Fleeting memories... But I've gotten better at decluttering over the years and am happy to report that these days I live a mostly decluttered life, and I travel light which allows me to go further. 🙂
I love the term "essentialism", to evaluate the stuff in your world and only have things which add value to living or that fulfill a need or desire. Wishing you the greatest joy as you embark upon your retirement dream.
@@BrianW211 it is true most of the stuff I’m donating is clothing and shoes 😊. But, the other day I decided to slim down my appliances and donated a food processor I’ve owned for years. I also accidentally purged all my vases so had to go in one day and buy one. 😂
@@Oglulubell It's so free-ing to let stuff go! I keep a "goodwill" box or two in my bedroom and when I come across something I don't need anymore, it goes in. When the box(es) is full, it goes to my local charity store that supports our local humane society.
This video should resonate with anyone that has had to clean out their parents' home after their parents passed away. My last parent passed away in 2020 and my wife's last parent passed away this year. Both had been in their homes for over 40 years. Cleaning out those homes was a LOT of work and almost everything was either given away or thrown away. My wife and I have been in our home for 29 years and now we both just want to get rid of as much stuff as we can. We've started some decluttering, but we've still got 1 kid in college. The other just graduated from college and moved out this month and we're giving them whatever they want to take with them when they move out. After both kids have moved out, we're going to downsize into our rental that is 500sqft smaller and has only a 2-car garage vs. 3-car. That will force us to make a lot of decisions to get rid of "stuff".
100% my parents passed in 2018- they had downsized but still had been in the house 25 years. They didn’t even have that much room for clutter and it was still a TON of work. also going thru historical stuff is emotional + tactical. better to deal with it sooner. and 95% went to goodwill or was sold.
As a 61 year old, lifelong renter, I started doing this recently. If I owned a home and was going to stay in it till the end I wouldn't care. I always wanted a house to hold my book, cd, movie collection but as a renter I decided being able to pick up and move easily was more important. So I started going thru everything and getting rid of things. As the youngest in the family everyone keeps trying to give me their junk, but non of us wants any of it. Wish I had spent less on crap, maybe I could have retired even earlier than I did.
My retirement starts in a few weeks and that is exactly what 2025 goal is for my first year of retirement. I had to clean out my parents house and am not leaving that huge burden to my kids.
I never realized how much emotional relief I would get from doing this, was difficult in the beginning, but the freedom of space in my home and mind made it worth it. It was sad to see how little value my stuff was worth to anyone else except myself.
Great video! This is part of my plan for my first year of retirement. I will declutter room by room. No rush but I think once I start I will want to finish sooner rather than later. Retirement and my life’s next chapter begins in three weeks!
Yes! Within the last year we moved my parents from their house to assisted living and then from assisted living to a new apartment for one parent and memory care for another. We had a garage sale to make a little money and virtually none of the items inside the house sold, think all the milk glass people used to love, pottery, art, furniture - almost nothing. All the money was made in the garage selling $2.00 light timers and $3.00 hammers. We ended up giving the useful things away to neighbors and friends but a lot of things my mom thought was worth something ended up being donated. Children don't want things (unless they truly have a fond memory of that item) and strangers don't want things. Unless it is currently bringing you joy just get rid of it...
Since retiring 7 years ago, we’ve downsized, upsized and downsized again. The common thread through all this is the fact that our kids don’t want our stuff. No problem; we sell or donate. In our important papers, when we’ve “turned in our dance card”, is our instructions are to have an auction and jettison everything.
.Since I picked a retirement date in have started a challenge to fill my bin every week for the next 2 years. It’s is a mountain of life’s debris . 1 bin at a time .
