I started working on a pile of my procrasta-clutter while watching this. By the end of the video I had put away every thing that I had piled up on my dresser! I was a little shocked because I only did steps 1 and 2! I had been avoiding that pile for weeks, thinking it would be hard. Thank you ❤
A few weeks ago, I ordered a box of faux greenery & berries. When it arrived, I checked the contents of the box and put it "somewhere". When I decided it was time to use the items, I couldn't remember where I put the box. 🤔 I looked in lots of random places until this clicked in my mind: "If I needed greenery & berry picks, where would I look for them first?" My answer: "With the Christmas decor." Guess what? The box was there! I want to make sure I ask myself that question on all incoming items, so I'll know later where I put them! 😊
We now use The No Mess Method in each area bc I have purged over 200,000 items following this method in 20 months, I will swear by it till the day I die, likely. I can't imagine finding a better process especially for those w/ compromised health/physical limitations/chronic pain.
Same. She nailed it! I was like... how do you know me so well? That's my number one way my house will turn sideways is when I have to look for things and it turns into a cyclone.
Never say never, Reid 😅 I love Reid's ending comments! I just did a full day of decluttering while listening to your videos. It was like you were here with me. I filled many donate boxes and trash bags. The hard things became No Brainers. Thank you, Dana!
This is fantastic! I literally did this this morning. I was helping my daughter try to find the cord for her cd player, and I pulled out all the trash under the living room shelves and couch. Couldn't find the cord, but got rid of the trash. 😂
This is embarrassingly mind-blowing. And this is why the world needs you, Dana. You speak to those of us who just don't get what's so obvious to everyone else.
This makes sense. I have found stuff in places I looked for them literally 3 times! 😈 Sometimes we just got to slow down and chill out and go methodically through the stuff.
I don't think anyone has ever mirrored my head about losing things as well as you did in this video, AND gave some concrete steps to avoid the spin out. When you first talked about the piles, and then new piles, and the thought, 'well, I don't think it's there but maybe it is' when you just made that pile, I almost had tears. I have even used the line, 'one match and this crap will disappear forever' has crossed my mind when in the panic of a lost item. Thank you, thank you.
You mentioned this video was filmed in the summer of 2024...now that it is November, I'm wondering if you ever did come across your passport? Thank you for all the helpful methods you teach! 😊
My current best "lost and never found" object story dates back to this past spring. I woke up in the morning and reached for my glasses (basically blind without them) and I felt my hand bump an object and *heard* it hit the floor. Since I had gone to bed the night before without putting my retainer in, I figured that was it and that I'd have to look under the bed before making it. Well, it was the retainer but it wasn't anywhere I could see, including by using the flashlight on my phone or poking under furniture with a broom handle. I was on my way out of town for a couple of weeks in a week's time and needed that retainer! (It has a replica tooth of one that broke off below the gum line and can't be replaced by an implant.) I ended up having a new retainer made. It cost me about $600, involved 2 trips to the dentist, and I got it 2 days before my flight. I have yet to find the retainer in my under 400 sq ft studio. It's probably under a heavy piece of furniture that I can't move by myself, but I have no idea why I can't see it. Sigh.
You hit on the real reason I started following you years ago. I was tired of not finding what I was looking for because too much stuff was on top of it.
You're number one best rule: The Container Concept. Your number two best rule: DECLUTTER WHILE LOOKING! OMG this is my new favorite rule!!! IT'S HUUUUUUUUUGE Thank you!
This is a great video! ( I showed it to my kids). Edit to say the reason I showed it to my kids is that their current process is to glance around, panic and ask mom where it is. I can usually see it from the doorway or where I'm sitting :D This is very helpful because it never occurred to me that I need to teach them how to find lost things.
This is so much better than my old solution to my OCD habit of 'must find' mentality. Buying another one instead of looking for hours to calm myself gets expensive.
(Although, in the end, Dana did have to pay to get another, expedited, passport to replace the one that was missing.) But I get that having a plan is more helpful than random panic. My question for Dana would be whether she ever feels compelled to look through the garbage bag or the donate box when searching for something important. I actually wouldn't be very likely to see the secondary pile as a new thing to look through but I might distrust my actions and think, "maybe I put it in the bag or box by accident, or with something else and just didn't notice".
