As a mom, it’s sometimes a challenge for me to feel in control of the clutter in my life. Even after a long day of work or staying home with my kids, I know the kitchen counter will be cluttered the next morning and the laundry room will have another hamper of clothes ready for me to wash.
That’s why I do all I can to control one area of my life that is just mine – my digital world. Here are five tips to help clean up your digital life.
Delete Old Accounts
Do you really need that old high school email you use for junk? No – just don’t sign up for junk. Do you need that old budgeting site you opened once and used one other time? No.
Think of every old account as one more way for hackers to find their way into the accounts that really matter. Delete what you’re not using and then erase those passwords from wherever you have them saved.
Unsubscribe to Junk Emails and Texts
Say goodbye to any email subscriptions or text messages that you don’t find of interest or value. Yes, that 30% coupon was great that one time four years ago, but let it go. Once you do this, you’ll breeze into the next step. . .
Clean Out Your Inbox
Years ago I learned that the best way to clean out a full inbox is to group emails by sender. If you’ve unsubscribed from the junk emails, then you’ll be able to select all and hit delete. This is probably the most freeing part of the digital clean-out for me.
Save All Your Photos in a Cloud or External Device
On New Year’s Day, I cleaned out my Google Photos for the first time in nearly five years. Wanna know how many photos I deleted? 3,655. I had so many duplicates and repeats. I really didn’t need 15 shots of my daughter’s first bite of applesauce, but there I was hoarding it. Use a service like iCloud or Google Photos. If you’re not comfortable with a cloud service, invest in an external hard drive or USB and set a reminder to empty out your phone or camera each month.
Reduce Your Screen Time
This is hands down the hardest one for me. I work in social media, so I am constantly glued to my phone. I have had to learn that the people in my home matter far more than any career. It’s a hard realization when you know food and diapers cost so much. I have made it a mission to only actively engage on my phone for entertainment after my work is done and after I’ve spent one-on-one time with everyone in my home. I wake up earlier than everyone in my house so I can work and plan my day from my phone or computer so that when they wake I’m completely focused on them. At night, I do a quick catch-up before I turn off all notifications.
As moms, we are so oversaturated with information and junk. It’s not always fun being the keeper of memories or the walking encyclopedia and that’s why we need to set limits and declutter what we can in our lives. I hope these tips get you started in a more peaceful direction.
Have you done a digital life clean-up? What tip do you have to get started?
Looking for more cleaning tips and tricks? Be sure to check out these posts from Atlanta Mom!
