The past few weeks I have been busy assisting several clients tackle the clutter in their homes. Nothing feels quite so fantastic than to help others with something that I am so passionate about! Anyway, on to the details. First client wanted to remove all unnecessary stuff from his office during tax season. I will say once those taxes are done this is the BEST time to declutter and restructure your office. I do this myself every year.
On top of the mess you can see, we also purged all filing cabinets and reorganized the filing system. Tailoring your filing system to you makes keeping your paper life in order. This in turn makes dreaded tax season way easier! We reduced the amount of pens, pads of half used paper, sticky notes and general office supplies, setting up a system of less is more. This helps reduce the visual clutter along with the internal anxiety of the client. More does not equal better!
As soon as the last paper was filed and the desk was dusted, I noticed a huge weight had been taken off of my client's shoulders. He was suddenly filled with positivity and was thrilled to have tackled such a large project that had been weighing on him for some time.
It is easy to see in this before & after picture as to why the client was feeling elated. Who wouldn't feel anxious working in an office full of clutter!
My second client that I worked with wanted to restructure a utility room to accommodate his ever growing collection of gym equipment. The issue was not necessarily the equipment itself, but the mess that had collected in the opposite side of the room. The visual clutter was beginning to make the client's peaceful exercise time not so peaceful.
You can definitely see why one may not want to stare at this during exercise! So we went to work, making piles of keep, donate and trash. There were more than a handful of items that belonged elsewhere in the home, almost as if this area had become a dumping ground. Not uncommon in most homes.
I suggested to my client to fight the urge to fill all of the shelves. While it is fantastic to have so much storage space, leaving free areas to add like items at another time is a great option. Not to mention the space looks open and airy, not busy and over cluttered.
When I left this client's home, I knew that he not longer felt hesitant to utilize his room for exercise anymore. Mission accomplished! Room after room, client after client, I still love the look of exhilaration on my client's faces once we have mastered a space! It's why I do what I do!
Have you been tackling any organizing projects? My next large project is within my own home. I have two little girls closets that are screaming for a makeover! Stay tuned!
