Transcription
Holding up a little bottle like this and saying, "Should I keep it?" is the worst possible question that you can ask because we have spent so much money on these little tiny products that make huge promises to us. And so it is not a simple question. It's not cut or dry. And all of the reasons are running through my head now of why I should keep it so I can justify the money that I spent on it. And so if we try to declutter this the normal way, holding up each item one at a time, it's too hard. We have nothing to compare it to. But if we flip the script, we do it in reverse and have a couple really important tools. I'm going to show you how you can fly through this space because let me ask you this question. Would you rather get ready in this space or this space? It makes a gigantic difference to how you start your day. So, I'm going to tell you a couple tools you need. We're going to grab those and then you're going to head to your space and then we're going to get to work. And by the end of this video, you can have a really beautiful space, too.
And if we haven't met before, hi, I'm Don. I've been a minimalist for 10 years. got rid of 85% of my stuff, have not missed any of it, and now I love helping other women simplify and declutter their homes, too. I'm telling you, once you get this stuff out, you are never going to look back. But some of that's kind of tricky. And I also run a membership community. So, if you want more hands-on help, you want a really fun, awesome, supportive group of women to come alongside of you, then I'll put details for that where details should be.
Okay, the two tools you need, and then we're going to get to work. So, you want to have a black trash bag. Black is important because once it goes in, we don't want to question it. But we're not making any hard decisions today. So, this is just for obvious clear garbage things that are empty, worn out, whatever that you don't need. Now, the other tool, and this is the secret sauce, is a time bin. So, any kind of Rubbermaid container. It can even just be an Amazon box. You can decide on the size. For me, my current bathroom time will tell bin is about this size, but I've paired down quite a bit. So, in the beginning, you might need something a little larger, and that is totally okay.
Now, let me show you though how we can get through this process so quickly. And yes, this is my new house. And yes, I'm very excited to share a full tour with you next week. Okay, so we are going to get started. And again, we're not deciding what to get rid of, we're deciding what to keep. And so, this is the only question that we are going to use. And it's, am I using it? Am I using this product? Am I using it daily, weekly, or monthly? But here's the thing, not I want to use it. My fantasy self uses it. When life slows down, I'm gonna use it. No, it's are you using it right now, either daily, weekly, or monthly. I understand there's some things that we use daily, and there's other things that maybe we only use once a month, like some kind of treatment or whatnot. I get it. I understand. I'm tracking with you, right? But this question is very important, and again, we're not making hard decisions. So, again, I'm going to show you this, right? We're going to get through all of this stuff really quickly. All right? So, I'm going to hold it up. Yes, I actually do use this every day. Okay, so that goes on this side. Now, what are you going to find? A lot of the stuff that is out here right now, you're using. Okay, what's the problem? It's hard to put away because there's all kind of stuff in here that we're not using. But that's okay right now because even as we're going through the stuff we're using, we do often find stuff that is garbage, almost used up that we don't need anymore. And also, you will find some stuff that you're not using but want to use, right? So, this was something Adeline had gotten a while ago. Uh, she wasn't using it. She's like, "Oh, mom, do you want to try this?" I'm like, "Yeah, I'll try it." Right? And then I never have. It just isn't part of my routine. I don't have a lot of extra bandwidth right now. So, when I hold this up and say, "Am I using this?" No, I'm not. Wait, but I want to. No, I know. I know. Right. It's okay. We're not making any hard decisions, right? So, this is a no. So, that's going to go on that side. Let's just quickly work through the stuff that is sitting out on your vanity. All right. [clears throat] So, am I using this? Yes. No. Yes. Yes. This is extras and it just needs to get put where extras go now. Maybe you have a home for that stuff. Maybe you don't. But nonetheless, yes, this is going to be getting used. And also this for the kids. So, if you're coming across anything you're like, "Yes, it just needs to go to this place or that." That's fine. Just run it there real quick and be done with it. If you're like, I will use this. Yes, that's why I got it. But it needs a place to go. That's fine. Still just put it on the side where Yes, I use it. Oh man, we're going to come across things like this, right? Isn't this the most beautiful palette you have ever seen? It's gorgeous. I just haven't taken the time to I used it once, but it too much came off on the brush and I'm like, wa, that's