Swedish Death Cleaning, Downsizing, Decluttering, & Retirement Planning
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- Опубліковано 27 чер 2024
- This video is about Swedish Death Cleaning and how downsizing, decluttering, and living a minimalist lifestyle in retirement is good for most seniors as they age. It's about making your estate plan better and making it easier on your heirs. This should be a key part of your retirement planning and simple living as you age.
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Swedish Death Cleaning, also known as "döstädning" in Swedish, is a cultural concept and decluttering. This unique approach to decluttering and organizing one's possessions is rooted in the idea of preparing for the end of life and making it easier for your loved ones to deal with your belongings after you pass away. It encourages individuals, typically older adults, to take proactive steps to simplify their lives by decluttering and organizing their possessions. It's not just about decluttering, but what you have and what will remain after you pass.
The motivation to do Swedish Death Cleaning is driven by a sense of responsibility and consideration for your children and other loved ones. By doing decluttering and downsizing while you are still capable reduces the burden on your loved ones at a later time. This can be the most loving act you could do for them.
Swedish Death Cleaning involves systematically going through all your possessions and deciding what to keep, what to give away, what to sell, and what to discard. The focus is on keeping only the precious few items you cherish the most. It recognizes the importance of sentimental items but encourages you to curate and preserve only the most meaningful ones, rather than hoarding everything. This can help you cherish the memories while decluttering the rest.
Swedish Death Cleaning doesn't strictly adhere to everything about minimalism, but it does share some principles, such as valuing experiences over material possessions. This process also aligns with the idea of reducing waste and being mindful of the environment.
Swedish Death Cleaning is not a one-time event but rather an ongoing process. As your life circumstances change, you will need to revisit and declutter on a periodic basis.
In summary, Swedish Death Cleaning is a practical and philosophical approach to decluttering and organizing your life. It is driven by a sense of responsibility and consideration for your children. It encourages people to thoughtfully curate their stuff and create a simpler living space while also helping clarify end-of-life wishes.
▶️ We started our channel to inspire and share our world travel lifestyle, adventures, and optimistic outlook on life with others. After completing a two-year journey in our Airstream to see all 50 states and 51 National Parks, we left to travel abroad. We have downsized our possessions and sold our home so that we can wander about with only the things in our backpacks.
We love living on the road, traveling each week to a new location. We plan to travel extensively to every part of the world. Ours is not a slow travel lifestyle but rather a vagabondish one. The goal is not to check a country off a list, but to experience it by meeting new people, seeing how others live, and making new friends. We believe in laughing, loving, and living our lives to the fullest.
We are working hard to build a beautiful website where you can get travel information about the places we have been. In addition, we post blog articles to help you travel better. Our channel is a way of augmenting that effort, so sometimes we post videos about how to travel or a vlog showing our lives on the road as we do an activity or an adventure. We also post Shorts, so check those out, too. We hope to entertain you, but most importantly, we want to inspire you and give you the confidence to plan your own adventure around the world.
Video # 132
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Swedish Death Cleaning has changed our retirement lives for the better. We hope this video helps motivate you to move forward with decluttering, downsizing and simplifying your lives in retirement for both yourselves and your loved ones.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Curious what initial resource you would most recommend for someone who is new to Swedish Death Cleaning? Your video was the first I’d ever heard of it and since your video I’ve learned of a number of my friends and family who are very aware of the practice. But I have no one who can advise me of a reliable resource to begin my own journey into this. Book? Video? Website?
Thanks for another great video! I’ve been doing this every time we move (empty space makes every house look roomier and more spacious, and helps sell them faster) each time to a smaller home with way less stuff each time. My boys know what I’m doing and they appreciate it….neither wants any of our stuff, so they’ll be selling, tossing, or donating the last of it. What I think will be the biggest help is a Will, adding one kiddo on to our bank accounts so they can access funds to pay for any expenses until our estate settles, deeds to house/vehicles/etc. and a huge list of websites with log ins/passwords so they can access our online presence or delete it, accounts, lawyers, etc.
While relocating from Bahrain to Romania, the warehouse that held our household goods caught fire before shipping. Everything was gone, furniture, persian rugs, electronics, clothes, old pictures, you name it, gone. We were sad for about 2 minutes before we realized that It was the best thing that could've happened to people who are close to retirement. It's been 2 years, and we haven't had the need to replace anything!
Sorry to hear about your stuff, but you are so right about people's stuff in retirement. We don't miss anything AT ALL.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
That’s a tough way to get rid of your stuff but hopefully there was insurance to cover the fire sale.
@DavidSmith-lp5tz Yes, thankfully we were insured through our company.
