Making Space, Clutter Free

The reason there is still a market for books on clutter-clearing is so many people are still buried in clutter. There’s another reason behind that, and that is that most of these books are written by methodical people who think the process is simple. Just get four boxes and start sorting! Tracy McCubbin knows better. Making Space, Clutter Free arose from years of working directly with people and understanding why almost everyone finds the process so emotionally challenging.

Making Space, Clutter Free is built around seven “Clutter Blocks.” I have seen all of these in play with my own clients (and many of them I have experienced myself). No amount of physical effort, no amount of bins or tubs or boxes, no approach is going to work until these blocks are identified and acknowledged.

The good news is that, in my experience, this emotional work can be done anywhere, at any time, and you don’t have to have a duster in your hand to do it. It’s much easier to do the inner work and go in prepared, having developed the interior certainty that it’s definitely time for this stuff to go.

Making Space, Clutter Free is the book to read if you’re still stuck, if you’re working through someone else’s things, if you’re having power struggles with your family, basically in any situation in which the whole “spark joy” thing isn’t working.

Favorite quotes:

We use shopping as a shorthand for doing the work.

We imbue objects with tremendous power.

“I can love and hold their memory and still let go of their things.”

Instead of thinking of buying the item, think of buying the option of that item.

Invariably, these people are kicking the clutter can down the road because they don’t trust their judgement.

None of us want to be contributing to landfills, but that is no reason to let your home become one.

Don’t give your power away by thinking you need someone else to show up and get this done.