Writing an article about decluttering requires mental clarity. Yet my office feels stressful and I find myself avoiding it. Why can’t I bring myself to spend time there? Is it perhaps…cluttered?
Not all tangents allow a person to stay on topic, but this one seems promising. Perhaps by newly decluttering my workspace, I’ll gain new perspective on a topic that’s long interested me. Always eager to learn – and to procrastinate, honestly – I stand in the doorway and peer in. There it is, the source of the clogged energy: a rather large, color laser printer I’d used proudly for years. But it doesn’t really function anymore.
I’ve attempted to repair it, ordering a part I barely understood on the strength of the diagnostic panel and a nice phone guy in Arizona. While said part kept the diagnostic message at bay, the quality of printing has gone from professional level to unacceptable.
As Bernie Sanders said to comedian Hasan Minhaj in a recent interview, “You got to look at the world the way it is and do the best you can.”
Applying these words to my office could only mean that the printer has to go.
The Connection Between Clutter and Mental Health
As with my reluctance to deal with my office, clutter interrupts our plans and distracts our minds. It does this by introducing various hurdles to clear thinking.
Visual Overload. Diane Roberts Stoler Ed.D. writes in Psychology Today that, “Clutter is a form of visual distraction, which increases cognitive overload and can reduce working memory. If your space is unorganized and filled with clutter it can be difficult to focus or concentrate.”
Stress and Anxiety. Perhaps I need to accept the reality of the printer – that it once had an important role but now it’s a white elephant – in order to turn my attention to my work today. Seeing things that are unrelated to our task at hand adds stress. According to WebMD, “Women who saw their homes as cluttered had high levels of the stress hormone cortisol throughout the day, while those who described their abode as a well-organized, restful space had lower levels.”
Incomplete Tasks. Clutter represents incomplete tasks to our brains. The one concept everyone in my MBA program remembered was the concept of uncompleted task tension, or the Zeigarnik effect. “Basically, when we have an unfinished task, we can’t help but torture ourselves by recalling it, over and over again, to keep it in our short-term memories. Our brains can’t let it go until it’s done,” writes Vasundhara Sawhney in the Harvard Business Review.
Though you may want to consider those unneeded shoes, broken chairs, or piles of clean towels just part of the decor, your brain rightly sees them as tasks that need doing. Alternatively, when we divide up a larger task into smaller pieces, then checkbox each as we finish, it releases that particular portion of the larger project from short term memory, and adds a dopamine hit to boost.
Decision Fatigue. Clutter introduces more decisions because there’s more to sort through and consider. Instead of choosing in advance where to store items, which to keep in your home, and how to deal when they no longer serve you, disordered spaces require you to make decisions every time you try to do something. This on-the-fly approach to organizing adds complexity to otherwise straightforward goals, like getting ready, cooking, or finding your phone.
Benefits of Decluttering
Improve Decisions. When you declutter, you’re making small, repeated decisions. Think of it as low-stakes choice practice. This builds confidence, making new choices easier. For example, deciding whether or not to keep an item rarely has life-altering consequences. If you later find you need a thing you donated, you can borrow from a friend, save to buy a used version, or approach the task differently. You may find an innovative solution, or at least learn something.
Calm through Repetition. Repeated, proactive tasks like decluttering calm your mind. You’re moving in a positive direction, can see the fruits of your labor, and gain feelings of control and mastery.
Creativity Boost. Now that my behemoth of a printer no longer rests on the cute, small file drawer it used to, the office proportions shift. I take out a scale drawing of my office, each furniture item represented by its own miniature piece of graph paper, and consider alternatives. After rearranging the actual pieces, my new design makes the rest of the clutter obvious. I remove extraneous items and organize the rest. It feels bigger, somehow, and inviting.
Find What Was Lost. In the same way, decluttering often unearths lost items. The best way to find something you’ve lost is to straighten up your space. The thing itself usually turns up, as do other items you’d forgotten about.
Improve Your Own Mental Clarity. Since you can’t tinker around in your own brain, the physical space you embody becomes a bit of a stand-in. We all take cues from our surroundings on what to expect. A formal art museum invites hushed tones, a lively, crowded bar tells you to let loose. In the same way, by adjusting and straightening your own spaces so they feel closer to the way you want them to, you impact your own mental health positively.
Techniques for Effective Decluttering
While you might not be able to afford a professional organizer for your small home, consider their proven methods when faced with the need to declutter. The KonMari Method suggests holding each item you own, feeling whether it sparks positive energy, or joy. This suggests whether it belongs in your life. After winnowing your belongings down, place like with like and fold and arrange them so you can see at a glance what you own.
Or try the Four Box method. Label four boxes: give-away, throw away, keep, and relocate. Now sort your stuff accordingly. Whichever option you choose, start small, with a specific section of your home, and rotate through over time.
You Control the Pace
No book, decluttering method, or outside opinion knows exactly how you feel about your own things. You get to decide what stays, what goes, and when. If you aren’t yet ready to part with an outfit, a book, or that big ole printer, then wait. Regrets usually come when you push through difficult emotions rather than sitting with them until you’re clearer.
In the same way, be respectful of your family members’ and roommate’s possessions. Decluttering your own things translates to an easier time getting out the door, fewer frantic sessions looking for something, and a calmer environment. In fact, Alice Boyes, PhD writes that, “Decluttering can reduce relationship and family tension.”
Creating a Sustainable Decluttering Habit
One tip to create a new decluttering habit? Pair it with something you already do regularly. Walk through your bedroom and pick up a few things every time you brush your teeth. Do a simple straightening when you check the locks before heading to bed. Set up your weekend well by tidying after Saturday morning waffles.
You’ll have to do it again and again. But the more you keep at it, the less work it will be each time. Consider decluttering as something you do for self care and relationship care. Life works more smoothly when you don’t have to hunt for things you have, or remember that you have them, or move piles of stuff out of the way to find space to work, eat, or walk. You’ll sleep better in a calm bedroom, and feel and think better in a decluttered home.
