I have waaaaaaay to much stuff!!!! I need motivation to get rid of some of it!! Please~Thanks :)?

Question

It's just that I have this thing with getting rid of stuff even though I now live is such a small place it's starting to get cluttered up and I HATE clutter it makes me grumpy! so I need to get rid of some stuff, but I'm having second thoughts on like EVERYTHING!! even stuff I don't use! I keep thinking 'I might use this someday...' BUT I know I never will and I know that it's important to get rid of the old so you can bring in the new. And I think that if I relax and let go of my attatchment to STUFF good things can happen in my life. So can you please give some encouragement? Thanks

Answer 1

im having the exact same problem!!!!! im looking for ways to get rid of my junk too......i'll let u know if i find anything!!!
shadow

Answer 2

Well I know exactly how you feel.. I call myself a packrat, if I see something on sale I will buy it and tell myself that 1 day I will use it.. usually it just sits in the closet and I forget that I even have it..
What I would tell you for encoragment is go thru your stuff, if you havnt used it in 6 or more months, chances are that you prob wont use it. Have yourself a yardsale, make some extra money and go and buy yourself something nice that you will use and that you've always wanted but either never had the room for it or never had the money.. Have a good friend help you sort your stuff out that way they can talk you into getting rid of the stuff and not keeping it.
If you decide not to have a yardsale donate your things to charity and think about your things going to someone else who needs the things you have..
Think about all the EXTRA room you will have, how much nicer you house will look once you get it all sorted and gone.. sure its hard to get rid of things I truly know the feeling but just think of the good you will being doing for someone else not as fortunate as yourself..
There is also a website that you can check out.. its called: freecycle.com. There might be a site just for your area as there is one for my area.. I use it all the time. Nothing can be bought or sold on this site, everything has to be free. You post what you have to give away OR you can post things you are looking for..
But just think of the room you will have, how much better your house will look and the good you will be doing for someone else..
Sorry this is a long post, and I hope it does help give you some incentive..

Answer 3

You need to distinguish between keepsakes (family heirlooms etc) and the regular junk. Ask yourself 1. when was the last time I used this? 2) do I have more than one? 3). What is the likelihood of me using this in the near future?
This will help you make lists of things that are really important to you vs. junk that has piled up - e.g. clothes that don't fit anymore but you think maybe someday you'll lose that weight - or the VHS tapes that you no longer watch - and you don't even have a vhs machine any more - you have a dvd.
You can use a freecycle group to give stuff away, or you can donate it to the salvation army. Either way - make sure you get rid of the right stuff - not things you'll need eventually. Once you get started, you'll feel better & have less clutter.

Answer 4

Why not try some of the following:

Do it in small bits, so it doesn't scare you.

First, go to the area in your place that annoys you the most. Get rid of a few bags full of stuff that you could replace if you needed to.
When the worst area is starting to clear a little; you may find that some pressure comes off you.

Then go through other areas, and reduce each by a little bit.

For example- take everything out of a drawer, make your cut and put things back in nice and neatly.

Now you have room in the drawer and more space in your life.

Don't look at it as an all or nothing proposition. that makes it seem huge in your mind.

Think of it as a process, like shopping, only in reverse.

If you can donate or recycle anything; do that, and the stuff will have new life.

Answer 5

just read your question!
I now live is such a small place
it's starting to get cluttered up
and I HATE clutter it makes me grumpy!
BUT I know I never will [[use this someday]]
and I know that it's important to get rid of the old so you can bring in the new.
And I think that if I relax and let go of my attatchment to STUFF good things can happen in my life.

you know what you need to do!

Answer 6

Do you have someone who can help you, as for being right there with you?
I finally got rid of a 6000 vinyl record album collection that the family wanted me to get rid of for a long time. I basically gave them away.
This has made the whole family very happy and we have the living room back. Well I did keep around 1000 that I just could not part with.
If I can do this you can get rid of stuff too :0) My other half throws out everything, I keep everything. So for the other "things" we go through it together and if it is something that I will never use he tosses it, or I put it up on craigs list for free or sell it cheap.
My little golden book collection is next......