Watching this while I clean! My house is an overwhelming mess right now and I just haven't felt like dealing with it for the past few weeks. But today I want to tackle it! I'm starting with one room at a time and trying really hard to use the take it there now method. I can do this 💪
Very helpful! We are undergoing a renovation and I’m moving stuff out of the way and then back again. I can’t wait for it to be done. The good part is I’m letting go of things and donating a lot. It feels like I’m moving because I’m reinventing our spaces. The bonus is that my husband is getting rid of things in the basement and cleaning there. Another thing about tidying up a space is I’m physically touching things and if someone needs it I can direct them to where it is.
Where would I look for it first worked a treat for me the other day. I thought I’d packed up the thing (to move house) and couldn’t find it in that area so I looked where it would be if it wasn’t packed up. There it was and I sent out a thank you to Dana.
Dana, this is VERY helpful!! I'm sorry you didn't find your passport 🥺 but your loss was my gain, because it all makes sense and helps me move forward, and keep making every space BETTER. 💐
Had to watch this video; I lost TWO pairs of small red-handled scissors in my dining room/craft room at the same time, and have cleaned up for guests and still not found them after weeks. I had to buy new scissors!
I have been saying for the last two years, as my decluttering with Dana has uncovered my house, that when I lose something, I clean and find it. Thank you for all you do!
I renewed my passport a few weeks ago, so I knew exactly where it was. I don't know why, but I absolutely HAD to check to be sure. Whew, it was there! I don't lose things often these days, but I hadn't thought of using the decluttering process for searching. That's a great idea!
We came back from visiting my daughter and her husband in Canada this morning. After reading your comment, and watching the video, I realised I had not put our passports away. I went and looked in the car where I put them after crossing the border and they were there. Thank goodness for this video and your comment. Thank you.
I've always (long before knowing your method) practiced "if I 've lost something, I tidy up until I find it". But I used to do it haphazardly, because I had no actual method for tidying. Since learning the no-mess decluttering method, when I lose something, it now signals to me "I need to declutter, or at the very least do a 5 minute pick up. I do this in the area where the lost thing is most likely to be. Luckily, thank you Dana, I'm past the point of having significant piles of things. But some stuff scattered around that prevents me from visually knowing what's there, sure. As I say. 5 minutes. Possibly another 5 minutes in another are of the house.
I cannot bear to just look for something. First, I have lost something (again!) so I often feel bad about that, especially losing my purse (wallet). The second thing is just looking for things is so stressful, whereas if I am tidying and putting things away, I am doing something as well as looking. I cannot abide looking for things (sometimes I have to though if I need to go out for example). So thank you Dana. I'm glad to have found a similar strategy as yours!!
We go to visit my daughter and her husband in Canada frequently as we only live 2 hours away. We got home this morning, and after watching your video, I realised I had not put my husband's and my passports away. I went out to the car and sure enough they were there where we put them when we cross the border. Thank you Dana!
My husband has a name for my frenzied/self-loathing/Where is it??? state you describe; he calls it "Search Mode". You're right, you can rarely find anything when in Search Mode! I try to calm down and think back to when I last had or saw the item and take it from there, but that's not enough. I love your steps for taking away the "let me check this place AGAIN" waste of energy and time. Thanks yet again, Dana; you've been such a blessing in my life for a couple of years now, and somehow you keep finding new ways to help me. 🤩
Thank you so much for this video! That's something I never thought to do because it seems so counterintuitive but it makes so much sense! I'll absolutely try this method the next time I'm frantically looking for something (so probably today :D). I also think this will push my decluttering process forward quite a bit because the moments I'm looking for something are always the moments where I can see very clearly how much of the other stuff I'm keeping is actually useless trash. I'm always like "woah these stupid things are in the box when all I actually need right now is *important item*?!? I sooo much want to get rid of them" but never allowed myself to do it because "no no, I'm not decluttering right now, I'm searching for something". Now next time I'm looking for something, I'll feel free to use this as a decluttering opportunity.
What really messes me up is when I have "the place" where something goes, and then I either move the furniture around or remove it on my decluttering journey.... then all of a sudden I I have the conundrum of remembering where something went but THAT PLACE DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE! That's when the panic sets in.
I have heard her mention somewhere(the QA sessions maybe?) to put a reminder sticky note or have a little journal book to jot down where the new home is whenever you have to permanently relocate something that you often need to search for. As you reduce the options for locations of "where would I look for it first," it becomes a ton easier to find those things on the first pass through.
I can so relate. We moved 3 times in 3 years, then changed bedroom and playroom over. The number of times I thought 'it's in that specific box, but where is the box?!'
