10 Reasons Why You Need To Declutter

Decluttering is not just a concept for the minimalist person that only they should practice. Decluttering is a needed practice for all of us.

I have always felt like decluttering was basic for me.

I used to declutter things from time to time, even as a kid and a teenager- and I saw my mother doing it too time and again.

My father and my grandparents were hoarders, but me and my mother would easily give away things we didn’t need.

We would sort through old newspapers, old clothes, and old showpieces and clear out the clutter from our drawer, from the table, from the living room, from the kitchen, from our closet and all the places where clutter had piled up.

And I thought this was something all of us did, or had to do until I grew up and saw and still see that for many people decluttering is something far away from their minds.

I used to think, “Why don’t people declutter?!”

But now I get it- that for some people, decluttering is just hard and overwhelming.

And for many people, they just don’t think it is essential or needed so why bother.

And for many it doesn’t even cross their minds.

But they are left with piles of stuff all over the table, all over the furniture, all over the cupboards and sometimes even all over the bed and everywhere in the house that there is no space to even walk around the house at ease.

And then they wonder why they are so stressed and agitated even after coming home.

So in this blog post, I want to share and point out the most important reasons why you need to declutter and the benefits I have received from decluttering.

I hope this post inspires you to declutter and see the change it can bring to your life.

If you are someone who right now is burdened by piles of clutter and things that are age-old, then I can certify that decluttering can change your life.

But first, let’s understand what is decluttering.

What is Decluttering?

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In life, as we grow up knowingly and unknowingly we buy and bring many things to our house.

Every item we bring to our house has some energy attached to it that alters the energy of the house.

We may buy them at a sale, buy them because we think we need them even though we don’t, or buy them because someone else has it too.

Decluttering is the process of removing the things you don’t need from a pile of things that has created an untidy and overcrowded space.

It is the process of sorting through all the possessions that you own and then deciding:

what you want to keep
what you want to discard
What you want to donate, sell or recycle.

Decluttering isn’t just for tidying up, but for simplifying your home and life.

It is about assessing from time to time, what is it that you truly need.

If the things that have been piling up all in your house are something that has been left unattended and you haven’t used them for over a month, then know that there is a 99% chance that you won’t use them in future as well, so you can declutter it out.

What to declutter

Decluttering can be applied to any area of your life, such as

From Your physical spaces

Declutter your living room
Declutter your bedroom
Declutter your car
Declutter your fridge
Declutter your office space

From your digital space

Declutter your photos on your phone
Declutter your emails
Declutter your digital files
Declutter your social media following and followers

From your personal life

Declutter your schedule
Declutter your finances
Declutter your relationships

Decluttering is simply about removing the unwanted things from your life so that what you are left with is only things that you truly need, love and value in your life.

Now coming to the main topic, why you need to declutter

10 Reasons Why You Need to Declutter

While you can declutter every area of your life, I want to stress mostly on decluttering your home and the spaces where you live and spend your time mostly like your bed, your table, your office and spaces which you use every day- like your fridge, your car, your phone etc.

Decluttering and tidying up have benefitted me greatly.

It is, I think what has kept me sane and joyful.

Here are the reasons you need to declutter that have been most true for me.

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1. Decluttering improves mental health

For me, decluttering is essential for my mental health.

When things start piling up and my house starts looking untidy and disorganized, I feel more agitated and I just can’t seem to function properly.

Decluttering and cleaning are like therapy for me.

When the house is tidy and my spaces are neat I feel good mentally.

I feel much calmer and at peace.

It’s the reason why I have also written this post on why I enjoy cleaning my house and not dread it.

You don’t have to declutter every day, but if you haven’t decluttered in a long time and you have all kinds of things lying around, then you need to set daily goals of which space you want to declutter.

Then it’s only about maintaining such spaces.

2. It will help you feel lighter

When you declutter and let go of the stuff you don’t need, you are not only creating a lighter and spacious house, but also creating a lighter and spacious mind.

