Why Do I have so Much Stuff?

Recently, my husband said, "We have too much stuff." (Yes, I helped write a book on getting organized.) I think many of you may agree with that statement. So let's take a look at the "Too Much Stuff Syndrome" through a series of five questions. Getting to the core of the matter may help you begin to find ways to deal with the stuff (but I will give you a practical tip at the end.)

Questions for "Why Do I Have So Much Stuff?" (with alternative questions)

1. Do I feel deprived in my life? Do I keep this stuff as a wall of security to combat that? (Alternative question: can I begin to find more joy through my relationship with God instead?)

2. Am I feeling pressured by others to keep this stuff?

(Alternative question: Can I trim down what I keep, consolidating the special things that bring back memories but not keeping every piece of memorabilia?)

3. What overwhelms me more: having too much stuff, or not having it organized?

(Alternative question: If I could figure out a good storage system, would that alleviate my stress about this?)

4. Do I think I may need this stuff someday?

(Alternative question: Would you be able to replace it, if and when you need it, if it was lost in a fire?)

5. If all this stuff was destroyed (and someday it will be) would I fall apart emotionally?

(Alternative question: How can I begin to strengthen my emotions through rightly relating with God so that stuff does not provide the joy and comfort that should come from Him?)

This can be heady stuff, can't it? Maybe you didn't bargain for this when you started to read my blog! But what is in our heart--what we truly believe--is what affects behavior. So let these questions marinate as you consider how to handle your stuff.

And now for a practical tip:

Contain first, organize later. Pick a corner, a room, a closet that overwhelms you. Get attractive containers and sort items into them. Don't spend a lot of time doing detail organizing. You can do that later, if you really want to. For now, just contain and label larger categories of stuff. Make sure the containers are large enough to hold the items you want to keep. Then, visually, it will be more attractive, and you can still find things within their basket or container.

Example: have file folders or containers (I use small plastic drawers) for receipts for each month of the year (see photo.) I keep the drawer for the current month at my desk. After entering receipts into my checkbook software, I put them in the container for the month. (I don't file them by store or bank–just by month. I can always flip through them later if you need to retrieve something from a particular month.) Later, if I really like organizing, I could go ahead and separate them by type. (I'm pretty sure that is not going to happen!)

With the "contain first" method, you'll at least be consolidating items into a general area where you can later find them. It may take a few minutes to go through the box, but no longer than it would take to organize them precisely.

What idea do you have for handling "too much stuff?"

Facebook Blogger Plugin: Bloggerized by AllBlogTools.com Enhanced by MyBloggerTricks.com