I’m taking a sabbatical and have lined up a few posts ahead of time. I’ll also be re-sharing some of my fave OTR articles and introducing you to new guest authors as well as other interesting info while I’m away. Here’s a bit of advice from OTR friend, Naomi Seldin, on extreme downsizing.

Moving can be stressful regardless of the circumstances, but moving to a much smaller place can be particularly challenging.

“Social workers, geriatricians, retirement community administrators and family members…believe the sheer volume of objects in a typical household, the enormous physical and cognitive effort involved in sorting out what’s essential, the psychological toll of parting with what’s disposable — all can lead to a kind of paralysis that keeps seniors in place, even when the place isn’t the best place.”

Read More:

When Possessions Lead to Paralysis | NYTimes.com | 9.16.10

Donating  items that you no longer need or want can be very rewarding.   You get a less cluttered space and someone else gets something they need.  Before you go on give-away campaign, be sure that you follow these simple rules of thumb.

1.  Give the good stuff. On the surface, it may sound counterintuitive, afterall, you want to keep the good stuff, right? Remember, it’s only good if it’s useful to you. So, be sure to only donate something that functions as intended (read: not broken). This also means giving clothing that is clean and CDs that are not scratched. A couple questions to ask yourself before donating would be:  ”Would I buy this exactly as it is?” or “Would I be offended if I received this as a gift?”

2.  Give the good stuff with all the parts. Wouldn’t it be great to get that gently used, really fabulous thing that you’ve always wanted?  Not so much if the power cord for the really fabulous thing is missing.  If you can’t find all the parts, you may want to consider recycling.

3.  Give the good stuff with all the parts without your marks. This means that if your name is on it, you’ll have to remove it.  When in doubt, refer to the questions in #1.

How many times has your pro organizer asked if you really needed some item that you haven’t used in years?  Have you ever taken her advice to sell that item?

I’ve had several clients who did just that.  One in particular finally decided to sell 1 set of large speakers and an adult bicycle on Craig’s List.  She very quickly found a buyer for both but then she got cold feet.  Not because she wanted to keep them, but because she was going to be home alone during the pick up (shipping them would have been a huge hassle).

So, the moral of the story is go nuts with selling unwanted or unused items (if they’re in good shape), BUT please be sure that you stay safe by doing one of the following:

• Conduct your transaction in a public place that you’re familiar with
• Have a friend or two with you if the item(s) must be picked up from your home
• Ship the items
  

You have no idea who’s coming to meet you, so why not err on the safe side?

Today’s guest post was written by Naomi Seldin, someone who has struggled with letting go of things.  Today, she shares how she got on the path to clearing the clutter.

A year ago, I was overwhelmed by clutter. I lived in a two-bedroom apartment with adequate storage space, but I simply had too much stuff: things I didn’t use or need.

So I went to work. For months, I spent a night here, an afternoon there with a trash can, recycling bin, shredder and donation box at my feet. It took time, but I whittled down what I owned. Today, I have much less stuff. My wardrobe is a fourth of its original size, but I like and wear what’s in it regularly. I don’t feel guilty when I look at my bookshelves because I’ve given away all the books I just know I won’t read again — or at all. I’ve redefined my concept of “enough,” and I’m happier and healthier for it.

Here are three things I found helpful as I tackled my clutter:

1. Practice, practice, practice: I’ve heard that it takes a month to form a new habit. When I started, it was harder to decide what to keep and what to throw away, and I was much more resistant to parting with things. Now, it’s easy to get rid of what I don’t need, and I’m still finding things to give away.

When I felt overwhelmed, I reminded myself that it took years to accumulate so much stuff. And indeed, it took me months to get rid of my clutter. I committed to spending a few hours a week working on my stuff. Then I picked a drawer, a box or a shelf. I pulled everything out of hiding, and I sat down with my tools (donation box, recycling bin, etc.) and went to work.  As soon as I’d decided what I was giving or throwing away, I got it out of my house as quickly as possible. That kept me from changing my mind, and it cleared up cluttered space.

2. I am who I am: A lot of my clutter came from things I felt like I should use, but never did.  I bought craft supplies because I thought I should be more creative. But I express my creativity through writing, so those scrapbooking materials gathered dust on my shelf. I felt like I should be a better cook, so I had cookbooks and cooking supplies I never used.All of this stuff has gone to better homes, and I’m more at peace with who I am. One of the first things I gave away on my blog was a pasta maker I never used. The woman who took it off my hands had taken an Italian cooking class and was thrilled to put it to work and feed her friends.

