The Upside to Downsizing - Second in Series of Four - 4 Steps to Getting Started

You’ve finally made the decision to downsize, but you are looking around at your present surroundings and wondering where to begin.  You’ve lived in your house for a long time, you’ve collected and saved a lot of things, and you have many memories.  The goal is to eliminate excess so you can finally make decisions on what to keep and take with you.  Think about how many plastic containers you’ve collected throughout the years, believing you needed all of them for leftovers.  Do you even have all the matching lids and bottoms?   Probably not. 

 The following four (4) steps can get you started:

1. Start with a room or an area in the room that has little or no sentimental value (getting rid of those extra plastic food storage containers may even be a good start).


2. Work in limited blocks of time.


3. Have supplies on hand, such as heavy duty trash bags or boxes and markers for labeling.


4. Develop a sorting process, making separate piles to keep like with like.

- Items to keep and use

- Items to give to family members or friends

- Items to sell or donate

- Items to discard

- Items to shred

- Items to recycle

 TIP:  Give yourself plenty of time overall.

It’s a good idea to allocate twice as much time on a project than you think.

The third article will be about making decisions.  More to come!

BB’s Clutter Solutions is located in Cherry Hill, NJ and serves New Jersey (north and south), Philadelphia and its Pennsylvania suburbs, and New York City.  Contact information: www.bb-clutter-solutions.com, info@bb-clutter-solutions.com, 856-912-0077.