So in December of 2010, I decided 2011 would be my clutter free year.
Solely for the sake of full disclosure, I finally have an update: it has been a clutter free failure. I’d planned to declutter on a daily basis, to keep my room as tidy as it was the day I took the photos in the original post. The reasons for the experiment? “To delay gratification. To prioritize. To manage my time. To be patient. Pulling it off means severing all ties to spending tons of time hanging up laundry that’s been clean for weeks. It means I won’t have to spend the first few hours of a study day cleaning so I can focus. It means I won’t trip over shoes when I wake up in the morning.”
And I — queen of quitting stuff for good causes and without trouble (like the time I didn’t eat sugar for a year, and all my years lived sans social media) — never thought I couldn’t pull it off.
But I can’t pull this off, and I had to get that off my chest. I have, however, learned a few things:
1. I’m a far quicker room cleaner than I used to be. If I let my stuff pile up — and Lordy, I do — I’ve discovered that I can declutter with an entirely new rapidity. I have no real explanation for this other than miracles and/or the fact that I’ve finally accepted that I have a schedule that doesn’t allow for wasting time.
2. I declutter far more often than in years past. I now declutter once a week (as opposed to only when absolutely necessary and with the exceptions of during midterms and finals week), which is probably more reasonable for me considering my schedule. (I spend eight hours a week driving, for instance — and that only includes to and from work and school!)
3. I have room to improve. I’m a far cry more organized and better at managing my time now than ever before. But there’s still room for improvement. I have some ideas a-brewin’. Stay tuned.