I talk about everything organising. I have written about this for years. The topic of organising doesn’t get old; if nothing else, I keep getting more inspired. Why is that? Well, organising can tie everything together: your home, life, finances and happiness.
Let’s unpack these a bit:
How Organising Improves Your Home
When you start to get organised, you are reducing clutter; you are gaining space both physically and mentally. When you have less stuff in your house, you will enjoy your house more, spending less money getting stuff, saving your money, time and sanity. All the while getting more and more organised and enjoying your home life more. Or you are realising it is time to move to something nicer (hopefully smaller). You will be ahead, either spiritually or financially and own less stuff because you simply haven’t got the space for it
To me, a comfortable place to go to at the end of the day or during the day is very important; if you do it right (make it comfortable, warm, clean, with great food and good company*), you can recharge your soul here.
*I grew up in the Netherlands, and like many Northern European countries, we have a preoccupation with the idea of being cosy or Gezellig, as we call it in Dutch. The English translation doesn’t do it justice because Gezellig is a way of life; you can have a ‘gezellig’ house, afternoon, evening with friends, etc. It is an enriching experience to everyday life. More than 20 years after leaving the Netherlands, I am still indoctrinated with this concept, often looking for a ‘gezellig’ café for a coffee. When we go on holidays or get a new rental home, my poor Australian husband is tasked with finding a ‘gezellig’ home where we can relax and recharge before we face another day in the outside world.
As Mr Money Moustache states:
How Organising Improves Your Life
When you start organising more than just your stuff, you start to learn many things about yourself. What do you value? How would you like your days to look like? What is a perfect life for you? After you have decluttered and organised your stuff, you can start to organise your life, and here you find some other amazing treasures through more time, space and finances!
In my own life, I decluttered a relationship that wasn’t working, redid all my finances, thought hard and worked hard at my career, which is growing and expanding every year. I decluttered, or got out of unpleasant working spaces, and joined more positive, challenging, and fulfilling environments. In short, if things don’t work, I declutter them from my life. If they do, I organise it so I can soak it up even more.
How Organising Improves Your Finances
Save money in future - When you declutter items, you realise how much money your past self has wasted; don’t feel guilty, maybe only feel the sting and move on.
Track your money with a budget -You start to be interested in being better with money; you can simply start with tracking it, making sure you can live on what you earn (no credit card debt, car loans or other unnecessary debt).
Get financially ahead - after years of doing tracking with a YNAB budget, I was in a position where I had some more cash than I needed (a miracle after years of being a single parent pumping money into court proceedings, stupid car loans and trying to stay afloat).
Ultimate freedom – I am now joining the FI (Financially Independent) movement; we are not there yet, and I actually like my job, so I don’t want to retire anytime soon. However, being on the road to Financial freedom is amazing, and it all started with decluttering stuff, organising my home and my life.
How Organising Leads to Happiness
When you live in a comfortable space, have money in the bank, and do work you enjoy, what is next? Well, you start to think about happiness. What is it that drives you? I just entered my 40’s which is interesting because I feel even better than in my 20’s but also have this idea “holy shit” I might have another 40 or 60 years of this life thing left in me. My kids are teenagers now; what will I do? So we start dreaming about what we want to do before the kids grow up, how I want to be financially positioned in the next couple of years, and what my days, weeks, and months will look like.
So, there you have it: organising ties everything together. You might start by cleaning up clutter in your living room, but if you keep at it, decluttering and organising your home, life, finances, and values is a simple yet profound path to a good life.
Inspired by how Organising can influence your life?
I offer a range of products to help you learn about decluttering and organising and stay this way.
Want to start your own organised life?
How to Organise Your Home and Paperwork walks you through decluttering and organising your home and paperwork, step by step.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Decluttering gives you more space, time and money. Once your stuff is organised, you can start organising your days, your finances and what you value, which leads to a calmer, happier life.
-
You spend less on things you don't need, enjoy your home more, find it easier to track your money and have more time to think about what you really want from life.
-
Start small with one room or one area, such as the living room. Declutter it, organise what is left, and keep going. Once your home is organised, move on to your days and your finances.
