I’ll give you examples here:

Books: there are lot of people, you might be one of them who like to read books, you can do exchange of books with other persons after you have read them and have different books all the time, that is a good method, but what happens if you are the ones who like to keep them and you finish with several shelves of books. Well, there are several solutions for it.

Have you heard about Kindle is the most popular device from Amazon.com, it can store 3500 books, do you get the number? It means that you can save 12 shelves of space for a bookshelf that holds 300 books. How much the kindle measures? It is the size of a little notepad, to be exact 7.5″ x 4.8″ x 0.335″.

Other devices that you can read digital books from are the popular revolutionary devices iPad and iPhone from Apple. There is an application called iBook which is free for these devices and you can buy your books or select the free ones through the Apple Store and get the books you want, they are stored in the iPad or iPhone. How much measure the iPad? It is smaller than a magazine with a diagonal screen size of 9.7 inches. They come with memory sizes as 16 Gb, 32 Gb and 64 Gb.

You can hold as much books as your iPad storage can hold.

Even in your iPhone right now you can read books if you would like to, with the same iBook application for iPhone which is a free application too. You would wondering how is this possible to read a book on the little phone, the iPhone 4 makes it better than older versions, you can change the font size to a larger size and have several features to make it  more convenient for you to read, they did a great job with this application. You can read books without any problem and if you don’t want to read it, you can set your iPhone to read it for you with VoiceOver feature.

There is another brand of smart phone that does similar to an iPhone, it is Droid and it is fast growing too, they also have applications to read digital books on the smart phone.

You don’t need to have a digital camera, even a video recorder camera as a separate device, you can save space of having those devices around your home sitting there and waiting to be used, because  you can do all that on your iPhone or Droid too which you can have it with you all the time. Only if you are a professional photographer or professional video maker, then you can look into having different devices but for everyday use of ordinary people like us, we don’t need that much.

These devices are the technology of the moment, everybody are turning to those devices to see what it can do for you and they can do a lot if you get to see all the advantages to own any of them. Don’t get behind and begin yourself to get into those technologies, they are already here to stay and be improved every year.

As you see you can turn into seeing solutions to save space specially if you live in a small house or apartment, you need to look into these solutions and save space, you can eliminate in this way: books, photos, cd’s, even digital cameras and video cameras, having one device that does it all.

Really the problem is in our own thinking. If you see that this task is tedious and can take lot of time, don’t feel overwhelmed, you can accomplish the goal with little steps at a time. If you are the kind of person that leaves that task for another day because it looks like a lot, that other day comes and keep thinking in another day better, then you are showing me that the problem is in your mind.

Decluttering spaces from your home is good for several reasons. I will mention some benefits here:

You can freely walk again without doing maneuvers to not step on top of things. This reason alone is good enough because the older you get, any fall on the floor or on your clutter can be more serious and you could be very hurt.

The air flow in your house will be better and for that reason you will breathe better and will be less concentrations of dust, it will be better for your allergies if you have them, maybe you are getting rid of the cause of them!

The cleaning is much easier when a space is decluttered and it is faster, so you will ended up doing your cleaning tasks a breeze.  You will save precious time.

You will find things faster because you remember you took it away and store it in the appropriate place, this is if you declutter and organize at the same time. This approach makes lot of sense and also save time.

You will enjoy your home better and you will be happier if you live without clutter around you. Believe me, there is nothing better than come home to relax and feel pleasure to be in after a long day at work.

You will have proud on showing your home to your friends and won’t feel embarrassed anymore if you have an unexpected visit.

You will be leaving things from the past in the past, it should be like that, but sometimes we are so attached to the past that we don’t live the moment and worst we don’t even plan for the future.

In the process of decluttering you can feel good with yourself if you give to people who is in need, it is a rewarding experience for the spirit. In this process also you can make some money and use it for other things you might need or even for entertaining yourself.

If you have a home office or just in your office at work, if you don’t have clutter you will be more proactive and less stressful. And it is important that when you get home to relax, you enjoy your stay in it and be happy as a result of it.

Now that you know the benefits of decluttering, what are you waiting for? Plan your declutter day first and also your organization skills and get to accomplish the “No More Clutter Goal”.

