Less Stuff. More Happy.

I am an anxious person, and one of the most successful coping mechanisms I employ is to insulate myself from feelings of anxiety by surrounding myself with things that make me happy. Sometimes in life, I need a lot of external sources of happiness... This means that I have a lot of stuff. A LOT of stuff.

A few years ago, I moved in to a two bedroom apartment, so that I would have room for all of my stuff. My apartment has two large bedrooms, two huge closets, and two patio storage closets. And everything is full. So. Much. Stuff. And everything is my favorite! Thinking about where to even start the de-cluttering exercise is extremely stressful for me. In fact, even as I type these words, I can feel my heart start to race in my throat.

For years, I have wanted to chuck everything and adopt a minimalist lifestyle, but that is so much harder to actually DO, when you very secretly have hoarder tendencies rooted in the core of your being. Instead of acting on this desire to cleanse my life, I lay around and think about how hard it will be or how much work it will take. I make plans about where to start or what to toss, but then I find myself at Target, with a cart full of more things. It's a problem. Trust me - I know. I am acutely aware that I need to move from just thinking about this, to actually acting on establishing this as my new lifestyle. There is no possible way that I can move in to roughly 300 square feet of space without reducing my belongings down to only essentials. It is critical for me to start thinking that less stuff will make me more happy.

For the past few weeks, I have been in the Homework Phase of this effort. True to my analytical nature, I have spent a good deal of time researching. The internet is amazing, isn't it? It seems that I am not alone in this, because I have found so many resources offering "tried and true" methods for de-cluttering. Of these sources, I have found a few principles that feel like they may work for my particular challenges. Here are some of those ideas:

1. Stop buying stuff. I know you might look at this and think, well, for lack of a better word, "duh." But this is an entirely new way of thinking for me. From now on, when I stumble across the most perfect and adorable tchotchke, I will ask myself, "What purpose would this serve in the RV?" If the answer is "none," I will keep walking. In applying this principle, I will also start keeping track of the things I choose not to buy. That way, not only will this idea successfully help stop the flood of clutter into my home, but I will also feel rewarded when I can actually see how much money I have saved. Plus, who doesn't love a good spreadsheet?!

How does this apply to me? This morning, I set up a Google docs spreadsheet to track my "non-buys." Just a simple entry method that I can use anywhere, At the beginning of each month, I will total up my winnings and smile. Maybe even reward myself with a cupcake (or two).

2. Start small. My clutter has reached a point that seems profoundly overwhelming. The reason I have not actively divested things is largely due to how I feel, when I think about the entire scope of the effort. Not helping is the urgency with which I feel the need to trim down my things. I need to force myself to take a step back and acknowledge that I am setting my own deadlines for this life change, so I have as much room in the timeline as I need. I have so much faith in the idea that one or two de-cluttered drawers will inspire me to tackle the bigger things that, right now, make it hard for me to breathe.

How does this apply to me? My first target is the six drawer dresser in my bedroom, which I will address over the course of a few days. On the first day, I will focus on one drawer. The second day, two drawers. And so on. My goal is to consolidate to two drawers, thus lifting some of this weight off of my chest and creating a source of inspiration in its place. 

3. Set a timer. There seems to be some substance to the idea that doing things in small bursts makes it easier for someone like me to successfully navigate through this epic battle. I keep seeing different variations of the same message, involving setting timers and rewarding yourself with breaks. And I can see how this will work. In the past, when I have attempted to address my entire home, I have ended up spending the entire day sitting on the floor of my guest room, just creating more of a mess. And at some point along the way, I know I start to lose perspective - I start out fairly well, tossing things without pause. But by the end of the day, I establish a "keep" mound that seems to grow proportionally to how many hours I have been working. If I am limited to 10 minutes at a time, I can race against the clock. Take a break, race some more. I have a feeling this will be a much more effective - and less intimidating - exercise for me.

How does this apply to me? I actually tried this out last night, and it worked magically. I needed to tidy up my apartment, so I set the microwave timer for 10 minutes. I cleaned until I heard the beeps, and then I set another timer for a 15 minute break. I plan to continue this routine, slowly and gradually increasing the cleaning time, but still alternating with short breaks to keep me motivated.

4. De-clutter every day. Another popular method socialized on the web involves getting rid of 5 or 10 things, every day. I mean, this is genius. This makes it so simple! I am not fortunate enough to have attic space at my parents' house to stack things, and I am not interested in acquiring the ongoing expense of storage space, so sometimes the idea of seeing HOW MUCH I need to toss is overwhelming. If I start to move 5 or 10 things out of my house every day, it will be like taking tiny little bites out of this gigantic, rolling snowball. I can nibble. I was born to nibble.

How does this apply to me? I am most excited about this idea. I think I will start small (5 items per day), with the goal being to reach 10 or 15 items each day (I have a whole lot of stuff). Things will not be stashed in a corner or shoved in to a bag marked "Goodwill." Everything leaves, that day. I will allow exceptions to this rule only for items that I can sell, and in these instances, I will post those items by the end of the week.

By these powers combined, I will be Captain De-Clutter.