If you are new to decluttering, read the real benefits of decluttering your home, and understand how this simple task helps you lead a better life.
Clutter is something that we don’t need anymore but still, we own for the sake of sentiments or lack of sense of organization or lack of time. And it’s essential to declutter this excess stuff regularly or periodically.
Have you ever felt uncomfortable when some guests drop in?. How many feel your home is not hospitable and embarrassing for any surprise visits of friends or any guests.
This was my case. I used to feel embarrassed when some guests/ friends dropped without giving prior notice. Even if I get notice before, then also it takes hours to clean up the stuff just to make it look nicer.
And honestly, that cleaning is just hiding the clutter. It was not really cleaning. But now I can welcome anybody at any given time. A decluttered home is easier to clean and looks more lively and fresh.
Once you are determined to live in a clutter-free space, it’s an easy task.
To start this mission of decluttering is overwhelming many a times both emotionally and physically too. Especially when you have a family, kids, you think you need more stuffs to do rather than cleaning up the mess or clutter.
Also when you start decluttering, it’s definitely overwhelming. You may feel an urge to procrastinate the activity. But trust me you will get all the benefits of decluttering gradually and your life will change positively once you start doing it.
Benefits of Decluttering
Decluttering is magical. It brings out all the positivity in your life. Well, don’t expect all the benefits from day 1. But surely you will notice the change in your life with conscious efforts to declutter. Because after you have decluttered, it’s easier to clean and stay organized. The list of benefits of decluttering is really long. However, I managed to pen down a few major benefits of decluttering your home, living space or even workspace.
Make Space for What Matters
– Unknown
While talking about the benefits of decluttering your home, it can be categorized into 5 major parts.
- Impact on physical health
- How it affects mental health
- Impact on our relationship
- Impact on Financials
- Understanding the value of “Less is more”
benefits of Decluttering: impact on physical health
1. Clean and healthy space leads to a healthier life
When you declutter, the place becomes more spacious. It’s easier to clean it regular basis. When the place you live in is clean and all tidy, there is a lesser chance of bugs, insects, and other allergens. That means ultimately a lesser chance of diseases or infections. In short, a decluttered and clean home helps to keep diseases away.
2. Clean tidy rooms help in improved sleep
When your living space is clean and with a lot of free spaces, it ultimately has a positive impact on our brain. This sends positive vibes and keeps us happy. When we are happy and with less anxiety, it improves sleep. Clean air also provides pure oxygen to our body and mind. When we get a happy peaceful sleep, we feel more energetic and happy from within.
3. Decluttered clean space will motivate for healthy food habit
This may sound weird first, but it’s been proved scientifically that when our life is clean and happy it has a positive effect on food habits.
When you declutter your home and life, it will ultimately make you feel happy and confident also. At the same time when you are organized about everything, you will take extra effort to lead to a healthy life.
There is another way to understand this point. Research says, Our mind gets drained out when it sees the clutter continuously and as a result, we feel more lazy and exhausted. In that situation, we don’t mind to compromise on our eating habits and end up eating more junk food.
Read: the basic guide to declutter
Benefits of decluttering: impact on mental and emotional health
1. It reduces stress and anxiety
Psychologist says, “Messy homes and workspaces leave us feeling anxious, helpless, and overwhelmed. So clutter is identified as a major source of stress in our life.
Also in research, it’s been found that clutter increases the cortisol level (a stress hormone) in female homemakers. So while we declutter the space, kitchen wardrobe, it’s easier for everybody to keep it clean. So less stress and anxiety in life.
2. It gives mental satisfaction
Decluttering and organizing just makes your life simpler. Being a minimalist is great.
But even if you are not a minimalist, but you do declutter your space, your wardrobe, your home, your life periodically, means you are freeing the unwanted away from your life.
This gives a mental satisfaction. While understanding the benefits of decluttering I believe this is the root and main reason behind all other benefits.
3. You feel happy, energetic & focused
I know I’m using this “happy” state twice here. But understand how important being “happy” is in life.
Science says, our brain likes organization. So when we declutter and organize things, we feel happy about it. It increases brains power to focus more required thing.
4. Sense of accomplishment
It also gives us a sense of good decision-making skills. We feel more confident about the thing we possess because that is our own decision. This is positive reinforcement for our brains.
It gives a sense of accomplishment and motivates us to keep us organized in all aspects of work and life.
5. It increases productivity
Physical clutter competes for our attention and focus. Since it drains out our brain completely, it decreases our focus on work and affects our productivity.
When we see clutters around in-home or workplace, it gives us a sense of inefficiency in self. And ultimately decreases our self-confidence.
E.g. If I see piled up files right on my work station, immediately one word comes out from my mind, “Oh No”? I feel anxious, stressful and this results in divided focus and concentration which results in unproductivity by the end of the day.
The solution could be instead of piling files on the desk, make a to-do list and complete the tasks one by one.
Take away: when we declutter and keep our environment clean and happy, we do focus more on our work and our efficiency goes up. This boosts productivity.
