Downsizing: why is it so hard?
We work with clients throughout the DMV who are struggling with the concept of downsizing and decluttering. Why is it so hard? For most of those we work with, it comes down to a simple concept: in a home where you have raised children, celebrated holidays, birthday parties and even simple family moments, it’s hard to emotionally let go of the home that was the setting for it all. And the “things” that fill our closets, drawers and shelves are the physical evidence of our lives in these homes. But here’s the thing that experts say again and again, “stuff doesn’t equal memories”. When you think about it , they’re right. Here are a few tips we’ve picked up along the way (many on our team have already successfully downsized) and we hope they are helpful:
Start Small
Unlike the Marie Kondo full-on process of tackling a big area at once, try segmenting your decluttering into smaller, more palatable steps. If you have the benefit of time before you are selling and moving to a smaller home, take two items every day off a shelf, in a closet or tucked in a drawer and either toss them, donate them or keep them. One of the easiest ways to track what you’re keeping is to take a photo of it so you’ll have it on record when you DO move.
The Cleaning Hack
If you’ve ever cleaned out a bookcase or tackled a drawer, you can relate to this. Once you remove things from a surface to clean that surface, you’ll be much pickier about what you put back. Empty boxes on to the floor, don’t pick things out one at a time. You’ll want to clear that floor and in the process, you’ll likely find at least a few things you can let go of in the process.
Turn the Process into an Event
Before her downsizing, one of our colleagues committed a time frame each week to decluttering. Engaging her husband in the process, one person would handle the sorting of items while the other handled removals. At the end of their allotted half hour, they’d do something enjoyable like take a walk, play a game or go out somewhere together. It made it much less of a chore, and instead, they focused on the “after party”.
Look forward with Excitement
Downsizing requires care and deliberation, so flip it into a positive experience. Rather than holding onto things that took a lifetime to accumulate, look at it as the first step in clearing space for what lies ahead. Believe it or not, in the same way when you were starting off as a homeowner and excitedly gathering things that made your house a home, you can look at this process as a way to free up space for your reinvention—focusing on the life you have ahead without all the “stuff”. Without all the maintenance of a larger property (if you are downsizing into something smaller or a condo). In other words, focus on the lifestyle and freedom that is on the other side of your simplified new self!