How I Took My Home From Chaotic To Clutter-Free

Hey there, I’m here to talk about the path that got me to where I am now regarding my holistic home space and the happiness that I’m able to get from it. I’ve shared a lot over the years about why I’m so passionate about home spaces and how I came into this.

When I first came into this space, it wasn’t about aesthetics or needing to be a clean freak. I wanted support.

My Search For Support Within My Home

At the time, I was a single mom with two little girls, (by the way, those same two little girls are now teens!) At that time, I had also struggled with years of anxiety and depression, just a cycle of ups and downs; (you know, the drill.) 

I had unpredictable energy patterns and despite all of the chaos, I had enough insight to know that I needed a home space that was going to really help me hold things together. (I also needed a home that was not going to fall apart anytime I needed a break!)

So, six years later, here we are; I guess it worked! What I don’t talk about as much is the process from getting to that moment of decision to the result I’m living with today. After several years of helping others trek that same path, I’m learning that we seem to all get stuck at similar places. 

I think you can learn from my journey, even the mistakes. 

The Phases To Holistic Clutter-Free Spaces

Honestly, I think there’s an excellent chance you’re going to find yourself in one of these same four phases. If you do – if you can identify yourself as being in one of these phases that I’m going to share with you, I’d love to know! 

I’m going to share both the good and the bad of those spaces because I really like to keep the balance. I don’t want to say, “this was the bad phase because of this, and now everything’s great”; I think all of it was a learning process. 

I feel like there were a lot of milestones I had to go through in order to get to where I am now; these are where I can help other people get there quicker. 

So here we go, here are the four phases that I went through. 

Phase One: Information Hoarding

This is where I was collecting articles, information, checklists, etc.; basically, reading and absorbing information from everywhere. 

I know a lot of people whenever they find one of my articles or checklists it’s because they’re in that phase. That information collecting/ information hoarding phase can be really beneficial, right? 

I mean, it got me informed and it led me to the information I needed in order to get to where I am. 

I think that there’s definitely value in that first information-gathering phase – it’s a learning experience. However, so many people get stuck here because it feels productive. 

However, it doesn’t actually move the needle forward. When you’re learning and absorbing information there’s a lot of value that can come out of that phase, but it’s not going to change your home.

I like to say; knowledge isn’t power; knowledge is potential power. You have to actually take the actions and do more than learn this stuff. Or you’re just constantly going to be learning and never actually see any results.

I’ve even had people read articles of mine where I talk about information hoarding and then are dying in the comments because they can totally relate. 

This is so me! I’ve got all of these articles on my counter right now! 

I know that it’s an area where people can get stuck because it still feels like you’re productive. It ticks off all of those dopamine boxes of feeling like you’re accomplishing something, although you’re not actually yet accomplishing anything.

Do get the information that you need, but you don’t just settle there! You need to grab the information and move on to the next phase.

Phase Two: Creative Organizing

For me, the next phase, creative organizing,  came after I felt like I had gathered as much information as possible to get me to move forward. 

I went from collecting information to trying multiple organizing systems that I’d found during my information hoarding phase. All of these articles with people telling you all of these steps to organize- and everybody has their own system.

There are so many products out there that you can use, but I believe the creative organizing phase helped me know for certain what I didn’t want and what didn’t work for me. I’m able to tell other people what works and what’s not worth the investment. 

There’s a time and place for organizing.

It turns out that I like really simple solutions when it comes to organizing. The bad thing is, there’s a time and a place for organizing but not until after the decluttering process. I didn’t do that; unfortunately, I see many other people who are also not doing that.

It’s essentially like trying to make this creative organizing and trying one organizing tactic after another, trying to make that a replacement for letting things go as I did. However, it just doesn’t work because the stuff’s still there.

Most of the organizers don’t work. 

Many of the organizers are not well made, don’t last very long, and actually contribute to the clutter situation. In general, even if they were great organizing systems, the stuff is still there. You’ve made progress in streamlining it, maybe making it more livable or more functional, but ultimately, the clutter is still there.

All the stuff that is still there is always going to eventually find its way back out.

Phase Three: Going Bare

So, it doesn’t solve the problem. So I went into phase three after my last organizer had fallen apart. I was getting really frustrated because I remember that time of my life being very challenging. I felt like I was never actually making progress. 

This drove me crazy because I was doing my homework and trying the things that I was supposed to try. It still felt like it was just never lasting. 

So, it was a pretty frustrating phase. Somewhere along that path, I came across minimalism and started absorbing information; I found that so many people would tell you that you need to get rid of everything that is not really necessary.

Basically, “if it’s not a biological necessity, then get rid of it. It’s clutter, just discard it”. I went bare and this was what I felt was the right path, maybe because I became very comfortable with letting go and creating space. Also, I learned from this experience that I need more from my space.

I don’t necessarily need more stuff to shove places. I DO need more of a support system built into place. That was missing when I went completely bare. 

For example, If you’re worried about every little end table that you’re using in your house, so you get rid of all of them and now you only have a couch and nothing else in that room, that’s not very supportive. Where are you going to put your drink? 

Phase Four: Creating Holistic Clutter-free Spaces

I think there’s a line that exists for everyone, as far as what’s too bare and what’s too minimalist for them. What meets that balance of what I like to call “holistic clutter-free spaces”? 

I went back to the drawing board; in some ways, I started doing more research and I also started working more on myself internally. I was getting into meditation and yoga. I was really in the space of self-development at that time in my life. 

This is called tapping into holistic clutter-free spaces. For me, this is the sweet spot. This is my jam. It is so rewarding when you get it right – when you find that right balance for yourself and when you’re not too bare and not keeping too many things. 

When you really find that sweet spot where every space is curated just for you it’s providing some type of intrinsic value to you constantly. 

When you get to that holistic clutter-free space, there really aren’t any downsides.

Focusing On The Future.

So, if you see yourself making some of the same mistakes I did, don’t be discouraged; I’ve been there too. If you feel like you’re stuck in the information-hoarding phase. You’ve been collecting for years now, and you know that your home isn’t looking better, don’t stress about it. 

We can now start focusing on where you’re at today and move towards getting these spaces that you really want. If you’re trying a new organizing solution or a system every week, and you’re incredibly frustrated and stressed out, don’t worry about it!

That’s now in the past; I want you to learn how to really make those spaces that are holistic and supportive and clutter-free at the same time, and what really works for you.

I want to direct you to my ‘Holistic Clutter-Free Formula.’ This is a free masterclass designed to help you lay the foundation for a clutter-free haven. That’ll get you started and then you can work from there.