too much. And now I haven't used it cuz I need to learn how to use it. and I don't want to use it when I'm getting ready to go somewhere cuz if I put too much on then I have to wash my face again. Isn't it amazing? I just thought I ordered it. I thought it was beautiful. I like the foundation but yet there's still this barrier to actually using it. Okay, so if I ask myself, am I currently using this again? No, I'm not. Even though I really want to, but that's not the question. Am I using it right now? No. Okay, so that's going to go over here. But again, before we get too worried about this, why I say we're not making any hard decisions today, because all the stuff we're not using, but we're we maybe want to is just going to go into our time will tell bin. It's not going anywhere. We're going to time test it. But in the meantime, you need a peaceful place to get ready. You need it to be very simple to see the things that you use every day. And I'm guessing if you're like me, you don't even realize how these things have been nagging at you. They add to your silent to-do list. Why haven't you used that? You got that. You spent like $50 on this. $50. That's a lot. Why haven't you used the body oil? It's going to make your skin so soft and look younger and all that, right? There is so much aspiration tied up into all of this stuff. And it's all asking something of us. In the past, we've talked about the silent to-do list. It's how things tell us something that we're supposed to do and it gets added to our mental to-do list. All of this setting sitting around is reminding us you haven't used that. You're not being the best version of yourself. You're not taking as good a care of your skin or you could look younger, you could be healthier. All of this stuff is adding up and we don't even generally realize it. So today, we just want to move this stuff out for now. And then if that magical day comes when I can actually use this stuff, then okay, I will be able to go in and and get it. All right. So, we are just going back and forth for right now. You can either put it straight into your time bin or just put it on this side. So again, we're just going through and only asking the question, am I currently using it? So we want to go through this process for hair care, uh, makeup products, skin care, and then also your styling tools, too. I've acquired styling tools, too, thinking that I was going to use them, and I don't, and that's okay. We'll talk a little bit about trial and error and how all of this stuff is trial and error a little bit further into the video. Okay, so we want to go through everything on your flat surfaces and your counters and then also through your drawers, too. Now, we got to stay crystal clear on the question because in our drawers, again, we're coming across a lot of things that we spent money on that we thought we were going to use, we think we should use. I think bathrooms are one of the areas where influencers have influenced us the most. I mean, so many hair care and skincare and whatever products to me have come from influencers. And it is what it is. It's the world we're living in now. We're all learning and getting to be better consumers, right? And so it is what it is. And so I know how when this stuff is being sold to us, we really are starting to believe that these products can make us look younger, glowier, fresher, brighter, uh my hair fuller, thicker. It's sold to us. And so when I see this, I'm not just seeing, oh, a face what, a toner pad. I'm seeing my skin being clearer and brighter and firmer and less wrinkly. and I'm seeing the money that I spent on it. And so when I bought this, I thought there was going to be a certain outcome. And sometimes these products live up to that and sometimes they don't. So sometimes I've tried a product and it works. Like this one has continued to make the cut for me. Okay, great. It works. A lot of times I try it and it doesn't work and I think there's something wrong with me or whatnot. No, it could actually just be the product isn't as great or your skin or whatever DNA is not right for the product. Okay. So, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't or sometimes I just haven't been able to try it. There's something about it that I need to learn or it just takes something more. It's not part of my normal routine yet. And so, I don't know yet. I don't know if it could solve the problem that I was looking for it to solve. So, if clearly it's working, yes, I'm going to show you how we're going to prioritize this now in our bathroom. Great. I'm going to keep it. If it's not working, permission to let it go and to just toss it into your black trash bag. I know. Uh, it feels hard. Like, that sucks. Throwing money away. Like, you're literally watching dollars go into the black trash bag. I know. But keeping it doesn't make it suddenly start working. So, if you want to keep trying it, using it up, and you will commit to doing that, you do you, boo. But if it just has not worked, it's not living up to it, then go ahead, part with it. Again, this is nagging at you in your mental to-do list. And then lastly, if you just haven't had a chance to try it, you want to at some point, this is exactly what goes into your time will tell bin.
