33
Melissa Capps advises her
clients to complete one task,
like organizing a closet,
before moving on to the
next. Left: A decluttered
office bookshelf in Beth
Jaskolka’s house.
If you can replace an item in 20 minutes for less than $20, get rid of it.
that needed to go. After the initial downsizing, Boulay keeps from
accumulating more things with a simple but oh-so-effective rule:
one-in, one-out.
Robertson helps her clients declutter by suggesting the “20-20”
rule, which helps them see the true value of things based on liv-ing
in a world packed with a variety of stores that sell low-priced
goods: If you can replace an item in 20 minutes for less than $20,
get rid of it.
But for some reason — maybe a throwback from the generation
that grew up in the post-Depression era when possessions were few
— letting go of things can be difficult.
Robertson says there’s nothing wrong with that. Possessions that
have a special meaning or trigger cherished memories contribute to
general wellbeing. But she employs a method to help people evalu-ate
what is most important.
She suggests choosing a cherished item from the area being
purged and putting it somewhere visible. From there, she says to
compare every item with the special item and ask the question,
“Does this item make me feel as good as that special item?” Before
long, the “sell” and “donate” piles will be much bigger than the
“keep” pile.
The work isn’t over once those decisions have been made and
the sell and donate items are out of the house. It’s important to
then switch to “organize” mode, and put things where they are
easy to find.
“If you are not intentional about organizing your stuff, you won’t
be able to find things and will resort to buying more,” Capps says.
Hughes remembers learning how to make decisions about what
she wanted to be surrounded with. She wanted to change the pat-tern
in her life so she could spend more time with family.
“Decluttering is a process of learning about yourself,” she says. “If
you declutter, you learn about the patterns in your life.”
Robertson says it’s important not only to commit to the process
of letting go, but also to understand that it’s going to take time. She
says that the order in which the process is carried out matters, and
suggests starting with the easy stuff and leaving sentimental items
until last.
Capps agrees and says making the decision to start is the hardest
part — because there is never a perfect time. Her advice: “Start small
… and just start!”
When one room or one area is decluttered, she says it’s a good time
to pause for a celebration and to let that success fuel the next goal.
www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com WBM