We all desire to keep our homes looking neat and tidy. But have you ever realized that dealing with the clutter is one of the hardest parts of keeping a clean house?
That’s right!
No matter how much time and effort you put into keeping your home well-organized and clean, your efforts will be in vain if you don’t have the tips for avoiding clutter.
Clutter seems to have perfected the art of sneaking back into our spaces. If unnoticed early enough, it can quickly take over, voiding our efforts and creating an unpleasant and stressful living environment.
But don’t worry!
In this article, we have curated 15+ tried-and-true habits you can adopt for a clutter-free home. Just so you know, most of the habits we’ll be covering here are super easy and subtle, so you need not worry that they will require a major lifestyle overhaul.
Let’s dive in!
15+ Sustainable Habits For a Clutter-Free Home
1. Make Your Bed Every Morning
What happens when your legs first touch the ground every morning? Do you head straight to the kitchen for a cup of coffee? Maybe you even commence your day with an early-morning workout session.
Now, all of these things are great. But how about kickstarting your day by making your bed? It might look like a very minor and insignificant task, but it goes a long way to help you set the tone for the rest of the day.
In other words, making bed the first thing in the morning helps begin your day in the right mindset of order and cleanliness. Plus, it takes only a minute or two!
If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride, and it will encourage you to do another task and another and another. By the end of the day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed.
– Admiral McRaven
2. Don’t Keep Your Dishes For Later
Let’s be honest — even the best of us can leave our dishes in the sink for later. And sometimes, the main reason for that is probably the thought that one dish won’t hurt.
But do you realize that when you have one dirty dish, it’s easier to reach out for a second one and even easier for the third? And by the time you realize it, you already have a large collection of dirty dishes.
That’s why we recommend not leaving your dishes for later. Immediately you’re done with your meal, spare a few minutes to clean up your dishes and put them away safely. This keeps your kitchen looking cleaner and smelling fresh.
It also means that you won’t need to find time to do a large stack of dishes later on, making it a more favorable approach for those with busy schedules.
3. Keep Your Horizontal Surfaces Clear
Horizontal surfaces seem to always attract the most clutter of all surfaces. Why? Because they’re the most convenient spots that we can easily reach.
But do you realize just how much harm embracing this convenience can bring to your home? Well, here’s the thing — clutter attracts more clutter. As such, if you make your horizontal surfaces the go-to spot for almost everything, it won’t take much time before your entire space looks cluttered and unkempt.
Hence, we recommend that you keep these surfaces clear. This includes your kitchen counters, coffee table, dining table, and any other horizontal space. If you don’t use them frequently, keep them clear of clutter. And if you do use them often, ensure that you tidy up after yourself once you’re done using them.
4. Go Paperless
If you’ve looked keenly when decluttering your home, you probably have noticed that paper forms a significant portion of the clutter. You see that newspaper you purchase every few days or weeks; it’s the clutter you may have to deal with in the future.
That’s why we recommend that, where feasible, you go paperless. You don’t have to buy a physical newspaper or magazine anymore — you can subscribe to digital versions or read them online. They’re more convenient, sustainable, and won’t hurt the beauty of your home.
And as for your bills, statements and other paperwork, how about you opt for e-bills and e-statements where possible? It will significantly reduce the amount of paper clutter you generate in your home while also making it easier to manage and organize your documents.
5. Manage The Remaining Paperwork
Let’s face it: No matter how much we digitize our lives, we can’t entirely eliminate paper documents. Some are crucial, while others have sentimental value and ought to be kept safely.
That’s why after you’ve digitized every paperwork possible, we recommend you designate a spot for the remaining. Think of a drawer, file cabinet, or shelf — it can be any other spot you think is accessible and functional to you.
Once you’ve selected it, always return your documents there after you’re done using them. And yes, remember to review your paperwork occasionally to see if there are any outdated or unimportant documents. If you find any, remove them as soon as possible by shredding them and disposing of them in the recycling bin.
6. Put Away Items After Using Them
If you’re in the habit of leaving used items lying around after using them, then one of the habitual changes that you need to make is to put an end to that behavior. Instead, you should make it a habit to put back an item in its designated spot immediately after you’re done using it.
Whether it’s your clothes, shoes, utensils, or any other item, always ensure that you return it where you got it immediately after using it. It’s a simple tweak, but it can save you the trouble of having cluttered spaces and having to declutter your room more often.
It will also save you time the next time you need to use the item since everything always goes back to its designated place.
7. Follow The “One In One Out” Rule
The more stuff you bring to your home, the more candidates for clutter you’ll have. Now, one way to ensure that you keep your home clutter-free without skipping purchases is to implement the one-in-one-out rule.
This rule is simple: For everything that comes into your door, there should be an item making the reverse journey. Don’t leave the old one on the toothbrush holder when bringing in that new toothbrush.
And that applies to everything else. Whether it is kitchenware, shoes, clothes, or anything else that you buy, always ensure there’s a new piece that you’re getting rid of.
You don’t have to necessarily send it to the landfills; you can donate, resell, or give it to someone who might find it helpful. The thing is that you want to avoid accumulating a bunch of items you no longer use, which will eventually lead to clutter.
