Trying to wade through a lifetime's worth of belongings can be extremely overwhelming. If you've been putting off this task because you find the thought of it quite daunting, here are two things you can do to make this process more manageable.
Commit to making quick decisions
When you pick up an item during your de-cluttering session, you can make one of four decisions; you can throw it away, donate it, keep it or recycle it. Ideally, you should aim to make your decision regarding what to do with the item within a few seconds of picking it up. If you commit to this approach, you can avoid getting distracted and overwhelmed by certain items (particularly sentimental objects, such as family photo albums or your children's old toys, which you might be tempted to waste time reminiscing over) and thus drastically speed up the de-cluttering process.
The only exceptions to this 'quick decision-making' rule should be possessions whose value you are unsure of (for example, you might be thinking about throwing an old painting into the rubbish, but it's best not to do this if you suspect it might be worth some money) or items that belong not only to you but also to other household members who are not present during the de-cluttering session (for instance, a piece of furniture that you and your partner bought together).
Invest in the right supplies
Nothing hinders the progress of a de-cluttering session quite like a lack of supplies. For example, without a large collection of cardboard boxes or refuse bags in which to place the items you're recycling or donating, you will end up creating large, disorganised piles which add to rather than reduce the amount of mess inside your home.
Similarly, a lack of labels will make it harder to differentiate between boxes or piles of 'stuff', which may then result in some of the things you intended to keep being thrown out or vice versa. If items you wanted to hold on to are accidentally brought to the rubbish tip or your local charity shop, you'll then have to waste your time retrieving these things.
As such, it's important to purchase all of the necessary supplies before you begin. In addition to boxes, refuse bags and labels, you may also want to consider investing in a bin hire service. This can drastically speed up the process of de-cluttering your home, as you won't have to waste your time filling up your car with bags of rubbish and making multiple trips to your local rubbish tip. Instead, you can simply place all of your refuse into a skip bin that's located right outside your home, and then have the rubbish removal company collect it and safely dispose of its contents.
