Almost everyone who has ever filled a donation bag has had the same sinking thought. What if I get rid of this and need it next week? That worry keeps a lot of us holding on to cords, bottles and boxes long after we have stopped using them. One mom who teaches decluttering says that worry can be tamed, and she has a surprising source of advice for it: a former poker player.
The creator behind the channel @TheMinimalMom says the most common decluttering question she gets is how to know for sure that you will not need something again once it is gone. In her video, she promises to help viewers move from emotional, judgment call decisions to feeling very certain. She says the result can be about a 99 percent success rate with decluttering decisions.
Advice From A Former Poker Player
The help comes from Annie Duke, who she describes as a former poker player who knows all about odds and betting and who now studies sound decision making. The Minimal Mom says that when Duke’s tactics are applied to decluttering, they work.
The idea is that a decision is not bad just because the outcome was not perfect. She gives a real example. Say you hold up a cord you cannot remember the purpose of. Getting rid of it can feel like an arbitrary decision. You could toss it, and the very next day remember it was to charge a camera you now want to sell on Marketplace. That would sting. But she says that even if the outcome is not as good as you hoped, that does not make it a bad decision.
Her numbers are the heart of the message. She says that for every 100 things she declutters, she maybe regrets one. In her view, a 99 percent success rate is odds that anyone would take, especially when the reward on the other side is a decluttered house that is so easy to manage.
The Time Will Tell Bin
For items that make you hesitate, she relies on what she calls a time will tell bin. She says she has always known these bins are powerful, but it was not until the last few years, when she felt her brain was fried and did not trust her own decision making, that she really leaned on them.
Here is how she describes using it. She goes through the bin and looks at what she has forgotten about, which clearly has not been needed in the last six months. She still does not feel confident getting rid of it all right away. These items are taking up what she calls prime real estate, space she does not want filled with things she is not using. So the contents go back into the bin to be time tested a little longer, and after another six months she says she will feel very confident letting go of everything still in there.
She also tries to categorize and contain items when she is time testing, whenever possible. Her reasoning is that most of what we keep is never looked at again. She points to file containers as an example, noting that 90 something percent of what we file is never revisited.
Why The Bathroom Is Different
One spot where she says the bin has been profound is the bathroom. She explains that there is a lot of guilt and shame wrapped up in tiny containers of skincare, hair care and makeup, and that influencers are very good at selling them to us. Keeping them around, she says, causes guilt and makes the bathroom harder to use. When we buy these products and then get frustrated with ourselves for not using them, a time will tell bin can take the pressure off.
This is a refreshing idea. Instead of forcing a yes or no on a half empty bottle of something you bought on a whim, you give it a place to wait. If you reach for it, great. If you never do, you have your answer without the guilt.
How To Try It At Home
- Pick a container. A box or bin you already own is enough, and it is best if it is clearly labeled so everyone in the house knows what it is.
- Set a date. The Minimal Mom uses six months. Write the date on a piece of tape so you do not have to remember.
- Place it somewhere out of the way. She makes a point that she does not want unused items taking up prime real estate.
- Check back when the time is up. If you have not reached for something, you can feel much more confident letting it go.
- Run it again if you are still unsure. She is willing to give things another six months before making the final call.
- Accept the odds. You may miss an item or two, and that is okay. Her experience is about one in a hundred.
The Bottom Line
A lot of us hold on to things out of fear of a future nobody can predict. The Minimal Mom offers a calmer way to think about it. You will not make every decision perfectly, but you can stack the odds in your favor, and a bin and a few months of patience can do most of the work. If one cord or one lipstick turns out to be missed, the cost is small compared with a home where you can find what you need.
More Stories You May Like
- Holding Onto Things Out of Guilt Feels Bad but One Woman Says It Feels Even Worse to Finally Let Them Go
- Professional Organizer Lists 20 Things You Should Throw Out Today and Guarantees There Is at Least One on the List You Will Absolutely Refuse to Part With
- Best and Worst Decluttering Methods Get Tested by One Woman Who Tried Every Single One and Ranks the Results
