How to stop getting distracted while decluttering!

[Littlemiss74]

I've started trying to declutter the house but I keep getting distracted by things that need doing.
I have ADD so my mind is constantly jumping between different thoughts and it can be quite overwhelming.

I want to declutter the house so I can try and keep on top of things more. Every time I try I get distracted eg something needs fixing, cleaning, replacing, paperwork needs doing, appts need booking. I'll start on area and then get diverted to another area leaving the first area unfinished. Or doing something will make me think of something else that needs doing so I will start googling it for 'research'.

I have a day off today and would like to make progress. As you can see I'm already distracted by coming on mn but hoping for some advice!

Firstly decide what you are focusing on first. Set a timer for 15 minutes so you can re-set yourself if you need to.

Ban Mumsnet for the day, is no. 1. Focus on one thing, if today is paperwork set a timer on the oven or your phone for 25 minutes. Go gather up all you need to sort through, one bag for shredding one back for normal non confidential papers that just need recycling. Go at it for 25 minutes. After that make a cuppa, stretch while the kettles doing its thing, take a 10 minute break. Then hit the timer for another 25 minutes. Today's the day make it count.

Write a list and tick items off one by one as you complete them

Thank you. I don't really know where to start to be honest. Everywhere I look there is stuff that needs doing.
Anyway I need to just try and make a start and hope I don't make things worse!

Good luck OP. I started with 10 minute declutter tasks - I'd set the timer and pick an area to focus on so it might be the kitchen table and then I would do as much as I could in 10 minutes. Then I would set another timer for 10 minutes and just put things away where they belong. I have a to do list on my phone for bigger jobs and I love ticking them off as I get them done. A little and often approach does work.

Keep a pen and paper handy and whenever you come across a new task write it down on this new to do list. Put music on and sing along to doing your chosen chore.

Ps, I find some chores are worse for this than others. Cleaning out cupboards can send me down a few different paths whereas when cleaning a bathroom I tend to just see it through.

I have ADD as well. I found the Konmari method works well for me as you declutter by category rather than by area - so it stays done if that makes sense even if you have to do is very slowly, little by little.

Try following this

www.apartmenttherapy.com/get-together-january-cure-2020-36701718?utm_source=at_januarycure2020&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=01162020&recip_id=2769562

Personally I break down tasks into stages so that I can jump between tasks but still get stuff done.

I pick a room at a time, make a list of the things that need doing in that room only and cycle through the tasks. When I do a room I take a bin bag, cleaning supplies, a donation box and the washing basket (for items that dont live in that room) with me. I also keep a notebook for any random other jobs I remember and then just put on a podcast/music and crack on.

I just cleared out DDs room this weekend. I managed to go through 3 podcasts and an audio book but her room is spotless ... the rest of the house is a bombsite still, but that is one room done.

Before I did anything else I set a 5 minute timer and took a bin bag and did a quick sweep of big/obvious rubbish (sweet wrappers, packaging from new stuff she got at Christmas etc) to get it out of the way and stop me getting distracted by it at the later stages. Then I set a 10 minute timer and did another sweep of things that didnt live in her room and dumped them in the washing basket to be dealt with later (if I left the room to start putting those things away there and then I knew I'd get distracted, so instead I just corral them in a specific spot in the room.

Then anything on the floor/lying around got put on her bed because I find that the things we have lying around are the things we use most and they are usually lying around because we cant find space to put them away because our cupboards are full of stuff we dont need. This means that I always start jobs by doing cupboards/drawers first and then once the unused stuff is gone there is usually room for all the stuff that was previously lying around.

I needed to sort through her clothes and accessories - checking sizes, removing Christmas bits, weeding out worn out items, weeding out things she never wears etc. So I pulled everything ou of her wardrobe, set a 20 min timer and then handled every item once and tried to make myself make a quick decision - if it was still good it went back in the wardrobe, if it was worn out/damaged it went in the bin bag, if it was too small/not worn but still good then it went in for donation, if it was out of season then it went into a pile to be put in the box of out of season stuff I keep in the loft.

Then she has a kallax unit which houses all of her toys, games and books so I basically designated a certain number of cubes for each category, set the timer and again sorted through everything with the one touch method - books she reads or are new went back on the shelves, damaged ones went in the bin, ones shes grown out of went in the donation pile etc, same with toys and games.

I just continued around the room with each area, dividing into tasks and setting timers till I was left with a washing basket full of stuff for the rest of the house, a couple of binbags of rubbish, a big bag of donations and one of stuff to go into the loft.

Also Unfuck Your Habitat is good. It's like a sweary version of FlyLady.