Home is supposed to be the place where you can relax, recharge and feel the most comfortable. But, for many of us, it has become a place of stress, negativity, and overwhelm. The average American home contains over 300,000 items! Do you have room in your brain to keep track of 300,000 items?! - I know I definitely don’t. If you aren’t sure whether or not you have too much stuff, I have compiled a list of the top 10 signs.

Let’s take a look at 10 Signs that you might have too much stuff:

Over-Stuffed Drawers - If you can’t open any of your drawers, it is a huge sign that you have too much. Drawers should be able to open freely, displaying all of the contents in a clear way. It might mean you just need to refold to fix the problem. But, for most people, it means you have too much stuff in that drawer. - Empty the contents, remove all trash, group like with like and then put things back in an orderly manner. Depending on the contents, you may need to get drawer dividers to help make the drawer function properly.

2. Piles- If you have piles of things all over the house, you definitely have too much stuff. Piles can be on the coffee table, the dining room table, your desk, the laundry room, and the floor in just about any room. Piles are the worst because clutter attracts clutter. For example, if you have a pile of mail sitting on the kitchen counter and you don’t handle it right away, the next day the mail comes, inevitably, that mail will join the pile and the process will continue - making the entire task of sorting the mail completely overwhelming. Challenge yourself to address those piles daily, handle the mail as it gets delivered, put things away right away and do a nightly sweep of the house to make sure things are not piling up.

3. You Have NO Clear Surfaces- If all of the flat surfaces in your home are filled with things, you have too much stuff. Just like with the piles, clutter attracts clutter, and if someone leaves things on the dining room table, it’s an invitation for everyone else to drop their things there as well. Flat surfaces in your home should remain clear, no exceptions. The kitchen counter, for example, should always have space to work. You need a clear space to cut, prepare, and clean up meals. It is proven that if you have a cluttered kitchen, you are less likely to cook at home. The coffee table shouldn’t be home to piles of things, it should have space for drinks, snacks, and of course the TV remote to be used while enjoying TV. Your desk should have space to work, you shouldn’t have to move piles around before beginning your day. Take a look around your home, identify any of these flat surfaces that accumulate clutter, and make it your goal to keep those spaces clear. (You may even have to go as far as removing some flat surfaces to help keep your home clutter-free).

4. You Have Duplicates - If you have multiples of the same thing, it’s a HUGE sign that you have too much stuff. If you have 3 hammers because you buy a new one each time you need one because you can’t find the one you own already, you need to declutter. I have worked in a lot of homes that have many versions of the same item (things like scissors, spatulas, gift wrap, staplers & tools), the duplicates were purchased because the original could not be found. If you find yourself scouring your house to find something, only to give up and just go buy it again, it is time to declutter. Sort your stuff, donate the duplicates and then group like items together and create a permanent home for them- office supplies in the closet, utensils all in one drawer, tools in a box in the garage- use a label if you need to. That way, everyone in the house will know where to find an item if they need it. AND here is the biggest tip… get in the habit of putting your stuff away! If the hammer doesn’t make it make into the designated area, you risk starting the problem all over again.

5. You Can’t Find What You’re Looking For- If you’re constantly searching your home for something, it’s a sign you have too much stuff. When you have the right number of belongings and everything has a home, it is so easy to find what you need. Have you ever seen your child looking for a toy? They dump everything out looking for what they want, only to get frustrated and move on- leaving you with an even bigger mess. When we have too many things, it is nearly impossible to keep track of the inventory in our minds. Every item in your home demands your attention in one way or another. It all has to be paid for, cleaned up, dusted, laundered, repaired, and put away. When you have too much, these tasks seem like they will never get done. When you simplify and clear the clutter, you will see how much easier it is to find what you need. Wouldn’t it be great to have all of your lightbulbs or batteries in one place and when you need one, grab it, change and move on all in less than a few minutes?

6. You Are Overwhelmed - If you dread going home after work because of the state of your home, or your home stresses you out, it is sign #6 that you have too much stuff. Our homes should be our escape at the end of the day, they should be easy to take care of and maintain. The problem is, we just own too much stuff, and it never seems to stop coming in. There are two ways things come into our house 1- we bring them in and 2- someone gives them to us. It’s that simple, stuff doesn’t magically appear. If you bought it, then it should have an assigned place in your home. Groceries should be put away, new clothes should fit comfortably in the closet and drawers, toiletries should be replaced when they run out and toys should have designated spots. If someone gives you something, make sure you have space for it and really love and will use it - If not, it should go. We often times, bring in new things and neglect to remove something older or not in use - causing the clutter problem to escalate. If your home is overwhelming, take a pause and stop the influx- do not allow new things to enter your home until you’ve completed the declutter process and inventoried your space. Once you know what you have and where everything belongs in your home, it will be much easier to handle any new items.