like others have said , i use the house fire scenario ... if the house was on fire , what would you get out , and what would you buy again after the fire ... too many old people think all their collections of china , figurines , dvds/vhs tapes , books , and huge furniture pieces are valuable to and wanted by younger generations ... younger generations already have a home full of stuff THEY chose and dont want all your crap that means nothing to them ... if someone in the family didnt ask you for it on their own , they dont want it ... ask people what they want when you pass and thats all you need to keep for them , the rest is just you hoarding and/or cluttering your home that others will have to toss in the garbage when you die ... most likely what they want will fit in a small storage tote ... in my old job i went into 4-5 homes per day and was always blown away at the amount of clutter/garbage that many old people keep in their homes ... they have a huge house with a basement and the whole thing would be FULL of junk on each floor , often to the point that bedrooms and other areas looked like a storage building ... all of this in the home of a single old lady often that couldnt even get around herself and couldnt even go upstairs or downstairs due to health ... i feel sorry for their kids
Very true. My dad’s wife if 45 years died a year ago, my dad moved into assisted living. We sold his house and all the stuff. The tiny amount of stuff I took, or my kids wanted was very small. Getting his house emptied was very time consuming.
@@retirethisway It was physically hard, sort of emotionally hard. We'd already been through this w/ my mom and both my wife's parents. The lesson, tho, for all of us here, is to slowly get rid of stuff now.
Nobody wants your stuff... except perhaps for the local Goodwill store. Or, depending on what your stuff is, decluttering could turn into a small revenue stream- think Ebay, Craigslist, Etsy, etc. This realization alone ought to motivate some people to cleanup their home, garage, basement, attic space, etc. Less physical clutter often leads to less mental clutter- something we all could benefit from. This is a very well-chosen and retirement-appropriate topic. Bravo!
Our home is free from clutter because both me and my wife are willing to go through things in our home on a regular basis. The older I get the less stuff I need and it looks like it will continue down this road for some time. I guess my regimented life in a children's home at age 5 to age 11 taught me stuff like this. Keep your space simple and clean and stay organized in all areas of your life. You will thank yourself when the difficult times come.
I always say that if my house burned down tomorrow there are maybe three things I would miss. And most of those are things like my photos. Everything else is meaningless relatively speaking. A few years back my mom passed and it was a huge task to go thru all her things. So many memories. But ultimately no one wanted the actual stuff so we just threw it gave everything away. Reminded me I need to clean out my house little by little so my kids don’t have to do the same
When I retire early in 4 years I’m leaving everything I own behind. Going to donate everything, sell my condo, rent a small U-Haul trailer for my clothe and picture and head somewhere. 😊 not sure where yet.
A very relevant topic. I have two sets of living parents and I know that day is coming. Both have vast quantities of stuff which causes me to look at my stuff. I have way too much stuff. I have a bedroom which is unusable because it is filled with stuff. My dad has cognitive issues which means he cannot live by himself. My stepmom could easily pass away first as she has a number of health issues. So I foresee a day when I have to take my dad in to live with me and as of today, I would be unable to do so. So my goal has become to clean out enough crap to be able to take him in. My current interests in no particular order are: backpacking/camping, travel, photography, and target shooting. So it makes sense to hold on to the stuff related to those activities.
Great topic. I was just discussing this with a family member yesterday. It’s poignant when you move house and realize you have “stuff” you haven’t seen or touched in years. Other than my guitars (daughter has dibs), everything else my kids would want can fit into a 3 foot cube of space.
Knowing I will downsize in 2 years, ive been giving away clothing, kitchenware, lawn equipment and unused furniture to coworkers and neighbors. The rest will stay as a turn key sale. Its truly freeing.
T, your right it’s the memories in your mind and heart that matter. Material things have a shelf life. I have some decluttering to do. Thank you for sharing.L
The hard thing I have found is *knowing* what something cost to obtain but realising that very seldom does an item hold *any* sale value now ... or at least not enough to be worth the effort of advertising and shipping! I have a house-full of belongings of my late wife's that I have not been able to bear to part with for more than ten years since her passing ... but I know I have to do it soon. Because I am planning on selling up to go and find a small retirement-den to curl up in for my last few years - our family house is too big for just me to rattle around in.
Another great video, Trina. Before you can declutter your house or your garage, you have to declutter where those things live in your mind. Once you can dissociate the emotions tied to those items, you can make logical decisions about what to keep and what to get rid of. Another aspect of declutterring is getting past keeping things because “they are just like brand new,” and begin to think of them from the standpoint of “will I use this item in the next year?” Once you conquer those two challenges, you realize the only things you’ve kept are things you’ll need or the very few things that have deep sentimental value to you.😊
After dealing with cleaning out my mom’s house when she passed, I learned that a contents sale basically covers the cost of a dumpster to get rid of the remaining items nobody wants. There are a very few sentimental items we kept. Our family joke has become how many things in my home will one day end up in “the dumpster”. We now try to focus on keeping only the things we still use today.
