Balancing Organizing Projects, Tasks, and Priorities

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Name (click to view full survey response and comments)	Describe a category of stuff, an area of your home, or an organizing or decluttering project or task that you’ve found particularly challenging.	What advice might you give your younger self to help reduce or avoid the challenge you described in the previous question?	Describe a category of stuff, an area of your home, or an organizing or decluttering project or task that you’ve found satisfying or enjoyable to work on.	What feelings or emotions do you associate with your answer to the first question (The Challenge)? What feelings or emotions do you associate with your answer to the third question (The Good Stuff)?
Anonymous user	The garage. Nothing has a home and it is so much stuff (tools, toys etc.) I have been working on it for a long time and will continue to work on it. I want to clear it out so I can make it a nice space for the children.	Say no to people bringing you all kinds of stuff, clothing and random toys. Although it comes from a good heart this is not what you envisioned and everyone in the family is suffering due to the time it takes to get rid of it and the room it takes. So avoid tears and feeling guilty; just say no.	Decluttering books, the garage, but also a trailer we never used.	Sadness/guilt/regret vs relieve.
Granny	My desk is a never-ending project and sometimes keeps me out of my study.	Stop making piles of papers "to go through"	My pantry is well-organized, new items are always in front of older ones and I can see at a glance what needs refilling	Challenge - overwhelmed, tired, unmotivated, distracted Good Stuff - calm, interested, on a quest
Suzanne	A small bedroom that is meant to be a library/office but has become a dumping ground	Take the time to figure out a home/a like with like area for items that don’t belong in that space	Enjoyable. That’s a tough question. I enjoy emptying book shelves, dusting the books and the bookshelves, tweaking where each book will return on the shelves, browsing the books, and until recently picking a book or books I was decluttering. All books are now keepers for the time being	Great question that I never thought about. I enjoy going through books and spices and herbs BECAUSE they all have a set space and I guess a set physical limit that I do not want to expand. The challenging area contains a multitude of unhomed items such as kitchen overflow, items needed in a house, a lot of paperwork and paper stuff that I’m overwhelmed with, and all the photos that need to be gone through. That room also contains so much in the random category. It is a physically too small area for what I want it to contain. Feelings? Why don’t I just get on it!!
Faith	My biggest difficulty involves the handbags that I have received as gifts, or that I found a local thrift shop at a huge discount. All are good quality. I have let go several, but I still have more than I use.	Stay out of the thrift store!	Decluttering books was kind of enjoyable. One fond look, and then goodbye. But I could still do more, by Reading the ones I have received as gifts, and then letting them go: that would be good.	Emotions for the Challenge would be pride that I found a bargain and exerted my self-perceived excellent taste, and affection that I have a daughter that knows me so well. Emotions with The Good Stuff would be guilt that someone gave me a lovely or informative book, and I have had it for a year or more without reading it (and I am reading all the time).
Patricia	1. Books 2. CDs (from past decades, no longer available) 3. Ceramic and porcelain Oriental "knick-knacks" from the 1950s, bought in Japan by my parents when they lived there 4. Old black and white photos (from decades ago) 5. Old textbooks from college courses (from decades ago; outdated)	Once you realize you do not need (or want) to have to store and keep these items, try to cull them to only keep the items that you REALLY like and appreciate having.	Excess kitchen items: cups, mugs, thermal water bottles, platters, large serving bowls, vases, etc.	1. Frustration; obligation 3. I am not really sure. Do not feel accomplished.