Benefits of decluttering: impact on our relationship
1. You will get enough quality time to spend with family
An organized home takes lesser time to clean regularly. Also, you don’t struggle to find things when required. So you have more quality time to spend with your family. And you can spend your time in productive and creative kinds of stuff.
For me, this is another major motivation to keep my place decluttered and organized. When I clean and keep my living space clutter-free, it leads to a healthy family bond indirectly (or directly).
There are a few points to follow for this:
I. While cleaning, take family help as this gives a sense of belongingness and sharing of the pain of decluttering alone.
II. When the home is clean, it’s easier for every family member to maintain the organization and keep it clean always.
III. This method of decluttering will not make you feel overwhelmed as this is also a quality family time you are spending with a common goal.
This is pure love for me.
Hidden Agenda: you are coeducating the next generation the value of family, the value of decluttering, the value of sharing labor with loved ones.
benefits of Decluttering: Understanding Less is More
1. You will get more space
When you declutter your home, workplace, you will enjoy a lot of free space that was previously occupied by the clutter. So the room will be spacier and it’s easy to keep the place clean. Clean space makes the home hostable for last-minute guests.
2. Less clutter means lesser choice and more time
When you declutter the unnecessary, you will have only required things with you. That means you will have lesser choice to choose from. This will save a lot of time and energy. Also when you organize, you know the proper place of any stuff. So lesser struggle to find any products when required. This makes life simpler.
3. Donate to the needy
This is one of the best and noble acts of all the benefits of decluttering we have gathered in this post.
I’m sure many will agree with me on this point that all of our purchases are not on the basis of our needs.
Many times we buy clothes because they are in trend, we want to look up to date and fashionable. We buy many things impulsively just because by chance we fall in love with that product or to show our society/ friends/ family that we have the new technology or new product with us (and we can afford it).
But do we really need the product when we bought it? 80% time the answer will be “No”. And if this continues to happen, your living space, your home will be full of clutters.
My home was too messy before I understood the magical benefits of decluttering. I will share my story here.
Story 1- I had a 21″ tv. But since my husband felt that we should have the latest and bigger television at home with smart features, he ordered one without replacing one. So now there are 2 televisions at home which occupied double space.
Output: the room looked more clumsy.
Solution: I gave my old TV to my maid because she didn’t have one.
Story 2- Once upon a time, I used to buy a few clothes 1 size smaller thinking that I will do exercise and hit the gym just to fit in the small dress. But that really never happened.
And after 1 or 2 years I got so many new pieces that were not required at that time. But I bought only because I liked them even if I was not fitting into them. And eventually, I forget after 1 or 2 months about the product.
Here is the solution:
However since we bought a new one, we have another option is to remove the old ones and give it to the needy people who can’t afford to buy it.
This way I have decluttered almost 3 – 4 bags full of my clothes, I give my kids toys to the small kids who would actually enjoy playing with them. I donate my clothes, kid’s clothes to the NGOs who need such items. By this, I create more space in my wardrobe and in my next purchase, I don’t need to think where to and how to.
3. More awareness: Awakened Buyer
Now since I have decluttered my home, wardrobe, kitchen, etc, I know what kind of stuff I really need and that are used daily or occasionally. I will not buy a product that I may or may not use for the next 5 – 10 years.
Asking the question “Do I really need this product now?” this “now” timeline is also an essential aspect. And if I think I will use the product after 6 months, I will buy it after 6 months only. If I will not get the same product, I may get a similar or even better one.
Decluttering: Impact on financial health
1. Lesser purchase means more savings
This way you will be able to save more money and financially stronger than before. You may spend on few luxury items as well. And live a debt-free life.
When you buy things intentionally with an awareness of its need, you will plan it and budget it before buying. When I buy with planning I do a comparative analysis to get the best price. This saves a lot of money as well.
2. Other financial benefits from valued products
Many times while decluttering we find such products that can be sold. You will get a chance to earn something that you don’t need anymore.
“Minimizing can be exhilarating. If you continue decluttering, you just might find a zest for life that you didn’t know existed under all that stuff!”
― Lisa J. Shultz
How do you feel after decluttering?
These are just major benefits of decluttering. Share your viewpoints or some other benefits you have noticed in your life after you start to make your home clutter-free and organized.
So once you have decluttered your space, you will be in a better place in life. Ultimately it will,
- Increase your productivity
- Boost your creativity with more time
- Better time management skills
- Less time to spend in cleaning as there is less to clean
- Get quality time for yourself
- Focus more time on pursuing your hobby
- Have better focus, concentration, feel-good factor.
When you start and complete this crazy task of decluttering, you will have an idea of proper organization of thing and home overall. You will have a sense of gratitude of having the things you desired ever and still having the capacity to get new desires fulfilled. This definitely gives self satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.
With more donations of unused stuff to the needy people, you will realize the value of it as well. This will enhance your capability for charitable work and brings out your inner goodness. One decluttering has so many benefits, you can’t and should not avoid or procrastinate it.
If you are wondering where to start, read Quick decluttering tasks to start that don’t overwhelm and Once you know the benefits, it’s easier and motivating.
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