If you’ve been swimming in the sea of clutter in your home, it might be the reason why you feel overwhelmed, agitated and restless all the time.

But just like cutting your hair can make you feel light and fresh, cutting off and decluttering all the stuff you don’t need will also make you feel so much lighter.

Try clearing out just one space in your bedroom or living room today.

Declutter and clean and see how it makes you feel.

As I said, I always feel so much calmer, peaceful and lighter when I declutter my home and make it spacious.

It’s like I remove 100 GB of storage from my mind as well.

3. Decluttering will give you a better mood

Decluttering enhances your mood.

Everything is energy.

Clutter creates an energy of the past, an energy of being stuck, an energy of negativity.

When there are so many things piled up catching dust on the table, in the drawer, at the bedside, it’s hard to feel joyful and have a happy mood.

To have more joy in your life, you have to make space for it.

Decluttering will help you create that space.

Declutter and create at least one space in your home that makes you not want to leave your house.

Create your sanctuary.

It can be in one corner of your room or anywhere.

Make this your happy space. And slowly create more happy spaces for yourself.

Our home is an extension of our energy.

How our home feels impacts our well-being, our mood, our thoughts and our feelings.

Decluttering is essential to create a home that radiates joy, love and positivity.

Yes, it’s not only people who can radiate love, but our rooms, our spaces and our homes too.

Strive to create such a home.

4. It will improve your creativity

Decluttering might not help you to be creative, but it will enhance your creativity.

Less clutter means less overwhelm and more calm, peace and relaxation.

As human beings, we simply cannot create in a survival mode.

We simply cannot bring out our creativity and create stuff when we are overwhelmed and stressed out.

Even if we do it, it won’t be sustainable for long and we won’t enjoy it.

But when you declutter and make your spaces tidy, you are more likely to feel inspired to do the work and sit down with clear thinking.

More ideas also come to mind.

This is the case for me.

I simply cannot sit down to write if my room is messy.

When my space is untidy, I cannot write from a joyful state.

I always believe in doing things in a high life state, and especially writing and creative work, because I feel that the energy with which we do our work matters.

Our energy with which we do our work passes on to those who may read us, listen to us or watch us.

Creativity can flourish only in a calm and relaxed environment and for that reason decluttering and tidying are essential. That is- unless you want to become those artists or creatives who are bent on doing the work in a stressed mindset because they think that only when they are stressed and feel it’s too hard, they feel like they are doing some powerful and meaningful work.

I don’t believe in that.

I believe our creativity and work should be like nature- clean, relaxed and at ease, but always doing its work without hurry yet finishing it all perfectly.

5. Decluttering will reduce your stress

Every item in your household is communicating with you unconsciously.

On the inside, you might have a feeling that you have to get rid of some stuffs, but when you don’t and keep on accumulating and seeing that pile of stuff, maybe on your way to the kitchen, or when you enter your room, or anywhere, it subconsciously reminds us of an incomplete task, our inability to let go and we feel more and more stuck and stressed.

But when you declutter you will find yourself less stressed, and more calm and composed.

Also, less stuff means less work and less maintenance.

It will also help you in decision-making and improve your productivity. Even research has shown that.

If you don’t believe me, you can read this article on the psychology behind decluttering.

P.S Habits of people who don’t get stressed

6. Decluttering will improve your sleep

When I finish all my chores at night, clean my kitchen, tidy up my living room and my own room, it means that it’s now time to go to bed and wind down.

It is the reason why now I can’t ever go to bed in a messy and untidy room.

I HAVE TO clean and tidy up before sleeping.

And when the space is all neat and tidy, and add to that a wonderful bath before bedtime, brushing my teeth and washing my face, wearing my nightdress, and then putting on night cream before bed.. ah! I love going to bed with such a feeling.

After that, I don’t even feel the need to scroll through my phone and disturb my peace of mind and relaxed state.

I instead I lay down in my bed relaxed and it’s time for some reading before going to sleep.

