Cleared Spaces, Calm Minds: The Ultimate Guide to Decluttering Your Physical Space

The impact of a cluttered environment

Cluttered spaces, both at work and at home, can leave us feeling overwhelmed, stressed and disorganised. A simple, yet impactful solution to regain control and find peace is decluttering.

Decluttering can be applied to your physical environment, your digital world and also to your mind… but for the purpose of this post I’m going to focus on your physical environment.

Constant visual reminders of our disorganisation drains our cognitive resources and reduces our ability to focus, there is also an increased likelihood of procrastination if your environment is filled with stuff (source).

And if you’re in a workplace rather than a solopreneur like me, your messy desk is likely to impact on your colleagues too (source).

Benefits of decluttering your home and workspace

Removing clutter from your environment can lead to a sense of calm and reduced stress levels. A tidy space promotes relaxation and mental clarity.

With a clutter-free environment, you can work more efficiently and complete tasks with ease. No more hunting for misplaced items! Seemingly the average American executive can lose 6 weeks a year trying to find items in messy desks and files (as reported by the Wall Street Journal).

A clutter-free space can also inspire creativity and fresh ideas - it’s easier to think outside the box when you’re not surrounded by chaos. Now this might be subjective, because I’ve also read that messy desks can promote creativity (source). I certainly find that I can think more clearly, and be more creative, when my environment is clean and clear. I actually have some of my best ideas when I’m out in nature walking the dog!

Types of decluttering

When it comes to my house, I subscribe to the approach called Döstädning, which is actually Swedish death cleaning. It sounds morbid, but felt right for me.

The premise is that you are essentially decluttering your home to make it easier for your loved ones when you die… (hopefully not yet)… but it can be done at anytime and it’s not intended to draw attention to death, but rather more it’s to celebrate life. This approach involves holding onto items that have meaning to you (& subsequently will be meaningful to your loved ones when you pass).

Most items that I have out on display in my home are things that have a story behind them. I have a lot of antiques and ornaments that were my late mums, and a few pieces from my late gran. It’s allowed me to curate a home that has meaning and it’s been a gentler approach than true minimalism.

You can have a read of this blog post on Your Next Level Self where I have shared more about decluttering and my approach.

Conscious Time Management

My framework for Conscious Time Management is the 8 P’s, and these are the pillars that I use with my clients and teach in my workshops and signature programme, Project Manage Your Life. One of the P’s is place… which is all about our environment and talks to decluttering.

If you’d like to get started with your time management journey, my free Time Audit workbook is a great place to begin. Get your free copy here.