Articles

These Experts Help People Downsize and Move

"Move managers" help seniors sort through a lifetime of stuff--and they offer emotional support, too.

8 Tips for Decluttering Before a Big Move

Downsizing often means there’s no room for all that stuff. Here’s how to tackle it.

Moving Tips

These tips offer a checklist on things to transfer and cancel before changing homes.

Don’t Make These Mistakes When Handling Your Parents’ Estate

Cleaning out the estate of a loved one is never easy. Lots of memories, sentimental collectibles—and roll-up-your-sleeves work—are involved.

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning: How to Free Yourself and Your Family from a Lifetime of Clutter (The Swedish Art of Living and Dying Series)

A charming, practical, and unsentimental approach to putting a home in order while reflecting on the tiny joys that make up a long life.

In Sweden there is a kind of decluttering called döstädning, dö meaning "death" and städningmeaning "cleaning." This surprising and invigorating process of clearing out unnecessary belongings can be undertaken at any age or life stage but should be done sooner than later, before others have to do it for you. In The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, artist Margareta Magnusson, with Scandinavian humor and wisdom, instructs readers to embrace minimalism. Her radical and joyous method for putting things in order helps families broach sensitive conversations, and makes the process uplifting rather than overwhelming.

Margareta suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you’d ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children’s art projects). Digging into her late husband’s tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go.

The Minimalist Home: A Room by Room Guide to a Decluttered and Refocused Life

A popular minimalist blogger and author of The More of Less shows you how to methodically turn your home into a place of peace, contentment, and purposeful living.

One of today's most influential minimalist advocates takes us on a decluttering tour of our own houses and apartments, showing us how to decide what to get rid of and what to keep. He both offers practical guidelines for simplifying our lifestyle at home and addresses underlying issues that contribute to overaccumulation in the first place.

The purpose is not just to create a more inviting living space. It's also to turn our life's HQ - our home - into a launching pad for a more fulfilling and productive life in the world.

Things That Matter: Overcoming Distraction to Pursue a More Meaningful Life

In Things That Matter, Joshua Becker uses practical exercises, questions, insights from a nationwide survey, and success stories to give you the motivation you need to:

· Identify the pursuits that matter most to you

· Align your dreams with your daily priorities

· Recognize how money and possessions keep you from happiness

· Become aware of how others’ opinions of you influence your choices

· Embrace what you’re truly passionate about instead of planning that next escape

· Figure out what to do with all those emails, notifications, and pings

· Let go of past mistakes and debilitating habits

Things That Matter is a book about living well. It’s about overcoming the chatter of a world focused on all the wrong things. It’s about rethinking the common assumptions of today to find satisfaction and fulfillment tomorrow.