When you have way too much stuff and no system of organization, you end up with a house full of clutter. It starts to choke you and drain your energy. Only a person who lives with clutter can understand why somebody would hoard their possessions, or even their “junk”. A common feeling among people, who have a cluttered house, is that they know where everything is located, and many times, they actually do! What may look like a mess to someone else seems organized to the one living that way. It is actually difficult for some people to get rid of things and they tell a friend, “On my next vacation (or days off), “I’ll help you if you help me”. It seems like such a desperate job that it looks impossible. How do I know? Because I am planning on getting rid of most of the things in my home that have been “saved”, collected or just not thrown out for years. When your children are growing up, you tend to save things for them but usually in a more organized manner than when they grow up and move out. You are left your stuff and their stuff and lots of stuff that doesn’t get used any more. I am going to use this article as a blueprint for the way I attack my spare bedroom. I have decided that I am going to pretend to be moving and I only want to pack the “good, usable and necessary” stuff for my “new place”. That is going to be my motive and seems to be a great way to think about the extra stuff in your house once you decide to get rid of the clutter. Do you know how to separate clutter from what is actually valuable? There are shows on television and books that have been written, that try to help people determine what they should keep and what they should discard. The television shows are interesting to me, for a number of reasons like, there are many people to help you with the process of doing and deciding and there is a monetary gain to receive once the clutter is gone. In case you have never seen the show, the television people will add new pieces of furniture that will help retain the order and the organization of the home. They strive to organize things in ways that will be easy for people to maintain. The professionals give advice on how to sort all the stuff in your house. They say to separate all the stuff in 3 large areas designated to donate or sale, discard and keep. It is difficult for people to get rid of things that they have been “collecting” for years, especially if those items are attached to a lot of memories. There has to a limit on each thing that you handle so you won’t get bogged down in emotional memories. If you are wondering how to start the whole process, you will need to remove EVERYTHING from a room, including clothing in the closets and furniture.