6 Reasons You Feel Like You Can Never Declutter Enough

Recently one of my most loyal readers wrote me an e-mail explaining that no matter how hard she tries it never seems like she can declutter enough.

Do you feel that way? I bet you do! I know that sometimes even I feel that way. So why does it seem like you can never declutter enough? And more importantly, what can you do about it? 

Reasons It Might Seem Like You Can Never Declutter Enough 

There are a lot of contributing factors to the feeling that you can never declutter enough and we need to break through them to avoid overwhelm or crippling guilt. After all, some of the reasons you have clutter in your home aren’t exactly your fault. 

1: You Live in A Consumer Society

The first reason you might feel like you can never declutter enough is the one that you have the most control over. Sadly we live in a consumer society. What that means is that we are constantly told, from birth to death, that our value as humans is reflected by what we own and how much money we have. 

I know that the logical, sane, good person side of you doesn’t believe that but it can still be really really difficult to resist buying stuff because you feel like you need it. Advertising says you will be prettier, healthier, happier, and cooler if you have it. Really, advertising is telling you that you lack something and that’s hard to ignore. It doesn’t feel great and we want to fix it. 

So what can you do if buying stuff is the reason you feel like you can never declutter enough? Well, you can buy less. But that’s easier said than done because of that stinking consumer mindset. You need a secret weapon to fight it and that secret weapon is contentment. Every time you think you need to buy something take a minute to think about all that you already have. Foster that feeling of appreciation and start cultivating contentment. And when you are done thinking about all of the abundance in your life think about all the abundance within you. You are amazing and beautiful and you don’t need anything to make you more than you already are!

2: You Are Growing and Changing

The next reason you might feel like you can never declutter enough is a real and valid thing that you have to give yourself grace for. Because you are an amazing human you are always growing and changing. That means you do new things all the time! And when you do something new you need new stuff. You can’t kayak without a kayak and you can’t sew without material. And the truth is every person in your house is growing and changing too! Isn’t that awesome?

That being said, stuff accumulates if you you don’t declutter at least a couple of times a year. Some hobbies only last a little while. When you move on move the tools for those hobbies on too. Donate them for someone else to use. When clothes get too small get rid of them. When paperwork is no longer needed let it go. If you no longer use tools or games acknowledge that their time has passed. 

Imitate the cycles of nature. When the leaves are dead they fall off the trees to make room for fresh leaves in the next season. Allow yourself room for growth by letting go of the past. 

Another way to reduce your need to declutter due to changing hobbies to approach new hobbies conservatively. Try starting a new hobby with rented or borrowed equipment. Once you decide you like the new hobby invest in only what you absolutely need at first. Keep it as simple as you can and only buy supplies for one project at a time. 

3: Other People Live in Your House

There is another insidious reason you may feel like you can never declutter enough. It’s sneaky and it’s not your fault. News flash! Other people live in your house! And these other people may have varying levels of clutter tolerance and willingness to let go. 

What can you do about these other people who may be hoarders, collectors and just-in-casers? Not a whole lot. I will tell you what not to do. Never ever declutter someone else’s stuff. That will break their trust and make them hold on even tighter. 

Instead, be a guide. Take the lead by decluttering your own stuff and making your areas of the house look nice. It’s not too self righteous to make comments about how easy it was to get dressed in your organized closet, how you never lose your keys anymore because there is a place for everything, and how you have your office space is easy to work in because it’s so tidy. Well, maybe it’s a little self-righteous but it just might make them jealous. It just might motivate them.  

When your family members finally get the itch to declutter help them but don’t push. Let them let go of things at their own pace. Any progress is better than none. 

4: People Give You Stuff All the Time

What about all the stuff that people are constantly giving you? I don’t know if you have this problem but people are always giving me stuff, or at least trying to. My cleaning clients have given me furniture and clothing and even dishes. My friends and my mother always want to pass things down to me too. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great and I actually have used a lot of it over the years. Still, if you have people who love to give you their cast offs all the time you know that it’s a big reason you feel like you can never declutter enough. 

So what can you do about this? Well, a couple of things. 

First of all, you can say no. Sometimes people want to give you something and the thing is nice and you can see it’s value but you know you won’t use it. That’s when you need to learn how to say no in a nice way. It’s okay. They will find another way to declutter it. 

The other thing you can do is accept and sort through it quickly. Remember this. Once something belongs to you it’s your right to do as you please with it. You can get a giant bag of clothes and keep two things. You can accept a piece of furniture if you need it for awhile and then sell it. The key is to make your decisions quickly and to be ruthless. Don’t accept bags and never look at them. Don’t let it pile up. Only keep things you will really use. Remember you aren’t out any money if you don’t hold onto these items. They were on their way out anyway.

5: Limited Space

There are a lot of reasons you may feel like you can never declutter enough. The one I am most familiar with is limited space. My husband and I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for almost 10 years and we have lived in my parent’s master suite for 5 years now. 

To give myself credit we fit an office, a living room, a bedroom, a storage shed, an exercise area, a sewing room and a closet into our master suite. Our space has to do it all because it’s all we have. That being said, if we moved the same amount of stuff into a normal home we would have almost nothing. But since we are in a small space it still feels a bit crowded once in awhile. 

What’s the solution if you feel like you can never declutter enough because you live in a small space? Well, first of all you have to admit how well you are already doing. If you live in a small space and it’s even somewhat organized you are probably pretty on top of keeping the clutter in your home to a minimum.

Aside from that I can only recommend that you declutter often. Look for things you think you need but could try living without. Small tidy-ups can make a huge difference in a small space. In fact, just this morning I decluttered my sewing supplies, my desk, and my toiletries and found three small trash bags worth of stuff to toss and plenty of other things that were out of place. 

6: Not Enough Time or Energy  

Last but not least you may feel like you can never declutter enough because you just don’t have the time to give it your attention. Maybe you look at your cluttered home and feel completely overwhelmed and defeated before you even start. Or maybe you have every intention of decluttering next weekend. Perhaps you are disabled, depressed, or getting older and you don’t feel like you have the physical or mental strength to tackle your clutter. 

What can you do if you feel like you don’t have time or energy to declutter your home? Don’t give up! Break it up! Shrink the task. Choose just one space to declutter, even if it’s just the coffee table by the couch. As you declutter that one space look for stuff to trash, stuff to donate or give away, and stuff to put in it’s proper place. Before you know it that space will be clutter free and you can tackle another small space. 

Another thing you can do to declutter gradually is to choose 10 things to trash or donate every single week. Make that donation drop off something you do before your weekly grocery shopping and you will be surprised to see 520 items disappear from your home in just one year! 

Last but not least never hesitate to ask for help! Ask the nearest young person in your life to list things you want to sell on Facebook, get your strong neighbor to move unwanted furniture to the curb, and ask your son or daughter to help you sort through the memories of the past! It will be easier to let go of sentimental items if you get to tell their story first.

Do You Want to Declutter Your Home More Thoroughly?

Now that you know all the reasons you feel like you can never declutter enough I hope you give yourself some grace in the process. Decluttering isn’t a one and done. It is an ongoing effort as long as life keeps moving us forward. 

That being said, decluttering can be a lot easier to stay on top of after you declutter your home thoroughly the first time. How can you do that? Well, I created a process that makes it a lot easier! Simply follow the three phases explained in my e-book, Fearless Decluttering, at your own pace and you will have the tidiest, most clutter free home you have ever lived in! 

Finally you will be able to declutter your home without all the fear, anxiety, and overwhelm! You won’t have to get rid of anything you don’t want to get rid of but you will be able to let go of all the stuff that is weighing you down. Grab Fearless Decluttering Today!