At the moment, I live quite a distance from most of my family and friends – my amazing daughters and grandson in particular. This means I spend quite a lot of time driving to catch up with the people I love. While I'm driving, I enjoy listening to podcasts, including Talking Rubbish and The Declutter Hub (yes, I really do listen to them!). Another podcast I love is The Mel Robbins Podcast.
Yesterday, I was driving to Malvern to catch up with friends and listening to a Mel Robbins episode called 9 Small Things That Will Help You Feel Amazing. My ears perked up when Mel got to number six: put things back where they belong. Mel describes this as an “incredibly little change” that has made an enormous difference to her.
I totally agree! This little habit has simplified my life hugely. It means there's one less thing to worry about when I'm leaving the house – I know where my keys, phone, bag, shoes and all the other essentials are. And that's particularly useful when, as generally happens, I've left getting ready until the last minute!
I was also catching up with one of my dearest friends yesterday. They're struggling with clutter around their home and may need my help as it's now starting to cause them stress. We talked about their habit of putting things down rather than putting them away (along with their love of flea fairs and the temptation that comes with them – but that's another story!).
Putting things away is my number one piece of advice.
It takes seconds to put something away; however, searching for something you've left somewhere ‘just for now’ can take much longer – and can create even more clutter along the way.
Here are some of my favourite simple ways to keep on top of clutter ...
1. Everything should have a place
This is the first step because you can't put something away if you don't know where ‘away’ is!
Everything you regularly use should have a logical home. Your keys might live in a basket by the front door, your post might have a designated tray, and your charging cables might have a drawer.
It doesn't need to be complicated or Pinterest-perfect. It just needs to make sense to you.
And if you regularly find yourself putting something down because you don't know where it belongs, that's useful information. Perhaps it needs a home – or perhaps you don't actually need to keep it.
Here’s a quick win: choose one item that regularly gets left lying around and decide where its permanent home should be.
Then make a habit of putting it there every time.
One tiny change can make a surprisingly big difference!
2. Try the ‘one-touch’ rule
Whenever possible, try to deal with something the first time you pick it up.
Mail comes through the door? Open it and recycle the envelope or junk mail straight away.
Coat comes off? Hang it up rather than putting it over the back of a chair.
Shoes come off? Put them away.
You’ve finished your coffee? When you next get up or move, put it in the dishwasher, sink or wash it.
It sounds ridiculously simple – and that's why it works.
Every time you put something down ‘for now’, you're creating another job for your future self.
3. Have a five-minute reset
You don't need to spend your entire Saturday decluttering your house.
Instead, try a five-minute reset at the end of the day.
Put away anything that's out of place. Return books to the shelf, take mugs to the kitchen, put shoes away, clear the kitchen worktop and put stray belongings back where they belong.
You might be surprised by how much you can accomplish in five minutes.
And if you don't finish everything? That's fine.
The aim isn't perfection. It's simply to stop a little clutter becoming a big pile.
It's amazing how much tidying can happen without actually feeling like you're tidying!
4. Be careful about what comes through the front door
Of course, preventing clutter isn't just about putting things away.
It's also about thinking carefully about what you're bringing into your home in the first place.
This is where my friend's love of flea fairs comes in!
There's nothing wrong with buying something you love or that might have potential. But before bringing it home, ask yourself:
- Where will this live?
- Do I have room for it?
- Will I actually use it?
- Would I still want it if it wasn’t such a bargain?
A bargain isn’t really a bargain if it ends up becoming something else you have to store, clean and eventually declutter.
And if you do bring something new home, perhaps something else can leave.
This doesn’t have to be a strict ‘one in, one out’ rule, but it can be a useful way of keeping the overall amount of stuff under control.
Sometimes the best decluttering is the decluttering you never have to do because you've stopped the clutter building up in the first place.
We often look for big solutions when actually, it's the small habits that can make everyday life easier.
Putting something away takes seconds.
Having a home for the things you use regularly saves time.
A five-minute reset can prevent a whole weekend of tidying.
And pausing before buying something can save you from having to make a decision about it again further down the line.
None of these things will magically make your home clutter-free – and I'm certainly not suggesting that my own home is always perfectly tidy!
But small, consistent habits can make it much easier to keep your home feeling calm, manageable and under control.
And talking of podcasts… I've noticed that Mel Robbins has a new episode this week interviewing two home organisers from Boston. That’s what I’ll be listening to on Monday when I have another car journey to make – an old schoolfriend this time.
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