Entering a new year frequently inspires positive life changes like decluttering and simplifying. If getting organized has topped your list of New Year’s resolutions, check out these decluttering methods to help you reach your goals in 2023:
REVERSE HANGER METHOD
For this method, take just a few minutes to go into your closet and turn all of your hangers around backward so the open end of the hanger faces toward you. Then, each time you wear a clothing item, make sure to hang it back in your closet facing forward as you normally would, so the opening of the hanger faces away from you.
Set a calendar reminder for June 2023. When your reminder goes off, you’ll know exactly what items you wear and don’t wear. Chances are, if you haven’t worn it yet it could be time to let it go!
ONE IN, ONE OUT METHOD
Grab some new tops at a sale? Purge the tops you never pull out of your drawer! Get a new pair of shoes for your birthday? Donate your older pair! In this method, each time you buy something new, a similar item must go. If you keep removing as many items as you add, you declutter regularly without noticing or putting in a lot of effort, and you won’t accumulate more items than you already have.
FOUR BOX METHOD
This method makes decluttering easier by speeding up the decision-making process. Find and label four boxes – the throw away box, the donate box, the storage box and the keep box. As you go through a cluttered room in your house, pick up each item and ask yourself how often you use the item. Put items you still use regularly in the “keep” box, and items you still use but not as regularly in the “storage” box.
For items you no longer use, ask yourself if the item is gently used. One thing to consider when deciding whether to donate or throw away an item is if you’d feel good getting it as a gift or a hand-me-down. If you wouldn’t want to receive it, chances are someone else probably wouldn’t either. Toss those items!
YOUR DONATED ITEMS MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Once you’re organized, you’ll be in a perfect position to donate what you no longer need to your local Goodwill. Those items will then be sold to fund career training courses, job search support, family stability services and more – all of which we offer free of charge to thousands of people in our community each year. Not only will your efforts help you be better organized, less stressed and more productive, but they’ll also help someone else in your community.
A little effort can go a long way. Spending just a few minutes each day to get organized will help make your life healthier and happier! January is the perfect month to make it happen. Wishing you a positive, productive and healthy 2023.
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