Less Storage, Less Stuff, Less Stress

Over the past week, we have transformed my son's bedroom.  It has been a whirlwind process, but because we planned well, it's gone smoothly.  Read my previous post about 5 steps to a bedroom refresh .

The new room has much less storage than the previous layout.  We removed a large bookshelf, got a smaller dresser, relocated a cedar chest, and got rid of a 3 drawer plastic storage unit in the closet.  Less storage may sound counter intuitive, but it forced my son to have less stuff in his room.  Less stuff means less time cleaning his room, less arguments with me about clutter, less time spent looking for lost items, and more room to enjoy his private space.

When you have less storage, you must have less stuff.  This makes you consider each item that makes it way into your space carefully.  If you have a hard time getting rid of items or feel like everything is essential, try this trick.  Pack up your room as if you were moving, and when it's time to "move in,"  start by unpacking only the absolute essentials  like clothes, bedding, and maybe an alarm clock.  Then over a few days' time as you find a need for an item, go get it from your boxes and carefully place it in the location that you noticed you needed it.  In his book, Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life, Joshua Fields Millburn says,  “Minimalism looks different for everyone because it’s about finding what is essential to you.”  ​

After a couple of weeks, you will notice that you did not need many of the things you had in your room before you packed it up.  This is your chance to either trash, donate, relocate, or store as a memento.  Getting rid of unnecessary things not only gives you more space in your home, it can also improve your happiness.  Internationally recognized applied positive psychology coach, Lisa Cypers-Kamen, says, "When you're less obligated to stuff, you have more time to experience life."

Which room in your house could you try this with?  An office or bedroom would be one of the best places to start because those rooms tend to be smaller and usually only belong to one or two people instead of the entire family.   You owe it to yourself to feel stress-free in your own home, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how having less storage and less stuff will give you a sense of calm. 

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Sources

Millburn, Joshua Fields, and Ryan Nicodemus. Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life. Hachette Australia, 2017. 

​Cypers-Kamen, Lisa. “3 Reasons Why Having Less Leads to More Happiness.” Thrive Global, 3 Mar. 2018, thriveglobal.com/stories/less-really-can-be-more/. 
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Photo by Samantha Gades on Unsplash