When I had lot of clutter in my home due to the death of a family member and lot of her things landed at my home, I began to sell them on eBay and the big things I sold them on Craiglist or Kijiji.com, now eBay Classifieds.

I made some money and helped me to pay some of the education of my children. You can do the same. Once you begin to experiment with it and see how you sell it, you will like it and continue doing it, maybe you would do it to the next level.

What I mean for the next level? You can do a business of it, doing a Decluttering Service yourself. You go and declutter rooms for other people, once you sorted all the clutter, offer a small price for the things as a whole not item by item. Let the people you are working for, know that you want the clutter for a small price, tell them that the items are used some of them are not worthy, etc. Sometimes the people just give it to you for free, remember, they want to get rid of it, some others don’t but here is where your tactics of dealing with them should be used.

After you have the clutter and keep it sorted, remember it was sorted already, just separate the good items and sell them on eBay and recycle or give to charity the rest. If you give them to charity, ask for a receipt, it will help you to deduct it from the taxes. Here in the United States, you can get the packages for free from USPS (United States Postal Service), in their online store, you can ask for packages of 10 or 25 lot for flat rate boxes and shoe boxes and they don’t cost you a penny. I have been using those and most of small items fit on them. I sold clothes, cosmetics, toys, yarn, etc. All of them with great success, you will recover your money.

The items that are small, I can ship it worldwide if it is not more than 4 lbs to send it by First Class International (which is cheaper) but be careful, before shipping overseas, see if it is legal to ship that item to that country, you can see which items are prohibited also in USPS pages.

Shipping worldwide is good because you are selling globally, your items are exposed to the eBay market around the globe and if the people who bid from those countries don’t win the item, they help to raise the bidding price, so that means more money for you. I have to mention that I put all in auction style and my lists are all at the starting bid of $0.99. I often sell the clutter for much more than that. And now, eBay is not charging upfront the listing fee for items listed that start from $0.99. So, what are you waiting for?, boxes does not cost you, the buyer pays for the shipping and now eBay is not charging the listing fee for listings of $0.99, so nothing upfront to begin to sell your clutter.

I have to admit that before you sell on eBay, learn the tactics from the pros and I would recommend you check this eBay Course.

I learned from them and I am making money on eBay right now.

For the furniture or big items that you cannot ship, I use craiglist.org or eBay Classifieds formerly known as Kijiji.com. I sold from both sites very well and none of them cost you. Lately, eBay classifieds are doing changes, so maybe you will have to pay for some services but most of them are free, I haven’t been paying anything yet.

The bad thing from craiglist.org is that there are some people that will try to scam you, sending you e-mails with propositions, so you have to be careful and follow craiglist  guidelines about it, but it is still a very good source to post your big items, so you can sell them locally.

So now, you have this idea for business, in this moment of bad economical situation, is good to have some additional income or if you plan for decluttering services, then you have it, a good business to start. So in conclusion, to sell your clutter just need a small amount if you buy the clutter but if it is your clutter, won’t cost you anything to get started.

Have fun in selling your clutter, I have been having fun just watching how people bids on those items!

Cheers!

You can plan in advanced to organize declutter efficiently. Follow the next steps to avoid buying more containers that you need and use what you have first.

Make a list of containers that you might have and check first if they are accomplishing its function, meaning that if the container is in the right place, if it is easy to find something in that container, if it is labeled, if it needs dividers for even better organization and make it easier to find little things. Go to websites like Container Store and Organize It, to have ideas of the kind of containers or store boxes that you might need.

It is important to see what are the sizes of those containers, and if they fit well in the closet or rack or whatever space you are organizing. What I mean for this is that you might want to check (before buying) what would be the appropriate size of the container.

Let’s take a look at an example, a closet is always a good example. So, we are organizing a closet, we need to see first how big it is, if it is walk-in closet or reach-in closet. Take measurements first, if you have a little closet, you might want to buy containers that are small, don’t put big size containers on that space, remember also appearance and functionality.

