Space is one of those things that many people tend to forget about until they no longer have any. Maybe you got a new bed set, but your old one wasn’t garbage so you stored it for a rainy day. Maybe your family insisted on having their own towels they could use for when they visit. Maybe you collected figures, and each one had a box it stayed in. These little things build up in unforeseen ways until one day you realize that you just have too many things. Part of living with the fast pace of Brooklyn is working with things like moving, and whether or not you need storage. If you sit around and just let things pile up, it can really weigh you down! Not only that, but it probably makes it hard to walk around your house, too.
These considerations often work in tandem. You have to keep the things in your house organized so that you can focus, find peace, and be happy. According to Psychology Today, clutter can be an enormous source of stress, and it can definitely get in the way of even day-to-day living. Considering your options in a scenario like this is extremely important. Sometimes it’s more than just cleaning a mess, and you have to work towards minimalism. Here are some tips that can help you along in that.
1. Clean! I know, I literally just said that getting rid of the clutter in your world was more than just cleaning a mess. However, just because it is more than that does not mean that messes do not take up a large amount of our living space. Even if your house is clean, you can still make a checklist of things you have to do to keep it clean. Be proactive!
2. Donate! We all have things that we do not need. There are definitely people out in the world who need it more than we do, and you never know whose day you might make by giving away your old items. An old bed set that sat in your closet for a year, figures that some a child might cherish more than anything, the list goes on. A donation can be a very direct way to help other people, not to mention a handy and convenient way to tidy up.
3. Put Away! Sometimes you have something that you need, but it just isn’t something you necessarily need right now. To go back to the earlier example, Brooklyn is beautiful, and let’s say you were moving and wanted somewhere a little closer to the city. You could ask close friends and family to hold on to things that won’t fit in your apartment (Hey, if they have the room, why not use it?), or you could buy some storage space. Either one works, just make sure to take things like weather, time, and convenience into account!
You might notice that it’s easier to sprawl out on a couch when there’s no old mail or musty towels on it. Hopefully, these tips can help to alleviate space issues. A home free of clutter can help lead to a mind free of clutter, and everyone could stand to benefit from that.