What is the difference between too much stuff and not enough storage space? Before you decide to purchase organization "hardware," you have to take an honest, objective look at the things you have and decide whether you use them, need them and love them.
When trying to decide the difference between too much stuff and not enough storage space Lorie Marrero, who is the owner of "LivingOrder", a professional organization company that creates organizing solutions for homes and businesses, offers this advice: "You have to truly look at your things and decide whether you do use them, love them and need them. And you have to honestly answer those questions about each item. If you still don't have enough space, then you really don't have enough storage space."
If there was one sure fire way for everyone to get organized, then there wouldn't be a need for experts like Lorie. No one but you can answer if you truly do need an object around, whether it's out of necessity or sentimentality. Lorie offers this suggestion when trying to decide if you have too much stuff or just simply need more storage space: "If you are looking at your things and there are multiple copies of the same book, you really aren't using these things, or you are keeping them out of a sense of obligation, then you need to do a little more paring down before you decide to add on to your house."
If you are keeping something out of obligation and your house is cluttered, the person who gave it to you honestly, probably doesn't even remember it's there. If you are known to be a very disorganized person and your house suddenly becomes organized, most people will be so impressed by the big picture that it won't even cross there minds to look for certain objects. If you are truly worried that the person will notice its disappearance, and it's something reasonably small, then find a place to store it, in a drawer or closet shelf. If they ask about you can simply say, "With all this work of organizing the place, I just haven't found a suitable location for it yet." Nine times out of ten, your worries will be unfounded. Give it a few months and if they haven't mentioned it, you can get rid of the item permanently. We must all learn to stand up for ourselves and the best advice is to not let others interfere with how we live. Yet, I understand that sometimes, a person's personality is just too strong to argue with and no amount of reasoning will appease them. An object should never be placed ahead of one's comfort but pick your battles so as not to lose your sanity over something that can just be tucked away again after a certain someone departs.
If you are on the fence about certain items: Pack up all the "maybes" in a box and stick them out of sight for one month. If you constantly find yourself thinking of an object when you walk past a space where it would fit perfectly or consistently find yourself trying to find a place to put it when you can bring it back in at the end of the month, then you should keep it. More often then not, we forget about these "maybes" in short order, especially after enjoying our newly organized home after all the hard work. Also, the rule is that you are only able to keep the exact thing(s) you were thinking about, not the ones you had forgotten until you re-opened the box. If it comes down to it, have someone else retrieve the items for you and whisk the rest way to charity before you get a chance to see them and change your mind.
