6 Things Holding You Back From Decluttering & The Solutions Overcome Them

Let’s talk about the things that are holding you back from decluttering and provide you some solutions to overcome them!

Why is it so hard to declutter?

Before we get into the things holding you back from decluttering all your stuff, you need to know you are not alone. Decluttering can be really hard. We have a lot of emotional attachment to our stuff, and letting go isn’t always easy.

Having to deal with all of these emotions can make decluttering your home feel overwhelming and even a bit scary.

But I also want you to know that the benefits decluttering brings to your home and your life are so worth it! Having a simplified home is the first step to simplifying your entire life!

This is because decluttering your home clears the space in your life to allow you to pursue those things that matter most to YOU!

And I promise you the solutions to the things holding you back from getting rid of all that clutter are easier than you think. Often times, once you know why you are struggling, it becomes much easier to move past it!

6 Things Holding You Back From Decluttering

Now, let’s get into the things that cause you to struggle with decluttering your home, and the solutions for overcoming them.

Use these tips to overcome the things holding you back and keeping you stuck in clutter. Today is the day to reclaim your home and your life! Let’s clear space for those things that matter most!

1. Just-In-Case Stuff

The “just-in-case” stuff commonly causes us to struggle with letting go of clutter. This is all of that stuff you hold on to “just in case” you need it later.

Let’s face it, it is easy to convince ourselves to keep just about anything. After all, we probably wouldn’t have bought it in the first place if we didn’t tell ourselves we needed it.

But are you using it?

If you’re not using it do you really need it?

More often than not, we keep things “just in case” out of fear. Fear that if we get rid of something now, later we won’t have what we need. But let me ask you this —- do you want your decision to be based on fear?

If you think about it, what is the likely hood you will break those six serving spoons and need the extra three? What about all those extra towels and sheets. Do you really believe you won’t be able to buy new ones when you need them?

It’s important to see how unlikely these scenarios really are. In fact, I can personally tell you there are very few things I’ve decluttered and later regretted. The bottom line is it’s just stuff.

The Solution

First, acknowledge your fear. We’ve all been there at some point. Whether it be fear of not having the money to replace something if you need it, fear of not being prepared, or any other type of fear, acknowledge that fear is what is holding you back from decluttering.

The next thing you are going to do is walk yourself through needing the item and imagining being without it.

How big of a deal is it?

Let’s just imagine you actually break all six of those serving spoons or they accidentally all get ground up in the garbage disposal. I suppose it could happen (although incredibly unlikely). Now what?

Can you run to the store and buy a new one? Most likely yes! What about borrowing it from a neighbor or friend? Do you have something else that could do the same job? Maybe a pair of tongs?

You see so often when we walk ourselves through the scenario of being without the thing we are holding onto “just in case” we find that the “just in case” scenario is very unlikely! And even if it were to happen, it really isn’t that big of a deal.

What is a big deal, however, is having a complicated home overrun with clutter causing extra stress and taking hours of your time to clean and maintain!

2. Decluttering Feels Wasteful

Another thing that often holds us back from decluttering our home is that getting rid of all that stuff just feels wasteful.

You’ve spent a lot of money on something, it’s in perfectly good condition, it just didn’t work out the way you’d hoped. You are not using it, but it feels so wasteful to just get rid of it. Believe me, when I say, I understand, because I have been there myself many times.

This is a hard situation for anybody. I think the biggest reason we struggle with decluttering when it feels wasteful is that we feel guilty for making the purchase in the first place.

But that is not a good reason to hold on to that item. Be honest, every time you look at that item, the guilt just resurfaces so you shove it back into the recesses of your closet. So holding on to it does not make the guilt go away! Let’s look at what does.

The Solution

The solution here is simple, but it’s not always easy to do. You have to be honest with yourself and recognize that none of the reasons for holding on to the item are valid.

The fact that you paid a lot of money for it doesn’t matter — you’re not using it! It’s functional and in good condition — it doesn’t matter you’re not using it! You bought it because you know you should be using it — it doesn’t matter you’re not using it! But you really, really like it — then USE IT!

The best way to get past feeling wasteful is simply USE IT!!! If you are not going to use it let it go!

You and I both know that the damage is already done, the money was spent. Allowing the item to hold you back from decluttering your home is not going to bring the money back. In fact, it’s creating even more expense. You have to spend time and money to store, care for, and maintain it.

The least you can do is let someone else use it. After all, it’s keeping you from what you want most, a home that you love!

3. You Have No Motivation

How do you get rid of stuff when you have no motivation? This is a legitimate question. Decluttering is hard so a lack of motivation is one of those things easily holding us back from decluttering.

The thing is, it’s tempting to wait for motivation to just come to us. But I hate to break it to you — it doesn’t happen that way.

Reading articles like this one can be helpful to inspire us. But real motivation, the kind that actually gets the job done, comes one way and one way only.

The Solution

So how do you get rid of stuff when you have no motivation? You just start doing it.

We don’t act because we are motivated, we are motivated because we act. It’s really that simple, to get motivated, you have to start doing it! Action results in the motivation period.

It doesn’t take much. You 100% do not have to commit to decluttering our entire house in one go. What you do need is to make it a habit of decluttering at least one thing from your home consistently. This will help you focus on the progress you are making and increase your motivation to continue decluttering.

Be realistic here, it most likely took you years to accumulate all the “stuff” you have in your home. You can’t expect to get rid of all the clutter overnight.

