Be afraid, be very afraid, of that magazine pile. A few issues of Maxim and Budget Travel tucked under the coffee table can quickly multiply into a mountain, and before you can say "next recycling day, I swear," you're a creepy old packrat buried under every scrap of paper that ever crossed the threshold.
"You've got to step back and say, hmmm, that could be me," cautions Los Angeles-based clutter buster Bob Farkas, with a chuckle. "And if I don't want that to happen, take preventative measures."
Clutter, be it Post-It notes with mystery phone numbers or sweaters unworn since the first Bush administration, can be conquered with a bit of discipline and the following helpful hints.
Size matters
Start by thinking small. Decluttering the entire apartment is a daunting task, so target instead a more manageable area, like a drawer or even just your wallet. Some experts advise using a kitchen timer, set for as little as 15 minutes, to break the task into easy-to-handle chunks. Crank the stereo, and who knows, 15 minutes might turn into an hour ... and an organized chest of drawers.
As you tidy, you'll create piles of things and will need a place to put them. Allison Carter, aka the Professional Organizer, in Marietta, Ga., suggests specific containers for each category of "man stuff": big bins for sports equipment, binders for CDs, hooks at the door for keys, etc. Carter advocates finding a place for everything, even random thoughts (get a notebook). No place for an item? Consider kicking it to the curb.
Which brings us to the charity basket. Like the recycling bin you established (didn't you?) to tame Magazine Mountain, this container is a portal to the outside world for unwanted clothes, electronics and other usable items you want to pawn off on some other sucker. No need to visit the Salvation Army every week; just toss donations in the basket, at which point they're dead to you and never coming back. Leave them there.
Pangs of guilt you feel when disposing of, for example, Granny's graduation gift are a major reason why shedding unwanted objects is often difficult. "That's why it's good to have a third party involved," Farkas says. "Because when I come in, I don't have that emotional attachment." Ask a friend to help you decide whether something's worth keeping: How long have you had this? When did you last use it? Can I have it?
The paper chase
A quick glance around any home or office reveals the most-challenging cause of clutter: paper. Blame the medium's thinness. Unlike a rack of sneakers, say, which you can prune of unwanted items all at once from across the room, a stack of papers must be sifted through individually, each piece inspected and judged to be treasure or trash. Again, break the overarching task into realistic stages and designate files (not piles) for everything.
Because controlling paper is so energy intensive, good habits to prevent it from piling up are critical: Set aside time each week to pay bills; file or discard all papers promptly; save clipped articles, not the entire newspaper. Farkas' Web site, ClutterBuster.net, offers a slew of other paper-management pointers.
Imagine the clutter-free day when your living quarters holds nothing but clean surfaces, neat drawers, and a ruthlessly edited inventory of belongings. Enjoy it while it lasts, neat freak, and then think back to freshman physics class. Remember entropy, the immutable law that any system tends toward disorder.
In non-geek language: Vigilance is required to prevent clutter from creeping back. For starters, under no circumstances are you to print this article and leave it lying on the kitchen table.
Ian Hodder, no stranger to clutter, writes about popular culture from Brooklyn, N.Y.
