Wish Your Family was as Excited to Declutter as YOU?

The month of February offers lots of reminders to let your loved ones know how special they are to you.  But, you might not be feeling so grateful and loving if those loved ones aren’t supporting your goal of paring down and creating space. 

If you are motivated and excited to start decluttering, but your family or friends aren’t on the same page, then the job of letting go might feel even harder, like you have another weight tying you to your stuff.

So what can you do? 

How can you get everyone on board and ready to start letting go of the extras? 

The hard truth is that you can’t make anyone feel the same way that you do about decluttering.  The decisions that surround letting go are personal and we have to honor that fact.  If you force or rush someone into letting go, chances are you will get even more push back.  

The good news is that no matter how your partner, child, parent, or friend feels about it, you can still make progress.

Here are a some ways that you can keep the peace & still move forward on your goal to declutter & create space.

Start with your own stuff.
It might feel easier to dig into your partner or child’s stuff (I’m sure you know exactly where you’d like to start – all that hobby stuff that they haven’t used in years or that clothes collecting dust in the back of the closet), but the best way to create change that allows everyone to get on board, is to start with YOUR stuff.  When you work on categories that are specific to you, then you are able to make decisions faster (you won’t have to ask for input) & you are modeling how to manage & care for your stuff. 

Let your loved one know why this is important to you
Often when we share the reason behind the work (you want to create space to work on your hobby without taking over the dining room table or you want to stop managing so much stuff & instead have more energy for date night), then we get buy in.  Let people know what you are working on & why!  It really does make a difference and they might even offer to help.

Allow the decluttering to become contagious
As you begin to feel the energy around your stuff start to lighten up, your mood will also start to lift!  Your loved ones will begin to notice that energy shift and want to be a part of it.  Let it become contagious!  It might take time & they might not go about it in the way that you do, but remember that any positive movement creates space for a sense of light & ease to enter.  

If your loved ones aren’t ready to declutter but you know that you will get more done when you have a partner by your side, then find a friend or hire a professional organizer and get the support you need to move ahead. Make this process work for YOU.