Okay, good work. We've got through everything with our question. Again, we're not deciding what to get rid of. We're deciding what to keep. And so now we're left with just the stuff that we use daily, weekly, or monthly. So, let's talk about how to prioritize this in our space now based on the frequency of use. And so, for me, I don't like anything sitting down on my counters. It makes them harder to wipe down. If you do have to leave something out or things out, try putting them in a tray or basket or some kind of container so it reads to your brain it's complete. It's done. Most of us are used to that if there's stuff sitting out, our brain is thinking it needs to be put away. But let's talk about the daily stuff first. So when it's things like toothbrush, I like to put that in the best real estate, right? So that's going to go in my top drawer. Now this is a jumbo bathroom. I this is ridiculous, right? I don't need a bathroom this big, but it is what it is. Came with the house. All right, but no matter what size your bathroom is, whatever your prime real estate is, that is where the daily use stuff should go. Now, I kind of have a luxury here with these drawers where I believe I can put my daily use stuff in these two drawers. But in the past, I've also shown this, which is a get ready bin, which I really like. So, if you don't have the luxury of drawers or easy access kind of storage built in here, you might want to use something like this. This is a multi-purpose bin from the Container Store. Target and Walmart have some variations of it as well. But, this is so easy to put under your cabinet and then to be able to pull out. So, we got to work with the space that we have, but there are solutions. So, this is also a great place where you can put all of your daily use stuff. And so I'm going to go through and I'm going to put my daily use stuff in the most prime real estate. And then and then we're also going to talk about categories. So I'm putting all this stuff in here. This is all the stuff I use when I get ready. And I'm still going to cut like what I don't know what is this the lid for. I can throw it in my time will tell or I can just that's just going in my black trash bag. Right. Okay. I got all of my used stuff. We're going to talk about like um containers and organization and that kind of stuff too, but I am giving the stuff I use every single day the best real estate here. And then we have the stuff that we use weekly, like bubble bath. I don't take a bubble bath every day. Well, sometimes in the winter I do, but anyway, [laughter] it just depends. So, nonetheless, so we have the stuff we use daily. Then we have the stuff that we use weekly. and where is that going to live? Now, let's talk a little bit about categories. So, our brain loves clear categories when it comes to stuff. And so, as I'm thinking about where stuff lives, is it going under the sink? Is it going in a drawer? We want to start to think about categories. So, I want to put all of my hair care products together. I don't wash my hair every day. I wash it about once a week. Um, I have a full video on my hair and makeup. I am not saying I'm a makeup expert, but if you're wondering, lashes, hair, whatever, I can do my makeup in about five minutes, and I love that. So, I'll link to that video as well. It has my hair care and how I've stretched it out to only wash my hair once a week. But, we want to group like stuff together. So, this kind of stuff, too, might be perfect to put into a a bin like this where it has a clear category. And similarly with stuff that I'm stocking up on where this doesn't necessarily have to live in your bathroom, right? This is going to go to the linen closet. I don't want it in here cluttering it up, but we want to have it separate. So, we want to have the stuff that we are using different from the stuff that we're stocking up on or the extras. So, using some kind of container. And we'll come back through and organize this bathroom cuz I have to figure out what I want for containers and stuff. Now, here I will link to another video, too, where I organized my mom's bathroom when we were all there living there and using it. And I was really happy with how that came out. But, we want clear categories. And again, we have all this extra inventory in here and it's all mish mashed together. That is the worst ever for our brain. Our poor tired brain is just like, I don't even know. I don't know what to do with this. What you want me to do with