The easiest time to get rid of things is usually when you’re moving house, and that’s because moving forces us to ask a question that most of us spend years avoiding: is this actually worth keeping?

After all, it’s one thing to leave something sitting at the back of a cupboard for another year, bit it’s another thing entirely to pack it into a box, carry it to a new house, unpack it again, and then find somewhere for it to live. That’s often the moment people realise just how much stuff they’ve been holding onto, and with that in mind, keep reading to find out more.

Stop Thinking About What Things Used To Be

One of the reasons clearing out can feel difficult is because people often focus on what something was rather than what it is now, like that exercise bike used to get used all the time, those old books were once favourites, or maybe that box in the loft probably felt important enough to keep when it first went up there.

The problem is that moving isn’t really about the past – it’s about deciding what deserves space in your future home, and sometimes looking at things that way makes decisions a lot easier.

Don’t Make It Too Complicated

People can spend a really long time debating whether to keep things they don’t actually want, and you’ve probably done it yourself – you pick something up, put it down, pick it up again, wonder whether you might need it one day, and before long you’ve spent ten minutes thinking about an object you haven’t looked at for years.

The reality is that if you’re struggling to remember the last time you used something, there’s a reasonable chance you won’t miss it very much.

Be Ruthless With Random Stuff

Every house seems to have a collection of completely random items, like old chargers that belong to nothing, instructions for appliances you no longer own, half-used tins of paint, cables that might be useful one day, and boxes full of things that nobody has looked through in years.

They’re little things, aren’t they? Not really worth bothering with, right? Well… yes, but what about how much space they take up when they’re all put together in a loft, garage, or spare room? At that point, it just gets cluttered, and moving house is a good opportunity to finally deal with them.

Make Disposal Easy

One thing that slows people down is creating endless piles of things to deal with later, which is  why it helps to have a plan for getting things out of the house as you go. For larger clear-outs, a lot of people use skip bins because they make it much easier to deal with bulky items, unwanted furniture, garden waste, and all the other things that seem to appear once sorting properly begins.

And remember, the easier it is to remove things, the easier it is to keep making progress.

Think About The Move Itself

Perhaps the easiest way to make decisions is to imagine moving day. Do you really want to carry that item into a van, transport it across town, unpack it at the other end, and find somewhere for it in your new home? If the answer is no, you’ve probably got your answer.