I tell people to think of things as how important is something if a tornado blew it away???
We also had a fire about 3 months before a local move at age 60 and lost all the sentimental stuff (except photos) that we wouldn’t have had room for anyway. I was also dreading packing and moving everything with my low energy. Like you, I grieved 5 minutes, but what a gift that was! We had to replace all our clothes furniture, but w/good insurance, it was great to just order it and have it shipped to our new place. We just moved the kitchen and office stuff in a small trailer! 😅😅
I scanned every picture of mine and of my mother's and put them on a drive. It took me 5 months of many hours a week. I did it as a labor of love, my mom was living in assisted living and by doing this, it gave her a digital picture frame with her history, she loved it.
That's wonderful. Thanks for sharing that story.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
What a great idea!! Time well spent!
Great idea about scanning !! - my daughter says some things from my mother she didn’t want when we cleaned the house out after her passing - I accepted her decision not to keep… it was my attachment not hers !! So it was donated !! Thanks for this reminder!!
There are easy scan apps for phones which makes scanning easy. I also would recommend that you buy cloud storage space and upload them into the cloud so you can look at them and send them easily. I was in IT so would also recommend that you. Move them to a new drive every 5 years or so because technically can fail and there is always something they discontinue so that is why having on the cloud is much easier.
I have seen several videos on Swedish death cleaning and I think yours is the best. The way you summarize it all and I love the phrase start with stuff behind closed doors. You make a lot of solid, workable and realistic suggestions. I especially appreciate all the ideas around how to deal with our kids’ stuff. Happy travels.
My husband and I have just gone through this same process. We are full time RV’ers! Over the course of two years we sold our 3400 sq ft home downsized to an apartment. We then continued the getting rid of stuff, moved out of our apartment into our Airstream trailer end of July! It was both one of the hardest things we’ve ever done AND the most rewarding thing we’ve ever accomplished. Stuff and things are a huge burden. It really is a gift of Love ❤️ to not pass that burden on to our children. Thank you for sharing this vlog and your story. Like you, two of the hardest things were photos and paperwork.
Great job. Our 2 years in our Airstream trailer was really the thing that made us realize we didn't need as much as we thought we did. Thanks for following along with us.
Safe travels,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
@@RetirementTravelers That’s how I found you, I was excited to see a couple our age, retired and traveling in an airstream!
you folks are very practical hope Indians learn from it they just carry over and cling to it
Thank you both for demonstrating retirement travel. ⭐ My mom said "Living hands choose wisely." After she passed we found our names taped to the few pieces of furniture she still had. We received boxes of stuff we gave her every Christmas for several years. She had almost nothing in the end, which she said was more than she was born with. 🙂
Our pleasure! Thanks for sharing your story.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Absolutely great advice. I was an only child, my Dad died suddenly in his very early 50's in 1976 just two years after I had married, what an enormous job of sorting through the workshop and possessions of a very "practical" man who had accumulated tons of tools and gear and at the same time dealing with a grieving mother. She left us in 2013 in her mid 80's, leaving a house full of accumulated personal treasures and memories, which I'd, many times, tried to convince her to downsize. It became another major operation to "pack up a life well lived", and dispose of everything because we already had all of our own "stuff" and needed for nothing.
I guess it's what us humans do, we do know we will have to depart this "mortal coil" but being as we don't know the "when" it's better to prepare ahead. We do not want our kids or grandkids to be needing to do this for us, we're taking steps to downsize now.
Thanks and glad you found it helpful. We are so glad to moved forward with our downsizing and simplifying of our retirement lives. If we should pass, at least our kids won't worry about our "stuff".
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
This powerful and wonderful video hits very close to my heart. When my estranged father died unexpectedly I had to clean up his apartment alone. The paperwork alone took about 60-70 hours, and the stress of the entire process gave me some sort of cold/flu thing that lasted for several weeks. All I took from his belongings was a book and a poor plant that needed some love.
My mother is now very elderly and I'm trying to get her to part with her large assortment of items. The walls I'm facing are hard as steel.
My husband and I have no children, but in our 40s and 50s we are already Swedish Death Cleaning. There is no way I would want friends or strangers going through my stuff after I'm gone.
I hope more people your age and younger watch your video. ❤
Thanks for the kind words and glad the video was helpful to you. Great job handling a difficult task. Feel free to share it with others you think might find it helpful.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
What helped us was to take a picture of the item. For example my wife's wedding dress and all of the related wedding stuff, we took pictures of it and let it all go and it helped a lot.
