I tried the above tip yesterday, after returning from holiday and realising that I never tided up before leaving for the airport 2 weeks before! The place was a mess and I was pleased that no one was coming round to visit.

If you’ve been following my blogs, you will see a scattering of posts about clutter over the years. I have read lots of books on the subject and have come up with a few ideas of my own too. Nothing seems to stick. Random things are always lying around. No one is as passionate as me about putting things away – that is, if there is actually a place to put these things away. Rooms that we don’t use are filled with things that we don’t use.

Yesterday, when I couldn’t think of where to start in the house, I pressed play on the audio book Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K White. I’d started listening to it on the last few days of my trip, as I was desperate to find something that would trigger me into changing for good.

I paused after listening to these two sentences: “Go to the front door, or whatever door your guests enter. See what the guests see and start there”.

I didn’t think that it could be that easy, but after replacing the batteries in the room spray by the front door and triggering off the wonderful scent, I started picking things up and moving them to where they needed to go. Within five to ten minutes, I was in the dining room. I looked back at the hallway and was surprised how different it looked and smelt.

I started working through the dining room and then the kitchen. Only thirty minutes to one hour had gone by and I was already feeling better.

I’m going to try and do this daily and get in to the habit of seeing things like a guest. I’m going to try and make at least this one tip stick. Then, if someone does happen to pop over or follow me into the house, I won’t be embarrassed by the mess!

Thanks Dana!

Until next time…