Don’t have time to declutter? I get it.
You’re juggling work, family, meals, appointments—and the idea of setting aside an entire afternoon to “finally sort the garage” feels laughably unrealistic.
But what if I told you that you don’t need more time to declutter?
Sometimes, all you need is a little inconvenience. Keep reading to learn a slightly unconventional yet highly effective decluttering tip.
My Go-To Trick: The Overly Inconvenient Method
Here’s how it works:
If there’s something you’re struggling to let go of, don’t hide it away. Don’t shove it in a drawer or box it up in the back of the closet.
Instead, put it in your way. I mean that literally:
- Leave it on the kitchen counter
- Plop it in the middle of your dining table
- Let it sit on your office chair
Basically, anywhere you’ll have to deal with it every day.
It sounds annoying—and it is. But that’s the point.
Over time, the cost of keeping the item becomes more obvious (and more frustrating), which makes it easier to let go.
Why It Works (Even When Life Is Chaotic)
Most decluttering advice tells you what actions to take (like “throw away duplicates” or “sort into keep/toss/donate piles”), but doesn’t address the key issue: how do we feel more comfortable with letting go?
This is where psychology comes into play.
We tend to value our items more simply because we own them—a phenomenon known as the endowment effect. Our brains literally assign more worth to something just because it’s ours. This means that even if an item is objectively unimportant or unused, we still perceive it as valuable, making it harder to let go.
So, when we try to make a logical list of pros and cons, it often doesn’t work. The emotional weight of ownership throws off the scale.
To overcome this, we need to change how we experience clutter, and that’s why the Overly Inconvenient Method works so well.
By putting the item somewhere you can’t ignore—where it gets in your way every day—the pain of keeping it increases. You stop thinking about the item as something “you might need one day” and start noticing how it’s disrupting your life right now.
It’s annoying, and that annoyance builds, making the decision to let go feel obvious. Your theoretical pro and con list has a new, very obvious ‘con’ that tips the scales in favour of letting go.
It’s like psychological judo: instead of fighting your resistance to decluttering, you redirect it. You let your own frustration build until letting go feels like relief.
Slow and Steady Decluttering (Perfect for Busy Women)
Now, I know some of you will read this and think, “If I declutter this way, it will take forever to finish!”
To that end, I want to remind you that this isn’t a strategy for decluttering your entire home. However, it is a method that can meet you where you are, especially when your life is busy and you don’t have time for a big project.
Keep a decluttering box in a closet or your garage, and use this method to make slow and steady progress.
Next time you come across an item you’re unsure about, don’t overthink it.
Just ask: “Where can I put this so it annoys me the most?”
Then wait.
It might take a few days (or even a week), but most people eventually reach a point where they’re so sick of moving it that letting go becomes the easy option.
You’ve shifted the equation: now it’s the keeping, not the letting go, that feels heavy.
Try It Today
Go find one thing—just one—that you’ve been unsure about keeping.
Then put it somewhere obnoxious.
That’s it. No sorting. No decision-making. No pressure to follow through.
Let the clutter do the hard work for you.
And when you’re ready, let it go. You’ll feel lighter, freer, and more confident every time you walk past that newly clear space.
More Time-Saving Decluttering Tips
If you’re looking for more tips that will help you declutter more in less time, be sure to check out these popular blog posts:
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