Do you know your clutter personality?

No matter how well organised a home is, clutter eventually seems to build up o surfaces, in cupboards, in the garage, under the house and in wardrobes. While we might not be able to uncover the reasons why things take over, understanding your clutter personality could help. Do any of the descriptions below strike a chord?

The Hoarder
The catch cry of the hoarder personality is, “this might come in handy one day”. As a result, hoarders tend to gather everything (and anything) because they fear that if they let go of a possession, they’ll need it. The result is cabinets and wardrobes crammed with clothes, old magazines, bottle tops and any number of other probably-useless items.

Hoarders need to remind themselves that they don’t need to hold on to everything ‘just in case’. Dare to dump it!

The Deferrer
The deferrer is a classic ‘think about it tomorrow’ personality type. These people tend to set aside bills, newspapers, items that need cleaning, and household projects with the intention that they’ll deal with it tomorrow.

Deferrers need to be reminded that procrastinating just drags down each new day with yesterday’s unfinished business. The best solution to this behaviour is action. Remember, it’s easier to keep a rolling stone in motion than it is to pick it up and start it rolling for the first time.

The Perfectionist
The perfectionist has a hard time getting rid of clutter because they can’t stand doing a less than perfect job. Without the time to do a 110 per cent job, the perfectionist prefers to let clutter build up.

Perfectionists should remind themselves of the 20-80 per cent rule. Do the most important 20 per cent of the job and then deal with the remaining 80 per cent when time permits.

The Sentimentalist
Sentimentalists like to keep mementos of every part of their (or their children’s) lives. The result is clutter of clothing, old school papers, greeting cards, souvenirs of overseas trips and letters.

The way to overcome sentimental clutter is to sort through and find the one ‘best’ item to keep, the one best school project, photo, letter etc., and then throw the rest away.