You might want to have drawers inside the closet to store neatly instead of boxes, bags or other means that are not proper and make it cluttered. Right now, they are doing several kinds of drawers to put inside closets from the most fancies, to the most economical like those plastic clear drawers, so there are several kinds for different budgets.

Usually the closets have at least one rack (usually at the top of the rail system), look for storage containers that are stackable, there are in several shapes, like squares, or rectangular flats, also they have little drawers if you just want to remove things quickly without the need of take the container down to check in it. Personally I like the clear containers that you can see through, it helps to minimize time in searching because you have the idea what is in it just by looking at it.

Also is recommended to label it in front of the container, so you can easily know what is in there. Most of the time, we label it with the name of the main things that are in it, when you are organizing, you should put similar objects together or if it serves for the same purpose, or things that are complementary of one another and label accordingly, at the end you will have a better organized closet, in this example.

You should begin then to check what areas, if not all, to begin organizing, begin one at a time and see what kind of containers or storage bins they have in online stores and offline stores, remember sizes, easy to see what it is in there, look for characteristics like if they are stackable, etc. Gather ideas, be creative and organize every room in your home.

First, see in your mind the big picture, look at your cluttered space, do you see how ugly looks like? don’t you think it can be dangerous?, think about that those things can fall on you, or things that are in your way and stop you to walk freely. Think about how difficult is to clean when a room is cluttered. Sometimes you don’t feel like clean that cluttered area and then the matter gets worse, cluttered and dirty, accruing dust and if the place is dump can grow mold. That’s why for all those reasons clutter becomes unhealthy for you and your family.

If this is the case and you have accrued lot of clutter over the years and haven’t done cleaning, see if you or a member or members of your family have allergies, that might be the cause, don’t you think? Or maybe someone in your family has fallen because of a box or even a small piece of something that made him or her slipped on. Now, if you have an older member in your family, I mean in the 70s or more and that person falls, it can be very serious.

Now that you are more aware that clutter is a problem, you should begin to work on decluttering for a healthier living not only for you but for your family too.

Now dream a little bit, and imagine that space without any of that clutter, imagine how beautiful you can arrange that space and think how enjoyable can become that space for you. Now you can freely walk through it without sidestepping through the clutter. You can work on beautify that space with some ornaments or just work on that space to make it functional for you.

One thing that I recommend you is, take a note pad and write down your ideas on how that space could be. Begin to realize that is possible to have your space uncluttered and you can do nice things on that space.

Set your goal, what is your goal?, declutter that space!, schedule your time when you will begin to do it. Write down the date and begin preparing your mind for that day.

On the day of decluttering, you will be looking at different objects. Objects that will be sorted, some of them will have a sentimental value, some of them you will feel guilty if you get rid of them. Here is a list of questions that can help you determine if you will keep it or not, but be sincere and be with predisposition to dispose everything you don’t need to have.

How old is this object?

Is it in poor condition?

Is it broken?

Does it mean something to me? Is that something is strong enough to keep that object?

If it’s something to wear, does it fit?

Do I need it?

Have I used it in the past year?

If you have several sets of something, do I need all the sets?

Decluttering or uncluttering can be difficult when you are too much attached to your things, you should understand that if those things were useful in the past and now you live in a present that you realize don’t need them anymore, then you should put those items away forever.

Let me tell you that if you donate those things, you will be feeling good because your items would serve for other people who need them. You will feel good because you are helping people and that is always a good thing for your spirit.

You will also feel good if you sell those items and get some money to buy something that you really need. Remember “something that you need”, don’t begin to buy things just to clutter up again, please.

With this mentality, now it is time to take Action! All the things you propose to yourself in doing it, will be done if you take action, don’t procrastinate, don’t let that idea to go away, don’t let it cool down!, if you don’t take action, you pretty much are done, don’t be a looser, face the problem and resolve it.

In this article you will learn how you should declutter.

Plan ahead, if you set the day that you will do operation declutter, the first thing to do, is take a look of what needs to be done, evaluate each room if you are doing the whole house. Take a notepad and write where the clutter concentrates more in each room. If it is only one is easier but the fundamental steps would be the same.

