Many people live in homes where they feel overwhelmed by “too much stuff.” Some people are naturally good at regularly weeding out and purging things, but those who aren’t can easily reach a point of overabundance where they need to declutter their homes. A “hot mess” mom who goes by The Home Admin on YouTube shared three lessons she internalized to declutter her home by 90%. That may sound like an incredible figure, but many people would benefit from clearing out a majority of the things in their homes. The things that helped her finally do it are simple, accessible mindset shifts that anyone can use.  1. Overwhelm is expected. You can move through it.  It’s daunting to look at a room, closet, or even a drawer filled with stuff and think about how to deal with it. That’s okay. Overwhelm is going to happen. Don’t let it stop you. “Just because you’re going to feel overwhelmed does not mean you have to put things off for a longer period of time or do them later,” she says. “Because the reality is you’re always going to be overwhelmed by the stuff if you choose not to tackle it.” Most people’s natural response to feeling overwhelmed is to freeze up and avoid the overwhelming thing. The key is to acknowledge the feeling but move forward anyway. You can declutter even if it feels overwhelming. The decluttering itself is actually the answer to the overwhelm.  2. Everything in your home demands something of you  No item is benign. They all require something of you. Photo credit: Canva “Every single thing in my home is demanding something from me,” she says. “It’s demanding to be used, to be cleaned, to be put away.” We may not think of a clothing item that doesn’t fit, a toy our kids don’t play with, or a random paper in a pile this way, but every single item in our home requires something of us. Thought, time, energy, space—we give it something of ourselves every time we see it. Or perhaps we can think of it as draining something from us every time we see it. When we realize this, it shifts something in our motivation. It’s not just about getting rid of things we don’t need. It’s about freeing ourselves from things that take our thought, time, energy, or space. “When you have less items, the demand from you can focus on things that actually bring you fulfillment,” she says.  3. The ‘poop rule’ of decluttering @madamesweat Have you ever heard of The Poop Rule? #homehygiene #decluttering #washingtonpost #declutter ♬ original sound – Madame Sweat | kaia naturals – Madame Sweat | kaia naturals Apparently, cleaning expert Jolie Kerr originally coined this idea in The Washington Post in 2025, but it has since gone viral on social media. When you’re not sure whether to get rid of something, ask yourself one question: “If this were covered in poop, would I throw it away or clean it?” Decluttering often involves tough decisions as our brains make all kinds of justifications for keeping things. “Maybe I’ll need this someday.” “Oh, I got this on a special trip.” “This was a gift from someone.” “It’s still perfectly usable.” The poop rule makes it a lot easier to ignore the thoughts that would have us keep things we don’t need and aren’t actually that attached to.  Decluttering takes time, but it’s worth it Tackled the messy old stuff at home today—decluttering brings such a light, uncluttered vibe! Small wins make big days pic.twitter.com/roMkrpq6mE— dogorcita (@dogorcita1) June 4, 2026 Despite wanting to do it, decluttering can be hard for many reasons: It takes time. We don’t know where to start. It requires making a lot of decisions.  We might be attached to our stuff. We might be afraid we’ll get rid of something we’ll need or want later. It requires upkeep. Hopefully, these three simple mindset shifts can help minimize some of the obstacles that keep us in a state of overwhelm. You can follow The Home Admin on YouTube for more tips like these. The post ‘Hot mess’ mom shares the 3 lessons she internalized that helped her declutter her home by 90% appeared first on Upworthy.