A Clean Room Is A Happy Room

At some point, you’ve likely heard someone suggest that your environment is often a reflection of what’s going on inside you. That can be true. For example, if we are stressed, sometimes our surroundings get chaotic as we don’t have time or energy to tidy them.

It’s not always the case, though. We may be full of joy, but our home is full of clutter. Often it’s because our schedule is busy and we lack time to organize. Keeping a clean room can be hard for even the neatest of people.

There are probably papers on your counter. Clothes and items you step over every day covering your bedroom floor as we speak. Bathroom toiletries in disarray. While we coexist with our clutter, it’s rare than anyone suggests clutter makes them happier.

Most people agree – a clean room is a happy room. Clean spaces help induce calm. They are less distracting and there’s zero guilt over not stopping to pick up a mess, because there isn’t one.

It’s time to tidy things up

Make cleaning a priority in your workday. If you need to, pen in a ten or twenty-minute appointment that you keep. For most people, ten to twenty minutes a day is really all you need to walk around your home, dust, spot clean, and reduce the clutter. Then once a week (depending on the size of your space and your needs,) deep clean, vaccuum, and so on.

A few minutes a day is absolutely worth trading in for a little more happiness in your home. Are you protesting right now that you don’t have time to dedicate ten minutes a day? It’s likely you can find the time easily by trading in a habit that’s not making you as happy, such as sitting around scrolling on Facebook. Or binge-watching television.

Even if scrolling Facebook or binge-watching television makes you uber-happy, well, you can still take a ten minute break to address the clutter around you. Your body will be all the better for moving around a bit, too, with a much-needed break from sitting.

Is ten minutes really realistic? Yes! There are a few things you will need.

Happy Room Helpers

First up, you’ll want to purchase some organizational items, such as, shelving units or storage containers. Containers like Superio Brand’s newest decorative Ribbed Storage Collection make it super easy to deal with clutter and keep your room looking beautiful.

For example, why leave your toiletries scattered around your shower? Place them all in a container and viola! Everything looks neat, tidy, and stylish. It also makes it easier for you find and access what you need quickly.

Instead of tossing your glasses, hair ties, or books on your nightstand, have containers set up to hold them. Use hampers not only for clothing, but also to store backpacks, camping gear, or other things you tend to have laying around your bedroom floor. A stylish container instantly makes your room look neat and organized.

Hanging items on walls is a great way to organize and save space. Shelving can make a huge difference. If you read a lot at night, considering using a small bookshelf as your nightstand. Need a place to stash umbrellas or shoes in your hallway, invest in bench with storage options or a small shelving unit to contain the clutter. You can go all out or just make a few simple adjustments to your space.

While you’re at it, set up a container under your sink that you can easily grab for your daily ten minute cleaning spree. Fill it with a duster, spot cleaners, antibacterial wipes and other items you might need to address a quick clean-up in any room.

Address the Clutter

Up front, you may need to spend a little time dealing with major clutter. Again, schedule time in your day to do this. Even if you work on reducing the clutter for a few minutes each day, it will quickly become an eyesore of the past. Your happy room will emerge.

So how can we accomplish a clutter-free home environment? First, get rid of things that are junk. That would include broken toys, electronics, etc., papers that are not important such as old homework from school or mail. The items left will need to be sorted into the following piles: Keep, Giveaway (or Yard Sale) and Maybe. If there are items that belong to older children put their stuff in a box and label it with their name and give it to themto deal with. The Maybe pile should be broken down into a Keep and Giveaway pile, otherwise you’re enabling yourself to still keep junk.

Some things are hard to decide if they’re a keeper. Try asking yourself these following questions if you’re having trouble: If I was moving would I keep it? Have I worn this in the past six months? Do I really have a legitimate use for it? Be honest with yourself.

The things that tend to be an issue when trying to straighten up your room are probably the things you are having trouble letting go of. Are there items in your room that you have had for over twenty years and the main reason you still have them is because you have become accustomed to them being there? Take out all of these items and decide which ones really hold true meaning.

Think of it this way – if there were a fire, which of these items would you grab first? If after choosing which items you are going to keep, you still have a great amount, pack them into a small plastic container and sit it on a shelf inside your closet. Consider the other items no longer an issue.

Sort out your Daily Clutter

One of the biggest issues people have when trying to keep a clean room is paper. Some people have so many papers and absolutely no idea what to do with them. With bills and other mail coming in on a daily basis, it becomes hard to keep everything organized.

With a file cabinet, you can label folders and place all of your loose papers where they belong as they come in. If you’re constantly getting rid of papers, you can probably go with a small, inexpensive plastic container.

Too many clothes can actually be a little problematic for some. Is it winter and your summer clothes are taking up too much space in your closet or dresser drawer? This is a problem and a large container could be the perfect solution. If you fold everything neatly, all items should be able to fit inside one container. If you have lots of clothes, you may need two. These containers can go on the floor of your closet or in a space outside of your room.

Some people keep their shoes inside their closet, underneath their bed, and some have so many that the shoes are beginning to peek out from underneath their bed in a sloppy manner. The best way to fix this problem is by purchasing a shoe bag. You can hang one of these on the horizontal bar in your closet if you have one, or behind your bedroom door. Try to find one that holds a lot of shoes. This also protects your shoes from the dust they might collect if sitting out in the open. You can always hold onto your shoe boxes and line them neatly underneath your bed, and even stack a few boxes in your closet.

Enjoy Your Efforts

When the process is done, you will feel so good about what you have accomplished. Whether it’s your closet, garage or office, now you can breathe a sigh of relief because you have achieved an uncluttered room and mind.

The best way to keep a clean room is to throw away the things that you do not need, immediately. Once you allow things to build up, it becomes more difficult to get rid of them. Containers and such items are always great for storing small items, and those that can be packed to eliminate crowding. The idea is to constantly work on keeping a clear space so your happy room appears neat at all times!