Have you ever felt overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home? The trick I've found helps me is to declutter throughout the month. Will you join me in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge?
Each day this month I'll share some decluttering tips and ideas so you can end the month with the same number of items in your home (or maybe even less!) than what you started the month with.
Today I'm sharing tips on decluttering electronics and entertainment.
Today's Suggested Decluttering Task
Our homes can easily and quickly fill with electronic items and various items for entertainment. But when new items enter our homes, the old ones are often kept but then not used very much. So they become clutter. Here are some tips to help you declutter your electronics and entertainment items:
- Throw away anything that doesn't work. This should be easy but for some reason we often want to hold onto electronics so we can get them fixed. But then they sit for years. Just let them go. (Note: check disposal rules for your area... you may have to bring it to an e-waste facility)
- Donate or toss anything that you no longer have an appropriate device to play it on (cassette tapes, video tapes, video games, etc.). Check with your local donation center... some will no longer accept these items.
- Likewise, purge any old devices that you no longer have items to play in them (cassette players, VCR's, gaming systems, etc.). It's like missing socks... but on a more expensive scale.
- Give away or sell any items that haven't been enjoyed for over a year...you can usually tell by the thickness of the layer of dust on them ;)
- Let go of anything that is outdated. Think old cell phones, laptops, desktop computers, old-style monitors, and those TV's that weigh about a ton. Nearly every client I work with has several of these somewhere in their home. Technology changes so rapidly these days that our homes can easily become a graveyard of outdated electronics. Stop the madness. Let them go.
- And please please please declutter old electronic cords! Keep cords for devices you still use of course, but everything else can go. If you haven't used it in the last few months, you never will. Really. Don't keep those "just in case". Move on.
- Don't forget to dispose of old batteries too (properly... check your local rules for disposal). Especially those for specific devices you no longer have. But also any expired ones (most should have a date on them). And definitely any that don't work (you can get a cheap battery tester at the dollar store if you don't have one).
For more tips on decluttering electronics and entertainment, check out these posts:
And for tips on organizing electronics and entertainment items check out these posts:
Decluttering My Electronics and Entertainment
I do need to go through my kids' videos and DVD's with them (hopefully this weekend after we go through their toys). I'm pretty sure there are a few that they weren't ready to part with the last time we decluttered them, but that they might be willing to let go of now.
The only electronic item I decluttered today was our old set of portable phones. We bought a new set recently and I held onto the old one in case there were any issues with the new one. Everything seems fine, so I'm letting the old set go.
After Christmas I'll go through my kids' video games with them. They don't know it yet but we're giving them a PS4 system and a couple of games to go with it. So we may give away or sell either our Wii or xBox, along with all the accessories and games that go with it. At the very least we will declutter several of the games they don't play as often anymore).
My Progress in the #NetZeroClutter challenge
So that puts me at -1 item today in the #NetZeroClutter challenge and -139 overall. Still ahead of my 10 items per day goal and closer to a less cluttered home for the holidays :)
What's Next For You?
Take some time today to declutter your electronics and entertainment. Or anything you'd like to declutter! Take some pictures and share your progress on social media using the hashtag #NetZeroClutter. Let me know how you're doing in the challenge so I can cheer you on!
Sign up to receive my blog posts by email so you get each day's post in your email inbox every morning. You can unsubscribe after the challenge is over if you don't want to continue receiving my blog posts by email.
I'd also love for you to join our 365 Items in 365 Days Facebook group as you do this challenge! You'll be able to share with others what you're decluttering and feel encouraged and inspired by everyone else who is also decluttering!
If you'd like more decluttering ideas, you can check out my Decluttering/Purging Tips & Ideas board on Pinterest.
So that's today's post in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge! I'm enjoying doing this challenge and I'm excited to have you join me. I love hearing all the stories of how much more you're enjoying your holidays because you're not overwhelmed by all the stuff in your home!
How many electronics or entertainment items did you declutter? How can you prevent more of this type of clutter in the future?
Happy
I link up at these great parties - Check them out!
Here are all the posts in this challenge in case you missed any or want to share some with your friends or family!