Getting rid of this kind of clutter helped me to come to terms with who I am, not who I thought I “should” be. I still have four of my favorite cookbooks, but I gave away the rest to readers of my blog and my sister. Less clutter, more peace of mind.

3. I went public: My blog, Simpler Living, made me stick to my plan. I had to make regular progress reports, which kept me on track. With the exception of clothing, food and gas, I also stopped shopping for most things. My readers, family, friends and co-workers have given me a lot of support and suggestions along the way.  You may not want to blog about your own experience, but it can help to let other people know what you’re doing — and to ask for help when you need it.

Here’s a personal challenge for you:

Make a date with yourself to spend half an hour tackling some of your clutter. Put it on your schedule or calendar. When the time comes, set an egg timer for half an hour and pick a drawer, box or closet to go through.  Find 10 things to throw, sell or give away. The Good Human has been doing this on his blog to great success.  Getting started can be the hardest part sometimes, so if you really get cooking, don’t stop at 10 things. Bit by bit, your life and personal space will get cleaner. You’ll be the happier for it, I can promise you that.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

About the Author

Naomi Seldin describes herself as ” just a regular person who spent a year figuring out how to get rid of excess stuff through the trial and error of personal experience, plus the experience of countless others.”  She blogs about living well with less at Simpler Living.

.

Get More Information

Image via Wikipedia
Downsizing. Cutting back. Being frugal. Buying “no frills” brands. Are you doing this? In my last post, I wondered if cutting back was such a bad thing, especially with the economy being what it is. Less stuff = less clutter. Less clutter = less stress. Sounds easy enough, but maybe not. What happens when we cut out things that make us feel happy and balanced, like going to the beauty salon, playing golf, or getting a facial. These activities rejuvenate us and can be hard to give up.

• Hair Salon. Yep, I do my own hair…except when my mum comes to town and she does it for me.
  

• Manicure/Pedicure. I learned to do these pretty early on in life and, in fact, used to be the nail tech at my mum’s beauty salon in my pre-college days. I know how to do it, so why pay for it?
  

• Maid Service. I don’t live in mansion so I can handle it. When I get the mansion, I’ll reconsider this one.

Ok, so now for the stuff that got cut in my age of frugality…

• Weekly Grocery Run. Don’t worry, I still eat. I just don’t go grocery shopping every week. I go every other week instead.
  

• Eating Out. I love trying out new restaurants but now I eat mostly at “Chez D. Allison Lee,” a.k.a., my kitchen. I cook more and eat out less.
  

• Daily Starbucks Visit. It was painful to not buy my favorite drink every day: Grande One Pump Vanilla Soy Latte. Over the summer, I had a penchant for the iced latte or the Vivanno Orange Mango Banana smoothie with Matcha Tea. Now, I limit myself to a “once in a blue moon” run and make coffee at home. It’s not the same, but I’ll live.
  

• Brand Name Items. Store brands have become more appealing to me these days.
  

• Audible.com. Since I’m on the road a lot, I like to listen to audiobooks while driving. Unfortunately, this got cut and I canceled my membership.
  

Want to know what’s hard for me cut out altogether? Sushi. I love, love sushi. I even send out tweets to my friends in Twitterland when I’m having sushi…

Something I won’t give up: organic flaxseed. I love the flavor and it has great health benefits. By the way, did you notice that I just had sushi a few days ago? Did you also notice that it was half off for happy hour? Yep, frugal is my new buzz word.

What are you cutting back on? Or, are you?

Related Articles

• Consumers Cut Back on Small Pleasures
• Americans Cut Back Sharply on Spending

Recently, Krista Colvin, a professional organizer I met on Twitter, blogged about “scaling back” in her post, When The Diva Downsizes. It seems that with all the economic turmoil, lots of us are being more careful about our spending. This might sound dismal, but is it really? If we are more careful about how we spend and actually purchase fewer things, is that really so bad? The less stuff we have, the less we have to put away and the less clutter builds up. Sounds good, right?

But what about the “non-thing” stuff that make us happy? Like a grande one pump vanilla soy latte that the nice folks at Starbucks make oh so well? What about things that are good for us like organic food and our gym memberships…our doctor’s visits? Even manicures, pedicures, and massages help to us to relax and reduce stress. Should they get the ax, too?

What do you think? How are you cutting back?

P.S. Stay tuned… In my next post, I’ll let you know what I’ve cut out and the things that are really hard for me to live without.