I don’t often bring up the subject of minimalism, but bear with me: it is related to being organised! Let’s define a minimalist as “someone who owns little by choice”. Much of the minimalists’ focus is on physical objects, assuming that owning less stuff makes it easier to keep your space organised.

Interestingly, minimalists often start out with the intention to gain a clear mind by allowing only things into their space that do not deter them from this goal.

Have you been overwhelmed by the number of items on your to-do list? Or have you ever found yourself flagging and wondering what to do next? If anything, this should have made it obvious that there is an advantage to being organised. And yes, I know that there are those who feel restrained by too much pre-planning while others need the structure to be able to function.

How can you organise yourself and the regular or one-off tasks? You’ll be familiar with many of the tools: calendars, lists, bullet journals, electronic calendars, task managers and that collection of scribbled sticky notes on the fridge. Then why is it that you still feel disorganised?

There is much talk about being organised, in your personal life as well as in the work arena, but what does it actually mean? Are you supposed to schedule your every move? How much of your plans do you set ahead of time and how much freedom do you need to stay flexible?

In the end, being organised simply means to be prepared in general, keep an eye on deadlines and appointments, and get any chores/tasks/jobs done when they need to be finished. So what we are really looking for is a balanced approach to task management, time management and personal wellbeing. Let’s look at those separately.

If you find yourself decluttering your wardrobe, it’s often hard to let go of certain pieces because you love the design of the fabric, even though you will never wear the item any more (it may not fit or no longer be your style). Now what?

In my decluttering practice, I have found that the attachment to our belongings can be based on very different elements: the way they look, they smell, how they feel to the touch, how they are arranged, even the way we have acquired them. For books, it’s often possible to take pictures of the front covers to remind someone of the book and its meaning.

Do you buy new clothes on a regular basis? Let’s be honest, the vast majority of clothes we buy may not exactly be with the goal of replacing something that is beyond repair, but it is because you want to follow the latest trend or you are simply in the mood for shopping.

Those two reasons usually align with a desire to buy cheap clothes rather than something more expensive that might last a lot longer. Constantly shifting trends and the assumed requirement to follow them is enough of an incentive to buy cheap. The glossy magazines don’t usually show off expensive, well-made items, but they focus on what can be mass-produced and sold in large quantities before the winds of change bring another trend to the front pages.

If you are the kind of person who likes to repurpose things when they have become unnecessary or no longer fit for their original use, you may want to still be careful how you go about this process.

I often work with clients whose desire to repurpose has taken them down a path of hoarding too many thing that are unlikely to ever become useful. There are many reasons for this, the most common ones are “too many projects, too little time”, “big plans, no follow-through”, and a general sense that things are “too valuable to just throw out”.

There is a fundamental connection between sustainability and decluttering. Sustainability means to not overuse resources (which unfortunately we already do), but it also could be seen in the context of being sustainable within your own life, by not holding on to more than you need, stock more than necessary, and reuse/repurpose whatever you can.

So, ultimately, “keeping it down” will keep you from clogging up your space without compromising on luxuries.

We are all part of a massive wave of consumption that has become part of daily life in Western society. There is nothing wrong with consumption as such, but we live in an age of “too much” rather than “enough”. Most of us are blissfully unaware of the sheer amount of things we use without thinking twice, and this behaviour not only affects us, but the world at large. It is time to become aware of our personal impact and what we can do about limiting it in our own way.

There are many ways to save money, but few can turn out to be as beneficial as proper consideration of how you deal with food. We all have to eat, and one of biggest money dumps for anyone working away from home is the overpriced daily sandwich. The better option would always be a meal you bring from home, but many find that too time-consuming and complicated, too. Let’s consider a couple of things that might change your mind.

We all have our own way that informs how we engage with the world of retail, how marketing affects us, if we are swayed by peer pressure, and other such elements. It can be useful to become aware of any patterns that you tend to follow and consider if they are useful ones to maintain.