Decluttering Clears the Mind

By Alice Crann

Macu Mateo and Emily Speed share simpatico perspectives when discussing their businesses and news that global tidy queen Marie Kondo tossed her dust rags to raise her three young children.

The Pensacola professional organizers, wives and mothers of youngsters, welcome the fact Kondo succumbed to reality.

“It’s not easy, not even for naturally organized people, to keep your home organized one hundred percent of the time,” said Mateo, founder and CEO of Reset Home. “As a mother of three little ones and wife of a not particularly organized husband, I feel I am in the same boat as Marie Kondo.”

Balance is key, said Mateo, who honed her organizational skills as her husband’s Navy career carried them to different countries and cities. Mateo has assisted many military and civilian households getting organized. She is inaugural director of the Military Spouse Chamber of Commerce/Home of Military Spouse Owned Businesses.

“We all need to let go of the idea of perfection, let go of the idea that everyday life looks like it’s never been touched,” said

Speed, creator and CEO of The Organized Home Mindset and “a recovering perfectionist.”

But while letting go of perfection, go ahead and accept the mindset that being organized is a positive move, Speed said.

“Your home is supposed to be your sanctuary,” she said. “Some people have homes that are so cluttered that they go out just to get away from it all. You need to address the clutter that is stressing you out because being organized and mental health are linked. I left my career of fourteen years in forensics to follow a path that brought more peace and joy in my life. Decluttering your home can ultimately do the same thing: clear your mind and bring you peace.”

Indeed it can. A study published in “Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin” stated that “women who described their living spaces as cluttered... were more likely to be tired and depressed than women who found their homes restful and restorative.”

“Nobody enjoys coming home or winding down for the night surrounded by a mess,” Mateo said. “Reducing the number of belongings in your home is a great way to simplify your life, and it becomes easier to organize and keep it organized.”

Start by simply downsizing, Speed said.

“Don’t try to overhaul your whole house at once…start small,” Speed advised. “This will be less stressful for the non-organized person in your family.”

She recommends going room by room.

“Take one space at a time,” she said. “My husband and I have systems in place for each room and return items where they belong when we are finished using them. And we are teaching our children where the toys go, where dirty clothes go. To avoid clutter returning, understand that you will have to revisit those areas to maintain the levels of organization you created.”

And try not using a designated area such as a dining room as an office, a living room as a playroom, etc., Mateo said.

“Children need to be taught that rooms for the entire family are common areas – neutral, toy-free areas where everyone can relax,” Mateo said. “If you can, create a toy room or space for the children.”

The Mateos have an activity cabinet near the dining room table for their children that is set up to accommodate their size and allows them to be independent.

“We let them use the dining room table so we can watch them, but when they are through with what they are doing, they must put away everything before dinner time,” Mateo said.

Mateo and Speed both believe: In a household, everyone – and that means the kids, too – can contribute to the organization and peace of the home.