My mother starting giving stuff to us kids 30 years ago if we wanted it. It was so nice to know where she got it, how long ago and if it came from my grandparents or a relative. I believe that if you have nice China you should pack it up because daughters and grandkids may want it one day. If they don't they can sell it or give it away. But if you used it when they were young it may be a memory they want to hang on to. China is coming back with the young girls. I only have a few things in my house that mean something to me. I have boys and I do not want to leave them with a bunch of stuff but I have never been a clutter bug, it makes me very nervous to have a lot of stuff around me.
Such an important topic. We hold onto multiple generation's stuff. It's guilt and feeling the sense of loss all over again (if you go through the boxes and other items). I need to just start slowly. I really like the idea of doing it now and not making our children go through it. Thank you!
Awesome video and content. I love everything you said and I can’t even imagine relocating from Alaska. Your videos have improved so quickly, editing and on screen presentation, so amazing!❤
Thanks for this great video! The term essentialism really resonated with me. For a couple of years, I have been working to simplify my home, things, and life. Especially after helping sort out my grandparents' overwhelming amount of belongings, which made me want to get rid of all my possessions. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
This is a common problem with older home owners who have lived in their home for 30, 40, 50 or more years. Not only their own accumulated possessions, but often times their adult children's possessions, or even the possession of their parents. Downsizing should leave you OVERJOYED not OVERWHELMED.
I am purposely over-stocking my toiletry cabinet so that whomever finds my body has to then figure what to do with cases of toothpaste and deoderant. :D
I've got a lot of stuff. Mostly because I just can't throw away something that's still good/works. I got a new tv, strictly because it uses less electricity and would save me $. There is nothing wrong w/ the old one, so I still have it. And all that stuff I am saving because I might need it someday? Sure, I haven't needed it in the last 10 yrs, but I can guarantee that a week after I get rid of it, I will....and I'm going to be PISSED if I have to buy another one!!!!
I always say that if my house burned down tomorrow there are maybe three things I would miss. And most of those are things like my photos. Everything else is meaningless relatively speaking.
I am a bit worried that if I retire early I will fall apart mentally and physically. Some of the guys from a club I join has sold property and retired earlier and if looks like they are aging quicker and getting out of shape and have no energy even though the can sleep as long as they want. Perhaps the body and brain just adapt to the new situation and rotten from inside.
What’s holding you back from lightening your load of stuff?
Fleeting memories... But I've gotten better at decluttering over the years and am happy to report that these days I live a mostly decluttered life, and I travel light which allows me to go further. 🙂
I love the term "essentialism", to evaluate the stuff in your world and only have things which add value to living or that fulfill a need or desire. Wishing you the greatest joy as you embark upon your retirement dream.
Thanks for sharing!!
I do a big clean out at least once a year and I always say, I'm not giving anything away, I'm setting it free to be used by someone else.
I’m a purger too! I’m donating at the goodwill every other month
@@Oglulubell But if you've always got stuff to donate, doesn't that mean you're constantly buying more stuff that you don't need? 😉
@@BrianW211 it is true most of the stuff I’m donating is clothing and shoes 😊. But, the other day I decided to slim down my appliances and donated a food processor I’ve owned for years. I also accidentally purged all my vases so had to go in one day and buy one. 😂
@@Oglulubell It's so free-ing to let stuff go! I keep a "goodwill" box or two in my bedroom and when I come across something I don't need anymore, it goes in. When the box(es) is full, it goes to my local charity store that supports our local humane society.