Dana, this is SO SMART!!! If I'm going through it anyway, why not leave it better when I'm done? 🤩 THANK YOU for continuing to share REAL LIFE Decluttering with us! ♥️
hooray yay this is me ha ha he he thankful you are here.OH Dana I truly feel for you..but thanks again for sharing we need reminding so as to reinforce the method.WHEW bless you
I don't know if you spotted my question or if you just somehow are truly in sync with every need I have, but this was a question that I presented a while ago and to whomever sparked your podcast on this, I couldn't be more thankful. Your answer was substantive and gave me answers. You describe me perfectly. I wish you could see me tearing through bags and boxes when I'm looking for something in a hurry. Now I know the steps to find what I need! I couldn't be more thankful for you, Dana.
There has to be some kind of special prize you can be awarded for this. Maybe from the APA or some neurological association or something. In the meantime, our undying gratitude will have to suffice! 🙂💕
Had a similar situation with a passport not in the chest drawer where I kept it, went through the whole experience of having to travel to the nearest same-day passport location (agreed that it's awful!) so that I would be able to fly, only to figure out afterwards that the passport had fallen over the back rim of the drawer and was stuck at the base of the chest in between the drawers and the hardboard! Did you look there?
There may be a couple of items that fell out the back of a work drawer like that, but my work desk weighs about 600 pounds and takes at least 2 strong people to move (L shaped) so moving it hasn't happened! Might be interesting to be a "fly on the wall" at some point in the future when someone else moves or disposes of the desk!
This is brilliant! I do eBay and have trouble finding things on a regular basis. It is so frustrating and the items always seem to be at the very bottom of the most bottom bin. Anyway, I will be doing this for every order from here on out. This will turn a typically frustrating experience into a productive one and help me organize my inventory at the same time. Thank you so much, Dana!!
LOL I'm looking for my food scale. I don't think I decluttered it in the last year. So if I didn't, that means it's hiding under something that I have been shifting or piling in the dining room. I'll look again tonight/tomorrow, before my declutter coaches show up on Saturday. 😂
I love your videos 🤩! I learn a lot, I can totally relate to every situation and laugh with you! And enjoy your beautiful curls! God bless you and your family, Dana!
I’ve lost/misplaced a $100 gift card that I could really use. I will use this process to look for it. I have accidentally knocked things off into a little trashcan that I have next to my couch and my chair. I have even lost entire sets of keys that I know now fell into the trashcan because I’ve moved since then. At any rate, I would not have lost the gift card had I not headache, big pile on the table and it most likely slid off. Thank you so much for this video, it gives me hope.
Thank you so much for always sharing your wisdom! This happened to me this morning. We looked everywhere (creating new piles in the process) for our puppy’s harness/leash combo before I had to rush to work. Never found it in the piles where someone (*cough* the one who did not have to go to work this morning) swore it would be. Lo and behold, I get to work and see it in my back seat still attached to his car harness from when said person took him to the park. 😂
Oh, Dana! I couldn't find several credit or debit cards, one of my photo IDs either health card or driver's license, don't remember what else. I don't use my scanner very often but the next time I used it guess what was still on the platen⁉️
When my girls were little and we couldn’t find something, we would go on a “treasure hunt.” It excited them to loom for treasure, as opposed to me telling them, “Let’s go look for your lost item,” which sounds a lot more like work!
I am usually hunting for knitting or crochet tool or pattern. Generally I find it in the bottom of a work in progress project bag. Finish it February will be busy! 😊
Dana, your combination of life experience, analysis, and teaching, communication and theatric skills make you such a gift. I am really grateful for you. ❤
That’s me, Im always looking for lost things that when i ask myself where would i look for this i go and put it there but months later when i need it i can never find that thing for the life of me😢
This is November. I take it that your husband lived through that. 😅 So grateful for this process because before I would frantically look for my keys every day. Now I don’t. They’re where they should be and when they’re are not I use that process to find them.
I’ve always had a problem with putting something important in a ‘safe place’. Yeah sure I’ll remember it’s there. I had to stop putting stuff in a safe place.
I identify with this. Make your "find it now" desperate search a decluttering exercise, spending your time wisely, killing 2 birds with one stone as my grandma used to say.
Okay, so you filmed this months ago. Has the passport turned up yet? I'm dying to know where it is!!! And I have a sudden urge to go lay my hands on every passport I might ever need...
I keep my passport in one highly specific location (except when I'm actively travelling) and felt compelled to go check on it. It's there and is still good until early 2026. However, that means I should start the process of renewing it next summer, whether I'm planning to go anywhere or not, since most carriers require that it be good for 6 months (even if you're only going away for a week).
