.

By breaking down your decluttering tasks into smaller 10-minute projects, you make them more manageable and less overwhelming. This allows you to tackle clutter in bite-sized chunks instead of trying to do it all at once. By incorporating these quick decluttering sessions into your daily routine, you’ll see significant progress in no time.

Decluttering may seem like a daunting task, but by creating a plan, setting a timer, and breaking it down into smaller projects, it becomes much more achievable. With consistent effort and determination, you can conquer the clutter in your life and create a more organized, stress-free environment.

Remember to celebrate your progress and keep up with your daily decluttering system to maintain a clutter-free space.

decluttering system