Have you ever had the urge to just get rid of everything and start over in life? I certainly have. As I sip on my cup of green tea while watching the golden light of a morning sun break through the horizon, I find myself romanticizing the idea of a new beginning without all the clutter from my past life. Little did I know that there are many people who feel exactly the same way! Temptation got the better of me, and I began researching only to learn about extreme decluttering.
As the name suggests, extreme decluttering is, well, extreme. Imagine getting rid of absolutely everything you own except necessary items for day-to-day life. At it’s most intense form, this is what constitutes extreme decluttering. In a lighter form, extreme decluttering includes decluttering your home within an extreme timeframe.
There are some folks who have tried extreme decluttering and donated, sold, or trashed up to 80% of their belongings!
That’s an incredible amount of stuff to declutter from a home. Just the thought of that is scary to me.
Evidently, the same fear can be felt by those who participated in this form of extreme decluttering, but what spurred them on was the feeling of power over their space and peace of mind from liberating themselves of so many belongings.
What I’ve come to accept is that the acquisition of material items provides short-lived fun, while the maintenance of such items provides long-term maintenance and work.
Sacrificing space, time, and energy to maintain and clean a home with a lot of material items may not be worth the short-lived dopamine from the acquisition of such items.
The benefits of extreme decluttering are as follows:
- A completely spacious home.
- Less cleaning and maintenance on a regular basis.
- There is little chance of misplacing items.
- Less stress and anxiety over material items or cleaning.
- There are fewer distractions in your home.
- Fewer reminders of the past and a chance to start over.
- The ability to reorganize or redecorate your home.
Related article: 13 Signs you own too much stuff
Extreme Decluttering Methods You Should Try
Of all the different methods and ideas on this topic, I find these three to be the most influential and have the greatest results when it comes to extreme decluttering.
1. 1-in and 10-out
I’m sure you’ve heard of the 1-in and 1-out system designed to maintain your current environment. For every new item you purchase, donate, sell, or trash an old item. This ensures that you never accumulate more than you need.
But extreme decluttering would necessitate removing many items in exchange for one new item.
If you were to get 10 new items, you would end up decluttering your home of 100 old items.
That’s a deficit of 90 material items, which is a significant amount to declutter.
2. KonMari
Marie Kondo has become a household name for those in the lifestyle space.
She popularized the idea of decluttering via categories rather than individual rooms. She advises beginning with clothes, then books, paper, miscellaneous items, and then sentimental items.
The goal of the KonMari method is to let go of items that no longer spark joy in your heart.
It requires intentionality and consideration when decluttering, often described as an emotional experience that helps to liberate you of items that no longer serve a greater emotional purpose in your life.
3. The 30-day minimalism game
Created or popularized by The Minimalists, this game dictates that from day 1 to day 30, you are to remove a corresponding number of items from your home alongside a friend.
On day 1, you would remove one item. On day 2, you would remove two items. Continue this process until day 30, when you will remove 30 items from your home.
At the end of this 30-day minimalism game, you would have removed 465 items from your home!
If that isn’t considered a form of extreme decluttering, I don’t know what is!
Related article: The 6 types of clutter to minimize in your life
Is It Possible To Declutter Too Much?
I believe that it is possible to declutter too much if there isn’t a plan in place that takes your needs into consideration. Extreme decluttering may be an effective way of embracing minimalism, but without consideration for your long-term needs or possible issues, it can contribute to a scarcity of supplies and inconveniences around the home.
Not everything you own has to be essential.
In a balanced home, there’s a small amount of room for items that you desire and want that aren’t necessary.
To be happy, I think it’s important to keep some room for the simple pleasures in life.
By all means, declutter, but as the KonMari method states, keep some items that spark a feeling of joy in your heart.
Related article: Decluttering mistakes (what they are and how to avoid them)