A Little Simplicity Guide For Any Area of Your Home or Life

Trying to simplify everything usually results in simplifying nothing at all. This little simplicity guide will help you prioritize one area of your home or life. Giving yourself permission to simplify one thing, or just one area reduces overwhelm and encourages progress.

In this little simplicity guide, you’ll find a recommendation to simplify an area of your home or life to simplify with links to articles for more support and suggestions.

Simplify your closet.

I often start with the closet because simplifying that one area made such a big difference in my life. My tiny wardrobe saves me so much time and money. I spend and shop less because I’m content with what I have. I choose peace over excess.

You can create a lot of space and reduce stress by simply removing anything from your closet that doesn’t fit your body or your lifestyle. You may also call this category of your wardrobe, “things I never wear.” Take it ALL out of your closet and get it out of sight. Hide it in a box or bag for 30-60 days. If you don’t miss a thing, you can donate it all with ease.

For extra support simplifying your closet read the following articles:

Join me for even more support for the Closet Declutter Hour. I will cheer you on, make you laugh and give you great ideas to make letting go of your clothes easier.

Start here if it’s time to simplify your kitchen.

I spend so much time in my kitchen. It’s not only where I put meals together but it’s a place to hang out and gather. Kitchen countertops love to collect clutter, so I recommend keeping as few items as possible on display. Clutter attracts clutter and calm attracts calm.

Start simplifying your kitchen by eliminating as many duplicates as possible. How many wooden spoons, wire whisks or measuring cups do you actually need and use? What about coffee cups, water bottles, and glasses, dishes, and bowls. Reduce your kitchen belongings until it’s easy to use your favorite things every day.

For extra support simplifying your kitchen, read the following articles:

Simplify other areas of your home.

We all have different rooms and spaces in our homes. Consider simplifying the rooms you spend the most time in. What’s the most stressful space in your home? That’s a great place to start to create more space and less stress. That will give you more energy to focus on other areas.

I recommend a really simple approach of decluttering “passes” when you first get started. Walk around with a box or bag and remove the easy stuff during your first decluttering pass. This is generally stuff you don’t care about and barely notice unless you have clean it. After the first pass, see how you feel. Is it time for a second pass or do you need a little time in between? You cannot do this wrong. Even though you may work on more challenging items with later passes, they can get easier because you are starting to enjoy the space you are creating.

For extra support simplifying your home, read the following articles:

9 little notes to help you declutter your home
10 tiny steps to simplify your home (without overhauling your whole life)
How to declutter your home when you don’t feel like it

Your health and wellbeing requires simplicity too.

It was a health scare that inspired simplicity in my life so I know how important this area of our life really is. If you’ve ever faced one of these wake-up calls, you know how important it is to finally take care of yourself.

Simplicity around your health and wellness starts with making some space to figure out how you feel and what support you need. If you are dealing with a new diagnosis or chronic illness, you may need to identify the most essential things going on in your life and put a stop to the rest, at least temporarily.

For extra support simplifying your health, read the following articles:

If you want to rush around less, simplify your calendar.

We have the best of intentions when we jam pack our calendars. We overestimate what we can accomplish in a day and we measure our self-worth by how much we get done. This is bad math.

Simplify your calendar by reviewing your upcoming appointments and commitments. What can you cancel and remove completely? Can you reschedule anything to give you more time? Once you shuffle things around, consider building in 10-15 minutes between everything for a more leisurely pace.

For extra support simplifying your calendar read the following articles:

Simplify your paper and photos (this may be the most popular part of the little simplicity guide).

If you struggle with paper clutter, you are not alone. It all seems important at the time so we put it in a pile. The piles grow and grow and they become so overwhelming that we don’t want to face them.

The easiest way to start simplifying your paper clutter is to go through all of it, separating it into keep or toss piles. Don’t worry about next steps yet, just be ruthless about getting rid of paper you don’t need.

Spoiler alert: You don’t need most of it. If you declutter more, you can organize less. It might help to listen to a good podcast or watch one of your favorite movies at the same time.

For extra support simplifying your paper and photos read the following articles:

How to get rid of paper clutter (2 simple questions)
Letting go of photos and sentimental items
Why I don’t save my journals

Join the Paper Declutter Hour. Participants say they’ve never had so much fun decluttering paper!

I hope this little simplicity guide gives you permission to simplify one thing instead of all the things. Use your progress as motivation to move on to the next space.