From Compulsive Hoarder to Minimalist.

My bedroom had storage isles!

— The first thing they say about having a problem is to admit you have a problem.

“Hi, my name is Ken & I am a compulsive hoarder.”

You see those folks on TV with houses that are totally full and only little paths to navigate throughout their house . . . Yeah, that was where I was heading, not quite on that scale but pretty much getting there.

I had stacks of music & motorcycle magazines, boxes upon boxes of stuff. My bedroom turned into a storeroom with isles & paths through columns of my belongings. Like, who has isles in their bedroom? Especially ones that were floor to ceiling height.

I can’t really pinpoint where this all started, I guess I have always been like that. From an early age, I always had collections of stuff that I grew and grew. Then I suppose not getting rid of said collections before starting another really added to things.

Oh yeah, I wasn’t the kind of person that kept really gross stuff like used tissues and old food cartons, not sure if that was because I wasn’t that bad or because I used to be a bit of a germaphobe.

I had a lot of really cool things. Well, my friends and I thought a lot of it was pretty cool. I had a huge music collection. I used to DJ in clubs back in the days of CD’s, so I had a ridiculous amount of them. And being a DJ, I used to get a load free stuff from record companies and other DJ’s who knew I was a collector. . . Free stuff! Talk about a hoarder’s dream.

Just to let you know what kinda scale we are talking about; I had rows of motorcycle projects, literally many tonnes of motorcycle parts, piles of riding gear, hundreds of t-shirts, thousands of CD’s, vinyl & music memorabilia, floor to ceiling shelves of DVD’s, books, magazines, collectors figures, retro consoles & games, electronics & components plus some really random stuff.

What Changed?

I always knew I had a lot of stuff. But things changed when I realised that the stuff was like an anchor. I wasn’t in control - The mountain of inanimate objects I had amassed was.

For example, the 30 or so motorcycle projects + spares I owned; I had to regularly check they were stored properly from the elements, secure, and keep all paperwork up-to-date. I had a constant worry that some of them may be stolen. My t-shirts; Having so many, I had to air & rewash a lot of them, as most were only worn once or twice per year and got a bit musty from sitting.

“I was no longer in control and it was having a negative impact on my mental health.”

Minimalism

I’ll admit, I am not yet a true minimalist per se, but I have integrated minimalism into my life, bit by bit, slowly evolving to that stage. I’m not sure if I will one day get there. But now, I am certainly a lot closer to that stage than being a hoarder.

Maybe I shouldn’t be so polar, but to be honest I love the release it has given me.

A once full window ledge — Now totally empty, taking only a few seconds to clean.

A desk of chaos & mountains of stationary — Now clear with a couple of pens, giving me clarity & focus when working.

Boxes of paper documents — Now only existing in organised, easily accessed digital form.

Thousands of CD’s — Bar a couple of limited/signed copies that give me joy, all gone. From many racks, boxes, shelves & cupboards full, to a small shoebox.

“Having too much stuff is like having a mind full of thoughts, it can be overwhelming. Clearing out can be like clearing your mind.”

Applying minimalism

I had to take a strong hard look at my life and look upon everything in a fresh new light.

— Does this item give me joy? Is it the same joy as the other 300 similar items, if so, keep one and move the rest on.

— Can this be referenced online? If yes, the book/magazine goes.

— Does keeping this item cause me some sort of discomfort, annoyance or inconvenience. If so, its outa here.

My advice

start on the easy stuff that isn’t difficult to get rid of. Getting rid of that first lot of stuff really gets the ball rolling. The sense of relief and the extra room really spurred me on. To this day I am still getting rid of things even after 2 years. -Yes, I really did collect that much stuff.

I think I started with my motorcycle collection. I’m down to about 20 motorcycle projects now, but the main thing would be the spares, which is down from many tonnes to a couple of boxes. I sold a lot of them off and used the money to build a workshop with a proper motorcycle bench lift & other equipment. I now work on the rest of the bikes in my spare time, most of which I plan to finish off and sell.

“I have sold, given away and recycled so much stuff in the past 2 years and it feels great!”

Outlook and how I keep going

I always aim to better myself, better my life, and use what time I have in this world as wisely as possible. I can hand on heart say that the direction I am going now, has been a positive contribution to this.

I certainly now feel the benefits of it all. My mental wellbeing has improved and I am more productive. Simple things like cleaning are so much easier. Things are certainly less time-consuming.

I use this positivity to keep going, along with watching occasional motivational minimalism videos on YouTube and words of advice from friends.

One piece of advice from a friend that really stuck with me was:- “Imagine if you had to move house tomorrow, how much effort and how many vans would you need?”. The first time they told me this, I looked around the room. . . Needless to say, I thought something along the lines of “Oh crap!”.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, I hope at least it has been entertaining and even helps others to make improvements in their own life.

I am documenting this on video along with other acts of self-improvement. I plan to put some videos together in the not too distant future.

~Question -Do you have items you could let go of to improve your own wellbeing?