Declutter the Easy Way

Minimalism is not about deprivation.  Owning less doesn't mean owning nothing.  Minimalism is about removing the non-essential so you have more time, space, energy, attention, and money for what is most important to you.

And while that end result looks different for everyone (and may even be different for each person at different times in their life), there are some things about the process of getting there that are the same for all of us.

How we make it difficult

It's funny.  Whenever I talk to someone about what I write about, I often get a similar response:  "I could never do that."  "I wouldn't want to live without ______."  "I wouldn't want to limit myself."

However, some people are interested in knowing more.  They want to learn how to approach a more minimalist lifestyle.  But they have questions too:  

• "My spouse wouldn't want to do that.  What can I do with his/her stuff?"  
• "What about my family heirlooms?"  
• "What about my ______ collection?  I love it!"

These first questions are almost always about the things that can be most difficult to pare down.  People's minds race to what they find hardest to declutter, and the thought of reducing those things is daunting.  It makes them feel incapable of doing anything.  And so we wind up back to those same old comments:  "I could never do that."  "I wouldn't want to live without ______."  "I wouldn't want to limit myself."

How to get started with something that's hard

Decades ago, when I was in college, I was given a major role in an opera the music department was producing.  I had never sung a full operatic role before.  I had sung individual arias in recital.  I had acted in musicals, which had plenty of spoken dialog interspersed by songs.  But an entire sung-through opera?  That was a challenge I had never yet attempted.

I was honored and excited, but scared.  Not only did I need to learn this role, but I needed to fit all of my own practice, plus rehearsals for the production, into an already busy schedule of classes, lessons, two other ensembles I performed with, and a different ensemble that I directed.  Plus, I had a part-time job in the college business office.  And I had friends, and a boyfriend.

But this was the fulfillment of a dream for me, and I wanted to do it.  I wanted to be great at it.  But it wasn't my voice teacher who gave me the best advice.  One of my other professors (who happened to be a wonderful pianist) told me to stop worrying about learning the entire opera.  "You've already sung one of the arias in the past," he reminded me.  "Rework it now, and then learn other arias (or duets, trios, etc.) one at a time.  Take the recitatives scene by scene.  Practice the text (in Italian) separately from the notes, until you become fluent and can act it."

This really helped me.  I did know that one aria very well, and I was ready to do more with it than I had a couple of years before when I first learned it.  Reworking that aria was an easy first step.

The second aria was technically very difficult, so I decided to begin work on one of the duets.  And I began practicing the text of the recitatives, a bit at a time.  I focused on what I could do.  And ultimately, as I worked on my own and with my voice teacher, I added more and more of the music.  The techniques and confidence I gained prepared me to do even more.  Eventually, I sang the role to positive reviews, reprised it two years later, and reinterpreted and sang it again in my mid-40s.

An easy start

This is how you start living with less:  Begin with something easy.  Don't worry yet about what you'll do with your spouse's clutter, your favorite collection, or mementos from your past.  Just do the easy stuff:

• Trash or recycle items that are broken or worn out.
• Donate some duplicates.
• Discard things you've never liked or that evoke unhappy memories.
• Remove non-sentimental items you haven't used in a year or more.
• Set a timer for 10 minutes and go through one drawer or one shelf.  Repeat as often as you can.

As you continue to declutter, make one rule:  Keep what you use, love, or would buy again today.  Donate, sell, recycle, or toss everything else.

Leave your difficult areas for later.  You'll get to them when you're ready.

Want more inspiration for your journey to a simpler life?  Get my book, Simple Beginnings: 15 Tiny Steps Toward Minimalism.  It's a "first steps" book that will encourage you to think about what you really want and need.  It will remind you to prioritize peace and make space for what you care about.  It will help you experiment as you take your time figuring out what works for you.

Simple Beginnings is also included in Minimalist Basics: The Omnibus Edition.*

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