Decluttering as the Next Step Toward Less Stress
As we head into the holiday season, many of us can feel our stress levels rising. We’ve spent the last few weeks talking about how to notice stress, interrupt it, and practice “enough” so our minds and bodies can settle a bit.
Decluttering is one of the simplest next steps in that same direction. Not the Pinterest-perfect kind, but the kind that helps you create a little more space and rest.
My friend Nicole, a professional organizer, has been exploring this idea with her clients. I invited her to share her perspective on what it means to “survive well,” and how clearing space, inside and out, can ease some of the pressure we’re carrying this time of year.
Here’s Nicole’s full piece, in her own words, about what it means to survive well and why clearing space can make such a difference right now.
How Well Are You Surviving?
by Nicole Chamberlain
Recently, I asked a few friends to share their goals for the next year. Nothing formal. I just wanted to understand where they saw themselves now, and where they hoped to be twelve months from now.
What surprised me the most wasn’t the goals themselves, but how similar they were. Every dream was personal and shaped by each person’s life and personality. But when I (naturally—this is what organizers do!) sorted them into categories, I noticed something:
They all wanted the same core things.
To feel good—mentally clear, healthy, steady, confident.
To feel financially safe enough to handle life’s surprises.
To have meaningful connection while still having a sense of identity.
And to come home to a peaceful, supportive environment.
Simple. Human. Universal.
In other words… they wanted to survive well.
What It Really Means to Survive Well
Surviving well doesn’t mean having a perfect life or avoiding every setback. It doesn’t mean controlling every outcome.
Surviving well feels like this:
You can handle what comes your way.
You have room to breathe.
Your environment supports you instead of drains you.
You have enough margin—in time, money, and emotional energy—to respond instead of react.
And in the work I do, there’s one thing I see over and over again that makes or breaks that ability—clutter. Not just the kind sitting on your counters, but the kind that piles up in your days, your decisions, your finances, and your mind.
The Four Kinds of Clutter
(and how they hold you back)
Physical Clutter: The visible stuff. The kitchen counter you can’t prep food on, the closet you avoid opening, the playroom that makes your shoulders tense the second you walk by.
Physical clutter steals time, peace, and energy. It’s an environmental tax you pay daily.Financial Clutter: Financial clutter isn’t always debt. It’s the chaos of not knowing where your money is going, feeling behind, or being surprised by things you could have anticipated.
When money feels cluttered, everything feels more urgent than it really is.Task Clutter: The unfinished projects, the mental tabs left open, the endless to-dos. Task clutter keeps your brain in low-grade crisis mode, even when life isn’t technically in crisis.
It makes thriving feel out of reach.Emotional Clutter: The guilt. The self-judgment. The stories about what you “should” be managing by now.
Emotional clutter affects every other area of life and often weighs the most.
The Reward: Making Space for What Matters Most
Decluttering isn’t just about the stuff.
It’s about creating margin—in your home, your schedule, your budget, and your heart.
When you clear clutter, you make space for thoughtful decisions instead of frantic ones. You restore your energy so you can show up the way you want to. You make room for what matters most, especially in this holiday season, when we need that room more than ever.
Surviving well doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when you clear enough space for the life you actually want.
Do This:
Pick one area to declutter this week. Just one, that keeps tripping you up. Is it physical, financial, emotional, or task-related? The thing you keep saying you’ll “get to eventually”?
Spot it. Debunk it. And take one small step toward clearing it.
Small steps create real momentum. And as a professional organizer, I’m here to help you take them. Learn more here, and to schedule a call, click here.
From me again…
There’s a reason decluttering helps. When your environment has less distractions, your nervous system doesn’t have to work as hard. And that extra space can make money talks, daily decisions, and the bigger stuff feel a little easier.
Next week, we’ll look at the holiday patterns that can pull us back into old reactions, and how to stay grounded through them so we don’t sabotage our finances, and our relationships!
