The two ways are based on having a clear or clear-ish home in the first place. No un-required items on the kitchen surfaces. A clear dining room table for eating on. Nothing on the floor of the bedroom and not using your hallway as makeshift storage.
Do not bring un-thought out/un-needed items into your home
The hard work of a clear home can easily be torpedoed by bringing un-required items back into it. A random Amazon binge for another charger, some cable ties, a phone holder, more batteries and the lemon squeezer you just can’t live without. Or a trip to IKEA that ends up being a trolley full of “really nice to haves” and spares and more spares. These items all need a home and as with many houses, they’re bursting at the seams already.
Be conscious about what you’re buying. If it’s a must-need (not a must-have) that’s bringing value, then no problem, purchase away. Find it a good home and use it well. A common trick to avoid “unwanted” purchases is to place an item in your internet shopping basket and leave it (without purchasing) for a few days and see you you still need/want it. Chances are it was impulsive and you and your mind have moved on and you’ll end up not buying it.
If you do find yourself in a shop, be comfortable being there and happily not buying anything. I go into a well-known discount clothes retailer with my wife and I go and get a coffee and listen to a podcast or book watching people filling their baskets. I’m sometimes tempted when I see someone holding a nice shirt, but remember I have plenty of shirts and just because it’s discounted, it doesn’t mean I need or have to have it.
Do not put things down on flat surfaces
Flat surfaces mean dining room tables, shelves, bookcases, bedside tables, kitchen work surfaces, chairs, sofas and especially floors.
This is a rather troublesome habit to get out of and if you do just dump things down, your home can get messy, very quickly. It’s just so easy when you don’t know what to do with something, to pop it down and think you’ll figure out what to do with it later. This is why everything needs a home and there has to be a bit of space to accept anything new.
Put the food shopping away straight away. Do not dump your work bag on the floor. Put clothes in the washing basket or back in your wardrobe. Dry your washing up and store it away. Put tools away. Recycle read and unwanted paperwork. Put dirty items in the dishwasher. Unpack straight away after you’ve been away.
Being conscious of these two points will take you a long way in helping to keep your home clutter-free. Both require thought and you need to keep the want for a tidy home at the forefront of your mind.
Further reading/watching
Book – Everything that Remains: A Memoir by The Minimalists
Book – The Day the World Stops Shopping: How ending consumerism gives us a better life and a greener world – J.B. MacKinnon
Blog and YouTube – www.becomingminimalist.com and Joshua Becker