I don’t know if I am interpreting “Inner Voice” the wrong way but I don’t happen to agree that you should always listen to it like people often advise. I think of “Inner Voice” as that niggling little feeling inside that makes you feel cautious when faced with certain situations that you aren’t to sure about.

In my experience that little voice often tells lies and undermines your common sense. I have suffered from depression on and off during my life and I can tell you for sure that that little voice hasn’t helped during those periods. It has come right to the forefront causing me a whole lot of unnecessary grief that I definitely shouldn’t have listened to.

Would you tell a person suffering from  schizophrenia to listen to their “Inner Voice”? I think not. Even if I have got the “Inner Voice” confused with something else, who is to say which feeling is which. I am also sure that most people inflicted with a hoarding disorder are listening to what they think is their inner voice telling them to keep useless things because they many be important some day.

My point here is that you should stop and question that thing that you think is your inner voice at least in the following situations…

• When it tells you to buy that cute sweater because it will make you feel better when you are having a bad day. In a week or two that sweater will just be languishing in the back of your closet with ten of it’s other “bad day’ friends making you feel guilty for wasting your money on it.
• When it tells you that you should keep all your fat/skinny clothes because you may need them one day. These clothes make you feel bad if they are skinny clothes and undermine your new healthy way of life if they are your fat clothes.
• When it tells you to dwell on your mistakes from the past instead of just learning from them and moving on.
• When it tells you to worry about things that haven’t happened yet and probably won’t. (I have spent a good bit of my life worrying about things that never happened.)
• When it tells you you should keep clutter just in case you may need it one day. Oh how busy that little voice can be worrying people into hoarding all sorts of useful stuff that would be better of in the hands of people how actually will use them NOW!
• When it tells you you have to hang on to great-granddads old mahogany dining table because so and so (usually someone who didn’t want it cluttering up their house) will be so disappointed it you don’t. If it is a family heirloom there is probably some other person in the family happy to take it off your hands. Even if it is valuable that value is no use to you if you aren’t “allowed” to sell it.

Then again maybe I have just haven’t dug deep enough and have all this time been listening to some bad shallow voice. Kind of like in cartoons where there is an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other. Still when you can’t see which costume they are wearing it is hard to tell the difference.

I am sure you can come up with more of your own examples of when that inner voice has mislead you into doing things that weren’t all that advisable in hindsight. Please leave me a comment with some of your own personal examples I would love to hear from you.

ITEM 181 OF 365 LESS THINGS

A little voice said “keep these computer parts they will come in useful one day”. In actual fact all they became was clutter for a long time and now they have been donated to charity and hopefully someone else is finding them useful again now.

The item that is being donated today is a sentimental item that is kind of sad to see go.  As you know our mission at the moment is to declutter any items in our home that are not being used and are unlikely to be used in the future. The fact that this item has been unused and hidden away in my camphor wood chest for several years deems it clutter.

It is the last hand crocheted item left in our home that was made by my husbands grandma. Our linen closet used to overflow with all the crocheted hand towels and face clothes that she made for us throughout our  married life. She has been gone for several years now and we have  plenty of fond memories of her. She was a lovely lady who had it pretty tough for much of her life and we will never forget her.

You may wonder why we would give away this last physical reminder of someone so loved. My answer to that is because it is only that a physical reminder. Whenever I see any hand crocheted item I always think of her so there are constant reminders everywhere. We will always remember her and she will always be near in our hearts. We do not need to keep items that may be more useful to someone else in order to remind us of the good time we had together.

ITEM 180 OF 365 LESS THINGS

The item I am decluttering today is a motorcycle jacket that has belonged to my husband since before we were married. He has not worn it for years. He had a set of motorcycle leathers made way back then as well and they became his protective clothing of choice.

This Jacket has become an example of natural progression decluttering purely by accident. When I say accident I mean it literally. I recently tagged along on one of my husbands business trips. We had no sooner reached our destination and had a bite of lunch when we received a call from our son. We had lost control of his motorbike during a rain squall and slid down the road. Luckily, he was not hurt.

