Podcast Summary: Episode 487 – Decluttering (Not Organizing) the Calendar

Podcast: Dana K. White: A Slob Comes Clean
Host: Dana K. White
Guest: Beth (Mental Health Professional)
Date: December 4, 2025
Main Theme: Applying decluttering principles to the calendar and schedule, not just physical spaces.

Overview

This episode explores how the concept of decluttering—letting go of what isn’t serving you—can apply to managing our calendars and schedules, not just our environments. Host Dana K. White and guest Beth, a busy mental health professional and mother, discuss how overcommitment affects home life, relaxation, and the possibility of meaningful decluttering at home. They work through how Dana’s “five-step decluttering process” translates to time management, focusing on removing obligations before trying to organize or structure the remaining time.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Reality of an Overwhelmed Schedule

• Beth shares her life situation: She, her husband, and their 18-year-old all have ADHD, work long hours, and are rarely home except to crash. The home suffers from “dump and dash” routines and little motivation for organizing or deep cleaning.
  • Quote [02:16, Beth]: “We are never here or when we are, we're kind of crashed out mostly...But it also makes it hard to relax.”

2. What’s Working Well?

• Beth’s workspaces are decluttered: Her university office is functional, and she’s able to maintain it using Dana’s methods. At home, she struggles much more.
  • Quote [03:29, Beth]: “In my office, I actually am pretty decluttered. Pretty. The space is really functional.”
• She follows the “five steps” for decluttering but often stops short of fully putting things away (“take it there now” step), resulting in clutter migrating but not disappearing.
  • Quote [04:36, Beth]: “I carry a big pile of things downstairs … and then I just toss them onto the couch and they don't make it into the bureau and then they sit…”

3. Translating Decluttering to the Calendar

• Beth’s main question: How can Dana’s decluttering method apply to time and obligations, not just stuff?
• Dana reframes "organizing" time: “Structure” is to time as “organize” is to space—but decluttering must come first.
  • Quote [08:15, Dana]: “The difference between decluttering and organizing and how important it is to separate those two things and to say, for now I am going to just declutter.”

Applying the Five-Step Process to the Calendar

• Don’t focus on "structuring" or "organizing" your calendar until you remove the obvious “trash” (unnecessary commitments).
• Start by identifying the “trash” on the calendar: things you don’t need to do, don’t want to do, or are only doing out of habit or guilt.
  • Quote [09:55, Dana]: “Yes, the container of it is an issue. But before we even think about that, I would say let's look at the calendar and say, is there any trash?”

4. Concrete Example: Removing “Calendar Trash”

• Beth shares that she was able to finally step down from advising a club—that was “trash” on her calendar.

  • Quote [10:39, Beth]: “…I was advising a club… I've been trying to get out of it for like a year and a half and I finally was like, no, this is trash.”

• Meetings that are non-core or could easily be missed for urgent client needs can also be labeled “trash.”

  • The mental load of being “on” committees you’re never present for brings guilt but little benefit.
  • Quote [13:05, Dana]: “The only purpose you being on that committee is serving is space in your brain that you're feeling guilty about.”

• Do the easy things first: “Trash” obligations can sometimes be removed with one email—yielding outsized mental relief for minimal effort.

  • Quote [14:38, Dana]: “It could even be a copy and pasted email sent to five different things…biggest brain space freed.”

5. The Power of Decluttering Time

• Eliminating just three unnecessary meetings a week can reclaim 12 hours a month or 144 a year.

  • Quote [18:09, Dana]: “You are literally talking about 12 hours of your life that you will get back in five minutes…”

• Beth notices that decluttering her email inbox (by quickly deleting irrelevant messages) brings similar relief and time savings.

6. The Emotional & Identity Challenge

• Dana and Beth discuss the “Hero Complex”—it feels good to be wanted and involved, which feeds a reluctance to step back, but letting go creates opportunities for others.
  • Quote [26:22, Dana]: “…me not doing it means someone else is going to have to figure out how to do it. And that's highly beneficial for them.”
  • Quote [29:18, Beth]: “…there are things I'm doing that a younger staff member, a younger faculty member would benefit from the learning of doing.”

7. Continuing the Decluttering Process

• Once the “trash” is gone, look for the “easy” to delegate or offload obligations—tasks where the letting go process is nearly complete, e.g., transferring a recurring training session to junior staff.

  • Documenting processes now saves much more time later.
  • Quote [33:27, Beth]: “It would be investing probably two to four more hours, and then it would be taking…15 or 20 off of my plate.”

