This week we dive into the emotional side of storage and how to recognize when it's becoming a form of avoidance. Sometimes keeping things in storage is about preserving memories, but other times it's a way to postpone tough decisions.
This episode helps listeners reflect on why they’re keeping certain items and how to move from stalling to intentional choices. We share practical strategies for evaluating storage habits and making decisions that align with personal values, life phases, and available time.
If you're wondering whether you're holding onto something for the right reasons—or just avoiding the decision—this conversation is for you.
In This Episode, We Talk About:
- How to recognize the emotional signs that you're postponing a decision with storage.
- Why certain life phases and time constraints shape how we approach organizing and decluttering.
- Practical strategies to shift from stalling to intentional storage decisions.
Mentioned in This Episode:
- Five observations to help determine if you're stalling or intentionally storing.
- Quick tips for creating storage strategies based on life phases and how much time you realistically have.
- How to build awareness around storage choices and why it's okay to revisit decisions over time.
Review full show notes and resources at https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast
Review Transcript:
Hey everyone, welcome back to Organize and Cherish. I'm Stephanie, your host, and if you've been following along, you know that we have just started our storage series, where we are diving into why we store things, how to make better decisions, and what it really means to be intentional with your stuff.
All related to downsizing and decluttering with efficiency and becoming a more organized person the way that you hopefully envision and it feels right for you. So today's episode is all about the difference between storage and stalling. The series will be covering different topics on storage. So some of them will be more of the just straightforward.
The pros and cons of storing, how much storage can cost, um, we'll break down some of the tips that we have for you or things that you should be looking out for if you will be getting a new storage facility or looking to store your stuff long term, short term. And so today's episode is all about the difference between storage and stalling.
It's called storage versus stalling. Are you keeping it or postponing a decision? Because sometimes keeping things in storage isn't about preserving memories. It's about avoiding decisions we just aren't ready to make. And this episode is not about a guilt trip or giving you a one way is better than the other.
This is about giving you the questions and the things for you to think about, so that you're intentionally making these decisions. If you have stuff in storage now, and it's been there for a while, or really it doesn't matter how long it's been there, whether it's paid storage, or your basement, or your attic, or another room, doesn't really matter.
If you're storing stuff, and you really haven't touched it, let's just make sure That you are being intentional about that decision, you might be delaying something very hurtful, very heavy, and that is okay, but just make sure that you're aware of it so that once in a while you're doing some check ins with yourself, and that stuff does not become unsafe, and it doesn't become clutter that later on becomes problems.
So we're trying to avoid all of that. So let's talk, chat about that a little bit more. Let's talk about how to recognize when you're stuck and how to gently move from some day thinking to meaningful action.
Welcome to the Organize and Cherish podcast with The Organized Flamingo. I am your host, Stephanie, your compassionate and efficient professional organizer. Whether you are part of the sandwich generation, helping a loved one declutter, or just trying to simplify life, this is the place for you. Together, we will tackle those overwhelming piles of stuff, uncover purpose in what we keep, And let go with dignity and care.
Because it's not just about throwing everything away. It's about respecting memories and simplifying life. Sound like a plan? Let's jump in and get organized. So, let's start with the emotional side of storage. And when are you maybe just stalling? Not just trying to keep things for later and be intentional about it?
So, we all have items that we've boxed up with the idea that we'll deal with them later, right? But later can then turn into months or even years, and time goes by quickly. And what feels like intentional storage can actually be a form of stalling. So avoiding the decisions because they're hard or uncomfortable.
Maybe it's guilt, you know, maybe it's sentimental, like the sadness and heaviness that the stuff comes with. Or maybe it's just feeling overwhelmed. Like, it's just so much stuff. I see it all the time as a professional organizer when people would call us to do these storage rooms, and then if you are the, the person who inherited all that stuff, you have no idea what just happened.
Like, you open the storage, or you open these boxes, and if you're helping someone downsize and declutter, you are just now overcome with the emotion that came with the physical stuff. In addition to the actual physical stuff in our profession, in our organizing profession, there's this saying that is pretty commonly accepted where it says there's no, no sentimental item.
It's a sentimental person. So in other words, it's the person who puts the story and the sentiment behind the items because physical items are just physical items, right? They're not alive. They don't breathe. They don't, they're not things that are living, breathing. So you, the person are the one that is giving it life.
