Eliminate Clutter

Some things, however, are not meant for charity as they are too worn, stained or have something broken, like a zipper. What I do when I want to get rid of clutter is to have two bags, one for items that are to be donated and the other for items that belong in the garbage.

Clutter can consist of many different things in your home that you have no use for and you have been accumulating for a long time. I used to deal in collectibles and went to many homes where clutter was amok. I’ve seen people who have had basements filled with old magazines and newspapers, homes where you had to walk a narrow path to get through the house in order to get from one room to the next. This is the result of clutter piling up to the point where it got overwhelming for the person.

There are two reasons why people tend to collect a lot of clutter. One reason is that they feel that they have something of value and continue to hang onto items that, in reality, usually have very little or no value. These types of people are those who are afraid to throw anything out less they find that they need it later. Many people have a compulsive disorder to keep everything that they receive, including junk mail, newspapers and other items that people normally throw out, just in case they may want to look at them anyway. Some people just like to hold onto junk. I have a neighbour who is like this and who routinely takes anything out of the trash that I put in. Needless to say, his house is a maze of clutter. And to make matters worse, it is a maze of much of my old clutter.

The other reason people keep clutter is because they are too overwhelmed to know where to begin when it comes to getting rid of the clutter. Cleaning out an overstuffed closet seems to be a monumental task that they cannot bear to undertake. So the clutter builds and builds. Until they get to the point where they decide to chuck it all and end up getting rid of their yearbook and mother’s wedding dress. Most people fall into the latter category.