Great idea. Thanks for sharing.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
So we started van life 3 years ago. We had no idea if we would love it or hate it. If we would kill each other in two weeks or look at each other and say, this is the stupidest thing we ever did. Turns out that was 3 years ago and we absolutely love it. We kept a 3 X8 Storage unit with some basic household things that we loved in case we had to start a house again after a couple months. We have it in the middle of the country so we visit it when we travel through. We have winter things stored and summer things with the changing of the seasons since you can't keep a lot in a van. We go back and do a clean up and clean out. We start whittling down things we can now part with and take to the good will. We are now traveling in Europe and I think we will go back to that unit and see if we can get everything in a 3 X 5 unit. We did our total clean out of a 3 bedroom 2 bath house with two storage units in 3 months, crazy times but we felt so good. Keep what you want and then come back to it and rethink. The best advice I got was take pictures of your favorite stuff. Pictures will bring back the memories you had with it and we store pictures in the cloud so no picture boxes!
Thanks for sharing!
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Y'all are an inspiration. Thank you so much 🏆👏
Our pleasure! Thanks so much for following along with us. Less is More!!!
Happy trails,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I met the two of you at Isle Royale a couple of years ago. I have been following your adventures since. Thank you for this video - my wife says I am a pack rat and she is right. Your advice is timely as we have been discussing the need to simplify and downsize somewhat. Thanks again!
This was one of your best videos. If you watch our videos at all you know we are in a temporary travel hiatus while Tanya recovers from hip replacement surgery. So, I've been busy following the same death cleaning process you describe to make it simpler for Tanya if I pass first. You're exactly right that the big "things" are not much of a problem but the documents, photos, memories, etc. are the tough ones and it's definitely something that is best done in chunks, not all at once. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Thanks and glad you enjoyed the video. Wishing Tanya a speedy recovery.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
My in laws have a large home with a 3-car garage filled with boxes. They are in their mid-late 80s now, and are having trouble getting around. It just kills me knowing that it's my husband and his sister who will have to go through all that stuff. I know how hard it will be for my husband who gets attached to *things*. We have already agreed that I won't be able to help because I will simply and easily get rid of it all. I can already feel the heaviness of it, because I know my husband will want to bring so much stuff into our house...and I want to get rid of so much of what we already have.
I say to my husband regularly, "The greatest gift we can give our children is nothing". My goal is, after our death, for it to take our children an afternoon to go through whatever we have left, and that's it. I hope and pray that a) my in-laws find a way to lighten the load, and that this will bring them great joy, and b) that my goal of leaving my children nothing but lifetime of happy memories...and a bunch of money tax free....will be realized. =).
You have given your children a great gift. Not only have you spared them all that heartache, but you have also been a good example for them, and so they may give that gift to their children also, and on and on. Generations of parents sparing their children the pain of *stuff*.
Our downsizing down to just a couple of backpacks has changed our retirement completely and we love the gift of nothing to our children.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I made a promise to my two adult boys, when it was my time, it would take them no more than 45 minutes to clear away my belongings. I don't think it meant much to as there never had to clear out a lifetime of stuff. I'm going to share this video with them and ask for comment. Thank you for handling this delicate subject with such clarity and grace. Happy New Year.
Thanks for sharing and glad you found the video helpful.
Many blessings in 2024,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
This is great advice. Unfortunately my father has passed about 10 years ago and my mother now has dementia. So these older things spark her longer term memory and she can’t let them go. We had to downsize her to go into assisted living and it was a very painful process, plus my attic now houses some of her things as she can’t let go yet. So difficult. I wish her and my dad had done this early in their retirement.
Thanks and it is a difficult process for many people. Thanks for sharing your story.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thanks for the video. I like the idea of one room at a time, starting with closed rooms (closets, etc....)
You are so welcome! You definitely have to take it one step at a time and keep building. It took us awhile, but so glad we did it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thanks once again Jon and Bev for a helpful and encouraging video.
I’ve taken the first step and sold my home and gave almost all our stuff to 6 kids and grandkids. Who like you said needed it more than I did. I moved to a cabin my late husband and I own on a little river that was already furnished but three times smaller and no yard or anything to have to water. It’s liberating. And it’s cheap to live here. And guess what, memories can be made in a small home just as good as a larger one. And they love coming to the cabin.
I plan to use only the proceeds from the sale of my home to travel when I want and stay as long as I want while not having to touch my retirement. I have laid the road map for the kids and feel like I have made it so easy for them when I’m gone.
I am working on the pictures now to divide and conquer them. When you think about it, we were the generation of printed pictures. Today’s generation not so much especially since the world is digitalized.
