Pareto Decluttering

Who or what is a Pareto?

Pareto was Vilfredo Pareto. An 18th century Italian economist and philosopher. Pareto determined that, at his time, 80% of Italy's wealth was controlled by 20% of the population.

Today we know that Pareto was onto something. His principle is more commonly called the 80/20 Rule. It seems that nature has a way of distributing things according to the 80/20 principle. In most companies 80% of their business is from 20% of their customers. In the U.S. about 20% of the taxpayers pay 80% of the collected taxes. There are endless examples of the Pareto Principle at work.

So, is there any reason why it would not apply to clutter? Nope! Okay, we then have the Pareto Decluttering method.

Let's use the 80/20 principle in our clutter situations.

1) Use the 80/20 Rule.
Most people only use 20% of what they own on a regular basis. A good portion of the other 80% is comprised of things we used in the past or things we feel we might use in the future. This basically means that approximately 80% of your possessions just sit around every day, doing nothing more than gathering dust.

If you're tired of clutter, begin to pinpoint which group each of your items belongs in. If it falls into the 20% that you use regularly, then the only thing left to do is to find a place for that item. If it falls into the remaining 80%, it's a good candidate for a donation or rummage sale item.

2) Give it the one hour test.
If there was an emergency situation, and you had no choice but to gather up everything that was important to you--in one hour or less--what would you take? What would you leave behind? This should give you an excellent indication of the items that are truly important to you, and those items that aren't very important to you at all.

3. Use the reward system.
If your clutter is beginning to overtake your home, your office and/or your life, it's time to lighten your load. I can practically guarantee that if you were offered a large sum of money to declutter your surroundings by a minimum of 50%, that you'd do so in a flash. Why? Because a large sum of money is a pretty enticing reward. Try establishing some realistic, but enticing rewards, for your decluttering efforts that you can cash in on as you reach your decluttering goals.

4. Keep a log.
Get yourself a notebook, and keep a log of every item you use for the next 2 weeks. If it doesn't make it to the list, it's important to question 'why not?'. The answer may be that it's a seasonal item, and right now it's not the right season to be using that item. The answer may be that it's an evening gown, and you wear it once or twice a year for special occasions.

However, if the answer is that you may pick up on your crocheting hobby in a few years, or that a dress may come back in style someday, or that you haven't found a good use for that gadget yet but an idea may come to you, then that item should most likely be donated, sold, or dumped.

5. Hide it for 6 months.
If the thought of getting rid of something you hardly ever use is just too overwhelming, try this. Get a large box and store anything you hardly use in this box. Then, put the box in your garage, attic or other out-of-the-way place. Go to your calendar and find the date that is exactly 6 months from today. On that date, mark the words '6 Month Box.'

When 6 months go by, and you see this notation on your calendar, if you haven't touched that box once in the past 6 months, take it--unopened--to your local charity. Don't open it and look inside, as you may change your mind. If you haven't needed it in the past 6 months, you surely don't need it.