A 10-point checklist for managing clutter in your home

When going through all of your dusty clutter seems way too heavy and impossible it really helps to have a plan in place. That’s exactly the purpose of this 10-point checklist for managing clutter.

It may seem like a mind-boggling dilemma deciding what to do with the perfectly good picture frame or vacuum attachments you aren’t using. But consider that there are others out there in the world who manage to live completely clutter-free lives.

If anyone can do it, you can too. Run through this checklist for managing clutter and make sure you have a response for each of the 10 points.

1. Be purpose-driven.

When you’re going through each room have a goal or vision for each space. It’ll help you determine what's necessary and what isn’t. Looking at each piece of clutter is overwhelming. It causes confusion about what even qualifies as clutter.

If you flip that and start managing clutter based on the intentional purposes for each space of your home, the clutter falls away more easily. My mantra is to not just declutter but design a space that supports you, your energy, and your purpose.

In order to accomplish this and create a home that acts like free labor because it supports you so well, you need to first become super clear on what your purposes are. Not being super clear about your priorities and purposes is what causes clutter in the first place. See this article on why learning to declutter isn't enough and the thing you need first.

Clutter = lack of clarity.

2. Know your plan.

Decide beforehand what you’re going to accomplish and how deep you intend to go. You know how it goes when you intend to declutter an area and end up following a rabbit hole that leads to you sitting in a pile of every random thing you’ve ever owned wondering how the hell you got there.

Not long ago I coerced my boyfriend, Matt, into taking a hike with me. A few weeks prior, a stranger had seen us studying the hiking trails sign and stopped to tell us about this great round-trip hike that led to a coffee shop. Right up my alley.

He excitedly gave us unsolicited turn-by-turn directions that slightly veered off of the actual trail in order to makeshift what he called “the perfect hiking loop”. Of course, we didn’t have anything to write down his instructions so a few weeks later we decided that we could just wing it.

I’m not an avid hiker and we were in the middle of a heat warning. About an hour into the hike we still hadn’t reached the coffee shop and I was strongly entertaining the idea of calling an Uber. I hadn't searched the coffee shop location beforehand and had no idea it was an hour 1-way. In my mind, we were taking a quick walk around a few blocks.

Be real with your expectations and make sure that you’re not going to work yourself into a nightmare that you’re forced to dig yourself out of. Know your plan before you even start managing clutter in your home.

3. Schedule time for managing clutter.

If it’s not scheduled, it’s not real. “Someday” thinking or vague “next week” plans aren’t real. They’re all cute little fairy tales until written down with a date and time.

If something is on the schedule you know you need to prepare a few things. You’re not just winging it and ending up in a situation where you realize you have no more boxes or trash bags to do the job *shrug* “oh well, maybe next week”

‘On the schedule’ means that you’re able to mentally and physically prepare for what’s coming. I always say that I can mentally adjust to just about anything life throws at me and flip it into a positive or exciting endeavor as long as I know it’s real.

It’s like having a family member that’s going to stay with you awhile. If they just show up on your doorstep with bags you’re probably going to go through all the emotions and mental turmoil right there on the spot.

But, if you know ahead of time you’re able to mentally psych yourself up and think of the positives to make this a win-win situation. Looks like free babysitting to me.

4. Work in modes.

Maybe this sounds familiar. You’re cleaning the kitchen and putting things away when you find that one of your wholesome kids has left their shoes on the floor in the kitchen. So, you carry those back to their room only to find a huge disaster.

You put the shoes in the closet and start tossing a few things back to their general home area when you step on the damp bath towel. Now you make a little detour with the damp bath towel in tow to hang it up in the bathroom only to find a whole new situation waiting for you there.

A few hours later you’ve touched multiple rooms but haven’t finished any of your tasks, especially not the kitchen where you started. This is context switching and is the number 1 killer of efficiency.

In fact, studies have shown that the amount of time lost to the mere act of switching a task increases exponentially with each additional task added.

The best way to combat this dilemma is to work in modes. Choose a single function to complete throughout the house and keep laser-focused on that one task before switching to a new one.

This could be something like tending to all laundry or removing all expired products from the cleaning supplies, bathroom, and kitchen. Try to stay single-tasked as long as possible and you’ll save yourself tons of evaporated time in the process of managing clutter.