Summer	Older papers Sentimental items	Think logically	Keeping my everyday stuff at a manageable level	The Challenge = anxiety, dread The Good Stuff = at peace knowing it is manageable
Celina	sewing supplies for dolly clothes (I'm boring, I know). Fabrics, threads, beads, ornaments, lace, ribbons. Everything else is neat!	don't go shopping too much. Use up most of what you have BEFORE going shopping again. Also, marry a rich guy who'll work for you, so that I don't have to work double time to afford my standard of living, which, nonetheless, doesn't allow me to enjoy my hobbies and have enough time for fun stuff in life.	I have NO issues whatsoever with throwing out rubbish. Now that I've been living on my own I see that the constant 'who takes the overfilling trash out?!" problem is nonexistent... My ex flatmates were a bunch of dirty pigs, apparently. I love segregating and taking it out and things are really neat! Like never before!	Bad: frustration at the lack of time, frustration that I may not have enough of a lifetime, frustration that I also want to do other crafty hobbies and I can't once I'm not done with this one... and I DO want to do this one too. I feel stuck and angry. Good: proud of myself for being a responsible adult at least in this regard lol
C	Up until recently it's the things I had gathered to make a project, mostly for arts and crafts. Too many ideas, too much stuff. Now it's mostly papers, documentation and books.	There's only so much space and only so much spare time in an average lifetime, and not all good ideas have to be pusued.	My kitchen and bathroom are pretty well organized and I can actually manage to keep them so with ease.	I wonder how with good examples from self and others, why is it so difficult to make decisions in my own favour? Why so many delayed decisions causing clutter?
Lela	Sentimental stuff — because my family members get upset when I declutter it, even personal items I assumed should only be sentimental to me & not them (I don’t declutter their property).	Declutter personal sentimental items sooner — as you go along in life — before you are married or have kids. When you are older, you will sometimes be embarrassed for your family to see those silly old knick knacks and journals anyway because you will be a different person by then.	Decluttering anything gives me a thrill because that’s one less thing to maintain! Freedom!	Challenge = frustration & disappointment Good = freedom
Anonymous user	Things I didn't remember that I had (when I find something , it's hard to let it go). Even though I've been retired and in this house for 10 years. I just listed my house for sale to move forward with family plans to be closer for continued retirement and future care. What an eye-opener... I don't remember that I had it, it has accumulated dust, and yet I think it's still good... and I might be able to use it 'someday ! When in doubt, throw it out! Easier said than done.	If you aren't using it now, you don't NEED to keep it. (Just because mom and dad were packrats, doesn't mean you are). Not hoarders, just collectors of 'useful ' stuff. Or if you dont have a planned use for it in the next 6 months, you don't need it. Important to start younger with limiting stuff/collections to a limited container.	Living room is all organized and decluttered, easy to maintain... and the room that visitors and guests first see when coming in. It feels like a space that I want to show-off (sometimes feel a bit guilty of pride)	Strangely, Feelings that my mom and her twin sister might be disappointed that I'm not keeping something because it could be useful. I try to feel proud, Not boastful, About the way I live and choices that I make.
Carol	I started getting rid of old and unusable things in my chest of drawers and get distracted by other things. I don’t want to refill the drawers until everything is sorted out into keep, cut up for rags or quilts, throw away. Now stuck and keep adding to the pile, complete with trash bag and shoes because my closet door is blocked. My laundry room is a problem, too, with unmatched socks and not much room for linens.	Self, when your fingers were not arthritic, you could store linens under your mattresses in each bedroom. My younger self would throw everything away.that was superfluous.	Closing the dishwasher after putting the soap in the tiny soap garage and then pushing the button. That is satisfying. Short, sweet, then over.	The bedroom pile is a reminder that, I am not efficient or organized. I am reminded that I have a lot to do and when I work on one thing, the other things go undone. I am a juggler and that’s what my headspace feels like. After I shut the dishwasher door, I feel grateful for accomplishing one task and I don’t have to deal with it again for a little while.
