There are a number of reasons why you might have chosen to read this guide. Perhaps you are tired of listening to your best friend regurgitating Marie Kondo tips that she learned from binge-watching the Netflix series.
Perhaps you are on a mission to streamline your lifestyle and cut down on the amount of housework you have to do (by eliminating clutter, the average home requires 40% less housework!). Perhaps your clutter has got out of control and you can no longer find your tennis shoes/cat/kitchen!

According to NAPO (the National Association of Professional Organisers – yes, it’s a real thing!), we spend the equivalent of around 12 days a year looking for things we can’t find. If you could free up those 12 wasted days, and reduce your housework by 40%, and end the closet-shame, think about how much easier life would be. Not only would life be easier, but you may also be healthier. A study conducted at Indiana University, discovered that people who live in clean houses are healthier than those who have untidy homes. (https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/the-truisms-wellness/201607/the-powerful-psychology-behind-cleanliness ).

No more emergency tidying when someone is coming round (and then finding boxes of things you shoved under the bed months later when you are looking for something else). No more avoiding rooms because you just don’t know where to start. No more buying take-out because the kitchen is just so cluttered that cooking is a chore.

No more excuses.

DECLUTTERING METHODS

You know that stressed, frustrated feeling you get when you look around at the clutter and just don’t know how to fix it? As you declutter, those feelings untangle and dissipate.
Every time you clear a space, you are clearing your mind. Follow this guide and it will take you step-by-step to where you want to be.

Here are some of the most popular, tried-and-tested decluttering methods to suit everyone:

Room-by-Room

Take each room at a time and work methodically through it until it is completely decluttered. Anything that belongs in another room gets taken to that room to be dealt with when its turn comes. Perfect if you have problem rooms you need to focus on.

Category-by-Category

Rather than working one room at a time, you can deal with a certain type of clutter at a time, such as a paperwork overload or clothing clutter. This is ideal if you can identify a very specific clutter problem you want to tackle.

The Kon Mari Method

Popular decluttering guru Marie Kondo has created the Kon Mari method, a technique which has gained millions of followers by focusing on the wellbeing benefits of a tidy home. Gather together all of the clutter in your home, ask yourself if each individual item ‘sparks joy’, and eliminate the unnecessary things that you are hoarding.