Packing and organizing is nearly always an emotional and frustrating process. Even if you are a very neat and organized person in general, odds are you will still not feel fully prepared when it comes to packing your things away into a storage unit. Humans are emotional beings and can hold onto things for much longer than they need to because of an emotional tie to an inanimate object. It can be hard to decide what to throw away and what to keep. So before you move your things into storage units in Palo Alto, make sure you’re not paying for unneeded space and clean out your closets first.
One Year Rule
While you’re sorting through your things, you are likely to run into several pairs of “goal pants” and old toys that your children don’t play with anymore. Sure these objects still have a lot of use left in them, but can you justify keeping them since you cannot use them? This is where the one year rule comes in. If you haven’t used it in the past year, donate it or throw it away. Of course this doesn’t apply to pictures and other heirlooms, but for things like clothes that will likely go out of style before you drop the weight to fit into them again, you should donate them. Don’t justify keeping an item by thinking you’ll save money if you don’t have to buy it again. If you haven’t used it in a long time, you are spending money on unneeded storage space.
Do You Need It?
There are some items that you keep just because it has sentimental value. If it doesn’t have a use, you should consider throwing it away or donating it. You may see a lot of sentimental value in a used pregnancy test, but small items like that add up. Besides the fact that keeping a pee stick can be kind of gross, you don’t need it. Try taking pictures of items. You can keep a memory with a picture just as well as with the item. This goes for old stuffed animals and countless other items. Obviously, if you have the remains of your cremated grandfather, you may want to hold on to those–but a storage unit may not be the right place.
Does It Have Value?
There are lots of collectors items that people hold on to that they never really “use.” These are ideal items to put into your storage unit. As long as these items are going up in value rather than down, you can justify the room that they are taking up. If, however, it’s a collection of fairly recent obscure magazines, you may be the sole person in the world that finds value in them. A storage unit should store useful things, not assist you in your hoarding habits. If you are thinking of purchasing storage units in Palo Alto, you should evaluate and sort through your things today.