After years of holding on to this jacket unused, my son finally gave it a new lease on life when he started to ride. Needless to say the jacket went sliding down the road with him but unlike him it did not come off unscathed. It is beyond repair and is going in the trash. Sadly or fortunately as fate would have it, we also still have the leather jacket my husband hasn’t used since 1994 so he can now use that one.

I regret that this post is a bit anti-productive when it come to setting an example for not keeping clutter unused for years on end. It is however the exception rather than the rule and it will not influence my attitude to clutter in general.

ITEM 179 OF 365 LESS THINGS

Today’s word is…

C O N S I D E R A T E

Show respect for yourself, your fellow human beings and the environment…

Be CONSIDERATE when shopping

• Constantly buying items you do not need puts a strain on the world’s resources.

Be CONSIDERATE to the environment

• To process resources to produce the items we buy puts a strain on the environment. Also the more we own the more space we need to store these items the bigger the footprint we leave on this planet.

Be CONSIDERATE to family

• In order to purchase un-necessary items requires money that has to be earned. The more you buy the harder you have to work to provide the money for those excesses. That time working is time not spent with your family.

Be CONSIDERATE to those left behind

• Nobody lives for ever and there is always someone who has to take care of  the things left behind when we leave this world. This passing is sad enough on our loved ones without the added stress of sorting through excess possessions.

Be CONSIDERATE to those less fortunate than you

• Donate your excess items to a charity so they can help others who are less fortunate than you. Better still instead of buying un-necessary items make a cash donation to a charity it will help others and you will feel good about yourself as well.

I know I have been guilty in the past of not being considerate of all of these things but I vow to be better than this now and in the future.

ITEM 178 OF 365 LESS THINGS

My husband used this sheep skin on his motorbike seat but that was years ago

R E C Y C L E         R E C Y C L E

R E C Y C L E

The Word for Today  is so simple yet so important. If you are not using something then it is just taking up space. There are so many ways to RECYCLE your unwanted goods that very little should go to waste.

• RECYCLE by giving things you don’t want to a charity, friends, family or even a casual acquaintance.
• RECYCLE by selling your items on through web sites like ebay or advertise in you local newspaper or through you work Intranet.
• RECYCLE by putting all unwanted items made of cardboard, paper, metal or recyclable plastic in your recycle bin. All those old tax papers, storage boxes, school papers etc fall into this category.
• RECYCLE by sending your old computer components to companies that dismantle, recycle and dispose of this items responsibly.
• RECYCLE by re-purposing an object. I used the fabric out of an old pair of my husbands jeans to make a patchwork calendar holder. My mother-in-law uses old fabrics to make handbags. You know I use old cardboard boxes to make my ebay packaging. An old teapot makes a lovely planter pot. This is just a drop in the bucket of ideas for re-purposing.
• RECYCLE by repairing items rather than throwing them away. Sew on a button, stitch up a hem, replace a hinge, put a new clasp on that old necklace you love, re-paint an object and give it a new lease on life. Take a class and learn a new skill you can use to carry out these tasks with ease. Hardware stores often offer free classes on household repairs and there are no end to the places in your local community where you can learn skills of all kinds.
• RECYCLE by googling. This may sound strange but there is so much you can learn with a little investigation on the Internet. Search for “How to repair…” or “Alternate use for…”  or “local charities” it is that easy.

So when it comes to RECYCLING your clutter the choices are endless so please don’t just send your unwanted items to landfill let someone else get the most out of them if you aren’t.

ITEM 177 OF 365 LESS THINGS

One more for the donation box

There are so many things that we keep on standby just in case we might need them. Things that take up an incredible amount of precious space in our homes. I have been giving this problem a bit of thought lately and have come up with a solution which is the word for today…

B O R R O W

Lets say your sister is coming to visit and she has three kids but you only have one spare queen bed. The Sister and one child can sleep in that bed but where are the other two to sleep. Rather than have spare bedding crammed into cupboards and basements you could borrow a mattress and blankets from a friend or neighbour. Often these people are not only happy to give you what you need but they feel glad to be helpful.