Keep those videos coming and if you’re ever coming through Arkansas look me up. FYI I live on a 9 hole golf course! 😀
We'd love to look you up. I'm from Arkansas and we come at least twice a year. Send us an email on our website or instagram and we'll try to get together next summer. Bev 😉
9:48 this was the hardest “the children’s things”, I did the same boxed their things and said “keep what you like and do as you wish with the rest”. 🥰~Cara
Yes, those are some of the most difficult things!!!
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Great video! Swedish death cleaning is something I started. It’s a huge task even though I’ve downsized to a smaller home and donated, sold, and gave away a ton of things before moving! I’m still donating, selling, and giving away things! Focusing now on getting rid of tons of unnecessary paperwork. Using a paper shredder gives me peace of mind.
Thanks so much. It sounds like you have made some great progress. Keep it up.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
John & Bev, EXCELLENT words of wisdom! I wish everyone (Americans especially) would follow this principle of kindness to their children. ❤️
Thanks. Glad you found it helpful.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
You guys provide such great and thoughtful content on your channel. I can’t tell you how much inspiration and knowledge I’ve found here. I’m 45, my husband just turned 50 and we are so inspired by your journey. We also have a large family (6 kids) and are aiming for him retiring at 55 (hopefully). We love to travel, but because we still have young kids we’ll be doing our retirement travels as a family! 🤣🤣
Thank you so much! So glad you are enjoying our channel and finding it helpful. Good luck with your retirement planning.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
This makes sooooo much sense and I'm going to start asap! My kids will love me for it one day, I don't want my stuff to be a burden for them :)
Thanks so much. It was probably the best thing we have done in retirement. Best of luck with your downsizing process, we will be cheering for you.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Very interesting ! I spent the last 20 years doing as much traveling as I wanted to do, not saving anything for "later" I highly recommend what you said to do about any travel you want to do... DO IT EARLY!! I do not regret traveling early it certainly enhances our understanding of other cultures and helps to appreciate what we have. Thanks for a terrific video on downsizing!
Thanks so much and glad you found it helpful. Life goes by quickly.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
This is such a great topic - I wholeheartedly agree. I downsized to a one bedroom condo years ago - and could get by with even less stuff. Travel is fun when it is light. Life is like that too. Thanks for all you do.
Thanks. It took us awhile, but we finally figured out that Less really is More!
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
In 2021 I sold, gave away, and donated so much as I downsized. I had my daughters come to my house and get what they wanted. After that I put what I wanted to move with me in one room. Everything else was put in an estate sale.
It was and continues to be so freeing to own LESS… more time to visit with friends.
Great job. It is so liberating to have less. We have no regrets.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
My mother had done this several years prior to her death. It was a wonderful gift. I’m glad she did this for us(there are 5 adult children).
It is a wonderful gift to give your children.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Hi,
I love this video. I have been learning about this for years as I downsize. I completely agree that is not right to burden our children with this. I have already spoken to my Mom about siblings about this. I am downsizing for my own freedom. I will be happy knowing that i didn't burden my child as well. Keep on living your best life. I enjoy learning your travels and tips. 😊💛🙏🌍
Thanks so much. Glad you are enjoying our channel.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Liked the video before watching because I know that the video will be one of the best. Now back to the video. Thank you!
You're the best! Thanks so much and hope you enjoy the video.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I do the same thing…an automatic thumbs up.
This is my 2nd video of yours and I'm so impressed with your content! This is such an important topic and one which I'd highly recommend everyone consider, even if they don't plan to be a traveler.
"Stuff" is an anchor. It weighs you down. It holds you back and restricts you in ways you don't even realize. Stuff needs to be put or kept somewhere and that means space used up and space costs money. And the truth is that if somehow, half or more of your stuff vanished overnight and you didn't know about it. you wouldn't even miss it because you'd probably forgotten you'd even had it.
My general rule is 2 years. If I haven't used an item in the past 2 years, chances are I probably don't need it and won't miss it. Cleaning out and de-cluttering can be a hard and at times emotionally difficult exercise but it's also such a very liberating one. I recommend it to anyone, especially if they wish to become a traveler. I'm already nearly finished with mine and I'm so happy I started it when I did.
Thanks and so glad to hear you are enjoying our channel. Thanks for adding in your insights on the topic.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
GREAT video. Tonight I started my "Death Cleaning". I would love to be traveling like you are but my husband is afraid of what would happen if we were to get sick overseas so I have to settle for an occasional trip. So our death cleaning is just to reduce the "stuff" we have. Granddaughter came by and I was able to send her home with 3 large tubs of Halloween decorations and collectibles. She knows the value of those Dept 56 buildings and was extremely happy to have them. Next month I'll see how many of my 17 Christmas tubs she'll take. It's actually kinda fun going thru and giving stuff to someone that is really happy to receive the things that had lots of memories for us. Thanks for inspiring me to eliminate stuff and keep up the great videos.
