An average American woman owns 103 pieces of clothing based on a survey of 1000 women. However,
21% of her closet is unwearable;
33% of the women say they have clothes that are too tight;
27% of the women say they have clothes that are too loose;
12% of the clothes have never been worn; and
10% of the women are depressed each time they open their closet doors.
Overstuffed closets create stress and decision fatigue. President Obama has said he has two different types of suits to choose from because he has more important decisions to make than what he wears. I think we all do.
Still, many of us find it difficult to let go. We find it difficult to let go of shoes that we paid money on even if they hurt our feet and realistically we will never want to wear them again. We want to hang onto that dress that we wore ten years and two kids ago even though it no longer suits our body or lifestyle. We keep twenty ties (or scarves) in our closets just in case even though we dislike wearing ties and luckily only have to wear one a few times a year.
We have to reframe the questions.
The money we paid for those shoes is gone (unless you can still return them in which case please do). If we hold on to them without being able to face the fact that we will not wear them then the shoes will end up costing us even more. They take space and space also has value. With their presence they remind us of the bad decision we made and so cost us emotionally.
Let’s thank these items for teaching us something, then let go and move on.
The dress that we loved ten years ago might bring us good memories and we should cherish those memories. The physical dress, however, that now just hangs there is a daily reminder of a life we used to have. Maybe we used to be thinner or maybe our social lives used to be livelier. For many of us, this dress would be a daily negative reminder and we don’t need that.
Let’s not live in the past but in the present moment!
Do we really need twenty ties or scarves, just in case? When we do need a tie or a scarf, we choose our favorite one. The rest just hang there collecting dust and cluttering our space. When we are tempted to hold on to an item just in case, let's evaluate how difficult it would be to replace it should we need it again. How much money and time would we be required to spend if we unexpectedly had to replace one?
Just in case usually means never.
So let’s imagine our ideal closet space. Is it stuffed so full that clothes get wrinkled just hanging in there? Does opening your closet door each morning create stress because there’s nothing to wear even when it’s brimmed with clothes? Or does opening your closet fill you with joy because everything in there is your favorite and it takes you no time to choose what to wear?
Let’s choose joy and let go of the rest!