Answer 7

Motivation: You'll end up like me, and you DON'T want that. I'm not attached to my stuff, just overwhelmed at the way the garbage and the stuff have melded into one... and the way the cats have gone ahead and peed on some of the stuff they had access to, so that, whether I wanted it or not, I basically have to chuck it, anyway... and the way I get so overwhelmed, every time I attack the mess, that I inevitably find some other distraction... and it has been like that for years and years, and I want out of it so bad, but the mess has just snowballed... the house, the yard, the carport with the leaky roof... and the stuff in the carport that has been ruined by the water leaking in... it's become shamefully bad... don't let yourself turn into me.

Do what I'm attempting to do... collect the stuff that is good and have a garage sale and sell the stuff! When the house is clean and organized, you can use the money from the garage sale and either replace the stuff... or squirrel it away in your bank account.

Answer 8

My husband and I just went through our home and got rid of some of our junque! It was not easy in some respects, but has it made a difference in the clutter and how we can move around our house. We went through closets, cupboards, the basement, our family room, both garages, etc. If we had not used it in 6 months, out it went. If we had forgotten we had it, we either put it where we could use it or out it went. We had a garage sale and made almost $700.00, so we purchased a new chair for the living room and used the rest of it for some fun time for the family. If we found things that we really didn't want to part with, we kept it. You have to have some "stuff", you can't live like a spartan!

Answer 9

Just close your eyes and get rid of everything that isn't of monetary or DEEP sentimental value. A dried rose from your high school boyfriend is not deep enough to keep, that is unless you married him. A drawing your child did in first grade is not deep enough in sentimental value to keep. If you must, one drawing from each year of grade school will do. And for the love of green apples, get rid of any and all newspapers and magazines. You are never going to read them again!! The same with clothes and shoes you cant fit. Just take a deep breath, gather some back bone, and do it.Gather everything in a pile, put it into boxes or bags, and either give it away or throw it away! If you don't the clutter will grow, you'll become much more frustrated, and that will play out into your everyday relationships and interactions with other people. Believe me I KNOW!

Answer 10

I have the same problem. TOO MUCH STUFF ! ! ! !
This works for me:
Make piles 1-Keep 2-Maybe 3-Give away to make someone else happy (it works)
Then take the #2 pile and put half in 1 and half in 3. You will be amazed how much stuff you get rid of.

If it makes you sick to just give it away ~ try selling some of the better stuff on ebay. I sold shoes, clothes, and junk. SOmething is better than nothing. Otherwise whatever you give away you can write off (if you itemize your taxes). It is great to give it to somebody who can make use of it.

And if and when you ever need something like that again, just go out and buy it. I guarantee it won't happen very often.

You will be so uncluttered and unstressed ~ you'll see.

Answer 11

I am in the same boat you are and I was actually getting ready to post the same question.

So thank you...

This is what I "HAVE" to do now that I am downsizing again.

I'm going to pack my bags (Clothes) like I'm going on a vacation with hot and cold weather, that way, I'll pack what I really like. Then I'm going to go measure a U-haul that I can drive.. I will only take what will fit in that U-haul, so it forces me to think twice. I am actually looking at everything around me differently and what is it that I really need just to survive?

I don't need my place setting for 12 people anymore, I'm trying to sell so much stuff my living room looks like I'm a hoarder. because I've been dragging stuff up from the basement I've held onto for 30 years. So,,, that being said, I guess I am a hoarder..OMG what have I done???

If you can think like that, how much and what would fit into a specific space even if it's a U-Haul or a 10x10 storage Unit, I think that will also make you look at those things hanging around need to gooooo .

Good luck and thanks for posting that question, Lord knows you are not alone..AND WE CAN DO IT !!!! :)