Making Space, Clutter Free by Tracy McCubbin, 2019, Sourcebooks.
Tracy McCubbin is the owner of dClutterfly, a professional organization service. Her book follows the idea that people have psychological blocks, what she calls Clutter Blocks, that keep them from getting rid of things to get organized once and for all. The idea is to live in the present and let your space take care of you. She grew up with a hoarding parent and has seen the effects it has on the individual and their family and also the thinking patterns that create these negative patterns.
“I want your home to be a place that you enjoy being in, that helps you quickly and efficiently get out into the world, and that you can share with others as often as you feel like.”
tracy mccubbin
In each chapter, she covers a clutter block that is common for people having trouble getting organized. What I like best is that she shows you the signs that appear in your thinking or excuses and what phrases can help you reset your automatic thoughts. Then she tells you what steps to take to make the decision to keep or toss.
If you get decision fatigue quickly, feel overwhelmed, or start panicking and making excuses, this book is for you. I’m a big fan of systems that help adjust problematic thinking. If you’re stuck in your own thought spirals, even if you do make an organization changeup, it probably won’t last. But if you change your mindset, you can set up healthy habits around keeping your space organized that will stick.
For example, her fist clutter block is “My stuff keeps me in the past.” She talks about how that can hold you back, how putting your past on a pedestal makes you not appreciate where you are now, etc. She suggests keeping one keepsake box and preserving it properly. Then she gives you a phrase to rest your thinking:
“Letting go of this old stuff makes space for the life I want now.”
tracy mccubbin
She also has a list of signs that you are making that excuse:
- Large amounts of children’s artwork, but no more children
- Trophies and awards from years long past
- Outdated clothes that no longer fit the time or the person
- A glory wall of photos or articles framed and blown up
- All the dishes to host a holiday they don’t host anymore
- Tools in the garage for making repairs they can’t make anymore
Her other clutter blocks are:
- My stuff tells me who I am
- The stuff I’m avoiding
- My fantasy stuff for my fantasy life
- I’m not worth my good stuff (so I will save it instead of use it)
- Trapped with other people’s stuff
- The stuff I keep paying for (to avoid admitting I made a mistake)
Ugh, and also before I go, I love her sassy quotable sayings, like this one:
“Space is not for storage.”
tracy mccubbin
So if you need a kick in the pants and a brain reboot to finally get organized, try this book out. It mixes my favorite cognitive behavioral techniques and makes them easy to apply with recognizable cues.