In this planning, you should look for three baskets, you will need them to sort things out, so if you don’t have them, buy them. Look well, you might have them somewhere cluttered.

Label them, one is “garbage”, the other “charity” and the other one can be “storage” or “to sell”.

Once you have written where the concentration of clutter is, see if those things can fit and be stored where they need to be placed. If it does not fit, you might want to take notes that you would need additional storage, but don’t buy them yet. You will get rid off several things and might not need the additional space but it is good to know in advance.

The day of declutter operation is coming and you are ready or maybe not so ready!

First of all, you should have predisposition to do it. I say this because when you see clutter, sometimes is overwhelmed and then you don’t feel like you want to do it, then you procrastinate and never get it done and the clutter is accruing more and more, because clutter attracts more clutter.

If you decided to declutter but don’t have the predisposition to do it, then talk to someone close to you and ask him or her to follow up with you and motivate you, or even better, ask for help. You know a sadness divided by two people is less than if you feel it alone.

This is usually necessary when the house is full of clutter everywhere. I know the feeling, I’ve been there, sometimes you just cry and do nothing, sometimes it is so much that you give up. Even if you feel like that, try to overcome it, try to make the work more pleasant. It works for me to listen music, …happy music when I am doing this, sometimes the music makes me dance but you know, you have a better attitude to do the work. So, ask yourself what makes you feel happy and use it indirectly to do the work. Maybe just turning the lights on and have the place bright might work. Just be somehow motivated.

Look at your notes that you have written previously. If you began in one room, check what you wrote for that room, where are the big concentrations of clutter. Tackle the bigger one.

With your baskets begin to sort things out. See item by item and begin to ask yourself if the item is worth to be kept or not. If not and it’s in bad condition, goes directly to the garbage basket, you should line this basket with a trash bag, so when it is full, go directly to the trash.

If it is something that you don’t want anymore but its condition is not so good for selling, then goes to “charity” or if you just want to give it to charity. Remember one man’s trash is another’s treasure.

If it is something you want to keep, first ask yourself what is the place where should be.

Everything has its own imaginary place, it might be something that belongs to a garage instead of being in your room or kitchen, you get the idea. Put it right away, don’t delay on it. Now, if you want to keep it, but you really don’t have place to store it, put it in the “storage” bin for later use. I said later use, because more than probably you will need to declutter the space where it should go, the drawer, bin, container, or wherever should go.

Now, if you decided to sell items, put them in the bin assigned and when is full, take it to your assigned place where you will have the items for sell.

When there is no much clutter, it is just putting things away where they belong and you will finish with some items on the baskets but if you are decluttering a serious accumulation of clutter, then the baskets will help you a lot.

This is just a few things to consider when you are doing the declutter operation. Remember we have talking about decluttering only, we haven’t talked about organizing yet.

You can read more details to do this shore in my ebook that is featured on the right of this page.

I have found on a Free Dictionary Online by Farlex the meaning of declutter but it is not a word on English dictionaries. In this free dictionary they define declutter as “to simplify or get rid of mess, disorder, complications, etc”. I think it is close enough.

As any language, words can be included in a dictionary by conventions, I think some day the world “declutter” will be there because of its common use.

The word “clutter” is in all dictionaries, the most closest meaning for this website purposes, which is to talk about decluttering tips, is the following: ”To fill or cover with scattered or disordered things that impede movement or reduce effectiveness”.

What a good explanation of what clutter is!  So, declutter is the opposite action, it is to arrange things and make it orderly. It means to order things, to put things in place where they belong. But then, what does organize mean? Do they have the same meaning?

Let’s analyze what organize means in this context. It means, “To put together into an orderly, functional, structured whole”.

So when we organize, what we are doing is to put things in place (decluttering) in a structure with an efficient and functional way (organizing).

I would say then, we should declutter the rooms of our homes in an organized way, the smart way. So the definition of organization supplements very well the concept of declutter definition.

When I read about decluttering, it is always mixed with organization because it is a complement of it, that’s why people uses declutter and organize almost indistinctly.

Another word that supplements the declutter definition is “clean”. It seems that when you declutter an area, it looks more clean but it does not mean that the area is cleaned.