And that can also be even if you as the caregiver and the person who inherited all this stuff is not the person who's given it life. You might be inheriting the stories, the good, the bad, and the ugly that come with those items. Now, those feelings are yours as well. So now you're giving it life as well.
Okay. So even though it didn't start with you, it could have been passed down. And some of those stories are beautiful. But when it starts to get into dangerous territory is when those feelings you're giving the stuff has no end game. Like, there is no plan. There is no answer to how you will be dealing with this, and so now it's just all these feelings piled on top of each other in this storage room, literally and physically.
So I get it, and some decisions are very heavy. But here's the thing, and that's really important to know. So studies show that clutter and delayed decisions can actually increase stress and decrease focus. That is very widely known, has been studied, and as an observer of this industry, I have seen it to be.
So it's not just about the stuff, it's about how the stuff makes you feel. And also if you're curious about the science behind this, I do have a helpful resource from the American Psychological Association in the show notes. So how do you know if you're keeping something for a good reason? Or if you're just postponing a tough decision, you know, what may have happened is that you stored it with good intention and now you're not quite sure why you're even keeping this stuff, but it feels like maybe you are postponing a decision and I'd like to help you figure that out.
Okay, so let me give you five observations that I have seen and or studied about Maybe in reasons why you are postponing a tough decision, okay, when it comes to your storing and why you're keeping physical things in storage. One, you can't clearly define why you're keeping it. So if your reason is vague, like it's one of those, uh, just in case, or it might be valuable someday, you might be postponing.
Intentional storage is clear and purposeful. If you can't articulate why it matters, It's worth a second look and look there, there's a little like a mini segment off of this one. I have met a lot of people, not the majority, but the minority of people, but enough than now it's become imprinted in my worth mentioning here is that.
Some people do want to sell or they feel they have this gut instinct that some of this stuff is worth something They don't know why they just kind of feel like it is or maybe They were told it was worth something and they want to they want to dig into that, right? They want to like look more into it and see if it really is worth it or if that Family story that has been passed down over generations where this one thing was given to by famous Pop star, famous princess of the, you know, of the long time ago, and it's been passed on from generations.
Like, sometimes you have those stories that have been passed on, whether they're true or not, you don't know, and they might have been gotten bigger and more elaborate over the years. But now, by the time it reaches you, you think that that story is much grander, and that there is something of value to the stuff that's associated with that story.
I don't want you to have regrets or I want you to minimize their regrets, and I want you to fully explore what you need to explore in order to close that chapter. Because what I have seen so many times is that people will have this major regret or feeling like they had to throw everything away and they didn't get to discover or find the real story behind the stuff.
Okay? I want you to avoid that as much as possible. Now, sometimes life takes you to some places where time is of the essence and you can't really take the time to do that. You don't have the resources, et cetera. I will talk about that in just a minute, okay? So there are all of those elements as a sideline to having your clear definition as to why you're keeping it.
Your definition might be, you know, I don't know why I'm keeping it, but I want to explore it. That is a very clear definition that, that is the, I want to explore my past. The meaning of all this stuff, is it worth something? And then sometimes in that very small group that I mentioned, but enough people have realized that they want to sell and or become a collector.
So if you have inherited a very specific type of collection, and now you have like, you know, large enough collection that maybe you can sell it, you can pass it on to a library. That stuff can now become something, something bigger than what you ever imagined. I don't want you to not explore that, because anyone's making you, you know, throw everything away.
So I don't want you to do that, but I just want you to be really intentional, that if you're keeping it because you want to be a collector because you think it's going to be worth something someday. Just take into consideration that that has its own journey and its own ways of taking care of the stuff.
I have an episode about all that, like the cost of what that might be, but just be clear about it. Okay. So just be really intentional. So that's what this is all about. Make sure that you're, you've defined. And if you're just kind of having this vague answer of, well, I don't know, I'm not sure. Let's just.
Take another look, okay? It's worth it. Okay. Second reason is you're paying for storage, but rarely accessing it. If you're paying for offsite storage or dedicating valuable home space to items you haven't used or thought about in over about a year is usually like our threshold. It's time to ask if the cost, both financial and emotional is worth it.