Just some simple consistent steps to get you where you want to go. After a little while, the progress will so feel good that you’ll want to see more. The next thing you know, you’ll be motivated to keep going!

4. You Have No Time To Declutter

You may be very motivated to declutter but you have so much on your plate you lack the time to declutter.

Feeling like you simply lack time to devote to decluttering your home can be a big thing holding you back from decluttering.

We live in a day and age where our lives are busy and filled with a never-ending to-do list. When you do have a spare moment, there are so many other ways you’d like to spend your downtime. Decluttering is not one of them, it sounds neither fun nor rewarding.

I really do understand that, however, I have to give you the truth, and the truth is the more you declutter, the more time you’ll end up with.

Decluttering does require that you make some sacrifices and put the time in upfront to start experiencing the benefits. But the benefits of clearing the clutter are totally worth prioritizing decluttering now!

The solution

Remember that decluttering your home doesn’t have to be done in one sitting or even in hour-long intervals. Instead decluttering for 5 to 10 minutes every day will add up to make a huge impact on your home and on your life.

Another fantastic way to declutter when you are really short on time is to do it as part of your regular daily routine. By simply paying attention when you’re going about your normal day to day household activities you can get rid of a lot of clutter from your home.

For example, when you’re folding the laundry pay attention to any clothes that are ripped, stained, or no longer fit. Toss them instead of folding and putting them away! Or when putting the dishes away pull out a few of those 20 coffee cups you never use and put them into a donation box.

A lot of decluttering can happen just by paying attention!

At some point, you will have to set aside some time for the larger decluttering tasks. You just have to look at what’s important to you, decide to make it a priority, and then do the work to make it happen! Things get done when we make them a priority.

Does that require you to say no to other things you’d rather say yes to? Yes, it does. However, I can promise you that if you make those sacrifices now, in the end, you will actually gain more time and be able to do those things that matter most to you!

5. Sentimental and Emotional Items

Dealing with sentimental items or ones that we attach a lot of emotion to can be one of the top things holding us back from decluttering. This is because they trigger so many emotions we’d rather not deal with.

The emotions may be as heavy as mourning the death of a loved one, or the loss of a meaningful relationship. Maybe it’s because someone gave us the item, but we don’t cherish it like we think we should. It may even represent hopes and dreams that you know will never come about.

These heavy emotions make it easier to keep things stored away than to have to deal with them. So how do we move past it then?

The Solution

To begin, I am often asked “how do I get rid of something really sentimental that I really care about?” The simple answer is you don’t.

I’ve never believed in getting rid of stuff just to get rid of it. If something is really meaningful to you, please keep it! But don’t let it hold you back from decluttering.

The key is, as you go about decluttering your home, decide what is truly meaningful to you, and keep those items. What you want to look out for is making sure you are not keeping things just because you feel like you should. If something is not sentimental or meaningful to you why are you keeping it? Who is it sentimental to?

You have no obligation to keep stuff in your home that you do not love or use. In the same way, there is no reason to get rid of things that are meaningful to you, there is also no rule that says you have to keep something because you are “suppose to” feel sentimental about it.

We can acknowledge that a relationship has ended and we will miss them. We can acknowledge that a certain hope or dream did not and will not come about and that we will be ok, regardless. Then let the items tied to those emotions go.

At this point, it’s important to remember that getting rid of a sentimental item doesn’t mean you’re getting rid of the memories. Your memories will always be with you, regardless of whether you have the physical item or not.

Sometimes our memories are triggered by the physical item and that can make it hard to let go of the item. A solution for this is taking a picture of the item, but letting the physical item itself go.

Yes, it’s hard to face all those emotions, but it also means that you are able to come to terms with that situation and move on.

6. You Are Not Clear On Why You’re Decluttering Your Home

When it comes to things holding you back from decluttering, not knowing why you’re doing it is huge!

You’ve got to know what your goals are in decluttering, what is it exactly that you’re trying to achieve by getting rid of your stuff?

Decluttering is hard work in the best of circumstances. And if you are not clear on why you’re doing it, it becomes that much harder.

The solution

Start by asking yourself some basic questions:

Are you wanting to declutter to have less?
Do you want to have only what you use?
Is it for the purpose of downsizing?
Are you looking for ways to make extra money by selling stuff?
Do you want to have more time to focus on your life instead of your stuff?

What does decluttering do for your life, for your relationships, for your stress level, or for your finances? The more specific you get here, the better!

When you are clear on your goals for decluttering your home and exactly what you will achieve by doing it, it becomes much easier to get rid of everything that interferes with that goal!

For me, I was so over the all-day cleaning marathons and wanted my home to be easier to clean and maintain so that I had time for things that were more important to me. This meant removing things from floors and flat surfaces were huge for me.

Another thing I did that was super helpful was to really think about how I want to feel in each space in my home. To do this think about:

How do you currently feel in that space?
What do you want to use that space for?
What do you need in the space to accomplish that?

These questions will really help you in deciding what needs to go, what should stay, and even what you may want to replace or add to the spaces in your home.

By being clear on the answers to these questions, I was able to stop the never-ending decluttering loop. I only brought things into my home that I knew would help me reach my goals for my home and got rid of everything else.

Knowing your goals and why you want to declutter your home gets you out of your head and stops you from over-analyzing every little thing (which was big for me)!

Recognizing the things holding you back from decluttering is important. These are some common reasons you may struggle to declutter your home. But once you recognize what is holding you back from decluttering and letting go of stuff you neither use nor love, it’s a lot easier to see the solutions and overcome them.