3 Ways to Declutter Your Life Before the End of 2020
The end of 2020 may be a few more months away but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t start preparing for the next year. Now that we have all this free time from being quartered indoors, you can begin to declutter your home and get your life ready for the new year. If you’re one of the few who hasn’t done a purge yet, here are some tips to help you declutter before the end of 2020.
Clean up your digital life
You’ve probably been spending more time online these past few months with the limited activities you can do at home. As a result, you’ve accumulated a number of bookmarks and notes on your phone and computer, most of which you don’t really need. Let’s be real. By the time this pandemic is over, you’ll be too busy to look back on these things.
While you still have the free time, go ahead and clean up your digital life. Start with your phone. Go through your photos and delete duplicates and unflattering photos you don’t want to keep. Then evaluate your current apps. Consider deleting those you don’t use or have been eating up your time and mental energy.
Then, go through your computer and delete files you don’t need anymore. The same goes for those that are stored in the cloud. If you’re big on email, consider unsubscribing to newsletters that you don’t really want in your inbox anymore.
When you do all of these, you’ll have more space in your digital life to accommodate the more essential things.
Replace plastic with zero waste products
The next time you go shopping for an item, see if you can find a more sustainable alternative. Eco-friendly products can help you declutter your home by reducing the need to replace an item every time. For example, rather than buying a bunch of straws for the pantry, why not invest in a metal straw for each member of your household? Or if you run out of shampoo, you can just run to the zero waste store and get your bottle refilled instead of having to buy a brand new one that’s packaged in more plastic.
There are many ways to go zero waste. Start with the items that you use most such as your toiletries and kitchen utensils. You’ll start noticing less clutter in your home since you don’t accumulate as much plastic anymore.
- Clear your space
If you haven’t done a declutter of your home yet, now is the time. This process requires that you go through all your things and sort them into different categories: keep, sell, donate. Warning: it’s not going to be easy. You’ll find yourself wanting to hold on to items that don’t really serve a purpose in your life anymore, but still holds sentimental value, like that old, broken mug you used on your first camping trip with your husband. Or that very first blanket your baby drooled on. Ask yourself, is it really necessary to keep such items? If you find it hard to let go of certain items, consider getting a storage solution. Here, you can put items that you don’t need anymore but still want to keep.
As for other items you don’t need, you can still get something out of them. There are plenty of secondhand market platforms now that allow you to sell old and used items. Sell them at the lowest possible price so you can get rid of them easily. If you still can’t sell it, then go ahead and donate it to your local charity. Places like Salvation Army and Goodwill will be happy to take these items for you.
Which area of your home are you going to start decluttering first? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
