1. You Hide Your Clutter in the Garage

Emotion – Avoidance

You know the saying “out of sight, out of mind”? When your clutter is in boxes piled up in the garage this is exactly the point. It isn’t just a convenient place to put your cutter until you can get around to doing it; it is actually a way of avoiding tackling it. Emotionally this means you lack the mental strength to deal with tricky tasks. You simply hope the pile will go away. It won’t. Put time aside and clear it away. It’s cathartic!

2. You Stash Clutter in Your Desk

Emotion – procrastination

You might think this is similar to avoidance but there is a difference. Clutter on your desk is more visible than clutter in your garage, so the idea that you don’t have to think about it because you can’t see it doesn’t apply. Keeping your clutter on your desk is a sign that you recognize you need to deal with it. You just keep putting it off. This is a sign that you aren’t willing to or struggle with dealing with difficult tasks. Make a to-do list and clear that clutter.

3. You Hoard Stuff in Your Closet

Emotion – Nostalgia

Can you not throw away that pair of jeans that were your favourite when you were 16? What about that dress you wore on your first ever date that you know you will never, ever wear again? No doubt you have tons of photographs of you in these clothes that take up valuable space in your closet, so why hold onto them? This can represent an inability to let go of the past and a wanting to hang on to happier times and memories. Throw them away and make space for new clothes and new memories.

4. Stuff is Piled up in the Attic

Emotion – Guilt

What is in your attic? Heirlooms from relatives you can’t part with because you feel guilty. Keepsakes and mementoes that used to mean something but now you can’t quite remember why you kept them? The attic is the place where we shove all those things we feel guilty about getting rid of. Essentially, it is emotional baggage. Will Great Aunt Maggie know if you chucked away that chipped teapot? Who would be offended if you got rid of those books that have been gathering dust for 20+ years? Don’t continue giving into the guilt. You’re the only one who cares. Make the decision to get rid.

5. Somehow, Piles of Stuff End up in Your Car

Emotion – Overwhelmed

Why are you moving clutter to your car? Because you either have no space left elsewhere or you have lost sight of the boundaries in your life. Keeping clutter in your car shows that you are overburdened because you are simply carry whatever the clutter symbolises around with you everywhere you go. You may shut the front door on the car when you go inside the house but the car, and its contents, is still there; just waiting for you when you climb back in again. Empty your car, get on with planning your life and make those important decisions so you stop being overwhelmed.

This information didn’t tell me much about myself because other than my desk which is uber -organized, I hide clutter everywhere. I guess that tells me I either love clutter or I have … issues.

If you want to learn more buy What Your Clutter Is Trying To Tell You: Uncover The Message In The Mess And Reclaim Your Life, $11, amazon.com