Currently looking for unopened pacifyers and holders i bought for my son just before he quit a year ago. Last spring they were in my drawer, but moved tgem sonewhere good. My daugher is now 9months and in need of bigger pacifiers and holders... 😅 but they are nowere to be found. Looked everywhere i have put babystuff or babyointments etc. And its just gone 😅
I use something then don't put it where it goes. I forget where that is. Then i usually have to retrace my steps to find it. Often the thing is underneath something else. Since I HATE looking for things I've started always putting it back after I use it. Kathy B
My Mum would just shove stuff in drawers and it would take me 20mins every time to find something. It drove me batty (as a bee). She never saw the problem with not knowing where anything was in a huge house.
I'm the opposite. In my disaster, I know where EVERYTHING is (I called it my superpower). It's when I organize and clean that I can't remember where I put something. Except car keys. Always on the hook by the door. I could never remember where they were until I did that.
When it comes to ID containing items like a passport, I would have high anxiety. Dana, did you check any bags or purses you might have used on your last trip to carry your passport? Sometimes it can be forgotten in an inner zippered pocket. Also, just a friendly unsolicited piece of advice, but keep an eye on your credit rating in case someone took it. Look for new activity you don't recognize. Identity theft is much easier with your passport. Of course, I am really hoping that is not happening, but I would have felt bad not mentioning it. Thank you for all you do.
Have you by any chance looked between the front seats of your husband's car to see if your passport may have slid down in that little crevice between the seats and the console? Or even under the seats?
I need to make a tab to hook my dogs' muzzles on so they can be easily found in the car. Plus I guess it wouldn't hurt to do the decluttering process for the car - always lots of trash there, right!?!
Dana my brain can't rest now I still want to know where your passport went🤣 It feels like it should have ended on how you did actually find it when you returned from your trip. It was in the car Or it was still in the scanner at work. 😮💨 ( otherwise thank you for another way to use your technique. It wasn't necessary for you to have such a good example yourself.🤪
Love the content, so helpful, the examples are relatable. Might I suggest less repetition and more succinct? I lose interest midway but I really want to know the ending of the video. Maybe demonstrate while you talk?
I started working on a pile of my procrasta-clutter while watching this. By the end of the video I had put away every thing that I had piled up on my dresser! I was a little shocked because I only did steps 1 and 2! I had been avoiding that pile for weeks, thinking it would be hard. Thank you ❤
I had been avoiding piles like the plague. Good for you!
Yep, that's the motivation she arouses in me whenever I watch a video of hers. Never fails.
Aren’t we so grateful for our lovely and helpful Dana!!!
Yes, we are 😍
100%
Yes yes yes. Thanks for Dana. She is -REAL, no BS, shes clear, shes fun.
A few weeks ago, I ordered a box of faux greenery & berries. When it arrived, I checked the contents of the box and put it "somewhere". When I decided it was time to use the items, I couldn't remember where I put the box. 🤔 I looked in lots of random places until this clicked in my mind: "If I needed greenery & berry picks, where would I look for them first?" My answer: "With the Christmas decor." Guess what? The box was there! I want to make sure I ask myself that question on all incoming items, so I'll know later where I put them! 😊
Thank you for the idea!
Success!!
We now use The No Mess Method in each area bc I have purged over 200,000 items following this method in 20 months, I will swear by it till the day I die, likely. I can't imagine finding a better process especially for those w/ compromised health/physical limitations/chronic pain.
Oh my goodness - the looking through the piles multiple times because "what if I missed it" is SO REAL to me. Glad you addressed this topic!
Same. She nailed it! I was like... how do you know me so well? That's my number one way my house will turn sideways is when I have to look for things and it turns into a cyclone.
Never say never, Reid 😅
I love Reid's ending comments!
I just did a full day of decluttering while listening to your videos. It was like you were here with me. I filled many donate boxes and trash bags. The hard things became No Brainers. Thank you, Dana!
This is fantastic! I literally did this this morning. I was helping my daughter try to find the cord for her cd player, and I pulled out all the trash under the living room shelves and couch. Couldn't find the cord, but got rid of the trash. 😂
This is embarrassingly mind-blowing. And this is why the world needs you, Dana. You speak to those of us who just don't get what's so obvious to everyone else.
This makes sense. I have found stuff in places I looked for them literally 3 times! 😈 Sometimes we just got to slow down and chill out and go methodically through the stuff.
