When you think about decluttering, it’s likely you’ll think about making your home or workspace tidier and removing anything that doesn’t need to be there. However, although that is definitely important and can actually help not just in a practical way, but with your mental health as well, you might also need to work on decluttering your mind from time to time. 

The fact is that our minds often become cluttered with so many different thoughts and worries, not to mention all the distractions we find all over the place. This mental clutter leads to problems like stress, anxiety, and depression, and we’ll often find we feel overwhelmed if nothing else. That’s why it’s so important to work on decluttering your mind as well as your home, and if you’re not sure where to start, here are some pointers to help you.

Know You’re Cluttered

Before you can start to declutter your mind, you need to know it’s cluttered in the first place – otherwise you’re not going to know it’s time to do anything. So when you start to feel overwhelmed, take a step back and think about what’s causing the problem – what patterns or actions trigger the overwhelm and stress?

It’s a good idea to take some time to sit quietly and just track your thoughts as they come to you. If you do that, you’ll be able to spot any recurring problems and worries, negative self-talk, or distractions that take up space in your mind and essentially make it so full that it starts to be an issue. Once you know it’s happening, you can work on stopping it from taking over. 

Practice Mindfulness 

Mindfulness might just be the greatest tool you have when it comes to decluttering your mind because it effectively empties it for you. Mindfulness is all about paying attention to the present moment completely openly, and not thinking about the past or the future (both of which can cause stress). Although it’s not always an easy thing to do, once you get the hang of mindfulness, it really can make a big difference to how you feel. 

Regular mindfulness practice like deep breathing, meditation, or perhaps yoga, can help you understand more about your thoughts and emotions, and when you understand, you’ll know what bits of clutter you can get rid of. Of course, don’t forget that hobbies and self-care are also forms of mindfulness, so if you don’t like the idea of specific mindfulness exercises, you can do plenty of other things to help yourself feel better. 

Simplify Your Schedule 

Isn’t it great to be busy? Don’t we tell ourselves that being busy is good and having little to do (or even nothing to do) is bad? Don’t we pride ourselves on taking on too much and never actually having time to enjoy life? Well, that last idea might not be something you actively do, but when you think about it, you probably do it all the same. 

We live in a society where being busy (or too busy) is seen as a positive thing and something to strive for, but the reality is that it’s bad for you and will generally lead to problems, including a very cluttered mind. That’s why it’s a good idea to take a close look at your schedule and identify anything that’s draining your time and energy without adding value to your life – once you start looking, you’ll find a lot of them.

Whether it’s work-related tasks, household chores, or personal commitments, think about which activities are good for you and which aren’t, and simplify your schedule accordingly. If you love making music and want to get into music publishing, for example, that’s something to focus on, and if you need to stop doing other things so you can enjoy it, that’s precisely what you should do. Focus on what brings you joy and happiness and your mind will be a lot less cluttered. 

Be Compassionate With Yourself

Something else that can help when it comes to learning how to declutter your mind is to be more compassionate with yourself – that’s something a lot of people tend to forget to do as they’re making their way through life, and if you forget, you’ll soon get stressed and overwhelmed. 

It’s only natural to experience setbacks and challenges along the way in life, but if you always remember you’re doing your best with the knowledge and resources you have, that’s going to help – it’s a way of treating yourself with kindness and understanding, and when you support yourself, you’ll know how to prevent yourself from becoming overwhelmed and declutter your mind for ultimate peace.