Obviously, especially if you're paying money for it, or if you're keeping it at a friend's house. And now you feel guilty and every time you go to a barbecue at their house, you know that there's this unwritten conversation or like this unsaid conversation that you're having to occupy this big piece of like their garage, right?
It's not worth having those uncomfortable moments. So just really You might be stalling or you might be delaying a decision if you're paying for storage, but you're rarely accessing it. After about a year, let's explore that again and make sure that you're being intentional about it. Third is you feel guilt or obligation.
We've talked about those really heavy feelings. Maybe you've inherited, maybe it was a gift. If you're keeping something because it feels wrong to let it go, but you don't actually use it or enjoy it, that's a sign that you're stalling, hurting someone's, maybe you're trying to avoid hurting someone's feelings.
There's this guilt, right? And especially if the person is no longer with you or There is some emotional turmoil associated with it, there might be a lot of guilt. Now, if you are feeling this way and you are delaying those decisions, a mental health practitioner might be a great person to talk to. It's called talk therapy, you can just talk about it, they will issue and talk to you about some ways that you can explore this in a healthier way than having to just keep all this stuff accumulating and paying for storage.
They might give you a different. way of dealing with this, where at least you can explore your options. Number four is you're avoiding the task altogether. If you feel this dreaded avoidance every time you're thinking about sorting that room, those boxes, that is like one of those signs where I can see it in their head, you know, like whenever I go to some like a client's house or their space and they'll just kind of give me this, I just don't want to do it.
Like I can see this. their face just wanting to not even talk about it is that you may be delaying the decision because You're just overwhelmed like it just feels like you're just you just want to avoid it You don't even want to touch it. If you're telling yourself, I'll deal with it later That's like another way of showing that feeling but there's no plan for when that's a clear sign The decision is being postponed.
That is one of the most clear ones because you don't have an emotional attachment necessarily, so this could just be you're just so overwhelmed with the thought of even having a To deal with this, even if you are paying someone else to do it, like you're just feeling overwhelmed about the whole thing.
Well, obviously, you're just delaying the task altogether, and that might not be beneficial to you, especially long term. Because the more time you wait, the harder it'll become. Now, if you have put money aside to delay this decision, all power to you. We're not here to judge, but I can think of a thousand other ways someone can be spending money.
on something more joyous, something that you like, a vacation, a trip, a book, a whatever, then paying storage, a storage facility for no real reason, right? Like no real intentional reason. I mean, if it's just because you're delaying the decision, I mean, hey, that's all, you know, that's on you. But I just have a feeling that you will be feeling much lighter, much happier spending your money and your efforts into something else.
And the fifth observation that I have seen is that you keep replacing or moving it around. If you've packed and replaced the same box multiple times, moving it from one room to another from, you know, the house or the storage, it's worth asking, am I intentionally storing this or am I just avoiding the decision?
I made a reel on Instagram, you know, however many months ago, or maybe even years ago at this point. Time flies. I'm telling you. But, uh, I made it where. One of our tips, our immediate tips, to see if you're, if maybe the stuff that you have is a delayed decision is that you do move it from one place to another.
And so let's say you have a stack of paper, right, that you have on your desk. And so what I'll have some people do is I'll have them move it to the other side of the desk. And then I'll put a date of when it was moved. And then we'll see how long they even touched any of that stuff. When it was moved to the new place.
And so you'll start to see patterns that you really, what you're doing is you're just shoving stuff around from one end to another, and it can help in the immediate because it shows you how little you're touching that pile or that box or that stuff. And then from there, you can make an educated decision based on your own habits and your own usage of the stuff.
You can go out and say, you know what? All I keep doing is moving this stuff around just so that I can feel better It being here and that is a really good indicator that you might be avoiding the decision of finally letting something go and hopefully that can help you finally make the decision. So that's all about self reflection because it's very powerful because it's not just about judging yourself.
It's about being honest about whether your storage choices are aligned with your current life and value. So self reflection. Very important and those are the five observations that I would suggest that you look into as you are trying to decide if or realizing that maybe you're just avoiding some decisions.
Hi, cherished friends. Life can get overwhelming, especially when you're juggling caregiving, clutter, and everything in between. That's why I created the Organize and Cherish Weekly email that goes out every Wednesday straight to your inbox. To help you keep the momentum inspiration going with tips and reminders of our upcoming events, all you have to do is head on over to organize and cherish.com and sign up for the email newsletter.