This video should resonate with anyone that has had to clean out their parents' home after their parents passed away. My last parent passed away in 2020 and my wife's last parent passed away this year. Both had been in their homes for over 40 years. Cleaning out those homes was a LOT of work and almost everything was either given away or thrown away. My wife and I have been in our home for 29 years and now we both just want to get rid of as much stuff as we can. We've started some decluttering, but we've still got 1 kid in college. The other just graduated from college and moved out this month and we're giving them whatever they want to take with them when they move out. After both kids have moved out, we're going to downsize into our rental that is 500sqft smaller and has only a 2-car garage vs. 3-car. That will force us to make a lot of decisions to get rid of "stuff".
100% my parents passed in 2018- they had downsized but still had been in the house 25 years. They didn’t even have that much room for clutter and it was still a TON of work.
also going thru historical stuff is emotional + tactical.
better to deal with it sooner. and 95% went to goodwill or was sold.
Thanks for sharing! I’m sure many are in that position.
As a 61 year old, lifelong renter, I started doing this recently. If I owned a home and was going to stay in it till the end I wouldn't care. I always wanted a house to hold my book, cd, movie collection but as a renter I decided being able to pick up and move easily was more important. So I started going thru everything and getting rid of things. As the youngest in the family everyone keeps trying to give me their junk, but non of us wants any of it. Wish I had spent less on crap, maybe I could have retired even earlier than I did.
I know the feeling! It's freeing!
My retirement starts in a few weeks and that is exactly what 2025 goal is for my first year of retirement. I had to clean out my parents house and am not leaving that huge burden to my kids.
That is so smart! Good for you.
I never realized how much emotional relief I would get from doing this, was difficult in the beginning, but the freedom of space in my home and mind made it worth it. It was sad to see how little value my stuff was worth to anyone else except myself.
Glad it was a good experience for you!
Great video! This is part of my plan for my first year of retirement. I will declutter room by room. No rush but I think once I start I will want to finish sooner rather than later. Retirement and my life’s next chapter begins in three weeks!
Go traveling and forget the stuff.
@@steveletro4252 travel is on the list also. The declutter will happen between exploring the world.
Sounds like a good plan!
Yes! Within the last year we moved my parents from their house to assisted living and then from assisted living to a new apartment for one parent and memory care for another. We had a garage sale to make a little money and virtually none of the items inside the house sold, think all the milk glass people used to love, pottery, art, furniture - almost nothing. All the money was made in the garage selling $2.00 light timers and $3.00 hammers. We ended up giving the useful things away to neighbors and friends but a lot of things my mom thought was worth something ended up being donated. Children don't want things (unless they truly have a fond memory of that item) and strangers don't want things. Unless it is currently bringing you joy just get rid of it...
Such a wonderful story to share. Thanks!
Since retiring 7 years ago, we’ve downsized, upsized and downsized again. The common thread through all this is the fact that our kids don’t want our stuff. No problem; we sell or donate.
In our important papers, when we’ve “turned in our dance card”, is our instructions are to have an auction and jettison everything.
great plan!
.Since I picked a retirement date in have started a challenge to fill my bin every week for the next 2 years. It’s is a mountain of life’s debris . 1 bin at a time .
You can do it!
like others have said , i use the house fire scenario ... if the house was on fire , what would you get out , and what would you buy again after the fire ... too many old people think all their collections of china , figurines , dvds/vhs tapes , books , and huge furniture pieces are valuable to and wanted by younger generations ... younger generations already have a home full of stuff THEY chose and dont want all your crap that means nothing to them ... if someone in the family didnt ask you for it on their own , they dont want it ... ask people what they want when you pass and thats all you need to keep for them , the rest is just you hoarding and/or cluttering your home that others will have to toss in the garbage when you die ... most likely what they want will fit in a small storage tote ... in my old job i went into 4-5 homes per day and was always blown away at the amount of clutter/garbage that many old people keep in their homes ... they have a huge house with a basement and the whole thing would be FULL of junk on each floor , often to the point that bedrooms and other areas looked like a storage building ... all of this in the home of a single old lady often that couldnt even get around herself and couldnt even go upstairs or downstairs due to health ... i feel sorry for their kids
Love this! Ask them now what items they want.
Very true. My dad’s wife if 45 years died a year ago, my dad moved into assisted living. We sold his house and all the stuff. The tiny amount of stuff I took, or my kids wanted was very small. Getting his house emptied was very time consuming.
That must have been hard for you.