I am sure this solution can be applied to many situations.

• I borrow DVDs from my neighbours all the time. It was their idea so I don’t feel like I am imposing. I collect their mail when they are away and they go away fairly often so it is a symbiotic relationship.
• My friends know I have the tools to fix their pieces of jewellery and I am happy to do repairs for them, in turn they do favours for me. This is a prime example of borrowing each others unique resources instead of everyone having to own rarely used equipment.
• One friend loves Self Help books so I borrow hers rather than buy my own because I don’t need book clutter in my home.
• When it comes to books you can always borrow from the Library as well.
• Sometimes it is another person’s time and assistance that you need to borrow. Like when your husband takes your car to work but you suddenly need a ride somewhere. There is usually a friend you can rely on to help. It is better to call on this lifeline occasionally than owning a second car that you don’t really need most of the time.
• Share resources with friends who have similar interests. If you and a friend have the same hobby like scrapbooking, share tools like shape punches, dye cutting machines, texture plates etc rather than buying duplicate items between you.

You will notice that in most of the example above there is a give and take theme. This two way generosity is the only way this plan can work because if you only take and do not give, people will soon stop helping because this is not a one way street.

I am sure there are no end to the variety of things that can be shared between friends and neighbours. Give it a thought the next time you consider purchasing an item you know you will rarely use. If you are uncomfortable with sharing then there are also places where you can hire certain items, furniture, white goods, tools etc. It is worth investigating.

ITEM 176 OF 365 LESS THINGS

I gave this one to a friend who had a use for it

As you would know if you have been reading my blog this week, we are concentrating on one word a day. Today the word is…

S L O W

By SLOW I mean *** back off a little *** take it easy on yourself *** take it easy on those around you *** do things at a pace that allows you to to be fully present *** give yourself time to make good decisions ***need I go on.

In this day and age of “multi-tasking”, over achieving, higher education and generally just keeping up with the Jones’s, it is very easy to cram your life full of expectations and activities that you think are necessary to appear successful. We are always in a rush to get somewhere, impatient with everything that might slow us down and sometimes resulting in road rage and accidents.

We no longer expect to have to wait for anything in this instant gratification society. I cop attitude everyday in my job just because a piece of furniture someone wants to buy is not in stock in our warehouse and they may have to wait for four weeks to take delivery. It’s a piece of furniture for goodnesss sakes not a heart/lung transplant. The world isn’t going to fall apart nor is your health going to suffer if your new giant LCD television has to sit on your coffee table for a couple of weeks.

See what I mean, my writing tells you I am getting more worked up about this subject as I speed through it letting my emotions get the better of me. That is what happens, we are so focused on cramming all the things into our lives that we have no time for anyone who might slow us down. Sadly in some cases that “anyone” is our family, our own children.

I for one don’t like to play this game but I am not going to suggest for one minute that I don’t get sucked into it on a regular basis but I try not to take it out on everyone around me. I have discovered that being in a hurry is mostly a state of mind, you don’t get things done faster or get anywhere quicker just because you are stressed out about it so there is no point rushing. As the saying goes “The more haste the less speed”.

What does this have to do with clutter and decluttering you might ask. Plenty…

• If you try to rush the decluttering process you are likely to make rash decisions that you will regret in the future.
• If you insist on getting the job done too quickly you may burn yourself out with anxiety when things aren’t moving fast enough for you and you will give up.
• Accumulation of clutter can happen when you are in too big of a rush to look for something and end up purchasing a duplicate object to one you already have.
• When you feel rushed, you get frustrated and more likely to take that out on those around you.
• If you are in too big of a hurry to reach the finish line you may be neglecting others around you who also need your attention.

So give yourself a break, slow down and do things more deliberately with care and consideration. When you find yourself rushing and thinking ahead STOP, calm yourself and get back in the moment. I am sure you will be more satisfied with the results.

ITEM 175 OF 365 LESS THINGS

Just one more kitchen item out of the way.