8. Find a Home For Everything You Have
Do you see that remote controller flying from one corner of the room to another? Do you know why you rarely find that pen when you need to jot something down urgently? It’s because you haven’t designated a spot for such items.
If you want to maintain a clutter-free house and make life easier for you, it’s time to find a spot for everything. When you have a place for your stationery, keys, chargers, and other small items, you’ll always find it easier to retrieve them when you need them.
Plus, since they have a designated storage area, they no longer have to crowd on your horizontal surfaces, creating clutter.
9. Don’t Move Around Empty-Handed
I know it might sound a bit extreme, but hear me out — it’s one of the strategies that can effectively help you beat clutter.
Every time you’re moving from one room to another, how about carrying with you whatever belongs to the room you’re headed to? It doesn’t make sense to leave that coffee mug in the living room when you go to the kitchen where it belongs.
It’s a very subtle habit, but it can help you put things back in their place, reduce clutter, and keep your home just as organized as you’ve always strived to maintain it.
It might take a bit of time to get used to doing this, but if you can make it a routine, you’ll be surprised by how much it keeps your home looking neat and clutter-free.
10. The One-Touch Rule
This is another practice that can go a long way to help you maintain a clean, clutter-free space. The rule is simple: Once you touch an item, ensure you do with it all you intended to use it for before you pick up the next item.
In other words, avoid as much as you can picking up an item and placing it elsewhere with the intention to use it later. Chances are that you’ll forget about it, and soon enough, your space will be filled with items that await your attention.
11. Vacuum & Dust Regularly
As long as your house looks dusty, leaving that magazine lying on the couch isn’t a big deal, right? After all, clutter always brings in more clutter.
However, if you make it a habit to vacuum and dust regularly, then you will always be sparkling clean, and this spirit will radiate to other aspects of your life, including keeping your space clutter-free.
So, always find time to attend to your house. The general rule of thumb is that you should vacuum at least twice a week, and that dusting should be done at least weekly. Doing this won’t just keep your space looking clear and smelling fresh, it will also help reduce dust allergies.
12. Embrace Minimalism
How about embracing a minimalist lifestyle if you’re very serious about keeping a clutter-free space?
And contrary to popular belief, practicing minimalism doesn’t mean you can’t buy anything new. Instead, it just means promoting the things we most value and removing everything else that distracts us from it.
In other words, it’s just being intentional about one’s lifestyle. If you don’t like that pair of shoes and, as such, almost never wear them, why keep them? Perhaps you have three identical pairs of jeans, but do you really need all of them?
And remember, minimalism is not just about decluttering your physical space. It is also decluttering your mind and living a simpler, happier life.
It involves owning fewer possessions and focusing on experiences rather than material things. By embracing minimalism, you will automatically reduce the chances of clutter accumulating in your home.
13. Be Mindful With Shopping
If you can become mindful of your shopping, then it will be pretty easy for you to maintain a clutter-free space. Always ask yourself if you really need that item before making a purchase.
Will it enhance your life in any way, or is it just another thing that will eventually lead to clutter? Remember, the less stuff you bring into your home, the easier it will be to keep it organized and clutter-free.
14. Evaluate Your Sentimental Items
We all have those items that hold sentimental value, and we just can’t bear to let them go. But sometimes, these items don’t contribute much to our daily lives and take up unnecessary space.
That’s why, as you embrace each of the tips we’ve provided so far, always remember to also evaluate your sentimental collection. Go through each item, asking yourself whether it’s really keeping or not. You can always take a pic of every item you decide to discard as a memento.
Doing this evaluation can help minimize clutter while at the same time ensuring that you don’t lose things that hold value for you.
15. Keep a Donation Box
Another effective habit you can adopt to maintain a clutter-free space is keeping a donation box in your home. This box will serve as a reminder to go through your belongings regularly and donate any items that you no longer need or use.
Donation won’t just help you get rid of what you don’t actually need — several studies show that giving has numerous benefits in that it generally creates a greater sense of satisfaction, lowers depression, and promotes a healthier physical life. And, of course, your donated item(s) may mean all the world to someone else in need.
16. Involve Your Family
As long as you live with your family, your efforts to keep a clutter-free space will always be short-lived if your family members aren’t on board with the idea.
That’s why you shouldn’t embrace it as a solo project. Instead, ensure that every member of the family knows what’s happening. Receiving every family member’s support in your quest to reduce clutter will go a long way in making the process easier for you.
As such, make it a team effort by involving everyone in decluttering and reorganizing, and make sure that each person knows their responsibilities when it comes to maintaining a clutter-free space.
17. Declutter Regularly
Remember, if you have to keep that space entirely free from clutter, then the process of decluttering should be regular.
After all, it’s not like that toy, book or piece of clothing is going to magically disappear if you ignore it for long. If anything, ignoring it will only give room for more clutter to accumulate.
That’s why your best chance at maintaining a clutter-free space is to declutter regularly. Start by decluttering a small section of your home each day, or at least every other day, and tackle one area at a time until the entire house has been touched.
