We all talk about our houses being a mess and full of “stuff.” But what about our computers and iclouds? I got a notice recently that my one drive was full! So I went and deleted all this homeschool stuff that I had gotten for free and frankly I had forgotten about and didn’t even want to sift through. Then today, I got another notice that it was full. I filled it up again that fast. CRAZY! I have this thing that I’m going to be really organized so I put all this stuff online. I went to use a program online I hadn’t used in a while and I couldn’t believe all the stuff I saved. I was really organized with passwords and user names all in one place but did I remember I had ever put them there…. NO! The sticky note on my computer works just great. The worst part about clutter is out of sight out of mind.
Let’s stop and think about this. Where are your most cluttered spaces? Basement, closets, pantry. All places that we may not look very often or if we do we just shake our heads and close the door. Cyberspace is even worse! Oh sure, I had everything organized into folders and such but some had 100 plus files and I would have to open each one to see even what is was. Not to mention that some server is working overtime to keep all this stuff so I can have it at my whim. Doesn’t seem very responsible.
Anyway, so what can you do about it? Pick an area of the house or computer and just go through it. Somewhere I read that if you are going through things have three boxes: 1) Garbage 2) Give Away 3) Needs to go elsewhere in the house. That third box is the one that always gets me. I’m a little ADD when it comes to cleaning and so I go to put that “thing” away and then I start cleaning that area and find another “thing” only to be taken off to another place to clean out. All the while I’ve forgotten that I was even cleaning spaces 1 and 2. So then Adam comes home and will look around wondering what I was doing. It’s so crazy. So definitely have a box for all the stuff that goes elsewhere and deal with it all at once.
Digital clutter, in my opinion, is way more overwhelming! I can’t even get my brain wrapped around it. I’m scared to delete anything because what if it was important or what if I delete the wrong thing. I’m sure we can all relate to us having digital pictures and the computer crashing and us losing them. Or, as I have done, tagged thousands of pictures only to have it crash and the pictures are recovered but not the tags. So pick one folder or one program or one area and try to clean it up. If you are ambitious then do one area a day in the house or on the computer. Otherwise do one are a week. BUT DO IT! We all need less clutter digital or otherwise.
Jessica
Ample Perspectives 