@@lyndalozner6706 Thanks so much. Glad you found it helpful.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com
I was 48 when my mother passed & my new husband & I cared for her the last 3 years. My Dad has passed 10 years earlier & she didn't downsize.
I did it & I was fortunate she was in a condo & a lady in the building had caregiver who took everything to her church. All we had to do was carry it down to the basement, but I'm telling you my Dad had paperwork from the 1950's. It was very grieving to go thru everything. That was 20 years ago. I have downsized my life ever since. ❤
Great job and thanks for sharing.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Great video you guys. When my father passed my brothers and I had the daunting, heartbreaking task of making difficult choices in a very short period. My mother could not keep the house and we had to sell it in short order. Days of digging out old pics, stuff from our childhood was the hardest to part. We gave away a lot of stuff to good folks while lots went to goodwill or the dump. We recently relocated and are nearing retirement the move afforded us the opportunity to get rid of stuff, still some work to be done but we are on the right path. Don’t want our kids to have the same experience when we are gone. Such a great plan you are espousing. Safe travels.
Thanks for watching and sharing your story.
Safe travels,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Guys, this is SUCH good advice. Your kids are so lucky to have thoughtful, generous, and loving parents! Taking this huge burden off of their shoulders is truly priceless. The photo boxes are my favorite- WOW! What a dream! I'd rather have the physical photos, myself. We will definitely be sharing this to our page- this is a great lesson for EVERYONE!
Thanks so much!! This process has changed our life is so many ways. Thanks for sharing on your page.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
It’s true we all get our wake up calls as we age. All the running and collecting will cease as we look back and evaluate. You both are doing the right thing. Most important you both so lovingly bond in your retirement. You are an inspiration to me. I am a widow single mom getting my second and last son to college in UCLA. I am planning to go on traveling but shaken to see how populated the world is. Too many people everywhere. I guess I should try small steps. Great to watch your videos again and again. Keep going.
Thanks for sharing and the kind words. Best of luck with the travel planning and glad you are enjoying our channel.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
ttps://retirementtravelers.com
We enjoy all your videos, but your very thoughtful treatment of this tough topic was really beautifully done. Thank you for the motivation. We are going out to the garage now to start sorting through the many bins of stuff we have to disposition.
Thanks for the kind words and glad you are enjoying our channel. Best of luck with the process.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Just found your channel a few weeks ago and love you two so much! We have accomplished the downsizing, decluttering and planning but have had trouble getting out of our comfort zone and facing fears but your videos are helping. We started planning our first international trip this week and it's been so energizing. Thank you!
You got this! Congrats on the downsizing and good luck with your travels. We hope our channel can continue helping you.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
My husband and I will retire in 9 mo. This video will help us launch into downsizing. I suspect we will re-watch this a few times.
Congrats on your upcoming retirement and good luck with your downsizing. We are glad to help in any way.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Your channel is doing so well! Congratulations to you on all success! You have been so strategic, dedicated and high quality in your content. Well done! Safe travels! Dara
Thanks. As you know, it is a lot of hard work, but very rewarding.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you very much for your insight & advice on this, and at just the right time for us as we prepare a relocation(s) abroad next Spring! Never been a packrat, but was one of the few people I knew who felt relief more than remorse when Hurricane Katrina ate my house & "stuff," and clutter along with it, so I could downsize...but the past 18 years have accumulated just enough to live a comfortable but Spartan lifestyle, and now even much of that "new stuff" needs to go. To make matters worse, my elderly mom recently "deathcleaned" (without knowing there was such a term!) her house & literally dumped (lol) all my childhood stuff at my house, ~dozen boxes which nearly takes up a room, and I've been mentally-struggling with that more than anything. This video is the perfect motivator at the perfect time! Safe & FUNtastic travels, I'm thoroughly enjoying your journey 🙌
Thanks for following along and sharing your stories. Good luck with your move abroad next year.
Safe travels,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
You guys are perfect couple for the show "Amazing Race". It will be great to travel on the show and possibly win the prize! I would be cheering you guys on!
We’d love to do Amazing Race! Our kids have been after us to apply. What a hoot that would be!!!🤩 John & Bev www.retirementtravelers.com
We've started getting rid of a lot of stuff in preparation for a move to a smaller house. With a lot of memorabilia, we ask ourselves, "Do our daughters know - or remember - that this exists? Would they ever miss it if it disappeared?" If the answer is no, it almost always goes into the "out" category.
