When people want to declutter and organise, there are many ways to go about it. One of the ways some people organise their designated space is to shift excess into another room, shed, verandah, yard or other space even if it means moving the excess off the property into paid storage or a friend or relative's premise. This is what I call stuff shuffling.
I have seen people stuff shuffle for years on end and never make any overall progress on decluttering and organising. Their stuff shuffling becomes cyclical.
Stuff shuffling from one room to another
If stuff shuffling within the house, very soon the new space where the excess has been added becomes overwhelmed with clutter. And now this room needs decluttering. More work. And then the excess is moved to another room. Can you see the pattern here?
Sometimes, some of the removed items are added back in or new items purchased. And the excess clutter is magnified. And.. back to square one.
Stuff shuffling within the same room
The excess may be reorganised differently but it is still what it was before the reshuffle -excess. And at some stage, the same feeling of overwhelm will trigger another stuff shuffle. And the cycle continues.
While the room originally decluttered may look a lot more organised, the real problem was not actually tackled. And that very real problem for many is excess stuff.
What is excess?
It's more than enough. We can even say, things we don't need, are excess.
Excess is not always bad. Sometimes excess is prudence and wisdom. Whether excess is actually necessary can be situational and contextual.
If your stuff is not adding value to your life now or in the practical future, a re-think is needed. If your stuff is getting in the way of you functioning efficiently in life or enjoying your life, a re-think is needed. If the root cause of your excess is fear, a re-think is needed.
It can be hard for some people to identify whether the excess is necessary. Oftentimes a second opinion and a new set of eyes can be helpful. This is where we, as professional organisers can help immensely.
Excess can become clutter. But not always. If it is excess to need now but will certainly be required, managing and organising the excess is critical. Disorganised excess can look like clutter and clutter can create feelings of chaos. Organised excess can also look like clutter! If, for whatever reason, we need excess, available space and suitable storage options will be critical.
Breaking the cycle of stuff shuffling
Firstly, why is it so important to break the stuff shuffling cycle?
Time wasting- never seeing sustained progress
Exhausting- having to shuffle and shuffle and shuffle is physically and emotionally draining
Demoralising- having to redo the work again and again only to find the same problem, is wearing
Demotivating- all of the above lead to, in a nutshell, a resolve that the clutter can't be fixed. And this is where some people give up and settle with where things are at, and in some cases, let their spaces become even more cluttered.
And this is why intervention is so critical.
Having a fresh set of eyes work with you to declutter your spaces can be so helpful. There is a reason there are professional organisers! We don't make decisions for you, but our skill is to help you re-think your relationship with your stuff and offer suggestions on how to organise your belongings.
The point is, stuff shuffling always catches up with us. Why not stop the cycle and start fresh today?
Declutter and Design
Live Organised
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