Cut The Clutter: Getting Rid Of Stuff You Don't Need

By Francine Fluetsch on July 22, 2014

This article is brought to you by CORT, a subsidiary of Berkshire-Hathaway and the world’s largest furniture rental and relocation services company. To learn more about how we can help college students like you, click here.

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Do you have a hard time getting rid of stuff? Like a really hard time? Like you are such a low key hoarder that you refuse to give away any stuffed animals and still have clothes from 8th grade that–sorry to disappoint–are never going to fit again? Then this article is for you.

I know it’s hard to let go of things, especially when we live in a society where having and needing a lot of stuff is the norm. But having too much clutter can be a big pain in the butt. You get frustrated because you want your place clean, but can never actually clean it up since there is so much stuff in the way. So what should you do?

Stuffed animals:

It is perfectly okay for someone in their adulthood to have stuffed animals (I still sleep with two). While you don’t have to get rid of all of them, clearing some out of your old room might be a good idea. Think of it as giving them a second life (like Andy does in the last Toy Story).

Pick a few that are your favorite or have sentimental value to keep for yourself, and donate the rest. You’ll make some little kids happy while clearing up some space. I know it will be hard to let go, but you can do it!

Books:

I always reread books (yup, I’m one of those) so I tend to be a book hoarder. If you have a bunch of books lying around that you know aren’t going to be touched again, you can donate them to a school library or a public one to give them a second life as well. Definitely keep some favorites, and some that make you look smart when people come over.

Clothes:

This is definitely a big problem for a lot of people, myself included. Did you know that on average we only wear 30 percent of our closets? That means 70 percent of our clothes are just taking up space. Whenever I decide it’s time to go through my closet, I’ll look at something and think “sure, I’ve only worn this once, but what if I’ll decide to wear it later?” and of course I won’t.

It sucks giving away clothes because you know you spent a lot of money on them, but hey, if you make room in your closet, it’s an excuse to go shopping, right? (Maybe I’m not the right person to be writing this). You can always try selling your clothes to other students or friends first, so you can make a few bucks, and then donate the rest.

If you are having a hard time deciding which clothes you “never wear” use the hanger trick. Whenever you wear something, turn the hanger the other way. After a while, look to see which hangers you never touched, and go from there.

What also helps me is going through my stuff before heading back to school, since you have to take everything out of your closet anyway. Pretty much the clothes that I decide aren’t worth bringing an extra suitcase for are the ones that I could give away.

School stuff:

When I came back from my first year of college, I shoved all my papers and notes and books into a big box, because I figured it all had to be kept. Well, now that box is taking up room in my closet (and mind you it’s a big box) and I know for a fact that I’m probably never ever going to look in there again.

This isn’t to say that you should recycle all of your school stuff, but take the time to go through it and only keep the things that pertain to your major or that A+ paper that you obviously have to keep. As for textbooks, they are worth getting rid of even though it can be a hassle. Try selling them on Facebook to other students over the summer, see if Amazon will take them, or sell them through Uloop’s textbook service.

Tip:

Going through things can be very overwhelming and, let’s face it, boring as hell. The trick is to tackle one area at a time. When you are in one of those rare “ I feel like cleaning” moods, pick an area—be it closet, stuffed animals, toys, etc—and get cracking. This way you’ll get stuff done without burning out, and it will provide little victories that will keep you going.

Sure the process will be annoying, but it will pay off in the end. You’ll have a clutter free place which will be much more enjoyable to live in.

And once you get clutter free, stay clutter free! These are the kinds of things you have to keep at. You can’t clean out your closet once and call it solid. Try clearing it out at least once a year. Your sense of style will change a lot and you’ll be surprised by how much of it you never wear.

Happy de-cluttering!

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