JM	Three generations of Inherited photos, documents, ancestry logs, personal and financial paperwork, antiques, and memorabilia. It is filling half of my garage plus a storage unit I can no longer afford.	Maybe ask more questions of the people whose stuff I now have to better help them sort and purge. However, I helped clean out and move three households from two of those generations while they were living (as well as their homes after deaths) and it was a beyond-herculean effort each time--so I really don't know what more I could have done.	A guest room for our grandchild, our family/TV room, and a number of small projects (garage pantry shelves, costume closet, some files, my nightstand, and some holiday decor). That one time I tried Project 333 with my clothes (before the seasons changed and I inadvertently piled it all up again!).	Challenge: Overwhelm, exhaustion, hopelessness, loneliness, panic from fear of dying before it's finished. Good Stuff: Sense of accomplishment, deep enjoyment how easy it is to use and put items away after it's done, LOVE not having to search for stuff all the time.
Laurie	The garage and basement. It contains tools and supplies/materials that I inherited from my dad (my husband and I bought the house from my dad's estate and moved in with the basement and garage still intact from when my dad lived there). Also, it includes tools and materials from repair/remodeling that my husband and I have purchased for prior work on our house and four rental properties. And finally, tools and materials that my husband has purchased to be able to make a workshop for projects he would like to do. So, we have my dad's stuff, our stuff and my husband's stuff. Last year, we managed to go through things that I thought we didn't need, or I didn't know what they were by me loading them into totes and bringing them up to the family room where my husband could tell me, donate, trash or keep. This worked out well, but there are still too many items for the space we have. My husband says that clutter doesn't bother him, but when the area he's been working in gets cluttered to the point he can't move around easily, he moves into a space that is less cluttered to do his work (like the laundry room which I try to keep clear and clean). I've told my husband to let me know what he is unable to use, and we can donate it. He says he feels like he doesn't have the right to get rid of my dad's things. I don't know the difference between my dad's things and our things so I told him that he would have to tell me. He doesn't want to spend the time going through stuff.	I'm not sure because my dad's tools and workshop were sentimental to me when my husband and I moved into the house (2010) a year after my dad's death (2009). We held onto tools and material assuming we would use them again, and we have for the most part, at least the tools that we have purchased. My husband and I are in our sixties and the remodeling has slowed way down, our house is functional, and our rentals only need work here and there, the rentals are in good condition, and we have great renters!	What I found most satisfying about being able to let go of the most amount of my items in my home is when I had my items appraised in March of 2019 by Dr. Lori and she let me know what my items (inherited and purchased by me and my husband) were worth. Most of my items were worth under $50 so they were easy to donate unless I liked them. If I liked them then I needed to display them or use them, otherwise they had to go!	First question, the challenge: I feel sadness, loss of my dad, overwhelm for the number of tools/materials we are storing for "just for when" the next project will arise and frustration for my husband not being clear about what he wants in his workshop and the inability to help. Third question, the good stuff: relief of being able to donate items that had little monetary value and that I had no reason to keep.
Kathy	Sewing room/craft supplies: trying to let go of a lot so that it functions as a sewing room instead of a warehouse.	Do not buy supplies faster than I am using them up; do not go craft shopping for entertainment; the value of the sewing room is in the space it gives me to create, not in the inventory it contains (a la Dana K. White?); focus on being a maker of quilts, clothes, etc., not an acquirer of supplies (a la Ed's books example).	Decluttering and organizing closets where I store cleaning and household supplies, gift wrap, etc.--things I don't have emotional attachment to.	Sewing room (The Challenge): quilting in particular was a way to connect with my mother, who also quilted and enjoyed looking at my makes. Part of the grieving after she passed was that there wasn't anyone to share my projects with in the same way. I also hate knowing I wasted a lot of money buying more things than I can ever make in my lifetime. It is one of the last areas of deep decluttering that needs to take place, and it is taking years of mental work to get to the point that I can let things go. I feel like I should still want to make quilts and can't let go of the hope that someday I will find pleasure in it again. Cleaning/household closets (The Good Stuff): it's nice to have a place for everything, to be able to take things out/put them back easily; chores flow better when the supplies are organized.