@@retirethisway It was physically hard, sort of emotionally hard. We'd already been through this w/ my mom and both my wife's parents. The lesson, tho, for all of us here, is to slowly get rid of stuff now.
Nobody wants your stuff... except perhaps for the local Goodwill store. Or, depending on what your stuff is, decluttering could turn into a small revenue stream- think Ebay, Craigslist, Etsy, etc. This realization alone ought to motivate some people to cleanup their home, garage, basement, attic space, etc. Less physical clutter often leads to less mental clutter- something we all could benefit from. This is a very well-chosen and retirement-appropriate topic. Bravo!
Absolutely, less clutter equals less stress! 🙌
Our home is free from clutter because both me and my wife are willing to go through things in our home on a regular basis. The older I get the less stuff I need and it looks like it will continue down this road for some time. I guess my regimented life in a children's home at age 5 to age 11 taught me stuff like this. Keep your space simple and clean and stay organized in all areas of your life. You will thank yourself when the difficult times come.
It's so nice to hear of a couple that are on the same page!
Thanks I needed this video!
I’m so glad it resonated with you!
I always say that if my house burned down tomorrow there are maybe three things I would miss. And most of those are things like my photos. Everything else is meaningless relatively speaking. A few years back my mom passed and it was a huge task to go thru all her things. So many memories. But ultimately no one wanted the actual stuff so we just threw it gave everything away. Reminded me I need to clean out my house little by little so my kids don’t have to do the same
That’s a great perspective!
When I retire early in 4 years I’m leaving everything I own behind. Going to donate everything, sell my condo, rent a small U-Haul trailer for my clothe and picture and head somewhere. 😊 not sure where yet.
Quite the adventure you’ve got planned!
A very relevant topic.
I have two sets of living parents and I know that day is coming. Both have vast quantities of stuff which causes me to look at my stuff. I have way too much stuff. I have a bedroom which is unusable because it is filled with stuff.
My dad has cognitive issues which means he cannot live by himself. My stepmom could easily pass away first as she has a number of health issues. So I foresee a day when I have to take my dad in to live with me and as of today, I would be unable to do so. So my goal has become to clean out enough crap to be able to take him in.
My current interests in no particular order are: backpacking/camping, travel, photography, and target shooting. So it makes sense to hold on to the stuff related to those activities.
That’s a good way to prioritize your things. Sounds like you have a tough situation with your dad. I hope everything works out well!
Great topic. I was just discussing this with a family member yesterday. It’s poignant when you move house and realize you have “stuff” you haven’t seen or touched in years. Other than my guitars (daughter has dibs), everything else my kids would want can fit into a 3 foot cube of space.
Thanks!
Knowing I will downsize in 2 years, ive been giving away clothing, kitchenware, lawn equipment and unused furniture to coworkers and neighbors. The rest will stay as a turn key sale. Its truly freeing.
That is awesome!
T, your right it’s the memories in your mind and heart that matter. Material things have a shelf life. I have some decluttering to do. Thank you for sharing.L
I’m so glad it resonated with you.
Couldn't agree more.
😀
The hard thing I have found is *knowing* what something cost to obtain but realising that very seldom does an item hold *any* sale value now ... or at least not enough to be worth the effort of advertising and shipping!
I have a house-full of belongings of my late wife's that I have not been able to bear to part with for more than ten years since her passing ... but I know I have to do it soon. Because I am planning on selling up to go and find a small retirement-den to curl up in for my last few years - our family house is too big for just me to rattle around in.
Letting go can be hard. Perhaps working with someone to help you would make the process easier?
Another great video, Trina. Before you can declutter your house or your garage, you have to declutter where those things live in your mind. Once you can dissociate the emotions tied to those items, you can make logical decisions about what to keep and what to get rid of.
Another aspect of declutterring is getting past keeping things because “they are just like brand new,” and begin to think of them from the standpoint of “will I use this item in the next year?” Once you conquer those two challenges, you realize the only things you’ve kept are things you’ll need or the very few things that have deep sentimental value to you.😊
You’ve hit the nail on the head! It’s all about the mind shift.
