Survey #288—Full Response from Ginger
| What did you learn about yourself or your stuff through your decluttering and organizing process in 2025? | 🔲 I learned I talk a good game but, my follow-through is “not so purdy good” as my dear father would say. I chalk it up to being overwhelmed plus the roller coaster ride I put my body thru this year with my diet. Lots of low energy and achy body parts. ▪️Finally, got back on track this month. Lost 11 lbs. Energy is thru the roof. Feeling good.▪️I also learned - it’s easier to get rid of stuff now. ▪️ I ALSO KNOW I’M TOO HARD ON MYSELF. I got some things done - just not the projects I wanted to finish. |
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| What new decluttering or organizing ideas, methods, or techniques proved helpful in 2025? Were there any game-changers? | I’ve worked at this decluttering and organizing thing since 2013. I can’t say I learned any new techniques this year. But, I’ve learned which techniques work for me and I’ve made full use of those. 🔲 Vision. Write a vision statement. The more detailed - the better. Write it as if you’ve achieved the vision and you’re describing it to someone. This has been a great guide for us. When things don’t fit the vision - cognitive dissonance happens. 🔲 Arms-Length Decision-Making. I get easily overwhelmed when faced with too many decisions at once. I take pictures of the space - drawer, shelf, closet , area. I may have to move things to get pics. I walk-away and study the photos and make the decisions. Trash, Donate, Relocate, Keep. Then, I can walk back to the space and take the actions. It’s much more efficient use of my time. The actions are usually very quick and the project gets DONE. 🔲 Gamify. ▪️Bingo. I do to complete my weekly and monthly tasks. Make a numbered list of things to declutter or areas to check. Draw a bingo grid. Write numbers randomly in the bingo grid squares. (I use an online number generator.) Don’t forget a FREE space. Choose prizes for yourself. I simply like the satisfaction of getting the bingos. ▪️The Minimalism Game, a 30-day decluttering challenge by The Minimalists, where you get rid of items equal to the day's number (1 on day 1, 2 on day 2, etc.), totaling 465 items by month's end. I play this game at least one month out of the year. I did this in November and decluttered 465+ items from all over our home. ▪️I prefer identifying items to declutter & writing them on my list. Then, once a week I gather them. Donations go to my car’s trunk weekly for drop-off on errand day. ▪️Accountability posts. Either with my sister or with a Facebook workgroup. I make a list and report back to update it. Sometimes - I play a game of 3s. Post 3 things to do with a start time. Return to post my end time and post another round of 3s. I work quickly. This works when I want to push thru getting things done. |
| What did you accomplish in 2025 for which you’d like to pat yourself on the back (and enjoy the acknowledgments of The Clutter Fairy community)? | 🔲 Bragging Rights. ▪️Maintained Paper Management System. ▪️April. Husband’s Clothes. Decluttered all clothes stored in the 3 drawers of his bedside chest. Decluttered 3 drawers of his 6 drawer chest of drawers. ▪️June. Alcohol. Decluttered all wine & spirits from our pantry. We haven’t touched it in many years. About 20 bottles. ▪️August. Decluttered our Spice Cabinet and trashed 6 lbs of spices, vinegars, oils. ▪️November. Minimalist Game. Decluttered more than 465 things from all over the house. ▪️December. Sold our Lake House. (Saving $6,500/yr.) Kept very little of the contents. Donated the rest. |
| How do you plan to apply what you learned in 2025 to your 2026 projects? What new decluttering or organizing projects would you like to take on next? | 🔲 I’m disappointed I didn’t get more planned decluttering projects done in 2025. I will work on these projects this year. ▪️Mom’s Suite - she passed away 3 years ago. ▪️Craft Closet - total disaster Monica closet. ▪️Swapping Utility & Craft Closets. ▪️Pantry ▪️Finish Husband’s Clothes. 4 more drawers & hanging clothes. Most of these will be donated. They’re 3 sizes too big and haven’t been worn in years - if ever. |
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