Mary	80 years of photos starting with my mother’s unfinished albums. I have decided to start this week. I put it off 15 years. When forced to find a military picture of my father this past week I was able to find it within an hour. Came across my mother’s unfinished album and thought I’ll start here as photos that old are not abundant. So, I’m going to start slow and hoping fewer pictures will give me the win to continue. Also, my husband put most of our kids pictures on slides and that is a time consuming project to scan. They are not readily available. Wish me luck.	Start as it happens make time to at least make an album and keep up with kids milestones. I didn’t raise them in a digital world where you can make keepsake picture books. It does get hard with 3 kids and work and marriage to keep it all going. Time gets away from you very easily.	Lines closets, bathroom vanities, kitchen drawers and cabinets. I seem to gravitate to that more. Kind of easy decisions to make. The older you get it gets easier to say I never use this item and let it go.	The challenge to number 1 photo organization. I feel overwhelmed. Number 3 I feel accomplished, orderly.
Overwhelmed & Sad	Personal papers, family stuff, bills, things I think I'll eventually use	Don't let this mess get started or tackle it when it's a small project - don't let it get too big of a project. I should've kept my promise to myself to not get a storage unit. Don't think you'll have all the time in the world to do something about it, because time goes by too fast & other things come up out of nowhere...	Clothes. Either they fit or they don't. I like them or I want to get rid of them, sometimes they need too much repair to be practical.	The challenge stuff: overwhelmed, helpless, frustrated. The good stuff: encouraged, hopeful, satisfied
The Maggs	Children’s items of children who are now adults. Old art work, clothes, school papers. Also, the boxes of photographs from childhood to present.	Eliminate timely and regularly and not wait until there are boxes of items that have accumulated.	My closet. My clothes are all arranged in a neat order. I enjoy going into my closet to tidy up and look at what I have. I actually have empty shelves.	First question- sadness and guilt. Good stuff question- pride and accomplishment.
Ruth	Declutterring small items in drawers or cupboards.	Buy fewer things. Get one item per use (eg. scissors).	Clothing	Overwhelm Pride
Kristina B	When you have perfectionism it’s a problem in every category. I recently listened to a audiobook about perfectionism, and I now realize why I have struggled with getting things organized I am embracing decluttering as a way of taking away the burden of decision. It’s just not worth keeping things that you are unsure about because you don’t want to make the wrong decision. By keeping only what I use and need it helps me to put things away easily.	I wish I had known that I had ADHD ( I was diagnosed two years ago) and how much it would impact my ability to organize and to remember what I had. I have embraced decluttering and what I keep must have a place to go. I am using clear bins to store my out of season clothing and accessories so that I don’t have to open lids to see what’s inside bins. I also find that using a bookcase instead of a dresser is helpful for organizing items because I forget what is in the drawers by opening the bookcase doors. I can see everything and I can label things that are in boxes I would not lose things as easily or forget about items.	I wouldn’t say that organizing my clothes was satisfying, but now that they are organized I am less stressed because I know what I have and I don’t need to worry about what I have to wear. Everything I own, I like, and I have it organized by season and by color Where applicable so I can easily find what I need. I have also made a rule that if an item can be replaced easily at the thrift store, for example jeans, or black dress pants and I don’t think I’m going to wear them in the next year they go to donation.	I find that perfectionism was crippling. I could never make a decision because I wasn’t sure if it was the right one. I have embraced that it is impossible to be perfect and most things can be replaced. Now I have a sense of relief and peace when I think about my belongings. In the past, I kept a lot of things because I wasn’t sure I was making the right decision or I wanted to donate them to the right person or cause. I now I just let it go to the charity or friend that I can give it to now.
