In most cases the answer is... YES!
Have you ever gone food shopping without a list? I certainly have, with very mixed results. You find yourself walking around the supermarket repeatedly asking yourself "do we need any...".
Then, when you return home, there's good news and there's bad news...
The good news is that you've removed 'do the shopping' off your list - TICK!
The bad news is that you've forgotten to buy loads of stuff that you actually needed, and you now have a year's supply of cooking oil.
This way of shopping is extremely common as we all rush to tick off everything we need to get done. But the same thing happens for many items in our home, on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis.
When our homes are full of items, often on top of each other and in 'unauthorised' locations, how are we expected to remember exactly what we already have in stock? This creates a false need in our minds, which is temporarily 'resolved' through regular trips to the shops.
For example, let's talk about socks...
Picture the scene: you're fed up of hunting for clean socks in the morning (ones without holes), so the next time you're out shopping you think "I really need socks, I literally have NONE!", so you buy more... another thing off the list - TICK!
What you've forgotten is, someone (obvs not a close friend), bought you some last Christmas as a gift, really nice ones as it turns out! However, they're still tied together (with that weird plastic T-shaped thing stapled through them), hiding in the bottom of a cupboard / drawer that doesn't normally house socks.
So the socks live happily ever after. In the place where socks don't live. Probably laughing at you, like a weird sock gang. Whilst you live your best life, happily wearing your newly purchased socks.
To make things worse, some people will also hang on to the old socks too (just in case), so it's now complete sock overload!
So... how can decluttering help?
Well, unfortunately decluttering and organising isn't a money tree and saving money on socks isn't likely to have a great impact on your finances - sorry!
However saving money is definitely one of the many benefits achieved by getting your spaces (and socks) under control and organised.
How long it takes to get these benefits will depend on how many (sock) years it's been since you last decluttered and how you take advantage of your freshly organised space.
Don't worry though, there's never a bad time to start. It can seem really daunting to begin with, but like all achievements in life, you have to start somewhere.
Where do I even start?
The kitchen is a great place to begin, most of us will do some form of food shopping on a weekly basis, and our kitchen is in almost constant use (especially if you have little ones around) - so you'll feel the results of your hard work daily.
It's a good idea to tackle one cupboard / drawer at a time. Go through each item individually and ask yourself:
Is it out of date?
Do I have too many of them?
When was it last used?
Is it where it should be?
Whats the worst that could happen if it wasn't here anymore?
Slowly but surely, you'll find that you've not only freed up space, but you can now easily see what you have / haven't got. So a quick glance in the cupboard before the food shop and you'll quickly know what needs restocking.
Goodbye unnecessary purchases... and hello more change at the checkout!
This all sounds great, but who has time for all that?
I do!
Of course, many people have the time and dedication to declutter and organise their home. But loads of people are trying to juggle work, school runs, homework, clubs and keep up with the house work.
If you need some help getting in control of your space or advice about where to start, get in touch - it's my favourite thing to do. While I can't promise it'll save you money, I can say that it is certainly one of the benefits that can be acheived.
P.S. if you're still unsure - ask your socks!
Count how many pairs you have / are aware of - if it's more than 10 give me a call.
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