Clear the Clutter, Clear Your Mind

Have you ever walked into a room in your house and immediately felt overwhelmed—not just by the mess, but by a sense of mental fog? You're not imagining that connection. A friend of mine just posted a reel with the caption “Your mood directly depends on how clean your counter tops are”. That statement really resonated with me. As seasons in our lives fluctuate from super busy with kids, school, work, and sports, to less busy in all areas, I definitely see a reflection of that in the state of my household. The higher the laundry piles, the busier we are! I also took some time to reflect on how that makes me feel. Clutter on counter tops, floors, and tables drives me crazy and there’s growing awareness, both from professionals and thought leaders, that the state of our physical space deeply affects our mental clarity.

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garage

office

Tucker Morrison wrote a powerful piece about how clutter in our homes can mirror the clutter in our minds. He talked about the way our environment holds emotional energy, and how our belongings can carry stories—sometimes ones we’re unconsciously hanging onto. When we're surrounded by unfinished projects, disorganized piles, or just too much stuff, our brains struggle to process and prioritize. That clutter becomes mental noise, stealing our attention and adding low-grade stress we might not even realize is there. When I work with clients to declutter before we organize a space for them the stories inevitably come out and sometimes it’s tough to let go of things that hold meaning or memories. However, every time we finish a declutter session our clients feel lighter and more at ease in their space. That letting go of the stuff that was clogging up their home was also clogging up their mind!

Ultra-endurance athlete, retired Navy SEAL, and author, David Goggins, offers a similar metaphor. He compares the mind to a cluttered garage. If you can’t find your tools, you can’t get any work done. And if you keep throwing new things into the mess without ever cleaning it out, eventually it becomes impossible to function. His point is that we often try to push ourselves to perform—set goals, build discipline, stay focused—but we don’t take the time to organize the mental space we’re operating from. And more often than not, that inner clutter is reflected in our outer world. Most people don't even realize the connection between our messy homes and our messy minds! How powerful is that?!

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kitchen

bathroom drawer

As a professional organizer, I see this every day. Clients don’t just want a tidy garage or a beautifully labeled pantry—they want to feel calm when they walk in the door. They want to think clearly, move more freely, and stop feeling weighed down by the constant visual reminder that something needs to be done.

Clearing clutter is more than a cosmetic change. It's a mental reset. When we remove the distractions, the excess, and the “someday” items that never get used, we’re not just reclaiming physical space—we’re reclaiming brain space. We’re making room to focus, to breathe, and to move toward the things that actually matter.

You don't have to be a minimalist to benefit from a more intentional home. But if your space is full of things you don’t use, love, or even remember why you have, it may be time to do what Goggins says and “clean out the garage.” You might be surprised how much lighter, clearer, and more motivated you feel once the clutter is gone—not just in your home, but in your head.

XO,

Trish

Trish Johnson is a professional organizer and systems expert. She is a wife, mom of 3 kids, and a former elementary school teacher. Trish understands the stresses of daily life in a busy family and she truly enjoys helping people get set up with effective, organized systems that are functional as well as beautiful. Her company, This Organized Chaos, is located in New Jersey and services the surrounding areas organizing homes and small businesses.