Many of us packrats associate 'things' with 'locations', and breaking this bond is very difficult. That spool of .030 flux wire doesn't belong in the 1/2 gallon plastic plant pot on the third shelf - but that's where it's been for 2 years so that must be it's designated location. At least I'll know where to find it when I do need it.
We also tend easily assign sentimental value, regardless of actual value, and have a hard time letting go of our collection. For example, I still have the failed window motor from the first new car I ever bought - it works, as long as there's no load on it. That's insanity.
I've discovered some methods to help deal with this.
The first is to have a yard sale. This is no secret. You will find that nothing displaces sentimental value better than good 'ol greenbacks. I may not want to throw out my precious garage junk, but I'm happy to get paid for it!
Take pictures if you must. Looking at a picture of your old junk is just as good as looking at it collecting dust on a shelf, only it'll take up less space.
Anything that's leftover from the sale goes into a large cardboard box. Close it up and leave it there for however long it takes for you to realize it wasn't that hard and you don't really miss any of the stuff. Now drag it out to the curb.
By now you're down to the more essential things. Problem is you've already associated your stuff with its current location and moving it around just doesn't make any sense! OCD is in full effect. You become overwhelmed with the idea of moving all that darn stuff. One thing that worked really well for me was to turn off the garage lights and just flip on one handheld inspection light and hang it in the middle. This created a narrow focal point and helped me ignore the mountain of stuff to tackle. It also broke my 'location association' issue. Literally looked at things in a new light.
Good luck!
We also tend easily assign sentimental value, regardless of actual value, and have a hard time letting go of our collection. For example, I still have the failed window motor from the first new car I ever bought - it works, as long as there's no load on it. That's insanity.
I've discovered some methods to help deal with this.
The first is to have a yard sale. This is no secret. You will find that nothing displaces sentimental value better than good 'ol greenbacks. I may not want to throw out my precious garage junk, but I'm happy to get paid for it!
Take pictures if you must. Looking at a picture of your old junk is just as good as looking at it collecting dust on a shelf, only it'll take up less space.
Anything that's leftover from the sale goes into a large cardboard box. Close it up and leave it there for however long it takes for you to realize it wasn't that hard and you don't really miss any of the stuff. Now drag it out to the curb.
By now you're down to the more essential things. Problem is you've already associated your stuff with its current location and moving it around just doesn't make any sense! OCD is in full effect. You become overwhelmed with the idea of moving all that darn stuff. One thing that worked really well for me was to turn off the garage lights and just flip on one handheld inspection light and hang it in the middle. This created a narrow focal point and helped me ignore the mountain of stuff to tackle. It also broke my 'location association' issue. Literally looked at things in a new light.
Good luck!
), and grandfathers (who lived through the depression and hung onto things until needed).
