Congratulations! Deciding to move is no small decision, whether it’s for work, education, or just a change of environment. It involves the courage to step into a different path and, in some cases, get out of your comfort zone.
For that, it pays to make the day of moving easier and more convenient. Dumpster company RedBoxPlus of Nashville has come up with these 9 healthy tips to make moving easier:
1. Plan and organize.
Before you start scrambling towards your closet and start throwing things off the shelves, get yourself some calendar and notepad first (or better yet, your most trusted planning and organizing tools, like your cellphone). You might want to set your moving day if you haven’t done it yet.
From the big day, set weeks, even months, of “decluttering and packing” sessions. For example, you can put under “Saturday Week 1” (X weeks before the Big Day) “decluttering the attic,” then “Sunday Week 1) “packing movables.” You can even place the number of hours to spend, or, if you’re a stickler for time, the exact hour of the day (ex. 9 am to 12 noon).
Make your planning and organizing as doable as possible so you can stick to the schedule. Forget days before the moving day 一 you’ll only risk leaving important things behind if you do things at the 11th hour!
Besides starting your decluttering and packing things early, it also pays to do it gradually and in stages. You will eventually see the reason as you go through the tips below.
2. Declutter systematically and thoroughly.
Typically, there are three major steps when you organize things around your room (or house) before the big day: 1) decluttering, 2) packing and 3) moving. When we declutter, we often begin with our own rooms (or, if moving out of our parents’ home, we begin with a section of our own room).
Rather than starting with our own rooms, however, where many of the things we often need are placed, start at the section of your house where many of the things are not often needed or are easily disposable. From there, continue the decluttering area by area or room by room.
On the other hand, if you’re moving out of your family home and away from your parents, you might want to start with that area in your room where your old and unused clothes are.
3. Let it go.
Got an old pair of socks an ex gave you? Or that kitschy holiday sweater that you haven’t worn since eons ago? Or how about that mug you used only once and totally forgot about ever since? If you do, then do yourself a favor by disposing of them. You have lived the past year without these things, so chances are you won’t need them in the next year or even years.
The same goes for all clothes you haven’t worn for the past twelve months, gadgets you haven’t used for the past year, and all bits and bobs you’ve nearly forgotten and may forget again in the next six months. Have them stored in containers and set some time to either sell them online, dispose through a neighborhood garage sale, or give them off to charity.
Decluttering will not only help you lessen your travel load and lower the expenses for moving, you’ll also feel healthier with less emotional baggage. Good riddance.
4. Tag ‘em up.
Make sure that each moving container you use is well documented and tagged. Have your name and forward address on each box just in case they get misplaced. You may even come up with your own inventory list to ensure every container and all the items in it get moved to your destination.
5. Pack by section.
Want to get quickly organized after unpacking when you arrive in your destination? Make use of home containers. For example, have kitchen utensils in their kitchen shelf trays, socks and small clothing in storage bins, or your pet’s and toiletries in one of their favorite “boxes”. Afterward, group or box them according to the “areas” of the room or house.
6. Have a sorting party.
Think you’ll have a difficult time doing away with some of your old things? You on your own may be on a journey of rediscovery and letting go, but doing it with the most trusted person, like a couple of BFFs, may help to declutter and pack faster. They’ll be able to help you point out which things you need to do away with and reduce your sentimentality over things that need to be disposed of. After all, who saw you all messed up and in tears when you broke with your ex?
7. Look forward.
Disassembling, sorting, and packing the bits and bobs around your home can be a chore, but if you think of the rewards ahead, it will make all the effort easier. Think of the upcoming seasonal change when you arrive at your destination. Imagine all the new (or old-new) faces, places, and everything you will be doing. Picture out the new home you will be living in, and how you will be living. You can even look forward to the road trip involved during the move!
8. Convenience? Leave it to the Pros.
Let’s face it 一 moving can be such a chore when so many things are involved, especially with junk disposal. Not only do you need to mind local regulations for proper waste management, you will also need a sizable container, some travel time, and energy to contain all things you need to throw away.
While moving vans are there to help you get all your important things to your new home, disposal of unwanted items can be tricky. It’s not a hundred percent guarantee you’ll be able to sell off your unnecessary bits and bobs either online or through the garage sale, and some junk may be too worn out or unusable to give to charity.
This is where roll-off dumpster rentals come in. These pros, like the guys at Dumpster company RedBox+ of Nashville, are well-versed in local waste management regulations and can do the junk disposal for you. All you need to do is contact them, and the dumpster rental company will deliver and drive off the container for you at your convenient time.
9. Breathe.
Like moving itself, the preparation to move is a kind of journey. This is the perfect time to go through everything you have and do away with the bits that are no longer necessary, and even weigh you down. Make this pre-moving stage more fun by setting milestones, periods for taking breaks, and even times just to relish your accomplishment. By planning ahead and pacing things accordingly, you will find yourself not just time to breathe but even a time to celebrate and look forward to the big day.
So which of these tips have you practiced before? Which of these tips are you drawn to and make you think of doing? Feel free to drop us a comment!
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Getting settled in Tennessee? Dumpster company RedBoxPlus of Nashville brings you these 9 tips to make moving easier!