It's free and you can up subscribe whenever you'd like. It's my way of helping you simplify your life and respecting memories along the way. Now, back to our show. Okay, so let's talk about moving. from stalling to action and some strategies that fit into your life. So once you recognize that you are stuck, if any of the above seems to be relevant to you, the next step is figuring out how to move forward.
And here's where I want to take like a, like a 10, 000 foot view because the strategy that works for you isn't going to be a one size fits all solution. You know, I can only put so much on the podcast today that is overview. There's going to be quite a bit of very tailored answers depending on your circumstance.
So it just kind of depends on your current phase of life and how much time you really have. So what I have for you is I have some strategies for different phases of life. And I'm going to run through them. I'll give you some examples very quickly, and then if you have specific questions, send them to me, and I will address them in our next Q& A session.
I've got some good ones piled up about all types of answers or questions that I have for you, that you gave me and I have answers for. So if you want me to touch on your specific circumstance, either join us for our next Organized and Cherished free chat. It's, uh, we meet on Zoom and you can ask me any questions and we can kind of troubleshoot.
And talk about it and maybe create a plan of action for you. The next one is on April 16th, 2025. But we have them all the time. Okay, so if you missed it, we have other ones. Or just send me your question and I will address it in our next Q& A. Okay, so these are the strategies that I want you to think about.
I have seven of them for you. Seven things to consider as a strategy or for how you will deal with it because it depends on these seven things. It'll look a little different for you, but I want you to listen in on them because some of you will think that okay, yes, I am avoiding a decision, so now what?
But if you are on a time crunch, like you need to get out of that storage facility or your loved one now has to very quickly change, like time is of the essence for you. Then your strategy is going to look different than someone who has time, maybe is retired now, has more flexibility with their schedule, they don't have little ones running around or you have to drive, you know, all the family members to all of their different practices and time is not on your side.
So if someone has more time, then their strategy is going to look different than if you don't. So I want you to think about these seven things I have for you. So these are like different phases of life and things to consider. And then from there, we can pick a strategy. I won't talk about your specific strategy, but bring those over to one of our free chats or send me a message and then I can come up with some ideas for you.
Okay, how do we approach your stalling versus, yes, storage long term might be a good decision for you. So, the first is starting out or you've recently moved. So, if you're still figuring out your style or what you actually need, flexibility is going to be key because you're, you're in the discovery mode.
Instead of keeping things just in case, ask yourself, does this fit in my life right now or am I holding onto it for a life I don't even live anymore? This is really, really important for those of you who inherited a whole, like a household of stuff from a loved one and it, you might actually need, like use it.
But you're not sure. Okay. So let's just talk about, okay, is this a life that they led and or I, you know, especially like if you inherited stuff from your old childhood home, is this a life that I don't live anymore? It's nice to have. It's nostalgic and cute, but I don't live that life anymore. So you're not sure what you want to keep.
So if you are not sure, what might make sense is for you to keep about three boxes full, very intentional boxes, three boxes. That you're not sure if you will be using in your new, this new life that you have or new home or new, you know, your, your like new decor or whatever it may be. Okay. So for you, boundaries is going to be really important.
But let's say you have a really busy family life. So this is a season where things move fast. Instead of trying to tackle everything at once, look for the small wins. So can you let go of just one box today? Can you hire someone, just help you with one box at a time, two boxes at a time, just go in smaller increments because in your busy family life, progress is important, but not perfection, because this will help you at least move forward and look for the wins as you continue going.
I mean, hey, if you have the resources, the money and the availability to hire someone to go into that storage facility and do the whole thing, wonderful. But because of your family busy schedule and everything, you really can't, can't really tackle it yourself or you will end up overwhelmed. So this is where handle it one project at a time, one box at a time and go and then immediately, you know, give yourself some high fives for those immediate wins because.
That's awesome. If you are transitioning or downsizing, so if you're a season of change of that, whether again, like whether you're downsizing or simply just kind of shifting priorities, give yourself time to process. You are, you know, in this category, scheduling time blocks to sort and reflect are going to be really important.
You don't have to decide everything at once, but don't keep putting it off either. In here, I just want you to make sure that you carve out time. for when you open a box and you will reminisce or you will be having all the feels. Because when you uncover all these boxes, a lot of feelings will come up. So if you're transitioning or downsizing in a chapter of life, then I want you to allot yourself some of that reflection time.
