Do you really want to waste time packing junk when you can revamp your personal space to your liking? This is your golden chance to throw away your hand-me-down furniture, those disgusting show-pieces and the hundreds of clothes that you ‘will wear once you lose weight’!

Here’s how to get rid of all your unwanted, old and useless items, and maybe even earn some money!

The first step, of course, is to sort out what you need and what you want to dispose of. Make four piles: things to keep, to sell/ donate, to fix and to throw. The first pile should contain the essentials, which includes your basic kitchenware, wearable clothes, books you’d like to read, your kids’ age-appropriate toys, toiletries, etc.

1. Start Small:

You need to take baby steps to overcome the mountain of clutter, so don’t take out everything at once. Start with a smaller place, like your closet or bedroom and slowly make your way through the rest of the house.

Keep only those things out that you will be using every day, and make space for things in the cupboard that are used occasionally. You have to make sure it stays that way, or you’ll be back to square one.

2. Sell or Donate:

The important thing to understand before you set out to de-clutter your home is that you will actually be getting rid of a lot of stuff. Hoarders can have a big problem with this so if you are one of those, get a friend or family member to keep you on track.

The good thing is that you can make money off some of your old stuff – old furniture and newspapers can be sold to the scrap shops, while kitchenware, old clothes, toys, etc. can be sold at a garage sale.

Unused or little used items such as exercise bikes (!), analogue cameras, telephone instruments and electronics can even be sold online.

You can even donate some stuff like clothes, medicines, makeup, books, etc. to a charitable institute or to your maids.

3. Fix or Throw Away:

We all tend to put away things, like electronics that don’t work or clothes that need to be altered. Take them all out and get them fixed.

If nothing can be done, it is time to trash them for good. They will take unnecessary space that can be used for more important things.

4. Store Smart:

Sometimes we have the space but don’t know how to use it to our advantage. A simple example is clothes. Our closets can look overstuffed with things dropping out every time we open it.

Instead, invest in space saver bags and pack clothes season-wise or occasion-wise. This way you won’t have to rummage through every shelf to look for something. Just take that particular bag out and you’re done.

If you have less hanging space, hang two-three clothes on one hanger.

5. Go Paperless:

As far as possible, try and get all your documents on a soft copy. These include bank documents, electricity/water bills, telephone bills, even photographs.

Make use of the digital age and do your bit for the environment at the same time. If you have to have hard copies of a few documents, file them in a systematic way so they can be put at one place.

De-clutter and Relax

These are just a few tips to get started on your de-cluttering agenda. Once you get in the groove, you’d love the magic of open spaces and even cut down on a great deal of stress! Good luck!