Good luck with the process. It is tough, but very rewarding.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com
We did this and purged out all the stuff. It was emotional, and gave them what they wanted, and just took our suitcases and moved abroad. It was an acceptance process. Donated alot of charity, and neighbors on free stuff websites on facebook. Stangers appreciated. It took atleast six months to get rid of all the stuff! Finally the furniture.. down to zero. Garage was first!!
Great job.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I agree 💯 it is so freeing..and I know my children appreciate it.. now helping my sister...it's liberating
Thanks for sharing. It is very liberating.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you for this video! My husband and I are retiring early at the end of this year. We just sold our condo to live in a very small apartment near a national park that we love. We've been downsizing since we met in our late 30s/early 40s; going from each having two homes when we met, down to one condo that we've just sold to live in an apartment across the country closer to family and aging parents. We have our final "cleaning" to do by the end of this month when the condo closes. It's nice to see that you made it through all the tough decisions about stuff you know has value, but you had to take a loss on or give away. I've had nightmares this week about this. Here's looking forward to getting through with less nightmares and the Chris Stapleton Starting Over song playing in the background. :)
Love your story. Thanks for sharing. We are certainly cheering for you. Hope you are enjoying our channel and website. And we love that song too. ❤️
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Excellent very helpful video. Thank you for putting this together. ~Cara 😊
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for following along with us.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank You for video. We are in the middle of a downsizing purge one year into retirement. It is hard, tedious and time consuming. Thanks especially for paper work and estate planning comments.
You are so welcome! Good luck with the process and keep going. Glad our video was helpful to you.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Oh my goodness, we just cleaned out our mom's house. One truck to the dump and a 20 foot truck to charity!!!!
Wow, lots of work, but completed. Well done.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I love all your vids!!! Thank you for all the advice and suggestions! So helpful and relatable
You are so welcome! Thanks so much for following along with us.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I am 100% on board with what you're talking about, I just wish my husband was too! He has a hard time getting rid of material things
Thanks for sharing. Keep working on him, because it has been so rewarding to get rid of our stuff.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Very well done. Sage advice. Thank you!
You are so welcome. Glad you found it helpful.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I started 2 years ago, when I retired. We aren't planning on downsizing for quite a while, so our purge won't be completed for several years. In the meantime, we are able to travel about every 4-6 weeks. We LOVE to travel but don't have the nomatic desire like you guys. I need a home base. Listening to your ideas helps getting there practically and emotionally. We don't want our stuff to be a burden on our kids. Great video, thanks!
Great job. Sounds like you have a good plan. We will slow down at some point, we just have too much we want to see right now. 😃 Hope you enjoy our channel.
Safe travels,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Excellent video hitting the mark with all your suggestions.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you! Fantastic video! Glad to have found you by chance! 🥰
Welcome aboard. So glad you found us and hope you enjoy our channel and website.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Just wonderful info, advice, inspiration and challenge. Thank you!!
Thanks so much. Glad it was helpful!
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Downsized to 700 sq feet and got rid of 85%. It took hours to go through the old photos (and those old photo albums)! I did the same. Clear sweater boxes; one for us, one for each kid. Then tossed the rest. Felt great! Now I need to do the digital paperwork! Thanks for the suggestion!
Great job. It does feel great when you get done.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
NAILED IT! Thank you for the video.
Thanks. Glad you liked it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Another informative excellent video…thanks!
Our pleasure! So glad you found it helpful.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
This is a very much needed video.
Thank you
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Wonderful advice. Thanks for your thoughtful advice on scaling down.
Thanks. Glad you found it helpful.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Well said. I admire your thoughts and actions which led to a simple yet fruitful life.
Thanks so much for the kind words.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Oh my gosh, we were just in Stockholm in June. Have such a great time! Loved your video ~ as always. Enjoy!
Thanks. We had a great time in Stockholm. Glad you got to visit.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Excellent excellent advice! Youtwo are my absolute favorite inspirational channel! Photos! Totally relate and I didn't feel guilty anymore after hearing your rationale Bev!!
Great to hear! So glad you are enjoying our channel. Thanks for following along with us.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you so much for this much-needed video. This isn't a topic that most people want to think about. However, it's the most loving thing that you can do for your relatives. My parents did the same thing when they retired. They downsized from a massive duplex house to a mobile home, and in the process, unloaded years worth of accumulation. My father had saved every copy of National Geographic that he subscribed to. Before the move, he donated his entire collection to a local library. Likewise, when he became too old to drive, he donated his automobile to a local charity. Unloading your stuff before you die makes it so much easier for the loved ones to deal with after your passing.
Thanks for sharing your stories and glad you found the video helpful.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
We’re (I) 😀 in the process of going through our stuff. My husband is not into it. Ugh. But I’ll do what I’m in control of.
