Answer: In order to focus your attention, time and energy on what you love most.
Reasons to Declutter At a Glance:
1. Improved Mental Clarity and Focus
2. Reduced Stress
3. Less Time Spent on Minutiae and Trivial Things
4. Increased Relaxation and Peace of Mind
5. More "Me Space" to Do What You Want
6. Less Attachment to Things
7. Greater Appreciation for What You Have
8. Improved Relationships and Social Life
To me, we can distill these reasons to declutter your home into one key benefit: Attention.
There's a Hawaiian Huna principle that states "energy flows where attention goes".
Take a good look around you. Everything in your space requires attention, whether you are conscious of it or not. If the things surrounding you are unsettling, disarrayed, or even just not central to what you value most in life, you likely will experience some friction that distracts you from feeling at ease and in flow. The better your attention, the more productive energy you have to maximize your output per unit of time and effort spent.
Attention is perhaps one of the most valuable resources of your life. There are so many things to attend to that it often feels overwhelming and hard to relax. So many different sources outside of your self are competing to capture your attention and persuade you to do something to their benefit - whether or not it's good for you in return.
Your home is your domain, it's your personal space to arrange just the way that makes you feel the best. Don't let unwanted items and unresolved clutter take away your attention to what you love most.
Removing the clutter very often results in feelings of relief, uplift, and new life. Decluttering is also often one of the most straightforward and tangible ways to move stagnant energy from your life and gain a deeper understanding about emotional blockages and your life values.
As you have more time to do what you love, as well as a less stressful and more relaxed environment, you begin to devote more time and energy toward what makes you feel good. This is going to attract people and experiences that support and uplift the good you are feeling. If your home is much easier to clean you're also more likely to have a welcoming and inviting home to host social gatherings. You will begin to love and appreciate your space more as the place your loved ones come together. With less clutter, there's less to concern yourself with, which means you can focus more on the people you love.
If you prefer solitude to social gatherings, a clutter free space offers a much greater sense of relaxation and comfort once the feeling of "unfinished business" is removed from your environment. Declutter the home also often results in re-designing your space to be optimized for personal passions, hobbies, and tastes.
There is a general movement happening toward "collecting memories not things". Many sages advise not to get attached to "impermanent things", but rather focus on things that are eternal. Love is often described as eternal. A parent's love for their child lives on after their death as does a generation's love for the planet get passed down to the next generation. Decluttering is a great way to release attachment to things that don't actually fulfill us.
A simple way to declutter is to consider the 20% of your items that you use regularly and bring you the most joy and then get rid of the rest. While drastic, this would be a swift and life changing victory if you struggle with clutter and clarity in your life. You'd gain a much deeper appreciation for what you have while at the same time become less attached to them. You'd learn that most things in your space are easily replaced and if you missed something you'd be in a position to replace it with something that suits you better now. Most of all, you'd gain a deeper understanding of your self, your values and what gives your life meaning and purpose. With the greater attention, time and energy you gain from decluttering, you have that much more resources to focus on what you love.
Happy Decluttering!
PS: If you want more guidance and a structured path to declutter your home, check out our e-course "Declutter Academy". It will help you overcome the blocks to getting started, getting finished, and getting on with loving your home!
Click on the image below to check out the details about Declutter Academy!
