Between the return to work and the inevitable sluggishness of post-Christmas indulgence, January has a habit of being a flat month for all.

We often find that tidying a room or area is not only beneficial for our space but also good for our mind set and wellbeing. So why not kick off the New Year by decluttering your home and lifting those January blues?

Prioritise

Before you start to make your space tidy, think about what space you would like to tackle first. Tidying your home is a big job, so focusing on one room, a space or even a cupboard within a room, one at a time, makes it a lot less daunting.

Visualise the space

Visualising the space you have chosen to tidy as you would like it to look when it is organised can really help before you begin to declutter. But the results don’t have to be perfect. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself and learn that “good enough” is still a good job done!

Work intelligently

Make sure that you work in the way that suits you best, and don’t force yourself to do it all in one go if you are more of a “bit by bit” person. This will only prove counterintuitive.

The main aim should be to remove all clutter from the immediate surroundings and finding storage solutions to streamline your home.

Make a start

Begin the process by getting your bin bags and recycling boxes ready to make a start. Each item should be considered and judged carefully. Give yourself plenty of breaks, deciding what to keep and what to throw away is much easier with a fresh mind!

Stay on track

Be ruthless when it comes to things such as books and old magazines. It can be too tempting to start flicking through while you are trying to keep on track. Also be careful of those voices in your head telling you that things can be re-used or may come in handy one day. The chances are, if they haven’t already then they won’t in the near future.

Throw, sell or give away?

Once the pile of sorted items turns from a mountain into a much more useful and manageable mound, start to consider whether things can be reused, collected by a charity or sold.

However, be wary of holding on to too much to sell, make sure to get it up on a website, app or social media as soon as possible so you don’t still have it months down the line.