You can also ask another person to look for the item with you. Fresh perspective is often helpful👍
As I get older and have less short- term memory, I am motivated to declutter so I can do this. Thank you. ❤
I don't think anyone has ever mirrored my head about losing things as well as you did in this video, AND gave some concrete steps to avoid the spin out. When you first talked about the piles, and then new piles, and the thought, 'well, I don't think it's there but maybe it is' when you just made that pile, I almost had tears. I have even used the line, 'one match and this crap will disappear forever' has crossed my mind when in the panic of a lost item. Thank you, thank you.
🤣 Disturbingly relatable and very funny. 😅 Nice adapting of your no- mess system to searching for lost and misplaced items. 👍
You mentioned this video was filmed in the summer of 2024...now that it is November, I'm wondering if you ever did come across your passport?
Thank you for all the helpful methods you teach! 😊
Great question. I’m wondering too! 😊
Me too!
Me three! (Or four 😅)
Someone please ask on the next live stream!
Counting on you all 😂 ❤
My current best "lost and never found" object story dates back to this past spring. I woke up in the morning and reached for my glasses (basically blind without them) and I felt my hand bump an object and *heard* it hit the floor. Since I had gone to bed the night before without putting my retainer in, I figured that was it and that I'd have to look under the bed before making it. Well, it was the retainer but it wasn't anywhere I could see, including by using the flashlight on my phone or poking under furniture with a broom handle. I was on my way out of town for a couple of weeks in a week's time and needed that retainer! (It has a replica tooth of one that broke off below the gum line and can't be replaced by an implant.) I ended up having a new retainer made. It cost me about $600, involved 2 trips to the dentist, and I got it 2 days before my flight. I have yet to find the retainer in my under 400 sq ft studio. It's probably under a heavy piece of furniture that I can't move by myself, but I have no idea why I can't see it. Sigh.
I just moved my gas stove and found the revereware lid to my big pot that suddenly disappeared 15 years ago.
What a great idea for a video. You’re clearly helping people.
You hit on the real reason I started following you years ago. I was tired of not finding what I was looking for because too much stuff was on top of it.
You're number one best rule: The Container Concept. Your number two best rule: DECLUTTER WHILE LOOKING! OMG this is my new favorite rule!!! IT'S HUUUUUUUUUGE Thank you!
This is a great video! ( I showed it to my kids). Edit to say the reason I showed it to my kids is that their current process is to glance around, panic and ask mom where it is. I can usually see it from the doorway or where I'm sitting :D This is very helpful because it never occurred to me that I need to teach them how to find lost things.
Congratulations on 200000 subscribers!
Yay!!!
This is so much better than my old solution to my OCD habit of 'must find' mentality. Buying another one instead of looking for hours to calm myself gets expensive.
(Although, in the end, Dana did have to pay to get another, expedited, passport to replace the one that was missing.) But I get that having a plan is more helpful than random panic. My question for Dana would be whether she ever feels compelled to look through the garbage bag or the donate box when searching for something important. I actually wouldn't be very likely to see the secondary pile as a new thing to look through but I might distrust my actions and think, "maybe I put it in the bag or box by accident, or with something else and just didn't notice".
I am just about to do that for the gold necklace I lost this morning. Maybe your comment will help me cool my Jets
Thank you so much for this, Dana! I always think what's wrong with me, and you make me feel "normal". I super appreciate you being so authentic. 💜
I begin to feel way more compassionate and accepting of myself , yet still motivated to do better , accomplish goals, simplify my life.
I did that with the pink slips of our cars. Reordered them and finally found them. There is hope for me! Thank you!
Watching this while I clean! My house is an overwhelming mess right now and I just haven't felt like dealing with it for the past few weeks. But today I want to tackle it! I'm starting with one room at a time and trying really hard to use the take it there now method. I can do this 💪
Yay!!
You got this! Stick to the steps, it really helps ❤️
Very helpful! We are undergoing a renovation and I’m moving stuff out of the way and then back again. I can’t wait for it to be done. The good part is I’m letting go of things and donating a lot. It feels like I’m moving because I’m reinventing our spaces. The bonus is that my husband is getting rid of things in the basement and cleaning there. Another thing about tidying up a space is I’m physically touching things and if someone needs it I can direct them to where it is.
Where would I look for it first worked a treat for me the other day. I thought I’d packed up the thing (to move house) and couldn’t find it in that area so I looked where it would be if it wasn’t packed up. There it was and I sent out a thank you to Dana.