Evelin	craft supplies clothes	use up what you have before buying new craft supplies if you want to try a new craft, don't buy supplies for another new craft that you want to try. only one new kind of craft at a time! go clothes shopping with the one-in-one-out-rule in mind. ask yourself: if I buy this T-Shirt, which one will I get rid of instead? that way you should only buy things that are at least better than the worst one in your closet.	I actually like doing laundry	the challenge is an area where there is a lot of clutter the good stuff is an area where there is no clutter at all (because everything in the laundry are clothes that we like to wear)
Jeanne	Photos , books and papers left by hubs . It has been a year and a half since I lost him. It was heartbreaking.. He had only six weeks from diagnosis to death from a treacherous brain tumor.	It was a shock to everyone, including his dr that had jusiven a physical and bloodwork. We led a healthy lifestyle and went to the gym.. He just collapsed and the tumor showed up on the CT at the emergency room. Glioblastoma. Inoperable. Something’s in life cannot be prepared for.	I enjoy keeping all in good order, but enjoy improving the landscaping	The grief is still painful. I had us all in good order, and had begged him to deal with his books in the healthy years.Long before.. Our garden i s is a source of calm and connection .
Bluenose Brenda	PAPER	Do Not "take a break from "decluttering and filing papers. The time you take away from the task is doubled in the catch-up phase in the future!	Purging old and out of date bank and investment papers. And then watching the shredding truck eat the residuals at the community shedding event in our downtown. Noisy fun for adults!	The Challenge: utter despair The Good Stuff: deep relief
Lynn	Was a previous challenge before I finally tackled it. A spare bedroom in my mother's house was her "office"/storage room for miscellaneous items. It had unused clothes, decades of tax returns, several generations of family photos, books, vcr and cassette tapes, computers, filing cabinet of appliance manuals, financial records, and artwork and a lot more.	Tackle it while it is a small project rather than waiting until it gets so overwhelming you avoid it at all costs.	I am setting up a craft room for all my paint, candle, soap and lotion making tools and supplies. I had it all stowed away in storage bins that were hard to get to so I had no inclination to enjoy my hobbies. Now that it is out on a series of organized shelves, the creative ideas are flowing again, just in time to replenish my soaps and lotions.	Anger that my mom's clutter got as bad as it did and was left to me to sort clean up and dispose of. Have enjoyed remaking her house from a place that was uncomfortable to be in and had no space for me to be me, to a home of my own tastes with no more feeling of obligation or responsibility for what happened or was collected in the past. I get to enjoy living in the present in surroundings that I feel good in. Freedom to live my life, not hers.
Krystal	Party items are stuff that I still struggle with, as well as cake supplies. I love the idea of having parties and decorating cakes, but I still can’t get myself to use them or forget to use them.	I have learned that when a category is too difficult, to take a breather for a while. I may have to stop for a month or so. I know that there is a year of not using it rule, but with me, it may be a 3 year rule on particularly hard categories. There are things that I still want to not let go of. I find that listening to decluttering or reading cluttering advice will eventually cause me to declutter again.	Old markers and pens are satisfying. I do an occasional writing test to see if they still work. It’s usually the low hanging fruit like plastic shopping bags that can overrun your home, especially when I used to work in a grocery store. It was too easy to go shopping every day.	It is difficult to let go of the party stuff and cake decorating, because I am really into it. It is a part of my fantasy self that wants to entertain my nieces and nephews and bake and decorate cakes. There are some really cute items. I really love holidays. Pens and markers are a little bit difficult because I am a pen stationery store junkie. I do bullet journaling, but I need the colors to work. The shopping bags are useful , but can be annoying because they take up space. There’s not much emotion there.
Robin	Photos	Mark dates, 1 picture of an event is enough. Pictures of people we do remember or blurry get rid of.	The kitchen, it's fast and easy.	Pictures of Love ones that passed were harder, because once pictures were thrown out or deleted you couldn't get new ones again. So being selective was time consuming. Made me sad. The kitchen, was fast because, do I use it or need it. No emotions most times. Happy. I could donate or pass along.
