Is There Something Simple I Can Do To Get Organised For The New Year?

There are lots of things, but probably the simplest, and the one that will make you feel best, is to have a chuckout. Nearly everyone in our society has a lot of things that they don't want or need, and having too many pointless possessions can make you feel overwhelmed and depressed, besides taking up valuable space.

So if you have a free afternoon, why not go through your shelves, bookcases and wardrobe, and see what you don't need any more. New year is a good time to be ruthless, and to bear in mind the William Morris principle: have nothing in your house that is neither useful nor beautiful. (Of course, there are things we keep for sentimental reasons, or so as not to hurt the feelings of the person who gave them to us, but not that many.)

One good tip, if you have a lot of stuff you can't decide whether to get rid of – put it all in a black sack, bury it in a cupboard and leave it for six months. After that, if neither you nor anyone noticed it was gone, you can't really kid yourself that you need it. Then all you have to do is decide whether to sell it, give it away or bin it (or recycle.)