Fifty Ways To Leave Your Clutter: Part One

Time to date myself here – Do you remember the 1975 Paul Simon hit, 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover? Well, Rita has come up with a clever de-clutter version: Fifty Ways To Leave Your Clutter!

Here are the first 10 – Check back in the weeks ahead for more!

~~ Take Time To Decide, Clyde ~~
The first step in leaving your clutter, before you even touch one things, is:
1. Decide where you’re stuff is going to, whether you want to donate it or sell it; how and where you will do that.

~~ Ways You Can Sell, Nell ~~
2. Place a classified ad
3. Put up flyers on local bulletin boards such as at grocery stores.
4. Run a garage sale on your own, or with several friends, or with the whole block (as many houses as possible).
Garage sales can be hard work and time consuming and they are not for cowards. It can be painful to watch people rummage through your stuff and then walk away because they don’t want it. If it’s not for you, don’t do it.
Marketing trick. Instead of tagging and pricing everything, just put up a sign Make me a reasonable offer I won’t refuse. Instead of the typical garage sale sign, use your imagination: “Come On Over. Our Beautiful Trash Could Become Your Beautiful Treasure or “Buyers Beware! Bargains Galore!”
5. Sell at an estate sale, flea market, rummage sale.
6. Tell friends, neighbors, family or co-workers about what is for sale. Let them stop over whenever they like.

~~ Be a Techno-Geek, Deke ~~
7. Sell on eBay.com (on Internet)
8. If you belong to a computer group, post a notice on the list-serve about what you want to give away or sell.
9. Sell on http://auctions.yahoo.com
10. Try http://www.freecycle.org/ This is a very cool organization that has message boards where people in your locale can post what they are giving away or what they are looking for. All for free.

Rita Emmett is a “Recovered Pack Rat”, a Professional Speaker, and best-selling author of The Procrastinator’s Handbook; and The Clutter-Busting Handbook.
Go to www.RitaEmmet.com for info on Stress Management, Procrastination and Clutter. You will find books, CDs, DVDs and even on-line courses.
To subscribe to her free monthly “Anticrastination Tip Sheet” with quick short tips & ideas to help break the procrastination habit, go to the first page of her website www.RitaEmmett.com. Rita can be reached at 847-699-9950 or REmmett412@aol.com.