Dana, this is VERY helpful!! I'm sorry you didn't find your passport 🥺 but your loss was my gain, because it all makes sense and helps me move forward, and keep making every space BETTER. 💐
Had to watch this video; I lost TWO pairs of small red-handled scissors in my dining room/craft room at the same time, and have cleaned up for guests and still not found them after weeks. I had to buy new scissors!
Which is exactly when you find them?
Extremely helpful, especially the systematizing the search effort so you can scrape yourself off the ceiling and FOCUS!
I have been saying for the last two years, as my decluttering with Dana has uncovered my house, that when I lose something, I clean and find it. Thank you for all you do!
I renewed my passport a few weeks ago, so I knew exactly where it was. I don't know why, but I absolutely HAD to check to be sure. Whew, it was there! I don't lose things often these days, but I hadn't thought of using the decluttering process for searching. That's a great idea!
We came back from visiting my daughter and her husband in Canada this morning. After reading your comment, and watching the video, I realised I had not put our passports away. I went and looked in the car where I put them after crossing the border and they were there. Thank goodness for this video and your comment. Thank you.
I've always (long before knowing your method) practiced "if I 've lost something, I tidy up until I find it". But I used to do it haphazardly, because I had no actual method for tidying. Since learning the no-mess decluttering method, when I lose something, it now signals to me "I need to declutter, or at the very least do a 5 minute pick up. I do this in the area where the lost thing is most likely to be.
Luckily, thank you Dana, I'm past the point of having significant piles of things. But some stuff scattered around that prevents me from visually knowing what's there, sure. As I say. 5 minutes.
Possibly another 5 minutes in another are of the house.
This makes so much sense. Thanks, Dana!
I’m feeling overwhelmed right at this moment! Glad you popped up in my feed. This will help, Thank you! Will subscribe 😊
Take care of you. ❤
I cannot bear to just look for something. First, I have lost something (again!) so I often feel bad about that, especially losing my purse (wallet). The second thing is just looking for things is so stressful, whereas if I am tidying and putting things away, I am doing something as well as looking. I cannot abide looking for things (sometimes I have to though if I need to go out for example). So thank you Dana. I'm glad to have found a similar strategy as yours!!
We go to visit my daughter and her husband in Canada frequently as we only live 2 hours away. We got home this morning, and after watching your video, I realised I had not put my husband's and my passports away. I went out to the car and sure enough they were there where we put them when we cross the border. Thank you Dana!
This is SOOOOO good! Thank you, Dana! I can already see this is going to be another life changing strategy you have shared! Thank you, thank you! 💕
So brilliant !
I’m cracking up 😂 as you’re re-enacting my process
Thank you ❣️
My husband has a name for my frenzied/self-loathing/Where is it??? state you describe; he calls it "Search Mode". You're right, you can rarely find anything when in Search Mode! I try to calm down and think back to when I last had or saw the item and take it from there, but that's not enough. I love your steps for taking away the "let me check this place AGAIN" waste of energy and time. Thanks yet again, Dana; you've been such a blessing in my life for a couple of years now, and somehow you keep finding new ways to help me. 🤩
Thank you so much for this video! That's something I never thought to do because it seems so counterintuitive but it makes so much sense! I'll absolutely try this method the next time I'm frantically looking for something (so probably today :D).
I also think this will push my decluttering process forward quite a bit because the moments I'm looking for something are always the moments where I can see very clearly how much of the other stuff I'm keeping is actually useless trash. I'm always like "woah these stupid things are in the box when all I actually need right now is *important item*?!? I sooo much want to get rid of them" but never allowed myself to do it because "no no, I'm not decluttering right now, I'm searching for something". Now next time I'm looking for something, I'll feel free to use this as a decluttering opportunity.
Dana. This is the thing. You’ve put together the WHY and the HOW it works. Just in the first half of this video!
What really messes me up is when I have "the place" where something goes, and then I either move the furniture around or remove it on my decluttering journey.... then all of a sudden I I have the conundrum of remembering where something went but THAT PLACE DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE! That's when the panic sets in.
I have heard her mention somewhere(the QA sessions maybe?) to put a reminder sticky note or have a little journal book to jot down where the new home is whenever you have to permanently relocate something that you often need to search for. As you reduce the options for locations of "where would I look for it first," it becomes a ton easier to find those things on the first pass through.
I can so relate. We moved 3 times in 3 years, then changed bedroom and playroom over. The number of times I thought 'it's in that specific box, but where is the box?!'