5. Use spatial constraints.

Spatial constraints use hard boundary limitations for the amount of 'stuff' that can be stored in any location. Take, for example, a toy box. A wooden toy box with a lid has firm boundaries. It’s obvious when those spatial constraints are breached because that would mean that the toys were either no longer in the box or that the box lid isn’t able to close fully.

You should plan your spatial constraints before you ever start managing clutter in your home. If you wait to assign your spatial constraints until you're neck-deep in junk you’re setting yourself up for rationalization. You'll end up keeping more things than you initially intended.

It’s like your college friend who still pops randomly for dinner. If you haven’t set any boundaries, you can’t blame the friend. Well, you can’t blame your kids for hoarding too many toys if there are no obvious boundaries in place.

A bookshelf could be a spatial constraint for where you house your books and how many you allow yourself to keep. You can (and should) make spatial constraints for pretty much anything that isn’t furniture.

6. Apply the floor rule.

Is it furniture? Then why is it touching the floor? This is the question you should ask yourself for every room of your home. Piling books, papers, appliances, or bins in the middle of the floor, against wall surfaces, or right next to furniture is a no-no.

Floor space is one of your most valuable home attributes. You pay good money for that square footage. That’s space where you’re no longer able to vacuum or clean effectively and are probably collecting crazy dust.

Walking through every room of your home to do a floor check is really eye-opening and draws your awareness to that highly valuable space.  

7. Develop solid routines.

Routines and systems are a must if you want to successfully save your work. There’s no sense in putting in hours of hard labor only to have everything crumble back on top of you in a few months.

Routines are habits that you do so frequently that they become automated. They can be difficult to begin but once you get the momentum rolling your whole world becomes easier. Automating your life with routines saves energy and sets you up for success.

Each family and each individual has his or her own routines because our lives and lifestyles are all very different. If you want a good place to start, here are my top 5 minimalist routines.

8. Have a system.

Having a system is different from having a routine. A routine is something you train yourself to do on automation. A system is an agreement or method of tending to things around your home.

You might have a system of rotating who loads the dishwasher or a system where everyone agrees to put their own dishes in the dishwasher after each use. You could have a system of everyone hanging their towels up in the bathroom after each use or an agreement that everyone will make sure their dirty laundry is within the confines of the hamper.

Systems make everything run smoothly and keep everyone on the same page. Delegating or making agreements could be part of your system.

9. Consistency brings ease.

Whatever you do you have to be consistent with it. Consistency is key. Consistency is where you find ease and see results with managing clutter or anything else in life. It’s the hard part that everyone else isn't doing. If you’re consistent then you’re already ahead of the curb.

Darren Hardy, the author of the New York Times Best Seller book ‘The Compound Effect’, says it best:

“When most people start a new endeavor, they just grab the lever and start pumping really hard...they’re excited and committed…they pump and pump and pump, but after a few minutes (or weeks) when they don't see any water (results), they give up pumping the lever altogether.

They don't realize how long it takes to create the vacuum needed to suck the water out of the spout and into their bucket. Those who persevere and continue to pump the lever will eventually get a few drops of water.

This is when a lot of people say, "You've got to be kidding me! All this pumping, and for what - a few measly drops? Forget it!" Many people throw their hands up in defeat and quit, but wise people persist further.

And here's where the magic happens: if you continue to pump, it doesn't take long before you'll get a full and steady stream of water. You no longer need to pump as hard or as quickly.

It becomes easy, actually. All you have to do to keep the pressure steady is to just pump the lever CONSISTENTLY.

That's the Compound Effect.”

10. Stretch yourself.

Managing clutter isn't always easy. But, if you truly want to be successful you’ll approach this like any other life change and stretch yourself. Go slightly beyond your level of comfort; allow yourself to feel uncomfortable. Then, sit with that for a bit while before stretching yourself a little bit more.

This is how you find your balance of 'enough' inside of your space. It's different for everyone!

If you’re trying to get in shape you don’t just go out and run 20 miles or lift 200 pounds. You go slightly into your pain zone, stick with that for a while and then go back in and push yourself further.

With growth, you have to have growing pains. If you’re not slightly uncomfortable then you’re not growing or changing.