Understanding your Clutter Personality is an important first step before attempting to organize your home, especially if you don’t live alone. Once you know your clutter color you can communicate your needs to loved ones and highlight the differences that keep you at odds.
We all have different capacities and thresholds for handling clutter. For one person, “organized” might mean “clothing off the floor.” For another, it’s not organized until it’s folded, color-coordinated, and labeled. We expect others to be like us, but dealing with clutter varies greatly—like our preference for sandals or crocs. Each person has a unique clutter blueprint that shapes how they live and thrive at home.
My Clutter Capacity Quiz can help you understand yourself and your cohabitants better. Find out if you are a Gold, a Silver, or a Bronze, so you can recognize patterns and develop effective systems at home.
Curious about your Clutter Color? Keep reading to learn more or jump to our quiz page to find out now!
You’re a Gold
As a Type A person, tidying up is your love language. You thrive in a clean, orderly, and systematic environment, which can be stressful when your organizational systems fall apart.
Recognizing this about yourself is key, and sharing your Clutter Personality with those you live with is important.
You’ll likely manage the organization, so think like a boss (but not bossy!). An organizer can be a lifesaver, helping you maintain order when you’re short on time, don’t take it all on yourself and never ask for help.
What to do
Unless you live with others who share this same passion for tidiness, your home might not ever be exactly what you’d love it to be. But you can communicate your goals with the people you love in order to maintain your sanity. Consider getting extra help from outside the house (a housekeeper, an organizing team), outsource and delegate tasks so you don’t take on too much or end up resentful.
An organizer can be a lifesaver, helping you maintain order when you’re short on time, don’t take it all on yourself and never ask for help.
Our most organized, high-performing clients understand that just because they can do it, it’s much wiser and more time-efficient to get help. If you don’t live with other golds, you can’t expect them to be just like you, so consider that as you develop working systems at home.
You’re a Silver
You prefer an environment that is tidy and systematic but you’re okay with “good enough.”I like to think of our Silver friends as the “neat piles peeps.”
You’re tidy, and as long as everything is presentable, unconcerned with a micro-sort.
You understand that life requires that certain messy breathing room. While sitting on the couch watching your favorite show, you’re likely thinking about a to-do list to tackle the clutter in the closet without the anxiety of a Gold.
What to do
Conflict will likely arise when you live with other Silvers or Golds because you’ll disagree about where the focus should be.
You may have a Gold inside you somewhere, but you identify with the unrestricted freedoms of a Bronze. You are more flexible than most and can adapt to most environments.
Consider getting extra help on a routine basis to get back to baseline as needed. You won’t likely need those regular deep dives and meticulous micro-sorting, but some basic maintenance will help you stay in neutral.
You’re a Bronze
You like to spread out and you’re unfazed when things are scattered. You can step over a mess for weeks before it catches your eye.
Allocate a space in the house to freely spread out and be yourself. You don’t have to color-code your clothes, because off the floor may do the trick. You’ll need more maintenance than a Silver or Gold and benefit from outsourcing chores you hate like housekeeping and organization.
Too much order may stifle your creativity, but some basic systemization may be just what the doctor ordered, especially if you share your home with others.
What to do
Help others understand your color and why too much order causes you stress. Make sure you have a space at home where you can be yourself and do what you. Understand that living with clutter can be a coping mechanism, trauma response, or capacity issue and never a moral failure.
If you live with others support them in the way you can by encouraging helping to finance outside help where your needs and priorities, while true to you, fall short of other’s expectations. You might find common ground and maintain the peace with a conversation about clutter colors and how to develop systems that accommodate everyone.
Take Action and Communicate
Does someone within your home have a different clutter personality than you do? Don’t fret! Communication is key. For others to understand what you want most out of your home, explain your unique blueprint AND alter your perception of what another’s should be. Don’t burden your loved ones with the task of reading your mind. If you have something that keeps you up at night, say it. Are the dishes sitting on the drying rack for days? Are the shoes on the floor at the door not in the proper basket? Tell them. But also, forgive them for not having the exact needs as you, and work on setting up the systems that will help you get back to baseline.
Does the person you’re living with stress too much about organization and decluttering? Is it inhibiting your quality time together? Communicate that thought too! It’s all about balance.
By addressing the key characteristics and tendencies of each clutter personality, it’s an easier pill to swallow when presenting strategies for a happy life at home. Look to hire an organizer, a housekeeper, or implement a chore routine.
Don’t forget to share your answers. I’d love to hear from you and follow along on your organizational journey. Please send us a DM on Instagram with your clutter color and be sure to say hello!
Xo, Mon
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