Hi, and welcome to Pick Up Limes.
I've got some tips for you on how to declutter your life
and there are actually ten questions that I'm going to ask you
that you're going to ask yourself about how you can do that.
That's a lot of questions
and that's kind of the point.
Five questions to ask yourself while you're at home to help you declutter.
Five questions to ask yourself when
you're out shopping to help you declutter.
Let's get started.
Well said, William Morris.
Alright, so question number one is for you to ask yourself:
"Is this something that I've used in the last six months?"
If the answer is yes,
well, obviously, you can keep it
and if the answer is no,
the next question might be:
"Well, am I keeping it for sentimental value?"
If so, that's probably okay.
But the key thing here is to remember that sometimes we keep things because there is an emotional tie to it
and you want to decrease whenever possible your emotional tie to material objects.
So if that's the case, you might want to consider letting it go.
The next question to ask yourself is:
"If I were shopping right now, would I buy this?"
If the answer is no and it also serves no purpose, then let it go.
While you're looking around your home and you're trying to declutter, you might ask yourself:
"Do I have another item in my house that serves the same purpose?"
Now, sometimes we need duplicates, for example, this camera.
I have two batteries for it because sometimes one dies and I want to keep filming, so I need a second one.
But sometimes we really don't need those duplicates.
For example, Mom, why you have two kettles? You really don't need two kettles.
Sometimes we keep things in our lives that really no longer serve us.
So ask yourself:
"Does this thing fit me?"
"Does it fit my body, my style, and most importantly, does it fit the type of person I want to become
or the place and environment that I want to live in?"
If the answer is no, you know what to do - let it go.
A lot of us are guilty of this one.
Holding on to broken things,
for me, it was always broken watches, in hopes that one day we would get them fixed.
So the question to ask yourself is this:
"Am I holding on to this broken item in hopes that one day I will get it fixed?"
And if you haven't gotten it fixed in the last two months, it might not be a high enough priority for you.
Perhaps, letting it go will help you to both declutter and decrease one item on your to-do list.
Next up, shopping.
The Swedish know everything.
Now, I mentioned this one in a previous video
and it's important to bring up again because it's a really useful tip and I asked myself this one all the time.
"Do I want this or do I need this?"
Now, this isn't to say that you shouldn't buy things that you want.
I mean, of course, it's okay to buy things that you want that you don't necessarily need,
but just prioritize them and choose things that you really really want
instead of those things that you just kind of want.
The next question to ask yourself is, " Can I wait one week to buy this?"
If so, take a picture and revisit it in a week.
You might actually find that you'll forget about it entirely in that week,
in which case you probably didn't really need it,
or you might even find something better in that time.
Alright, so sometimes we do a really good job at decluttering,
but find that the chaos returns within just a couple of months.
So the question to ask yourself while you're shopping is:
"Does this item I'm about to purchase replace something else?"
"If it comes into the home, is there something else I can donate or throw away?"
Asking yourself this question ensures that the clutter does not return.
This one's a go-to question for me.
"Would I buy it if it cost twice as much?"
Asking yourself this question really helps you
to evaluate just how much you really value or need that particular product.
And forget about sale prices.
Everything is a hundred percent off if you don't buy it.
Remember - it's not a good deal if you don't need it.
Ask yourself: "Is this something I'm only going to use one or two times that I could rent or borrow instead?"
For example, when we moved into our new apartment,
we had to drill some things into the wall for just the first week.
We were about to buy a drill that cost about a hundred euros,
but instead, we asked to borrow one.
In doing so we saved a hundred bucks.
That's now going to help to finance our next trip.
Plus, it means less things to keep around the house.
Alright, so that's it.
Those are the 10 questions that I'm asking you to ask yourself to help you declutter your life.
Questions you can ask at home or while you're out shopping and...
That's it. Thanks for stopping by. See you in the next video.