How Decluttering Can Help You Live a More Sustainable Lifestyle

This is a guest post from Emily Folk.

As you get out of bed, you step over the piles of clothes you’ve tossed all over the floor throughout the week, with a sigh of frustrated dissatisfaction. You rub your eyes as you make your way over to the light switch and trip over piles of shoes, bags, and shampoo bottles tossed carelessly onto the ground. As you make your way downstairs, you can’t even sit on the coach because you have piles of Target’s clearance items stacked onto each chair, table, and in Fido’s dog bed, too. Your life is officially a Hoarder’s episode gone wrong.

So maybe your life isn’t quite as dramatic as this scenario, but that doesn’t mean you can’t benefit from decluttering your life a little, too. Did you know that there are over 300,000 items and products sitting around in one American household alone?

While buying new goods may produce a feel-good sensation that lasts a matter of seconds, the waste they produce after being tossed aside can take thousands of years to decompose alone. Decluttering your life not only helps you live a more sustainable lifestyle, but it helps carve a cleaner future for future generations, too.

Fewer Products Equates to Less Waste

Americans spend 1.2 trillion dollars annually on one massive expense — can you guess what it is? If you’re thinking groceries, guess again. That money doesn’t go toward taxes or any bills, either. This figure representations the trillions of dollars Americans spend on non-essential goods — products and items they just don’t need.

When you think of these hundreds of thousands of products each household consumes alone, it’s not hard to imagine where each of these items will end up after a few months — or even weeks — of use.

The second you choose to declutter your life, you’re also committing to making the Earth into a less wasteful place. When you think about the fact that it takes over 1,800 gallons of water to produce one pair of blue jeans alone, you’ll find yourself much less likely to invest in the latest temporary fashions knowing that it creates an impactful amount of waste.

How You Can Transform into a More Conscientious Buyer

When you adopt a minimalist lifestyle, every purchase you do make should be backed by research and an informed mindset before you make your investment. You won’t buy shirts that only withstand one week of wear when you need a smaller wardrobe that will last throughout the years.

Whenever you need to buy new goods, food, or general products, be sure to investigate how producers made these items by examining if they contain any eco-labels that signify the use of less waste or harmful chemicals. When you invest in quality products built to last with ethical production practices that prioritize the environment in mind, you can reduce your ecological footprint considerably.

Save Money for What Truly Matters

When you’re 80 years old, chances are you won’t remember that sparkly blue dress you bought for a New Year’s party but tossed into your wardrobe instead. Those memories you made with friends and the trips you took to new and exciting places will be what truly matters in the end.

Consumerism is the primary culprit behind the reason why nearly half of American households retain no savings at all. If you find yourself in a house full of possessions with a bank account drained to zero, chances are you’re spending too much money on unnecessary goods.

When you keep your spending limited to the bare minimum, you’ll find that you have more money to spend on what matters.

Declutter Your Life Today

Reducing your possessions doesn’t have to be a life-changing process that leaves you feeling barren or in lack of what you really need. The first simple step toward decluttering is assessing the products you have and decide whether you truly need them in your everyday life.

One your take an inventory of your possessions and cut out the unnecessary junk, be sure to follow these simple steps to keep clutter at bay:

• Use reusable bags to cut back on waste
• Give away two items every time you buy something new for your house.
• Ditch plastic and one-time use bottles for reusable containers instead.
• Get rid of one item you no longer use each day.
• Donate a trash bag full of clothes you no longer wear to your local thrift shop.

Whenever you minimize your possessions, you take the first few necessary steps toward a more simplistic lifestyle. Once your life is decluttered, you’ll find that positive energy and a sense of clarity quickly ensues. You can experience a sense of happiness in your everyday life and live sustainably after all, too.

Emily is a freelance writer and the editor of Conservation Folks. She is passionate about eco-friendly living and is always looking for ways to decrease waste in her life.