DS	"ancester" stuff = genealogy papers and family photos	Find like-minded people who value family information and spread copies of what you have widely, in hopes that someone younger and more tech-savvy will take over.	We recently had a kitchen reno . Months before, I stopped replacing everything that we used up, so there was a lot less food to move. Because I had made a plan and thought ahead where things would be stored, it was much easier to have a make-do kitchen and work around having no water or sink. The job even got moved up time-wise, because the Project Manager knew I was prepared and she didn't want me to be without a kitchen any longer than necessary.	Overwhelmed - I'm overwhelmed by the sense of duty I feel toward family history items entrusted to me. Relief - Planning ahead before the reno helped me not panic. Even when two contractors came early (which I thought was unheard of) , I was ready for them.
Kit	The garage is our last big challenge. Labeled boxes on shelves call to be gone through carefully, as they're mostly heirlooms / keepsakes and actively-used seasonal items. So this is time-consuming. I'm trying to go through at least 1 box each week this year, and I think I'm nearly on pace. I'm also decluttering each season as I pull things out and pack them away. Tools and cycling gear have an assigned zone against 1 wall, but they don't all fit there. The center of the space is a pile of recycling to be hauled away, large items to be taken to the dump and furniture to be donated, off-season car tires, donate boxes that I'm slowly filling and hauling away, and overflow yard tools. We plan to rent a truck to haul the large items and furniture away, sometime after we quit have frequent rain. Spouse will at some point in the next couple of months return to taking time off work to make recycling runs, too. I figure that my primary goal is to clear shelves of heirlooms and keepsakes to make room for tools. We've already agreed on a basic plan for zones; it's just a matter of taking the time and effort to complete the work. As we're also heading into yard work season, it'll be a challenging balancing act.	You can keep anything, but you can't keep everything. Even if it's useful or sentimental, it has to fit functionally in its space, or you'll never be able to keep it under control.	Books! We used to have thousands of books in double rows plus horizontally on top of the rows, plus on top of the bookcases, plus boxed up elsewhere – and it was emotionally exhausting. When Daughter moved back in, she and I decluttered at least 5 large bookcases, designating the ones in the public rooms for science fiction and fantasy only. Then we decluttered those categories, too. I donated hundreds of books to Little Free Libraries over the course of a year, and hundreds more to thrift stores. Spouse rescued many books for his own 3 bookcases, which are now overflowing. And we have heavy-duty bins with gaskets in the garage filled with heirloom / keepsake / antique books that we'll need to go through again. However, Spouse has often said that he loves the peaceful feeling of the clean, orderly bookcases in the livingroom. I think that's one of the things motivating him to declutter his non-book possessions.	Regarding the garage, I feel overwhelmed but still armed with a plan and determination. Regarding the books, I feel pleased and accomplished, but still not nearly done.
Ann	For sure sentiment documents, papers, photos! But, I have made significant but slow progress as I collect associated stories, share, and file/or purge as I go. Had 8mm films digitized, shredded about 16 boxes of paper, tossed another 10 or so boxes worth of paper, and collected tax returns into fire proof "brief cases" as well as another with vital info/docs. Forward movement!	Purge papers annually or at least every 5 years.	Uploading a small selection of curated family photos for deceased ancestors and linking the complete generations to each other with photos, grave locations, birth/death dates on FindAGrave.com	Pride in my care while curating and preserving what I think I need via Cull #1. Once completed, I will reevaluate and do Cull #2.
Catherine	I have a closet completely cleaned out, and I still have disorganized things in the room. I can't seem to get past what I need to keep and what is out and in my line of sight. I know that I will need them in the course of my business, but I don't know what I need now versus what I will or will not need soon enough. During the course of the year, I use the same type of decorative items. I use them up, but I don't know if I am using them up fast enough.	I would only buy what is required for now. I don't need to bring home extra rolls of ribbon or tulle.	I've been able to get the dining room cleaned up enough to have had guests for 9 days during Christmas. It was wonderful to have my nephews eat at the table and not have too much stuff around on the floor of the dining room.	I associate frustration and I resent the stuff that is getting in the way of my business. I associate more happiness and contentment with being able to use the space that I have to share with others.