Clean is the action of get rid of dirt, soil, dust, etc. So it is advised that you clean the area when you declutter, it will be healthier for you and your family. Do you see how cleaning also supplements the decluttering action?

Now, there is another definition that sometimes I see when I look for clutter and is ”hoarding”, let see what this word really means. In any dictionary you will find that hoarding means “to keep (as one’s thoughts to oneself)”.

There are different levels of hoarding, but an overall a hoarder is more extreme in accruing clutter thinking that his or her things are more valuable in money or not so valuable in money terms but emotionally important.

Most of hoarders people have a psychological problem that need to be addressed. If you are in this category, you need some psychologist to help you out, don’t procrastinate in contact him or her. You will be doing a favor to yourself.

I hope you find this article informational and have a better idea of what declutter is.

Probably you have attempted for years having your home decluttered, however you are not an organized person, you couldn’t get a method that actually works best for you and you have not figured out your own organizational preferences.

Take it easy, there is certainly help out there. A bit of aid is readily accessible, for example, if you are looking only to organize a closet, searching for a company is no hassle, just look online and you will find them. But if your needs tend to be more substantial, it is advisable to turn to something that is a bit more personal.

Working with a professional organizer could be the best action for you. However, you need to make sure you find the right one. Therefore, where can you begin looking for? That question is easier than you might think. Definitely, there is no considerably advertising for a qualified organizer anywhere you are going, it requires a bit of research from your part.

You might be fortunate seeking in your local newspaper professional listing or perhaps the phone book under “Organizing Products and Services” and locate one. You can find them online too, go to the Professional Organizer Directory from the National Association of Professional Organizers. You can find an organizer expert near your area and you may refine your search by organizing specialty. You will get access to a listing of names and contact information for professional organizers that meet your criteria.

Before you decide on any individual, be sure you speak to several professional organizers as well as meet them personally. Inquire if they offer a free estimate. You might want to learn if they are part of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO).This does not necessarily guarantee their quality of work however it shows that they have a strong commitment to continue education about this industry and also have a great code of ethics.

Once you talk with them, ask questions like: how long they have been as a professional organizer? What are their particular areas of expertise? Exactly what results are you able to anticipate through the service they will offer to you? This is very important: make sure that you get and follow up on their references. Individuals they worked for will tell you if they were happy with their services.

The individual you will employed, is a person you are going to be inviting into your own home and she or he will be putting a respectable amount of commitment onto it. You will also need to be ready to answer their questions about you and your organizational needs. You ought to be truthful with them.

If you are the type of person who comes from work probably exhausted and tosses mail into a pile everyday as well as tends not to look at it for several days, let them know. This is why you hired them to help you out, so do not be uncomfortable to tell the truth about how unorganized you really are. You may be pleasantly surprised how they can put in place an easy system which will work for you.

To have a perception of the costs, most professional organizers will charge somewhere between $50 and $200 an hour, however there are some who prefer value based pricing and will charge by the project. Truthfully, if you imagine yourself by having an organized home, the cost is well worth it. I visualize it as an investment decision for yourself because you will have pleasure living in your own home, a home you will love, enjoy and relax after having a long day of work.

Closets can easily turn into cramped as well as cluttered, particularly when clothing styles adjust constantly, keeping up with fashion, or it can be just you who have changed, maybe you might be overweight now and cannot easily fit into your clothes anymore, or even the opposite, you became slimmer and now your clothes are too loose. Consequently it is the time to do something regarding your closet.

Late fall and late spring usually are good seasons to work on decluttering a closet. Late fall and late spring considering that the weather becomes more constant. Absolutely nothing is worst than packing away your summer clothing in early October and then, all of a sudden, you get a week of ideal Capri and short sleeves weather.

Handle this particular task when you have all day long to accomplish it. Most likely, you will end up using the bed to store clothes and stuff you retain in the closet and also you do not wish to get to the point of placing everything back again simply because it is getting late and you would like to sleep.

Working in decluttering your closet starts in advanced ahead of the actual “event”. Look first into your closet to determine what exactly you need to really make it organized. Are your accessories all over the place since you are lacking of a proper space to place them? Do you need to buy additional racks or shelves? Do you need to save your shoes in the closet? For suggestions on what sort of storage containers you can buy, check websites like The Container Store.