I enjoy your videos. Safe travels and thanks for taking us along. ❤️🇨🇦
Don’t worry. Just do your own stuff and he will eventually follow suit. You don’t have to say anything.
Good luck. You can do it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Yup. That’s tough.
Great advice guys and happy travels.
Thanks so much! Glad you found it helpful.
Safe travels,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I have been trying to follow KonMari Method for decades. I knew it’s good and my daughters even said they’d throw away most of my stuff. But it’s so difficult to let go. After watching this video, I am really determined. Thank you very much for the advice.
Thanks so much and good luck. We are cheering for you. 👏
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Watching from South Africa, I really enjoyed this video, presented in such a thoughtful way. This way of thinking related to minimalism, was new to me as I grew up in an era where acquiring stuff was so important. But since I bought into these ideas, my life changed for the better. Technology helps us today....we don't need to keep books, records, photos any more. Keep spreading the message, so that people don't need to spend months or even a year or more getting your stuff to people and places that might value it. DO IT NOW!
Thanks. So glad you enjoyed it. Heading to South Africa next year and can't wait.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you for this video, I sow it months ago with my Candles channel when I started interesting in this topics and you motivated me to start planning our traveling early retirement and just open this channel to share our experience amd inspire others like you both are doing. Be safe! 🙏
Thanks and glad you found it helpful.
Safe travels,
John and Bev,
retirementtravelers.com/
Another great video, thank you. We are paert way thru clearing out, and I now realise that we are not going far enough ... I've not heard of Swedish Death Cleaning before - but thats one of the benefits of watching your channel - I learn new things ;-)
Till the next one. Paul
Thanks for the kind words and it is great to hear that you are learning new things on our channel.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Love your motivation, good humour and your approach to everything, travel included. We have followed a very similiar path and our motto is: We want to do stuff, not have stuff. Thanks for all your advice, it's spot-on.
That is awesome! Love your motto and thanks for following along with us.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
My goal in life is to hug you in person! I LOVE YOU! There are so many gold nuggets! 1) children don't even have time to mourn because too busy decluttering. 2) more stuff slows down traveling and freedom 3) give each children their box and let them do whatever they want. 4) financial wills and trust all in cloud! Love it
Well, with a name like Mississippi Apple, we want to hug you too! ❤️ John & Bev
I did this during the pandemic. I am still working on paperwork. It was great getting rid of stuff, we donate and gave away.
Great job. It does feel wonderful to downsize and get rid of "stuff"
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Great video!! Lots of great ideas.
Thanks. Glad you liked it. We believe scarves are a good starting point. 🤣
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Smart tips, thanks for sharing!
Thanks.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com
I loved this! Thank you!!
Thanks so much. We are glad you enjoyed it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I love it John !!!!!!! and Bev
Thanks Joe. Hope all is well.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Hi guys! Finally popping back in for a visit. Great topic! I have definitely struggled with this. I talked to my nieces, nephews and children about what mementos from my parents they wanted... I've already passed them along to new homes.
Thanks
John and Bev
Great advice. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful! It has changed our life.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Whereas I’m happy for your ability to follow your process, it’s really different for most. I started 2 years ago to downsize my belongings and then several months ago I heard about Swedish Death Cleaning. I’m continuing to get rid of things and it comes in stages. Getting my husband on board is met with “no way” so that’s a stumbling block. I have a ways to go but I’m determined to keep it up. Enjoy your travels.
Thanks for sharing. Good luck with the process and great job on the progress.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Great inspiration!
Thanks so much! Glad you found it inspiring.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
You two have me tearing up listening to you say YOU want to help others live their best lives and John's dad wanting him to live his his best life. ❤
Thanks for the kind words and appreciate you following along with us. We get so much satisfaction when one of our viewers tell us that we inspired them to step out of their comfort zones and go travel.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
We have had to combine our home stuff into our cottage. Our son and his sweet wife helped me put things on Market place. Had a garage sale for one day😂😂. It wound up being a time to say good bye to our neighbors. Gave things to the neighbors, A young man needed items for a garage sale to raise money for a mission trip. He emptied the garage.😂. We made several trips to a donation center. The gal who ran the center would just smile and say “ back again” huh. Just went through my CD’s today. Learning to live minimally and loving it!
That's awesome to hear. Great job. We have no regrets from getting rid of everything.
Many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Awesome video. Thanks!
Thanks so much. Glad you liked it!
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Very good video! Thank you!
Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Love this video
Thanks. So glad you enjoyed it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
100% in agreement with you. No one should have to deal with that. Thank you.
