5 Decluttering Questions to Use Instead of “Does It Spark Joy?”

Declutter / Minimalism
the best decluttering questions instead of "does it spark joy?"

Inside: Marie Kondo’s “Does it spark joy?” is far from the best question to use for decluttering. Try these 5 decluttering questions instead, for a better decluttering experience.

The popular book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up was my first encounter with decluttering and minimalism. When I heard about it from another blogger, I bought it the same day and read it cover to cover by the end of the next day.

I spent the next week picking up every single object in my house asking the now well-known question, “Does it spark joy?” And I thought that question was helpful…at first.

Bags and bags of donations made the commute from my house to the local thrift store. We gave away other items away to family and friends.

I felt so much better – a huge weight lifted off my chest, until a month later when I realized I had gone a bit overboard in my decluttering purge.

Decluttering regret quickly set in.

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How to Declutter Books and Still Raise Readers

Declutter / Minimalism
how to declutter books for families

Inside: Decluttering books when you have kids gets complicated fast, mostly due to six common concerns parents have about how fewer books will impact their kids. I’ll show you how to declutter books without fear or guilt.

Oh, books. How hard it is to get rid of thee! Next to decluttering sentimental items, I think decluttering books is the most difficult decluttering category ever. Because it is so difficult to declutter books, many people put it off to the very end of their decluttering process.

Not only is it hard to decide what books to keep and what books to give away, the sheer amount of time it takes to go through every single book in your library can be quite extensive! (Most people who struggle with decluttering books are book lovers and have A LOT of books.)

That difficulty multiplies about a hundred times when you have kids. But it’s not impossible!

If I can do it as a homeschooling mom of four (homeschoolers are notorious book hoarders), so can you. I’ll put all your [very normal] parenting fears to rest and give you the questions you need to declutter books with confidence.

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Can You REALLY Make Money Selling Your Clutter?

Declutter / Minimalism
can you earn money selling clutter

Inside: Can you really make money selling your clutter? Perhaps, but probably not the people who could use that extra money the most.

“How to Turn Your Clutter into Cash.”

“7 Surefire Ways to Sell Your Clutter.”

“Easy Ways to Sell Clutter that actually Make Money.”

Each headline is better than the last. Decluttering is now not just stress-relieving and soul-freeing, but it’s profitable.

And maybe it is, if you start from a place of financial independence and excess…or a whole lot of credit cards.

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8 Tips for Decluttering on a Low Income (from a mom who’s been there)

Declutter / Minimalism
decluttering ideas and tips for your home

Inside: Decluttering on a low income has its challenges, but it CAN be done. You just need to do it differently.

Here’s the thing about decluttering on a low income: it’s just different. Every single decluttering post I’ve read is written from a place of excess, and nice excess at that (not the run-down excess that was our clutter).

No one is writing about how to declutter differently when you start from a place of less.

When you aren’t sure you will have enough money for groceries this month, you are going to approach decluttering differently.

I know because I’ve been there.

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The Thing About Minimalism that You Just Don’t Get

Declutter / Minimalism

“I mean, he’s o.k. with the kitchen counters being clear and stuff, but he is NOT o.k. with us giving all this stuff away. Some of it we only use once a year, but we really need it when we need it, you know?”

I nodded with understanding as my friend shared her recent struggles with decluttering. She’s not the first to struggle with getting rid of items that her family only uses occasionally.

I wrestled with the same questions for a long time:

What about the things we only use occasionally?

Should I get rid of them?

What if we end up needing them later?

Thankfully, a book I read this summer gave me the clarity I needed to answer my friend’s question with confidence.

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Where to Start Decluttering (When You’re Too Overwhelmed to Start)

Cleaning / Declutter / Home / Minimalism
how to start decluttering

Inside: Are you wondering where to start decluttering? Learn why this room is the BEST place to start decluttering, and exactly how to declutter it with super simple steps.

You finally turn the last page of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. You slam that cover shut and jump up off the couch. Look out, House: you are about to get a complete and total makeover!

…but then you get up off the couch.

You look around at your real, live, so NOT-Marie-Kondo house – the one with a husband and kids and SO MUCH STUFF, so much clutter! You immediately shut down.

Marie made it sound so simple, but she didn’t have to declutter this house, with these people. She was single when she wrote the book for heaven’s sake!

You’re so overwhelmed that all that information you just read goes straight out of your head.

You want to give up before you even start decluttering a single thing. Just forget it.

If that’s you, stop. Breathe. Block out the rest of your crazy house, and make a beeline to the bathroom.

Why? Because the bathroom is hands-down the best place to start decluttering, especially when you’re too overwhelmed to start.

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The Best Way to Declutter Toys

Declutter / Home / Minimalism / Organization / Parenting

When you take the plunge into minimalism, many books recommend starting with toys if you have kids. You’ll see a huge difference which will give you the momentum to continue. But when you have multiple kids (especially of different genders), decluttering toys can get complicated fast.

I started with toys after reading the Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and it was an oh-so-painful process. I debated a long time over things like dolls and Little People and wooden blocks. Hopefully sharing my experience will save you some of the decision fatigue I experienced.

I’ll give you the simple questions that I eventually (after much debate) came up with in order to decide what to toss and what to keep. I’ll also show you exactly what remained after we decluttered. Your toy collection will probably look different, but I always find it really helpful to see what other families end up keeping when they finish decluttering toys.

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How to Help Your Sentimental Child Declutter (when they want to keep everything)

Declutter / Family / Minimalism / Parenting
how to help your sentimental child with minimalism, minimalism and the sentimental child, sentimental children and minimalism

Inside: Are you trying so hard to declutter, but you have a child who won’t let go of anything? Minimalism with a sentimental child can be tricky. Try these tips to make it easier!

“Mama, what happened to my bear puzzle?”

Crap. What on earth made her think about that puzzle?! And 10 minutes before bedtime!

I panicked slightly. During our hectic move, the mod-podged puzzle definitely did not make the “must keep” list.

It was tossed in the trash without a second thought (we had no choice, promise).

I paused, choosing my words carefully. “Well, we had to leave it behind…remember? We couldn’t fit in when we moved, honey.”

That’s when the sobs started. They continued for thirty whole minutes.

All I could do was rub her shaking back gently.

How on earth did this minimalist, very unsentimental mom got stuck with a child this sentimental?

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