5 Types of Clutter: Which One is Holding You Back?

I FEEL that identity clutter in my blue frog collection. I started collecting when I was 11 and EVERYONE sees a "blue frog" ANYTHING as a perfect gift for me. I am 59 now. This past year I picked 4-5 blue frogs that I truly love and GAVE THE REST AWAY. Such freedom!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"We're people-pleasing our junk." Wow - that really struck a chord with me. Thanks - I needed to hear that. 🥺

My biggest struggle is fantasy clutter. In my mind I have all these great ideas and I buy all the things required but I run out of energy when it comes time to actually do it. Between working full time night shift, being a single parent, and dealing with Multiple Sclerosis I just can’t keep up.

"Fantasy clutter" - now there are two words I never expected to see paired together and making perfect sense

I think Identity Clutter is some of the hardest things to part with. It’s like giving up on a piece of your life, hopes and dreams. It has taken me a while to get past that.

I struggle with all of the types of clutter. It occurred to me watching this video that old photographs of people who've passed away, even their photo albums full of people I never knew is guilty clutter. It feels almost disrespectful to get rid of photographs of memories that meant so much to them. I have to remind myself as I go through them that a functional space is important and I'm not hurting my mom by throwing away valentines she got as a child.

Dear Cass I had an unexpected visitor today. He called less than 5 minutes before he arrived, and those 5 minutes were enough were enough for me to put away my "lazy clutter"!!! Thanks to you who taught me some method. I watch you adventures for a few years now. I'm so proud of my very acceptable home now. Thank you for all that and for your funny stories. 😁

I resonate with ALL of the different clutters. My mom had clutter challenges too. I'm now living in the house she lived in. She passed away a little over a year ago. I'm finally launching the big de-clutter and organizing programme. So happy I found you!

Super interesting video! It made me realize I have trouble with my identity clutter. I was a globe-trotter for many many years and worked for an adventure travel agency. It's so hard to explain but it's like I need to hang on to those things so that I can still be in this globe-trotter mindset if that makes sense!? It's actually the first time I talk about this and I feel a certain vulnerabily but at the same time I find it freeing...🌍🌟 P.S. I almost didn't post this comment but I decided it feels good to recognize it!💛

When I heard you talk about identity clutter previously a HUGE light bulb went off! My craft room was bursting at the seams with everything I thought I needed to keep. So much so that I couldn't use ANYTHING in the room since there was no space anywhere to try and do any crafts at all. I got rid of so much stuff and now I can actually craft! It's funny that my craft identity clutter kept me from crafting, but letting it go lets me actually be a crafter again. Thank you!!!

The guilty clutter for sure. My apartment was looking so nice for awhile. But after my parents both passed the last couple years, it is hard to part with some of their belongings. Especially ones that I grew up with. I also think there is a depression clutter. That is one of the hardest things to get through.

I just got rid of about 14 garbage bags of fantasy clutter. Whew! I'm a seamstress and I run a small business, but I had way too much fabric and I kept way too many scraps. Some bags went to our local thrift shop, and some went to a charity quilting group. My room can breathe now, and so can I!! Thank you for helping me to get inspired to do it!

Inheriting other people's clutter is hard. I lost my mom earlier this year, and am still going thru her things. I had to realize I have to let a lot of things go, and then it actually makes the things I keep more meaningful.

Identity clutter was the hardest for me to give up. I have had many hobbies, been a single working mom, homestead gardener, made all mine and my kids clothes. As I look back, I don’t know how I did it all. Life moved on, kids grew up, then I wanted to downsize to an apartment. I realized I was stuck when I packed up all my fabric to donate, and could not do it. It sat on a table for a whole year until one of my friends came, took it to the car and we took it to a place that made quilts! That was only one of my multiple identities, my life long ambition was to be an artist. I painted in oils, acrylics, watercolor, mixed media, all had their own stuff. It was difficult to narrow down my “when I grow up” identifications. In the mean time I started sewing and quilting again and the fabric stash grew. My creativity identity was taking over. Your channel as well as Dana and Dawn made me realize the chaos of my supplies in my small space was stifling any creativity I might have. It was hard, but I did it. I decided what I wanted to do, what would fit in my space, I think I am a ladybug, I want to have a home for my stuff when I’m not using it and not see it. I want my surfaces to be clear, minimal-ish and neat. I have accomplished a lot. It took a lot of time and many trips to donation sites. I don’t think I will ever be ‘done’ it takes maintenance. Thanks to you and your collaborations, I am so much better. I draw every day, my sketch book and pens fit in my purse! I paint in watercolor and all my stuff fits in one cube! My identity is identified! I’m living my dream, I am an artist. Thank you for helping me finally peel off the layers of my onion. I’m 75, lived a full happy life, raised kids for 50 years, empty nested finally living my dream. Thanks to minimizing and organizing. You are my hero.

Oh my GOODNESS! You speak my language! Identity or fantasy clutter are my biggest areas of accumulated stuff! We have many bins full of books that don't fit anywhere in our new house, but I cannot for the life of me throw out almost any!!!! I don't read them, but I would like to be known for "having resources and being knowledgeable" because I skim through them and like to share what I learned! Same thing with CLOTHES!!! Especially kids clothes... bins upon bins of stuff in the garage. So embarrassing! I pride myself on buying bargain deals from well-known brands. I love scoring a good deal from Old Navy or from children's brands. Because everything was soooo expensive and I purchased it at such a great deal, I can't donate them. Every piece of clothing has to be allocated to my friends' kids and it's SOOO hard to sort through piles to pick things for someone else's kid! We can't even organize our own clothes around here! Anyway, I'm now officially a storing Wearhouse for other people's kid's clothes! That's SAD! Fantasy clutter includes multiple pieces of makeup as I love to imagine trying new looks, and beauty product that I never use, but pride myself on knowing about and giving recommendations to others... and probably kid's pictures ON MY PHONE! Even though they are backed up online, I cannot bear erasing them on my phone. It feels like I'm failing them somehow... so, my phone is always overused and doesn't have any space for new photos or videos.

Oh, my! I listen to you and many others to get my house in order. This is one of the best, if not best explanations of clutter. I suffer from all these, but the one I especially find difficult is the identity clutter. I have lots of hobbies, and I’m a retired teacher. I’m slowly getting my house decluttered, and feeling more peaceful everyday. (It’s really just a few rooms! Most people would think I’ve got it together!) Thank you also for sharing all your struggles!

So many people inspire me, but there’s something about the way you inspire me that’s different. Thanks for being an inspiration to me.

Hey Cas! Sourdough starter is the kind of “pet” you only have to feed when you want to build it up for bread baking. It can be kept in the fridge when you want it to be “dormant…” then you can revive it by feeding it!😊

Homeless clutter is my biggest struggle! Thank you for identifying this for me. Now that I understand what it is, it will be so much easier to deal with it. Thank you for your encouraging, insightful and humorous videos.

Identity clutter gets me. I have held on to college biology notebooks for the last 25 years just because they look so nice and neat. No one else will ever care about this, but I feel so proud of myself for how much effort I put into my studies and how meticulous I was with my work.