Each blog post until the end of the year, I will focus on a particular
area of clutter, to help guide you in removing unwanted things,
activities, and people from your life. The goal is to start 2013 clutter
free!
Today we're focusing on music and videos.
1) Take an honest inventory of your CDs (and if you have them, cassettes and records.) Chances are there are CDs that you are no longer listening to. Hold one CD at a time and ask yourself, "Do I still enjoy listening to this, or not? Would I actually put this on and listen to it now? Would I buy this CD today?" You want to see if it still sings to you. Often times we hang on to a thing because we remember how much we liked it. But if it's sitting there, not being listened to, you're better off letting it go and enjoying the new space it creates. Also, if you downloaded your CD onto a music program like itunes and you just listen to the music mp3s, I would recommend letting the CD go.
2) Let's consider our mp3s. Many of us have our music on computers, phones, and mp3 players. The thing about stuff on our computers is we often lose a sense of what we own. We can't hold digital info in our hands. Start at the beginning of your song list and simply ask if you still like listening to this song. You can even click on the song and play it so you get a visceral sense of whether you still resonate with it or not. Your musical interests change. Hearing a song you used to love, can give you a feeling of wanting to skip to the next song. That's a red flag that it's not for you anymore. It's okay to delete the song. Also, letting of music you don't care for anymore opens the door for new music you like to come in.
There are now websites like Spotify, Pandora and MOG that allow you to listen to songs and albums for free or for a subscription fee. If you haven't tried this out yet, I'd encourage you to see if it works for you. If it does, then you don't even need the mp3s anymore.
3) Let's talk about DVDs, VHS tapes, and video downloads. Movies can be just as emotional as music. Sometimes we'll purchase a DVD because of how good seeing the movie in the theater made us feel. We want to recreate that feeling. A lot of my clients own DVDs that are still in the wrapper. That ends up creating a dull and lifeless feeling in our homes. When clutter busting your DVDs, you want to pick up one movie or TV show at a time and ask, "Okay, do I still like watching this? Does it still bring me pleasure? Or can I let it go?" Maybe you haven't watched it in a year. You can donate the DVD and create some fresh space in your life. If in a year or two you want to watch it again, you can pay a few dollars and download it through Amazon or google as a rental and make it a special moment.
If you have movies downloaded onto your computer that aren't rentals, take a similar look through the titles on your computer.
Like with music, movies and tv shows can be watched live-stream through subscription websites like Netflix, and Amazon Prime. They have a large selection and it saves you from having to have a DVD library in your home.
4) Let's move on to music and video electronics. Sometimes we hang on to our old media players, like VCRs, record players, or cassettes players that we are no longer using. Old electronics have an especially strong dulling effect on a space. You'll feel better when you load it up in your car, and donate it to a charity. Someone else will get a chance to love and use it.
What do you do when these electronics are broken? Check with your city about where to drop off electronic recycling. You can also list it on freecycle.org. Sometimes people enjoying fixing electronics.
Send me an email or make a comment if you've done the work! It helps to
tell other people about it, and it will help keep you on track during
this process.
Also, if you find yourself benefiting from this Starting Fresh Clutter Busting Workshop and you want to show your appreciation, you can make a donation through the donation button on the right sidebar.