Penny	Closets, cupboards, drawers - anything behind a closed door.	Don’t store packed boxes for more than a month.	My bead room!	1. Decisions. Ugh. 3. Look at all these goodies I forgot I had!
Jean	Jewelry I do not wear, what to do with it? It did not sell on eBay.	Just say no to gifts!	I like decluttering papers or manuals that are obvious ‘toss’ decisions. Insurance stuff or guides from previous crappy employers!	Guilt!! (I ‘should’ want to keep it’) Freedom! No need to keep any debris from jobs I hated!
Lise	I have always had trouble with sentimental items. Self imposed responsibility of said items due to family expectations and guilt.	Let it go - it is not your stuff or responsibility. They can be buried with it - don't bury yourself. Their expectations are unrealistic. They value their stuff more than they value you.	The bedroom - clearing unnecessary items around the room and closet/dresser. It makes it quick and easy to clean and walking in before going to bed is so relaxing. My deep breath of peace - at the end of the day.	"The Challenge": Frustrated and unsure what is the right amount of sentimental memories I really want to keep. I would like to be able to see/hold certain things to bring back a memory. Maybe, I am afraid of forgetting. "Good Stuff": Peace & tranquility - lightness in my heart and shoulders. An easiness that I want for all life's aspects.
Terry J	Crafting area and supplies - organizing and creating both make a mess and so I don't get much creating done Stuff that I don't want anymore but having hard time moving them on - I know you just had a whole episode on donating! I do donate, but I have a hard time with that being the path for some things.	Connect shopping and using. Only buy what you'll really use. For crafting, shop for supplies you'll use to create in the near future. For clothing, only buy what fits right now. For collectibles, only buy what you have space to use or display. Don't shop to put stuff in boxes or storage containers. Don't shop as though you have a crafting business when you don't have a crafting business. Don't collect things because they are a good price unless it's something you really want for yourself. You don't sell online, you don't do shows, don't shop as though you do.	I've brought a bunch of clothes to a consignment shop - I was going to buy more clothes hangers, but didn't need to after I de-cluttered some clothing. It felt good for these things to move on and free up space. I find it satisfying to keep up with the dishes, I'm very consistent about it and it makes life easier.	When the crafting area is a mess, it's limiting and a roadblock (or at least a speed bump) to getting things done. There's a little weight I feel when looking at a mess, like a baby albatross hanging on me. I just looked up albatross and it's a constant problem that hinders progress or happiness. The weird thing is if I focused for a couple of hours I could vastly improve it, but I don't seem to do that. I always think I'll do it tomorrow. Keep up with the kitchen lift me up a bit. It makes me feel good to cook and know everything I need to use is clean. I can start a household project without starting with a backlog of dishes.
Danetta	Office supplies: it’s all usable good stuff but there’s too many categories and too much in each category. After an hour I have a headache, and my Goodwill/discard piles are small.	Don’t keep all the free stickers and address labels you get in the mail. Don’t buy so many cute Thank You notecards.	I like decluttering my clothes closet, my food pantry, my cosmetics and toiletries.	Inability to get rid of stuff versus ability to make decisions and discard.
Brenda	Just getting items into their own zone so I can find them is a challenge	Don't use it? Don't keep it!!! Wishing I had learned that sooner	I was able to clear items not used often (ie Christmas decorations) out of the storage under the stairs and put in folding table and chairs used more often and now stored out of sight but easy to get out when needed
Name (click to view full survey response and comments)	Describe a category of stuff, an area of your home, or an organizing or decluttering project or task that you’ve found particularly challenging.	What advice might you give your younger self to help reduce or avoid the challenge you described in the previous question?	Describe a category of stuff, an area of your home, or an organizing or decluttering project or task that you’ve found satisfying or enjoyable to work on.	What feelings or emotions do you associate with your answer to the first question (The Challenge)? What feelings or emotions do you associate with your answer to the third question (The Good Stuff)?