The word for today is…

DOWNSIZE

Sometimes decluttering doesn’t mean getting rid of things altogether sometimes you just need to DOWNSIZE. For example here are a list of the items we have DOWNSIZED since the start of our decluttering process…

• We replaced a twenty something year old bulky stereo system with a new iPod docking station.
• We replaced an old laptop with an iPod touch so we don’t have to carry such a heavy item around with us when we are on vacation.
• We replaced our old computer tower with a new Apple Mac Mini which takes up so much less space.
• We replaced a big bulky computer desk with a lovely hardwood 1500 x 900 table. (The room looks so much less cluttered now).
• We have given away and sold a big chunk of our baseball souvenir collection to get it down to  a more manageable size.
• We have digitised several old LP records and sold the physical copies on ebay reducing the collection.
• We have digitised a bunch of sentimental papers too so that pile is also significantly smaller.

I look at this list and I think we have made great inroads into the decluttering but I also know that we still have a long way to go. We will no doubt DOWNSIZE in some of these areas a lot more before we are finished.

You may be thinking that for someone who preaches about buying less stuff you sure have made some expensive purchases on that list. You would be correct and I sometimes feel guilty about that but it is all in the line of decluttering. Most of the items that were replaced had been used extensively and were sold on or passed on the someone else who needed them and may not have been able to afford them otherwise.  I am OK with that.

ITEM 174 OF 365 LESS THINGS

My plan is to eliminate enough items out of the kitchen so I can move items from my display cabinet into the empty spaces so I can eliminate the need for the display cabinet or at least downsize it.

Today’s Word of the Day is…

SIMPLE

• Do SIMPLE things to improve your way of life.
• Keep your spending SIMPLE buy what you need not things that just clutter up your space.
• Eat a more SIMPLE diet choose fresh ingredients that aren’t enveloped in wasteful packaging. Choose recipes that are SIMPLE to create using ingredients that can be used in subsequent meals so nothing goes to waste.
• Enjoy SIMPLE pleasures like a walk in the park, a coffee with a friend or a wander through a museum instead of spending all your free time shopping.
• Keep your decluttering efforts SIMPLE by concentrating on one SIMPLE task at a time so you aren’t overwhelmed.
• Keep the decision making SIMPLE so you don’t waste time and energy agonising over what stays and what goes. My Declutter Decision Making Guide can help with this.
• Make housecleaning SIMPLE, the less stuff you own the less work there is involved in maintaining a clean and tidy home.

It is true the SIMPLE things in life are often the best, enjoy them.

ITEM 173 OF 365 LESS THINGS

Do you think I will ever get finished with the kitchen clutter I am starting to wonder myself.

This week here at 365lessthings I going to focus my posts on A Word A Day. Each day I will bring to you one word and I will give you my take on how the word relates to decluttering. The word for today is…

Less

• LESS stuff, this is clearly the main object of decluttering
• The LESS stuff you have the LESS time spent maintaining them, cleaning, organising etc.
• LESS possessions to be concerned about being lost of stolen or insured.
• Once you learn to stop accumulating unnecessary items the LESS money you will be wasting and the LESS impact you will make on the environment.
• Once you have let go of those items you no longer use you will experience LESS guilt knowing they have gone to someone who has more use for them. Plus you will no longer be reminded of how much cash you wasted on them in the first place.
• The more you declutter the LESS desire you have to ever accumulate unnecessary items again.
• The LESS clutter you have when you die the LESS of a burden it is for those left behind to deal with.
• The LESS stuff you have the LESS space you will require to accommodate it then you will need a dwelling with LESS of a environmental footprint on the earth which creates LESS waste on many levels. (Check out Slow Home)
• The LESS clutter there is the LESS time I spend looking for lost items.
• The LESS time I waste being distracted by the clutter. (Thanks Willow for these last two)

If this list isn’t reason enough to pare down your belongings then I don’t know what is!

ITEM 172 OF 365 LESS THINGS

Just another thing we don’t need