this? Right? So, we want to have clear categories of stuff whenever possible, too. So, we got the daily, we got the weekly, we have monthly or stock up stuff all going into the best real estate. And then I also just want to challenge you real quick. What's living on your floors? we just kind of think or we've been we were raised to believe or we or we've just always had things on the floor like rugs, scales, uh toilet brushes, garbage cans, bath mats, all of that. And so I would challenge you like so the scale I'll tuck away under the cabinet. I even just got this one of these stone bath mats. Maybe you've been talk about influencers. They're all they're all over Instagram right now. But I like it because it can stay out, but you don't it doesn't get kicked around. You don't have to hang it up for it to dry out. I've only had it for a week, but so far I actually really like it a lot. And it kind of just blends in with the floor. And so here, let's move this. Again, our brains are overwhelmed. They're tired. We just need a peaceful, easy place to start our day and end our day. And I know some might think like, "Oh, this is too bare." I'm telling you, my brain walks in here and it's just like size a sense of relief of it's just easy to get ready in here. There's nothing nagging at me or telling me something that I have to do. I don't feel guilty about anything in here. And that feels so good. And I know it's a new house. It's beautiful. It's big. It's white. It's bright. But in any space, no matter how big or small, new or old your house is, if we will ruthlessly simplify it, keep out just the things that we are using daily, weekly, monthly, your space can feel so much better, too. I think sometimes we think like, oh, it's just, you know, it's a old small bathroom. It's actually the clutter that is is actually what's draining us and making us feel kind of like gh yuck when we walk into that space. So use your time will tell bin. Again, we don't have to make any hard decisions today. I know we spent money on it. And then let's talk about like, okay, once the stuff's in there, Dawn, now what are we going to do with it? It's okay. It's It's going to be just fine. Oh, and also so easy to clean. So easy to clean. I am not sure who invented black faucets and that little thing at the bottom. It is the worst ever ever ever cleaning. I didn't pick the finishes in here, right? Like I have to clean all the time [clears throat and laughter] now, but but so easy now that there's not a lot of stuff sitting out.
Okay, but now I got this bin full of stuff. What am I going to do with it? So, we just want to set it aside. And we call it time testing it. We just want to see, do you go back in it and do you where did it go? I don't even know. [laughter] Do you want to use the fancy body oil or or whatnot or the eyeshadow palette? You'll you'll just see if you ever end up reaching for it if or not. And so what this does is it just creates some separation and it helps to give us better data to work with. It is very possible that you don't have the bandwidth, the mental capacity to be trying a bunch of new things right now. And that's actually okay. That is very much the season that I have come through recently where like I just haven't been able to try anything new. I've had to just stick to the things that have been working well enough. So, we set it aside for a while in a storage space and then we create some separation and then in a few months we can come back and revisit it. And even at that point, we don't have to declutter the whole thing. Then you can, but you can get rid of some things. And then you get to the point where this is the size of my time will tell bin now. And it's also where I just keep extra stuff if I have some extras. This has been working so well for me. I'm a much better consumer now. I don't make the same impulse purchases that I did in the past. I'm more selective of the influencers I follow and I try not to go on late at night when I make poor buying decisions, right? So, I'm learning and I'm getting better at that. And so, now I just have a time will tell bin that this is this size and it's just ongoing and it helps me to keep my bathroom clutter-free. And so, and so you might start with a bigger bin, but over time and pretty quickly, I think you can get down to something that is much smaller as well. But this is going to create separation, give us good data to work with, and then we'll just come back and revisit it again in a few months.
