Got Too Much Stuff? Pick Purging Questions that Actually Work

Picking Purging Questions that Work Is the Key

Would you like to lighten your load a bit? You know, clear some crap out of those closets. Maybe even attack that garage? But you just can’t seem to make any headway when you try? It’s all about picking the right purging questions that work for you.

Deciding what to keep and what to purge isn’t as easy as asking questions like, Do I still need this? or Do I still want this?

Those questions don’t dig deep enough.

Finding purging questions that work for you makes the difference. You don’t believe me—go to your garage and pick up any item and ask those questions. Yes and yes will be the answers for any item. Those questions don’t work, do they?

You’ll find this post a little more practical or nuts’n’bolts than I usually write. But until I went through the experience of doing a serious and brutal purging of my personal possessions, I had no earthly idea of how difficult the task could be. I felt like it was worth sharing the experience with you.

When Lanette and I started the months-long project of preparing to sell our home of twenty-one years and move across the country, I already knew that moving costs alone were going to be expensive. And I knew that weight and volume mattered more than anything else in what that cost would ultimately be.

We were determined not to pay good money to move things we did not like or need anymore.

This spawned my first go-to question. Is this thing worth $1.50 per pound to move? It was a reality question for us. Why pay hundreds of dollars to move something that’s only worth half that? Hitting the wallet gets most anyone’s attention, doesn’t it?

The questions thing became intriguing. I found that having a few more go-to questions to ask when I was stuck deciding about an item was the way to go. In this post, I’ll be sharing the questions I would ask myself that actually made the process much easier.

I’ll also share how I came up with them.

The thing is, the same questions don’t work for everyone. Just ask anyone who’s tried Marie Kondo’s golden question, Does it spark joy? The question either works for them or it doesn’t. (I only let the closest of friends know that I even know who Marie K is. So, I would appreciate your keeping the secret).

You’ll want to find a few purging questions that work for you.

Start by Googling how to declutter or questions to ask when purging. You’ll get a nice long list of advice and some handy questions that might help, but more that don’t. Pick a few that resonate with you, then try them out.

And I promise you, you’ll still be overwhelmed the first time you set out to reduce your personal footprint of stuff and treasure.

Okay, okay, are you thinking… just how hard can it be to look at something and ask yourself, “Do I love this?” or “Do I need this?” It’s not hard at all, but those are the wrong questions to ask. They won’t get you where you want to go!  (There’s a post that actually claims that those two questions are all you need).

Here’s the thing…

We are humans and humans create deep emotional ties to our possessions

Why? Thanks for asking. You’ve got to untangle all the strings that you’ve unwittingly attached to each and every object you own. Okay, okay—not every object and not every string. SO, there is some good news. I promise you, some of that crapola is going to be really easy to say goodbye to.

My second piece of advice is to start slowly and develop your purge muscle. And just like going to the gym, don’t give up just because it gets painful. Downsizing my book collection was my first large-scale purging success.

My good friend Dan shared these two questions that helped me get things rolling:

When we were preparing for our big move 9-10 years ago, we went through a long, long process of thinning out stuff. Eventually we landed on a two-question test that guided us through tough decisions: 1) If this treasure were to suddenly disappear, would we even notice that it was gone? 2) If we noticed, would we feel compelled to go out and replace it? Surprisingly, little got through both tests.”

—Dan

He was on to something, but I needed more drama…

My version became, If a meteor smashed our home and we lost all of our possessions, would I miss this thing? Would I try to replace it?

I think drama is the key to shock our little pack-rat brains into letting go of some of this stuff we think we love so, so much.

If you go beyond the fluff on your Google research (well past Page 1), you’ll find about as many scientific reasons as you have cherished possessions that explain why all this is so hard.

Another approach that worked was to go deep with my questions.

At some point, I found myself on a roll and my OCD tendencies became an advantage. I found myself wanting to purge more-more-more! And do it now-now-now!

Then I would pick up some object, find myself staring at it for a while, then realizing I was stuck again. That’s when I would ask my nuclear option question, What does this thing mean to me? No, seriously, What-does-this-thing-mean-to-me? Very few things passed this test once I realized the answer was a single, lonely word—nothing.

I truly hope today’s post helps you lighten your load. By the end of our purging journey we had given away half of our furniture, at least a third of my tools, and at least two truckloads of household goods.

I’m not telling you this for a pat on the back. I’m sharing it because it was one of the most cathartic things I’ve ever done. And if I did it, you surely can too. Did it spark joy? Well, yes, the giving-it-away part sparked true joy. And I hope not to lose that feeling anytime soon—’cuz we’re not finished yet.

Remember, half the battle is picking purging questions that work for you.

Lighten your load, my friend… feel the joy!

Be untucked.

P.S. Know someone who might like this post? Maybe forward it or share it on your favorite social media platform. Thanks… I owe you one!

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