Thanks for following along with us. We feel so good about completing this process.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
So, as usual this was a very informative and thought provoking video. It could easily be a valued segment on PBS. This has challenged me to get things in order. I recently kicked things off by surrendering our storage room. I plan to have monthly donations of unused items of value.
Glad you enjoyed it and great job getting started. Thanks for following along with us.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Great video, thank you. Incredibly my partner and I started doing this just yesterday in preparation for our full time travel in a couple of years time. One of the hardest things for me was I have a lot of stuff that belonged to my Mother and her Mother, jewellery mostly, I just couldn’t bring myself to throwing them out. We will have a storage unit initially when we start to travel so a lot of boxes will go there. Now to get our 24 year old daughter to come back home and collect all her stuff !!😊
Thanks for watching. It is a lot of work, but you will be glad after you have done it.
Safe travels and many blessings,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Good advice ✅
Glad you think so! Hope you are enjoying our channel and website.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com
Great video downsizing and decluttering is a big part of retirement, especially as your kids don’t have to do it Cheers Tina and Norm
Thanks so much. Downsizing and decluttering are so important in retirement. We are quite happy to be done with the process.
Thanks for commenting,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
I love watching your videos…you guys are so positive!
I’m 45 and currently trying to downsize from a 3-storey home…it’s a nightmare! How do we accumulate so much stuff?…it’s quite disturbing.
I feel trapped by it all but have now sold my house so will be out of here soon!
I can see why people turn to van life or move onto a canal boat…a simpler life is a happier life.
I just want to be free and see more of the world…not held down by STUFF!
That is awesome! Thanks for following along with us and good luck with the downsizing process and traveling.
Happy journeys,
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com
Experience over possessions is the way!
You are right! Maximize your life experiences not manage your things. There's a big difference! John & Bev www.retirementtravelers.com
Perfect timing video - heading to visit my 82yo dad on a monthly basis to work on this strategy
Thanks and good luck.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
We did a lot of this to travel but seem to have got so much back. Time to start again the clean out
Great job! You can do it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
It’s shocking how much comes right back!
Thank you so much.
You're welcome! Glad you enjoyed it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
When I moved house my good friend spent a week putting piles of stuff in the center of the lounge for me to go through. Boot loads went to charity or the dump rather than just packing it and taking to the new house. I still have too much stuff but that initial big clean out let me move uncluttered. Now it's 5 years later and I'm ready to let go of more stuff. I'll never empty my house, I have a flatmate and we both have friends and family who come to stay.
Great job on the progress. You can do it.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Such good advice! My MIL has been a hoarder for years, and moving her, downsizing her collection, dealing with her constant prioritizing things she never uses over people, space, and other resources has truly been a nightmare for everyone involved. It’s especially bad when the owner of the things has poor health, so nearly everything has to be done for her. Many aspects of that poor health have been a choice. Ie, she prioritized rich foods, sugar, and little exercise. I’m a strong supporter of taking responsibility for the handling of our own lives. Otherwise, someone else has to do it. And life is busy for them too.
Thanks. So glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for sharing your experiences. This mindset has changed our lives!
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Hi and thanks for sharing your tips and experiences. I'd like to add my tip to this topic, which might be useful to someone. I have a folder with dividers that I put things like: subscriptions, my insurance companies, bank details, passwords to all types of accounts, electricity, phone & internet details etc....Although I'm some years away from retirement, I wanted to be organised just in case something did happen to me. My children know of the folder so when Im gone everything is there for them, there's no need for them to search for things or wonder which lawyer has my will. A few years ago I got rid of everything I didn't need, about 65%. With two houses and multiple sheds on my property, it was easy to just store stuff, but I wanted to be more organised. Although I do some traveling now and intend on doing more in the future (up to 6 mths at a time), I have no intention of ever selling my property so, a 65% decrease is perfect for me. I'm looking forward to your next video. Happy and safe travels.
❤Zeljka
Thanks for watching and glad you have found the right balance with downsizing.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
i was going to get some containers from the container store or ikea for tidying and organizing some of my stuff but now, after watching this, i'm really motivated to just let it go and give it away to goodwill or just put it in the recycle bin. it's hard tho. and i'm not even a packrat. i live pretty light. at the moment of pulling it out of the closet it exerts some kind of magnetic force. the hardest are my CDs from the 80s and the 90s. i know i can transfer it to some hard drive but i love my CDs
Keep going. You can do it. We know how tough those CD's kind be. Good luck.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/
Yup. We don’t need more containers. We need less stuff.
I have lots to sort through, and we are doing it, just slowly. But ugh, it's a lot of work. But I don't want to leave it for my kids.
It is very tough, but it doesn't make it better to push it out on your kids. Good luck with the process.
John and Bev
retirementtravelers.com/