This is my nighttime ritual as of now and I get a wonderful sleep each night.

7. Decluttering will support you to adopt a healthy lifestyle

If you’re wondering why you don’t feel motivated enough or why you can’t stick to your habits, try decluttering and clearing out spaces and stuff you don’t need.

Decluttering is essential for adopting a healthy lifestyle.

You can’t hope to change your life if you don’t even make your bed or clear out the piles of stuff catching dirt on the bedside table.

Decluttering is like a support system to help you adopt a healthy lifestyle.

When you’ve decluttered and made your spaces tidy and organized, it will inspire you and motivate you to keep going.

You become more likely not to feel the need to engage in your earlier negative habits.

This is because your surroundings and spaces will be so changed that you wouldn’t want your habits to remain the same as they were before.

When the environment supports you, you are more likely to follow through.

P.S How to make this year your wellness year

8. Decluttering gives you a sense of accomplishment

When you declutter even one of the spaces, whether it is the kitchen, your car, your fridge, your bedside table, your office or anything else, it gives you a sense of accomplishment.

I always feel so glad when I have decluttered and cleared something- even if it’s just the photos on my phone.

Decluttering can boost your self-esteem and also your confidence and make you feel calmer and relaxed.

9. Decluttering improves your focus and productivity

Clutter is one big but subtle hindrance in getting things done.

It makes us feel anxious, stressed and restless, so much we won’t be able to focus on one task for even 10 minutes at a stretch.

When you just clear out your digital clutter such as your overflowing inbox, your files and cluttered desktop or clear out your desk and your workspace, you also save so much time because you’ll be spending less time searching for files and more time getting things done.

So start small. Pick one area—a desk, a drawer, or even just your email inbox—and commit to decluttering that one area.

You’ll be amazed at how much lighter and more focused you feel once the clutter is gone.

10. By decluttering you polish your life

Lastly, decluttering is the way to polish your life.

The Universe loves symbolic gestures.

When you declutter what you don’t need and strive to make space, the Universe thinks you are ready to make space for the good to enter your life.

When you’re cleaning your home, feel that you are also cleaning all the negative corners of your heart and mind.

When you’re polishing the mirror, feel that you are also polishing your own life.

When you clear the old baggages from your home and your surroundings, do it with the feeling that you are also removing all the pieces of baggage of the past- all the old hurt, old grief, old complaints and all the old stuff and habits that are no longer serving you.

Decide to keep only that which you love, value and need.

Let everything you own have a meaning and add to either beauty, purpose or value.

So here, I gave you my reasons for why you need to declutter

Final Thoughts on Why You Should Declutter

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Your house should be a place that promotes your mental well-being and peace, not make you want to leave it.

It does not matter if your house is old or new.

Most of us have the thinking, “I’ll clear out once I shift to a new place or once I renovate my home”.

And they keep delaying decluttering

But that only means you are also delaying your well-being.

If your house is old, that’s all the more reason to declutter because then you will have so much old stuff piled up that makes your house look even older.

Even my home in Siliguri is very old.

It’s our ancestral house and we still live there. Some stuffs are even older than me, but our home is still clutter-free and it still gives a fresh positive vibe.

Everyone who enters our home, especially me and my mother’s room says so.

The same is true with my Kolkata apartment.

It’s an old flat, but I’ve kept only those things that are essential for me and I always keep my home neat, tidy and organized.

I live alone, so living in a good space is what helps me support my well-being.

Even though it is rented, I have put on wallpapers and decorated my home nicely still.

I’ve found that when the home is light and positive, it’s easier to feel light and positive too.

So embracing decluttering is what allows us to create space for what truly matters and foster a more harmonious and fulfilling lifestyle.

Decluttering is not a one-time event, but something we have to keep doing from time to time and I hope you adopt it into your lifestyle and see how it makes you feel.

Let’s clear out our lives!

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Hello, I'm Vishaka!

10 Reasons Why You Need To Declutter

What is Decluttering?