And then let's just answer a few questions that often come up when we're dealing with this type of stuff. So, number one, what if I really want to or need to be using this stuff? I think what you're going to find is that once you get your bathroom decluttered, simplified, you remove all the stuff that you aren't using, it actually becomes much easier to use the stuff that you do want to use. I have been really consistent with my skincare routine now, ever since I've highly simplified and just got all the other stuff out from around it. So, if there are supplements or skincare routines or anything like that that you really want to use, we need to promote that. It needs to be very easy to see and to get to. doesn't necessarily mean it needs to sit out, but it needs to be in your prime real estate so that you can see it and it becomes easier to develop the habit then to use it. All right, number two. What if I spent a lot of money on it? I know. I would be horrified actually just to add up all the money spent on all of this products, all these products I have in the bathroom now. Yeah, I know. But what do we know? Keeping it doesn't put the money back in our pocket. It doesn't make it magically start working. In fact, it works against us. We feel guilt and shame when we see it. It clutters up our bathroom so that we're not using the products that we want to be using and it makes our bathroom harder to clean. So, it's just negative, negative, negative, right? So, it sucks. It sucks when we've spent money on this stuff. I know. But again, what you're going to find as you go through this process, as you're willing to let go of the stuff that you spent money on and aren't using, you become a much better consumer and you don't make these kinds of mistakes in the future. And also, don't be so hard on yourself. All of this stuff is trial and error. Every product we've ever gotten has always been trial and error. And a small percentage, we like it makes the cut. We use it day in and day out. And a lot of it doesn't, right? But we're getting better. We're being more selective and we're not impulsive buying as much anymore, right? So, we're getting better at it. We just got to get the crap moved out. The mistakes we've made, move on, do better moving forward. Isn't the time will tell been just deferring decisions? No. I'm going to push back hard on this one, especially when it comes to the bathroom. We often just need to collect more data and we need some separation from this stuff. Again, isn't it amazing how much money just this little teeny tiny container of stuff can cost, right? So, just to straight up throw it away or declutter it, that can be very hard for most of us. Now, if you have strong decluttering muscles and you can just toss it and not look back, skip the time will tell. That's awesome. That's good for you. That is super cool. But I'm telling you that this is a really powerful tool to give us the data we need to see we're not using it. We don't have time for it. and also to create some separation. There's actually some interesting research so that says that the longer we go without using something, the more we build it up to be very special in our head. And sometimes the more uh we build up that it's kind of hard to use or we need to learn new things to use it. And so I really try now when I get a new product or thing or tool or whatnot to use it right away and just be like open it up, read the instructions, like start incorporating it right away to see if it's going to be a good fit or not. But anyways, those are new skills that I'm using. So the time will tell bin creates some separation, gives us really good data, and then it becomes easier to let these things go over time. What if my bathroom is teeny teeny teeny tiny? We have to work within the limitations that we have. And I again, I would really challenge you that when you really pare down to just the stuff that you're using every day, for most of us, it's not actually that much. I'm going to link to uh my favorite makeup bag and a travel companion to it. These two items, they're from Bags Smart on Amazon, the some of the best well-designed toiletry and makeup bags that I've ever found. But anyways, I digress. U but when you really pair down to the stuff you're actually only using every day, you'll be pretty surprised how little it is. So, we have to be creative in small spaces. We have to really simplify things down. And don't be afraid to store stuff in adjacent spaces as well. And also for the shower, we want to simplify everything that's in there, too, down to just the stuff we use every single day. I did get I haven't put these in yet, but I really like the Simple Human soap dispenser. And then I also am trying this style that's a little bit slimmer for my shower. I don't need one that's so big for the kids. I absolutely want to use this one. I've used it multiple times. Works really well, lasts well. Um I do know I have seen the push button ones before, but the buttons I don't know if you've had this experience. They kind of get gummed up and they don't work so well. So, I like that these have more of the pull style dispenser. I don't know, just my two cents because they're a little bit of an investment, but when it comes to getting everything simplified and streamlined in there, these work so well because they mount on the wall. And then also, it makes it easier to clean and wipe down the shower when you don't have all these bottles sitting on the shelves. So, I am a big fan of these. We just haven't got them in yet. But mostly, I just want to say you're not alone. If you've bought stuff and not used it, impulse bought stuff, bought stuff thinking that it was going to help you be a better version of yourself, we all do that. There's nothing wrong with it. I think the only thing that is wrong is keeping things that aren't working or that are nagging at us or making us feel guilty about them. So, permission to let that stuff go or toss it into your time bin. And like I said before, if you could use some more help, guidance in getting your home highly simplified and decluttered, I would love for you to join us inside of our membership community. Uh coming up, actually in the month of March, we're going allin on paper clutter, and it's going to be really good. And that is definitely something you need tactics and skills and the right bins to have, but you also need ongoing support and coaching for all the nuances that go along with paper clutter. And so we're able to proide that, and it's really good. [music] And we have fun. Like, it's so much fun. I don't. Anyways, all right. Well, I would love to get to spend more time with you in there as well, but I'll link to the get ready video and another great bathroom declutter and organization. I love you. I hope you have a really good day and I'll see you again.