I feel simultaneously so called out and also so validated by this video 😂❤
Dana, this is SO SMART!!! If I'm going through it anyway, why not leave it better when I'm done? 🤩 THANK YOU for continuing to share REAL LIFE Decluttering with us! ♥️
hooray yay this is me ha ha he he thankful you are here.OH Dana I truly feel for you..but thanks again for sharing we need reminding so as to reinforce the method.WHEW bless you
I don't know if you spotted my question or if you just somehow are truly in sync with every need I have, but this was a question that I presented a while ago and to whomever sparked your podcast on this, I couldn't be more thankful. Your answer was substantive and gave me answers. You describe me perfectly. I wish you could see me tearing through bags and boxes when I'm looking for something in a hurry. Now I know the steps to find what I need! I couldn't be more thankful for you, Dana.
This is why Dana is Queen of decluttering.
Oh Dana! You know me so well!
There has to be some kind of special prize you can be awarded for this. Maybe from the APA or some neurological association or something. In the meantime, our undying gratitude will have to suffice! 🙂💕
AKA Kenneth Bailey I have found You such a Delight since Noni ! Thank You Forever !😊
Had a similar situation with a passport not in the chest drawer where I kept it, went through the whole experience of having to travel to the nearest same-day passport location (agreed that it's awful!) so that I would be able to fly, only to figure out afterwards that the passport had fallen over the back rim of the drawer and was stuck at the base of the chest in between the drawers and the hardboard! Did you look there?
That happened to me with my notebook 😮 I thought I've lost it.
There may be a couple of items that fell out the back of a work drawer like that, but my work desk weighs about 600 pounds and takes at least 2 strong people to move (L shaped) so moving it hasn't happened! Might be interesting to be a "fly on the wall" at some point in the future when someone else moves or disposes of the desk!
@liisaking1247 would it be possible to remove just the bottom drawer and get to the back of it ?
Oh god, it must've been so stressful. Sounds like your drawer was overstuffed and needed a decluttering 😅
I love short videos. Ty
This is brilliant! I do eBay and have trouble finding things on a regular basis. It is so frustrating and the items always seem to be at the very bottom of the most bottom bin. Anyway, I will be doing this for every order from here on out. This will turn a typically frustrating experience into a productive one and help me organize my inventory at the same time. Thank you so much, Dana!!
LOL I'm looking for my food scale. I don't think I decluttered it in the last year. So if I didn't, that means it's hiding under something that I have been shifting or piling in the dining room. I'll look again tonight/tomorrow, before my declutter coaches show up on Saturday. 😂
Could it be in a drawer and fall out of it to the wall side of a cabinet?😅
Thank you! Thank you!! Thank you!! Refreshing to hear and listen to someone who truly understands!!
I love your videos 🤩! I learn a lot, I can totally relate to every situation and laugh with you! And enjoy your beautiful curls! God bless you and your family, Dana!
This is fabulous. Thank you so much. I can’t tell you the panic that strikes me when I have to go look for something important…
My strategy for finding anything is to go to the obvious place where it should be and start decluttering. Then look under over and between!
I’ve lost/misplaced a $100 gift card that I could really use. I will use this process to look for it. I have accidentally knocked things off into a little trashcan that I have next to my couch and my chair. I have even lost entire sets of keys that I know now fell into the trashcan because I’ve moved since then. At any rate, I would not have lost the gift card had I not headache, big pile on the table and it most likely slid off. Thank you so much for this video, it gives me hope.
Put a lid on that trashcan so you have to lift it to put trash in it lol
Thank you so much for always sharing your wisdom! This happened to me this morning. We looked everywhere (creating new piles in the process) for our puppy’s harness/leash combo before I had to rush to work. Never found it in the piles where someone (*cough* the one who did not have to go to work this morning) swore it would be. Lo and behold, I get to work and see it in my back seat still attached to his car harness from when said person took him to the park. 😂
Oh, Dana! I couldn't find several credit or debit cards, one of my photo IDs either health card or driver's license, don't remember what else. I don't use my scanner very often but the next time I used it guess what was still on the platen⁉️
When my girls were little and we couldn’t find something, we would go on a “treasure hunt.” It excited them to loom for treasure, as opposed to me telling them, “Let’s go look for your lost item,” which sounds a lot more like work!
The link to How to Find a Place for Everything (at about 0:50) isn't there.
I am usually hunting for knitting or crochet tool or pattern. Generally I find it in the bottom of a work in progress project bag. Finish it February will be busy! 😊
How about the husband who is looking for something and that something is right in front of him. 😂
Dana, your combination of life experience, analysis, and teaching, communication and theatric skills make you such a gift. I am really grateful for you. ❤
No, it is not, but the link can be found at the bottom of the video description ❤
@@thelmakatherine5396 Thanks, it is there now, as is the card at the top of the page (they weren't there before).
