A Gentle Article

Either Watch the video or Read the Article below 

Here's a calm, simple article - both written and recorded as a video by Clare - that may help you understand why your clutter can feel so difficult - and why it can be hard to know where to begin.

Just read (or watch) in your own time.

 Take Your Time.

You can come back to it whenever you like.

There’s no pressure to do anything next.

This article is simply here to help things make a little more sense.

Your Clutter Iceberg

Whenever you get impatient with your clutter and want to see and feel a visible improvement fast, remember that your clutter is like an iceberg.

The physical clutter that you can see isn’t the full story of your Clutter challenge; it’s merely the tip of a much larger and often more daunting reality.

Understanding this "iceberg effect" is crucial if you want to clear your clutter Forever.

The physical clutter that you see is only 10% of a much more daunting Clutter Iceberg below the surface.

To successfully clear your clutter Forever, you need to accept and deal with the 90% that is hidden beneath the surface; the deeper more complex issues and challenges relating to your clutter.

If you only focus on the 10% that you can see on the surface, any of it that you manage to clear will simply grow back as a result of the 90% below rising up to replace it.

Here are 5 ways that your clutter is like an iceberg.

1. The Tip of the Iceberg

Icebergs are famous for their deceptive appearances; only about 10% of their mass is visible above water, while the remaining 90% lies hidden beneath the surface.

Your visible clutter is exactly the same.

For example, we may think that:

• we ‘just’ need time to go through the 10%
• we ‘just’ need to be more ruthless with our decision making about the 10%
• we ‘just’ need more storage for the 10%
• we ‘just……’.

However, you soon discover that it’s not that simple because the real causes and sources of your clutter are below the surface, such as unresolved trauma, unresolved grief, habits of thinking and doing, fear, inherited beliefs, family expectations, identity etc.

Dealing with the 90% below the surface requires a willingness to do a deep dive below the surface by jumping into the cold water.

It involves stepping outside your comfort zone, being patient, and doing some self-reflection so that you can learn and understand where your clutter come from.

When you only focus on the visible clutter and ignore what lies beneath, you may improve the look of your home, but it will only ever be temporary.

2. Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Everyone’s clutter has emotional undercurrents that stay below the surface, much like the submerged portion of an iceberg.

These hidden emotions often include fear, frustration, guilt, grief and shame.

When you’re on your Journey and struggling to make time to ‘do the doing’, it may appear that it’s a simple time issue.

However, beneath that visible struggle there is usually a deeper emotional barrier such as fear of failure, perfectionism, or a lack of self-worth.

Until you recognise and accept that you’re struggling with the emotional undercurrents and get the appropriate help and support you need to start doing the healing that’s required, you’ll never prioritise and protect the time you need to succeed on your Journey and get closer to your Clutter Free Best Life.

Ignoring the emotional depth of the 90% and the emotional undercurrents that control it means that any attempt to fix the 10% above the surface will only ever be temporary fixes rather than long-term growth.

By exploring the emotions that lie beneath the surface, you gain insight into what drives your clutter challenge so you can achieve lasting change.

3. The Iceberg Needs a Plan

Icebergs are not only large but also irregularly shaped, meaning the submerged 90% below the surface can extend in unexpected directions.

Similarly, your clutter will have hidden elements to it that aren't immediately visible when you start your Journey and will require a plan and a growth mindset to ensure they don’t sabotage you.

For instance, you may believe that your only challenge is making time or making decisions. However, beneath the surface there may be issues around unresolved grief, unresolved trauma, family expectations, low self-esteem, insecurity, etc.

When you try to avoid these hidden factors, it leads to denial, resistance, procrastination, self-sabotage, you end up in the panic zone and give up.

To navigate these challenges effectively, you need a plan that enables you to deal with both the visible 10% and the invisible 90%.

The Journey provides you with that plan.

As you start to notice and acknowledge the 90% below the surface, through the exercises that I guide you to do, you can get help to dive faster and deeper by having a therapist who will help you explore and understand your 90%, which in turn helps you to deal with the visible 10% quicker.

4. The Danger of the 90%

Icebergs are notorious for their ability to sink ships – not because of the visible 10% above the water, but because of the hidden 90% lurking beneath the surface.

In the same way, the most dangerous elements of your clutter are those you can’t see.

For instance, a failed attempt to declutter in the past may not improve your home in the long term, but it will add to the challenges, traumas and experiences that need dealing with in the 90%.

When friends or family try to ‘help’ you declutter it can put a strain on the relationship, especially when they see the 10% clutter above the surface grow back.

Your confidence and belief that it’s even possible to clear your clutter sinks a little bit lower.

Your willingness to try again or try something different wanes just a little more.

Paying an ‘expert’ to come to your home and help you have a blitz leads to anxiety and trauma that gets added to the 90%.

Moving clutter into self-storage can cause financial stress and anxiety.

All our previous attempts to declutter can add regret, shame, stress, trauma and anxiety to the 90%, all of which have a long-term impact on your mental health and willingness to try again, and all of which need to be processed if we want to stay clutter free Forever.

5. Resilience in the 90%

The submerged 90% of the iceberg represents not only hidden elements to your clutter challenge, but also resilience, because to deal with it you need to be able to endure cold, harsh environments when you dive, while remaining steadfast.

Similarly, being on your Journey and dealing with the hidden depths of your clutter challenge requires you to develop resilience – an ability and determination to deal with and stay safely in the learning and change zone.

Building resilience involves not just facing and dealing with the hidden 90%.

It’s also about developing self-care, seeking and accepting support from others, and maintaining a focus on your Clutter Free Best Life.

Dealing with the 90% also demands patience.

Much like icebergs which form over centuries through gradual accumulation, so too has your clutter.

Dealing with the 90% requires time, effort and patience.

Your ability to recognise that progress may be slow but is ultimately worth pursuing will be how you develop your resilience.

Why This Matters

When you realise your clutter has layers - visible and hidden - it becomes clearer why it has felt confusing or difficult.

There’s nothing wrong with you.

There is simply more going on beneath the surface than the clutter itself.

There’s nothing you need to do with this information.

Just knowing it can make things feel a little calmer.