After dealing with cleaning out my mom’s house when she passed, I learned that a contents sale basically covers the cost of a dumpster to get rid of the remaining items nobody wants. There are a very few sentimental items we kept. Our family joke has become how many things in my home will one day end up in “the dumpster”. We now try to focus on keeping only the things we still use today.
Goodness! Funny and sad at the same time!
My mother starting giving stuff to us kids 30 years ago if we wanted it. It was so nice to know where she got it, how long ago and if it came from my grandparents or a relative. I believe that if you have nice China you should pack it up because daughters and grandkids may want it one day. If they don't they can sell it or give it away. But if you used it when they were young it may be a memory they want to hang on to. China is coming back with the young girls. I only have a few things in my house that mean something to me. I have boys and I do not want to leave them with a bunch of stuff but I have never been a clutter bug, it makes me very nervous to have a lot of stuff around me.
That's a great perspective. It's all about keeping the memories, not the stuff.
Such an important topic. We hold onto multiple generation's stuff. It's guilt and feeling the sense of loss all over again (if you go through the boxes and other items). I need to just start slowly. I really like the idea of doing it now and not making our children go through it. Thank you!
It is so freeing to do it now!
This is very helpful. I’m retiring next week! My first project is to start decluttering and clearing a path for my next chapter. Thank you!!
You're going to love it!
man i am dealin gwith my mom saving anything and everything and every year i have to throw away all her stuff
Sorry to hear that!
Awesome video and content. I love everything you said and I can’t even imagine relocating from Alaska. Your videos have improved so quickly, editing and on screen presentation, so amazing!❤
Thank you for your kind words! Practice makes perfect is my motto!
So true about your lived ones not wanting your stuff. My son is Gen Z and only wants a empty house left to him. Sad.😢
sell the house and enjoy the money now
🤣
Very well said. Thank you 😊
You are welcome!
Thanks for this great video! The term essentialism really resonated with me. For a couple of years, I have been working to simplify my home, things, and life. Especially after helping sort out my grandparents' overwhelming amount of belongings, which made me want to get rid of all my possessions. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
I’m glad you found it helpful!
This is a common problem with older home owners who have lived in their home for 30, 40, 50 or more years. Not only their own accumulated possessions, but often times their adult children's possessions, or even the possession of their parents. Downsizing should leave you OVERJOYED not OVERWHELMED.
I agree
Good info. Thank you!
😀
🎉🎉🎉🎉 Thanks for the video 🎉🎉🎉
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Great video, thankyou.
You’re welcome!
Thanks for the video. The only things I can see someone keeping are some hand tools of mine.
😀
OMG!!!!! THIS!!! Can you please meet with my wife and convince her!!!
🤣🤣
I am purposely over-stocking my toiletry cabinet so that whomever finds my body has to then figure what to do with cases of toothpaste and deoderant. :D
🤣
Lol
ha! donations to a shelter would come to my mind. They need that soap! :)
I've got a lot of stuff. Mostly because I just can't throw away something that's still good/works. I got a new tv, strictly because it uses less electricity and would save me $. There is nothing wrong w/ the old one, so I still have it. And all that stuff I am saving because I might need it someday? Sure, I haven't needed it in the last 10 yrs, but I can guarantee that a week after I get rid of it, I will....and I'm going to be PISSED if I have to buy another one!!!!
Thanks for sharing!
Its my shit im keeping it. I dont care if they want it. Im going to enjoy it. When im gone i wont care what they do with it.
🤔
Sounds like a Joshua Becker video.
😀
I always say that if my house burned down tomorrow there are maybe three things I would miss. And most of those are things like my photos. Everything else is meaningless relatively speaking.
😀
I am a bit worried that if I retire early I will fall apart mentally and physically. Some of the guys from a club I join has sold property and retired earlier and if looks like they are aging quicker and getting out of shape and have no energy even though the can sleep as long as they want. Perhaps the body and brain just adapt to the new situation and rotten from inside.
It’s important to stay active and engaged in retirement!
But what about my baseball card collection.
🤣🤣
It's all crap. Chuck it.
🤣🤣
When my wife passed, I took her clothes to the thrift store. I kept the family photo albums, though.🥲
🤗