It’s no secret that we consumers, especially in the U.S., notoriously have things in excess. Compounding the problem is the tendency to get attached to those things. Seeing our identity in our stuff, we quickly turn a blind eye to the amount of effort required to deal with these things. Unfortunately, the time and energy invested in managing stuff cannot also be spent playing, exploring creativity, or making progress on dreams. Thus, the time spent putting stuff away, mending broken things, dealing with rebates and returns, moving, cleaning, getting rid of the things that no longer serve you, and dealing with maintenance has a huge cost.

The people surveyed for Duane Elgin’s book Voluntary Simplicity reported their reasons for wanting fewer physical items in their life. The majority understood that they could spend more quality time with family, friends, and their interests when managing, buying, and rearranging things was at a minimum. 

A good goal is to have only the things that support your lifestyle and interests (some of which may be items solely of aesthetic value) and which give more than they take. For example, a car is an expensive item to maintain. It takes up space, needs to be cleaned and serviced regularly, and requires considerable money. However, it also helps you get to appointments on time and gets you where you want and need to go. These reasons make it worthwhile. Unless… it breaks down every month, which requires you to take it to a mechanic, which disrupts your schedule and dives deep into your bank account. This scenario is not worthwhile. In this situation, developing a plan to get rid of this car and get a reliable one will get your vehicle back working for you instead of you working for it. 

A note about things that support you. Inspiration and joy are two of the benefits you might experience from objects of beauty or creativity that “speak to you”. So even though it may still take some effort to maintain these, the benefits outweigh the costs.

Costly dead weight
The cost of stuff is greater than just the time spent dealing with it when it physically keeps you from what you say you want. For example, I’ve been wanting to set up a space for artistic projects. I’ve been envisioning a space in the basement to set up table, tools, and materials. I haven’t set it up because of the stuff being stored in the basement for “some day”. Most of this stuff hasn’t been utilized in the last three years. Lately, though, I’m really feeling the cost of this stuff which is rapidly approaching “crap” status. Is an extra electric blanket for guests (not used in three years) more important than artistic space? NO! The cost of the blanket (taking up space at the expense of my vision) is much higher than the benefit it gives (potential use at an unidentified time in the future), therefore, it’s outta here! 

Inventory: Physical stuff aka clearing the dead weight
You may want to use pen and paper for some of these. It’s up to you. For example, the broken stuff section lends itself well to a list because it can serve as a placeholder for the projects you decide to keep. This process may take several weeks if you do a category or room at a time.

An overview of this section is to help you get in the habit of evaluating your stuff with the following criteria:

• Is it supporting your goals and vision of simplicity?
• Is it supporting the person you are becoming?
• Does it take more than it gives to you?
• Is it as easy to use and maintain as possible?

Now, if you have an issue with holding on to too much stuff—excessively duplicate items (really, who needs 40 pairs of socks or 5 staplers?), “useful” items that you “might need someday”, and/or knick-knacks galore—I highly recommend you read Karen Kingston’s book, Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui. Don’t let the title fool you, the main premise of the book is about clearing your space before you make Feng Shui changes. I especially like her book because she offers so many insights into why people collect too much stuff that you can’t help but be inspired to start purging!

What is broken and needing fixing or adjustment? 
Write these down on paper. It might be an ongoing list as you run across things over time. Focusing on one item at a time, ask yourself, “do I really want to keep this item?” If it’s been sitting around broken for several months, is it really valuable enough to you to be worth the time to fix? Could it actually be time to let it go and just get it out of your place? If keeping and fixing it is the answer, identify what the next single action is and do it (or at least get it on your ToDo list). 

What in your space don’t you like? 
Let it go! These items may have been loved in the past but your tastes have changed. Maybe you never loved it but never bothered to to donate, sell, or trash it. Having a bag or box dedicated to “items to donate” makes purging these items easier. Take the container to a thrift store when full. The mantra: If you don’t love it, use it, or need it… get it out of your space.

What doesn’t have a home? 
This is often stuff that gets lost frequently or shuffled from place to place. For example, if keys don’t have a designated home, you’ve probably spent quite a bit of time looking for them. Or, bills get picked up from the mailbox and then end up on the kitchen counter, your desk, the floor, etc. Designate a home for these items in a logical/intuitive place. Using these same examples, place a bowl or hook by the door for the keys. Place a container for “bills to be paid” in arm’s reach of where you pay bills. Taking the time to designate and use these homes will be repaid hundred-fold in time and prevented stress!

What’s been living in one space but should really be in a space designated for that type of item
These items often live where they do by default. You know where to look for them, but you’d be better off putting them with similar use items and locating them near where they are used. Keep the paper shredder by your desk rather than in the garage. Identify the purpose and activity of a space and clear out anything that isn’t used there. Bike helmet and gloves belong in a gear storage area and not it the office. Screwdrivers and wrenches belong in a toolbox, not on the kitchen counter. Papers and files belong in the office, not scattered throughout the bedroom. 

What’s useful but taking more than it should?
You want your things to be ready for use when you are ready to use them. If something is hard to get to, you are likely to procrastinate an activity utilizing that item, for example, the hole-punch you have to dig out from the supply closet every time you want to use it. Items needing excessive care to use is likely to invite frustration, for example, the can opener that has to be inserted at just the right angle, with just the right amount of pressure, and opened at just the right speed. Move it, fix it, or replace it. 

Depending on how much mass you’ve moved (or removed), it may take time to get used to the space you’ve opened up. Give yourself time to adjust and refrain from getting more things to fill up the “emptiness”. 

Regularly recalling your simplicity statement or vision can provide motivation to keep purging as well as inspire the activities you want to make space in your life for. When you are doing more of what you love, your tolerance for distractions diminishes and the dead-weight drains become easier to spot and toss. Get your hot-air balloon off the ground with your newfound lightness!

Coming up: we’ve spent enough time on the drains, it’s time to inventory your sources of refueling!