7. You Can’t Use a Room for Its Intended Purpose - Each room in our home has a purpose and they were NEVER meant to be junk-dropping zones. If you have rooms or spaces in your home that cannot be used for their intended purpose, you definitely have too much stuff. What do I mean by intended purpose? Well, the basement is either supposed to be a nice, finished space for your family to enjoy (if your home is set up that way) or a space for the mechanical features of your home and simple storage. The basement is not intended to be layers of boxes and junk, so cluttered that you cannot access it. Nor is it supposed to be set up to look like a bulk store- while I think it’s ok to stock up on a few things, I think we have gone a little overboard treating our homes like a store and thinking we need to have all of the extras on hand. The biggest culprit in this category though is the GARAGE! How many people have garages so full of junk that they have nowhere to park their car (which is the entire purpose of the garage)? The garage has turned into the space where things we no longer want in the house go to die or just a dumping ground for everything outdoor-related. If you choose not to park your car in the garage, that’s ok, but it should still be a place that you could if you needed to. The center should be free of clutter and junk and the surrounding walls should be organized with like items grouped together either hung up on hooks or on shelves. If you have any spaces in your home that you cannot even access, this should be the place you get started. Remove the visible trash, start taking items to donation centers and figure out what needs to go in that space and the most appropriate way to store it.

8. You are Embarrassed to have Friends and Family Over - If the thought of someone dropping by makes you cringe or panic, you might have too much stuff. Things get out of place in a lived-in home, it is only natural. Your home is never going to be picture-perfect all of the time and it shouldn’t be BUT what it should be is EASY to reset. A quick 10-15 minutes in each space to quickly clean up when needed means you have just the right amount of stuff. If a friend or family member says they are on their way over or even worse gives you no warning and you are embarrassed by your home, then it is time to make a change. Have a plan and have space in your home to put things away. If the hall closet is full to overflowing with coats and shoes, then there is no room to put others away which is why they are left out. Clear the space, declutter what you no longer need, and then even if you don’t hang your coat up right away, you know that an empty hanger is waiting for it in the closet. Try to clean up as you go, if you’re doing a craft with the kids and then it’s time to make dinner, clean the craft up entirely before leaving the room. If you’ve made dinner and then want to watch a movie, make sure the kitchen is reset before you do, it will help keep your spaces tidy most of the time.

9. You are Always Talking or Thinking About Having to Declutter - If your mess is always on your mind distracting you from other joys in life, it is a sign you have too much stuff. The things in our home always take up our attention but if clearing the clutter is always on your mind - it may be time to tackle it once and for all. Decluttering just like cleaning will never be a one-and-done process, there will always be maintenance, stuff to clear out, and rooms to clean up. The key is having rooms that are easy to tidy up. For example, when your clothes are organized, you won’t have to spend an entire Saturday emptying the closet and going through them piece by piece. Once in a while, you may want to do a quick refresh. For me, this usually happens when putting laundry away, I’ll refold a drawer or two and pull out what I’ve obviously not been using, and it adds maybe 15 minutes to a task I’m already doing. My goal when starting my own decluttering process was to get in the habit of cleaning a little each day. I wanted to never have to spend an entire weekend cleaning or organizing ever again! I wanted my weekends for family time and my home to just be easy to take care of. With a goal, maybe a little help, and a good maintenance plan, your home can function this way too!

10. You are Always Late - Some people are just naturally late; time management isn’t their thing! But those aren’t the people I’m talking about. If you’re constantly late because you can’t find your keys, your wallet, the kid’s homework, or any number of other things, you might have too much stuff. The chaos in our homes can spill over to so many other aspects of our lives. If you’re running late each morning due to the clutter in your home, then it is definitely time to come up with systems that will help keep you on track and ease the burden of the morning rush. Once you have your home decluttered, the next most important step is finding homes for everything and ALWAYS returning your things to their homes. Keep your work bag by the door, clean it out daily and repack it before you go to bed. Make school lunches while you’re making dinner, so you have one less thing to do in the morning. Put homework and school forms in backpacks as soon as they are completed and keep those bags by the door ready to go. Pick out clothes the night before to make getting dressed easier. Put important paperwork and mail on top of your computer, that way you see it and will need to address it before jumping into emails for the day. There are so many little habit changes that you can make that will truly help make your day go smoother, clearing the clutter is the first step.

If you can relate to any of these signs, then it may be time to get a handle on your clutter once and for all. Take it step by step, clear the trash, decide what you truly love and need to make your home the most functional, and discard the rest. After some hard work and a few habit changes, you will be able to feel the lightness creep in and you’ll never want to fall back into your old habits ever again!

10 Signs You Have TOO MUCH STUFF