SHEfinds | Justine Ingersoll Schwartz
Spring and fall are the most popular times of year for decluttering your home. The seasons have changed, you’re packing away your summer stuff and digging out your boots and coats, and you’re spending more time indoors, where you start to see how much crap you own. Those piles of mail, stacks of books, and other clutter piles become much more noticeable.
So, how should you start if you want to declutter your home? Here’s the fast and dirty way to do it: the rule of five! What does that mean? It means you throw away at least five items in every room.
So, when you’ve decided that you want to start decluttering, go from room to room and throw away five items per room. This can include literal trash or items like magazines you’ve already read, objects that no longer spark joy, items that are broken and can’t be fixed, clothes that you haven’t worn in several seasons, receipts, catalogs, broken umbrellas, broken headphones, pens that have run out of ink, books you’ll never read or have already read, broken sandals, used notebooks, old batteries, broken toys… you get the idea.
Start with the items that have the least personal significance and move quickly. If you’re on the fence about an item, try this trick: Put it in a special “maybe” pile. Use the rule of five once a day for a week, and the items from the “maybe” pile that you haven’t touched in the week can definitely be tossed.
So, there you have it: the rule of five.
