Get Motivated to Declutter Your Home

Motivation is a tricky thing and it can be hard to figure out what is going on and what holds us back.  Group members say they are not motivated, don’t know where to start or wish they were more motivated.  We are motivated to do other things that we want to do or maybe that we have to do.  So, really it’s not that we are lazy or unmotivated.

How can we get motivated to declutter?

Here are some of the responses to this question from the members of the Declutter Your Life and Mind Group

“Knowing that I will eventually be moving from this house and wanting to lighten the load before I actually have to pack”

“Praying and smudging help me to both clear out the negative and to bring in divine spiritual help” 

“Making a list. Once I’ve written something down, it’s concrete – not just an idea I’m kicking around. I feel great accomplishment when I can cross things off of a list!”

“If I’m having trouble I do a task that makes me happy or isn’t too bad. It helps me to jumpstart to not START with a dreaded task”

“Having a goal in mind really helps – having a plan for a space which could mean activities in that room or having people over, cooking a healthy meal. Personally, I love changing up my space and trying to improve it. The end result gives you a different feeling and it can really feel great”

Why do you want to declutter?

Internal or External Reasons?

An internal reason could be something like “I want to clean up this room because my son/friend is coming to visit for awhile” or “I want to use my garage for its intended purpose” or “my goal is to declutter in order to live in a less chaotic environment, have friends over without feeling embarrassment or to find clothes to wear or to sleep in my bed”.  

Having internal reasons for wanting to make changes will determine whether you will be more successful and will have longer lasting effects because you have more of a personal desire for change and a buy in.

External reasons would be things like  “My landlord wants me to clean up or I could lose my apartment, my daughter has decided to “help” me to clean up because she thinks I have a problem or I know I need to clean up because family members are planning to visit. Other people have a problem with it, but I really think it’s not that bad.”  

External reasons could be successful but once the crisis has passed things will likely go back to the way things were. Threats of punishment usually don’t work.  It is much harder to engage in the task if it wasn’t your idea to start with and you were not committed to the process. 

Are you avoiding uncomfortable feelings?

Decluttering and or organizing can bring up uncomfortable feelings. So, of course we want to avoid anything that is uncomfortable. Avoidance of these feelings protects us from depression, sadness and anxiety.  If we are working on our belongings and our home, we want to be in a good space and often need encouragement and support. Check out this post for more info about dealing with emotional clutter

Do you feel like you are just waiting for something? 

Waiting for something to change, waiting for someday, waiting to donate your belongings, waiting until you have more time or until you retire?  It can feel like we are stuck and cannot do anything until…….something else happens or changes.  

Is there something difficult that you need to do?

This could be a form of emotional clutter and can really keep you stuck and not able to move forward. Procrastinating about this even makes it worse.  I needed to have a difficult conversation with someone recently and it was taking all of my energy.  I finally had the conversation and what a weight this was off my shoulders.  Once you do the hard thing, it just opens up other things for you.  

Would you like some accountability?

Accountability can make the world of difference. Having someone to check in with can really help you to make progress and to be successful. Accountability to yourself is good, but sometimes accountability to someone else can be the jumpstart you need to be successful. I can help you to get started on your decluttering goals. Hop on a free discovery call with me here to see if we are a good fit to work together.

Would you like a free gift to help you with motivation ? Get Motivated to Declutter Your Home – a guide to help you to get started and to stay motivated.

Happy Decluttering!