When a Half Hour is 20 Minutes

If you have a half hour to dedicate to a decluttering session, you do not have thirty minutes to declutter. It sounds strange, but it makes sense once you understand an often-missed part of a decluttering session.
 
With a thirty-minute session, you only have approximately twenty minutes to dedicate to decluttering. You will need to allot the last ten minutes for tidying up. This can understandably feel counterintuitive. Why waste time cleaning up an area that is still in the process of being organized? After all, we will just waste more time at the beginning of the next session pulling things out again, right?
 
Well, yes, but there are excellent reasons to dedicate sufficient time to cleaning up at the end of each session. If you can overcome the common gut-level reaction to abandon ship without tidying, you can avoid these unpleasant surprises: 
 
Lost organizing supplies:
When you are already exerting admirable effort to declutter, it can be frustrating to waste time looking for Sharpies, tape, and other supplies. It also cuts down the available time for the actual decluttering. 
 
Inadvertently dismantled progress:
Adorable pets can unintentionally intertwine previously sorted piles when they walk over them. This especially rings true for beloved felines, although beloved canines can get in on the action.
 
Fellow two-legged companions can accidentally undo your work, too. They might knock over an unsecured pile as they walk through a space. Additionally, they might not realize that a pile results from your efforts and thus attempt to help by putting one pile on top of another. The paper notes that act as your crumb trails can act as the same for your companions. Additionally, containing piles can secure them for the four-legged companions who can’t read.
 
Forgetting where you left off:
It can be incredibly frustrating to remember precious free time spent on decluttering, only to waste time trying to remember where we left off. Tidying up includes leaving crumb trails for our awesome future selves who return for a second session. Our initial reaction is often, “Oh, I’ll remember what these piles are when I return tomorrow.” This harmless lie we tell ourselves causes unnecessary angst.
 
The vast majority of us mere mortals (me included) will have to spend at least some time reorienting ourselves to exactly where we left off. This is especially true when tomorrow turns into next week or next month. Why not decrease the reorientation time? Trust me on this one and save your future self time by writing notes as to what pile is what. Bonus points for listing out the next step as well. 
 
Little, and not so little, injuries:
Slippery piles of clothes and papers make excellent launching pads for falls. The last thing we need when putting in laudable effort is injury. That would not only impede progress but would also naturally make organizing seem downright dangerous. If there is ever a reason to avoid a task, there is nothing like danger to convince us to retreat.
 
Getting discouraged:
Clutter can temporarily grow as we sort it into categories. Like the incoming tide on a beach, it can temporarily expand, but it needs to recede again at the end of a session. If not, the expansion might dampen our motivation to continue.
 
Avoiding These Pitfalls: 
If you tidy up at the end of each decluttering session, you will feel great about the fruits of your labor and speed up your wins at the next session.
 
So, give session-tidying a try. Your future self will shower you with accolades. They might even amusingly say, “Thank you, Past Me, for helping Current Me save precious time! You are so thoughtful!”