• Dana hammers home: focus on decluttering your calendar before trying to organize what's left.

  • Quote [34:47, Dana]: “Zero in on the decluttering of the calendar and you do the trash first… then you do this easy stuff… and then you, you know, maybe the donations is some of the stuff where you do have to pick someone to take over something…”

8. Prioritizing Decluttering Physical Spaces at Home

• Beth asks if she has to start decluttering in the “most visible space.” Dana says any decluttering is good, but starting with visible/common areas (even if just family-visible) builds momentum and eases daily life.
  • Quote [37:30, Dana]: “Anywhere you declutter is great. That is the value of the visibility rule: it gives you a place to start. But if you want to start in your living room, go for it.”

9. Most Common Derailler: Skipping “Take It There Now”

• Beth asks for the most common reason people get off track. Dana is emphatic: people often skip the "take it there now" step—intending to move items later but never doing it, so the clutter simply shifts rather than disappears.
  • Quote [42:33, Dana]: “I think it is when people ignore the take it there now… it is the thing that guarantees actual real progress…”

10. ADHD, Execution, and Strategies

• Beth and Dana bond over ADHD realities:

  • Getting distracted on the way to put something away
  • The importance of immediate action to minimize distraction and lost items
  • Using reminders and external cues as “take it there now” strategies

• Quote [46:50, Beth]: “That's exactly the thing that gets me to never declutter is I'm terrified of that. Because it's always happens. Right?”

11. Advice for Launching an 18-Year-Old

• Go minimal when packing for dorm life—don’t saddle new adults with extra stuff.
• Make them do their own packing so they know what they have and can learn self-sufficiency.
  • Quote [50:21, Dana]: “I think going as minimal as possible in packing to live in a dorm…”
  • Story [51:14+, Dana]: When she packed for her son, he didn’t even know what he had, resulting in problems during a power outage.

12. The Value of Community

• Beth loves the “kindred spirits” Patreon group: the sense of not being alone in the struggle, a nonjudgmental space for people naturally disinclined to organize, and mutual support.
  • Quote [53:46, Beth]: “I work with so many people…they have no tools. And your tools are really important tools…just having a community of people that, like, totally get it.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [09:55, Dana]: “Before we even think about [structuring time], I would say let's look at the calendar and say, is there any trash?”
• [13:05, Dana]: “The only purpose you being on that committee is serving is space in your brain that you're feeling guilty about.”
• [18:09, Dana]: “You are literally talking about 12 hours of your life that you will get back in five minutes because you can send the same email to three different people and you immediately get 12 hours a month.”
• [26:22, Dana]: “Me not doing it means someone else is going to have to figure out how to do it. And that's highly beneficial for them.”
• [42:33, Dana]: “I think it is when people ignore the take it there now. And I completely understand the desire to ignore that because I hate it, too.”

Important Timestamps

• 02:16 – Beth describes family, work, and ADHD context
• 04:36 – Beth describes partial success with Dana’s decluttering “five steps”
• 08:15 – Dana discusses the conceptual difference between decluttering and organizing time
• 09:55 – Dana introduces removing “calendar trash”
• 10:39 – Beth shares her first experience applying the method (stepping down from club advising)
• 18:09 – Dana calculates the impact of removing just 3 meetings per week
• 26:22 – Discussion on “hero complex” and letting others step in
• 33:27 – Beth discusses delegating and documenting work for administrative assistant
• 34:47 – Dana recaps process of decluttering calendar before “organizing” it
• 37:30 – Dana gives permission to declutter any space that matters
• 42:33 – The most common derailer: skipping “take it there now”
• 50:21 – Dana’s advice about letting 18-year-olds pack for themselves

Tone

The episode is marked by warmth, relatability, humor, and a gentle, reality-based approach. Both Dana and Beth speak openly about their struggles and practical adaptations for ADHD and overwhelmed lives, making the conversation accessible and validating for listeners who feel similarly overwhelmed by both stuff and schedules.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Decluttering is a mindset you can apply to commitments and time as well as physical stuff.
• Always focus on removing (decluttering) before organizing (“structuring”)—with time, get rid of the “trash” obligations first.
• There is tangible relief and reclaimed energy in even small acts of letting go.
• It’s okay (and necessary!) to pass on roles and obligations to make space for others—and for yourself.
• Sticking to the execution steps, especially “take it there now,” is crucial for lasting progress.
• You are not alone; communities exist for people struggling with clutter—mentally and physically.

For more of Dana’s tools and supportive communities, check out her Patreon (Kindred Spirits) and her courses (links in episode description).