When you finally know what you need, you may purchase those items in advance, by doing so you will have everything set to go on your “decluttering the closet” project.

Begin this task by taking away your clothing and judging them one at a time. Ask yourself questions such as how has it been since you haven’t wore them, if it has been more than a year, probably you will not use it anytime soon. Additionally check for the condition, if it is not so good, make use of a bin where you are separating clothes that would go to charity.

In the same way, go through your shoes and accessories. As soon as your closet is empty, then you can certainly clean it. Wipe down the shelves, racks and the clothes bar, then vacuum the floor. Once it is done, you can start placing things back in an organized manner.

Do not take any space for granted, particularly if you have a small closet. The back of the closet door is a great place to put hooks, an accessories rack or a shoe bag.

If you are not having enough room to store shoes, there is a great alternative, purchase a bin with wheels on it that can easily slide under the bed. Buy bed lifts, if there is no space under the bed for the bins. Vacuum bags will also be ideal to store seasonal clothes in, if you do not have room in your closet for all your seasonal wardrobes.

One tip to store your clothes is that you could save time switching your seasonal clothing if you store your clothes already on hangers. They do not need to be hung up; they can be stored neatly with the hanger intact so that putting them in and out of the closet is easier.

You may want to think about investing in a permanent organizational solution. There are many companies like The Container Store which specialize in utilizing the space that you have in order for you to maintain an organized and clean closet forever.

Decluttering your closet can be easy to do. You simply need to take your time, utilize your space and consider the best organizational solutions for the job.

Having an organized work space allows you to save precious time by not having to look through clutter to find the information you need.  You will also make a good impression to your clients and/or boss.  People want to work with someone who is organized.

Start seeing around your office; clear all the walkways between your office furniture and equipment; from your desk to the file cabinet, from the door to your desk, seats, etc.

Think in the amount of space you have; if it is a small space, you need a small desk otherwise a large desk in a small space gives a cramped feeling. If you have a large room with a small desk, you can add a table next to your desk, be sure that it is the same height and color, so it will look terrific and elegant and serve as an additional working area.

Do you have the proper furniture in which you can hold all of the office essentials like a fax machine, photo copier, printer, etc?  You will have to give some of your office essentials their own separate space, you would gain some work space; for example, your printer or multifunction copier should not be on your desktop, investing in a printer stand will keep it within a usable distance and will free more of that valuable desk space.  Plus, it will give you some more shelf storage space for accessories such as printer paper.

Do you have enough room for files or books?  You might need to invest in a book shelf, either freestanding or built-in.

Also, by placing your desk to make it easily accessible to the other office equipment is extremely beneficial as well.  Maybe you are the type of person that is constantly needed to go in and out of the file cabinet.  An easy solution to the constant getting up and down from your chair is to place the filing cabinet directly behind your desk.  Or you can make the path wide enough to be able to roll your chair back and forth to the other office equipment.

The desk itself is an area that can easily get cluttered and unorganized. Ask yourself what are the things that need to be on the desk?  The answer for this is paper organization. It is the key to create an un-cluttered desk top. The Container Store: Home Office > Desktop Collections > Natural Materials

Make sure that you label all project folders and/or manila files sitting on your desk.  You can get rid of the stacks of files by placing them in a step file holder on your desk which will enable you to see at a glance the various projects that need your attention. You might also be able to use stacking trays which are ideal for your “inbox” and “outbox”.  They save space and are another great way to keep your office desktop neat.

Pay attention to the drawers of the desk as well.  Office supply stores and chain retailers have an assortment of plastic trays and caddies, including those that are designed to fit perfectly into a desk drawer.  You can use them to get your office supplies organized by placing those loose pens, markers, paper clips and thumb tacks within them.

Check around the floor of your desk to make sure that this has not become a dumping ground for things that you don’t have a space for.

Once your office is well organized, it really is simple to keep it that way.  At the end of the day spend five to ten minutes putting things away.  This is a simple way to guard against things getting out-of-control once again.