Never say, never, Reid!
Thank you for sharing...I so understand!!!
I miss the days when you did actual declutter, even if it is a tiny tidy on tueday from sunday dawn. have a blessed thanksgiving.
Your coined terms are on point 😍
That’s me, Im always looking for lost things that when i ask myself where would i look for this i go and put it there but months later when i need it i can never find that thing for the life of me😢
This is November. I take it that your husband lived through that. 😅 So grateful for this process because before I would frantically look for my keys every day. Now I don’t. They’re where they should be and when they’re are not I use that process to find them.
Great books & terrific videos ❤❤❤ thank you!
I'll try this for finding a couple overdue library books. 😅
I’ve always had a problem with putting something important in a ‘safe place’. Yeah sure I’ll remember it’s there. I had to stop putting stuff in a safe place.
Dana, you are Always helpful. 😊
I identify with this. Make your "find it now" desperate search a decluttering exercise, spending your time wisely, killing 2 birds with one stone as my grandma used to say.
Okay, so you filmed this months ago. Has the passport turned up yet? I'm dying to know where it is!!!
And I have a sudden urge to go lay my hands on every passport I might ever need...
I keep my passport in one highly specific location (except when I'm actively travelling) and felt compelled to go check on it. It's there and is still good until early 2026. However, that means I should start the process of renewing it next summer, whether I'm planning to go anywhere or not, since most carriers require that it be good for 6 months (even if you're only going away for a week).
Following I want to know too!
Good morning, Dana 🤗
Currently looking for unopened pacifyers and holders i bought for my son just before he quit a year ago. Last spring they were in my drawer, but moved tgem sonewhere good. My daugher is now 9months and in need of bigger pacifiers and holders... 😅 but they are nowere to be found. Looked everywhere i have put babystuff or babyointments etc. And its just gone 😅
Good morning, Dana!
Yes! Maybe I missed it! 😳I’m not the only one 🙃
I use something then don't put it where it goes. I forget where that is. Then i usually have to retrace my steps to find it. Often the thing is underneath something else. Since I HATE looking for things I've started always putting it back after I use it.
Kathy B
My Mum would just shove stuff in drawers and it would take me 20mins every time to find something. It drove me batty (as a bee). She never saw the problem with not knowing where anything was in a huge house.
Excellent video! 👏😁
Thank you!
Very helpful
I'm the opposite. In my disaster, I know where EVERYTHING is (I called it my superpower). It's when I organize and clean that I can't remember where I put something. Except car keys. Always on the hook by the door. I could never remember where they were until I did that.
When it comes to ID containing items like a passport, I would have high anxiety. Dana, did you check any bags or purses you might have used on your last trip to carry your passport? Sometimes it can be forgotten in an inner zippered pocket. Also, just a friendly unsolicited piece of advice, but keep an eye on your credit rating in case someone took it. Look for new activity you don't recognize. Identity theft is much easier with your passport. Of course, I am really hoping that is not happening, but I would have felt bad not mentioning it. Thank you for all you do.
AND, there it was!
Have you by any chance looked between the front seats of your husband's car to see if your passport may have slid down in that little crevice between the seats and the console? Or even under the seats?
YES! If you have to pick up the trash to look under it ... don't put it back down!
I need to make a tab to hook my dogs' muzzles on so they can be easily found in the car. Plus I guess it wouldn't hurt to do the decluttering process for the car - always lots of trash there, right!?!
Oh Reid. I would gave said that 20 years ago too. But I have no idea where mine is right now. Lol
Person who stays to the end just to read Reid’s comments! Me! 😂
Dana my brain can't rest now I still want to know where your passport went🤣 It feels like it should have ended on how you did actually find it when you returned from your trip. It was in the car Or it was still in the scanner at work. 😮💨 ( otherwise thank you for another way to use your technique. It wasn't necessary for you to have such a good example yourself.🤪
Omg, I wonder where your passport is!
Wonder if the passport fell down behind the drawers??
K here. Wasn't it Tinkerbell that said she finds lost things in a fairy movie? ❤ 😂❤
since decluttering significantly I have developed a saying is "dont look, just tidy'
Love the content, so helpful, the examples are relatable. Might I suggest less repetition and more succinct? I lose interest midway but I really want to know the ending of the video. Maybe demonstrate while you talk?
👍
Note to the editor... "never say never"....😅
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