Later life simplifying. So if you're focusing on simplifying for late, for safety or ease, like if at this point it's more, you know, for you, you really don't really want to be going up and down the stairs at carrying stuff. Um, aside, you know, yes, it could be age related. But also it's for safety reasons, like you can only keep so much, you know, after a while stuff starts to pile up in those areas and they become a hazard, fire hazard, structural hazard, etc.
So I want you to think about what do you actually use and love in your everyday life, like your day to day life. And remember that letting go doesn't really mean that you're erasing the memory. It just means that you're making room for comfort and ease. So if you are in that phase of life where you really have to think about your safety and comfort, then I want you to make sure that you think about like how you're living your everyday life and not keeping things, especially if it's out of sight, out of mind, because you think, well, you know what, I don't even want to address it.
It's in storage. It's in my attic. It's in the basement. It's out of my way. It doesn't matter. Well, it could matter because if you can't get to an exit or it's starting to pile up where it is now blocking your vents in your home, et cetera, you know, the list could go, go on for those safety reasons, then we do need to tackle it.
And a good way or a good question to ask yourself is, am I using this in my everyday life? And then if I'm not, maybe it's no longer worth keeping in storage and finally letting it go. So those are the type of questions and priorities that you probably will have. And then the last three, I'll quickly mention.
It's all about time. So we've talked about, like, if you're starting out, if you recently moved, we've talked about if you're busy in your family life, in a busy life world, if you're transitioning or you're downsizing, or maybe you're later in life where, you know, comfort is going, comfort and safety is more important, right?
Like, those are the different chapters of life that are most common as to why you're keeping things in storage. Okay, so those are some of the things I want you to think about. I also want you to think about time. We won't talk too much about it in this episode because we have a, we have several past episodes all about time.
What's worth you spending your resources on, like your money and time. Like, do you have enough of them? And if you do or you don't, like, what are some of the right decisions when it comes to your stuff? Like, sometimes you overly spend money and, like, for storage bins. for boxes, and of course there's paying for the storage, and your time.
Your time is precious. So sometimes we end up spending more time than what the stuff is actually worth, even if it's a collectible. But unless you have like the most expensive collective collection, which most of you and most of us do not, then it might not even be worth it. So we do have episodes on that and I will devote another episode on what's worth your time when it comes to your storage.
But I do, I did want to mention it as a bonus here that Think about how much time do you have? Do you have time? Do you have some time or do you have zero time to devote to all of this? And sometimes when you are keeping stuff in storage, you'll keep it because you don't have time to address it and that might be the wrong reason as to why you keep storage, right?
Like you might be spending more money on a delayed decision than everything is actually worth. So I just want you to think about that. And just remember that this episode is not in this episode in this whole series is not about rushing to let things go. It's more about awareness. And I just want you to ask yourself some of these questions and think about it to make sure that you're being intentional.
And what's important to you, sometimes storage makes sense, it can buy us time, it can preserve memories. But sometimes storage becomes an invisible burden, financially, emotionally, and physically. So, here are some closing thoughts that I have for you, for you to keep in mind. Storage isn't free. Whether it's paying for a storage unit, or giving up space in your home, or the mental weight of keeping track of what's stored.
So be intentional about whether it's worth the cost. It's okay to revisit your choices. You don't have to make the perfect decision today. But don't let things sit indefinitely without reflection. Check in with your storage choices every few months or once a year as much as you can, and then trust your gut.
If you find yourself repeatedly thinking about an item or questioning why you're keeping it, Trust that instinct. We talked about it at the very early here in the episode, right? Trust your instinct. Is this something that you want to dig a little deeper in? You want to discover the past, see if that story about that stuff is true, dig a little deeper.
That's fair, but just be intentional about it because it might be time to reassess. That being said, I'll see you next week. Happy organizing. Thank you for listening to the Organize and Cherish podcast. With The Organized Flamingo. If you enjoy today's episode, I'd be so grateful if you left a rating and review on your favorite podcast player.
It helps others discover our show. For full show notes, resources, and more organizing inspiration, visit www. theorganizedflamingo. com slash podcast. Until next time, happy organizing.
