Congratulations–you’ve signed the contract and have an official moving-out day in your calendar. It’s both exciting and frustrating so don’t worry if you feel like you’re in over your head. It’s completely normal and part of the whole process of moving out. After all, you’re going to uproot yourself from a place that you’ve felt comfortable in for a long time (or at least the very least, you’ve lived in familiar surroundings). Before you start overthinking, here are some tips to help ease the process of moving.
Declutter and sell your stuff online
One of the best things you can do is to start a few weeks or months in advance and downsize your belongings, that is, if you haven’t already. Moving out can be extremely stressful and time-consuming, but, if you allot 30 minutes or an hour every day a month or so before the big move, then it wouldn’t feel like such a chore. Even if you don’t have a lot of stuff, you might be surprised at how you can actually survive with just half of the things you currently own. You might see a couple of items you haven’t used which you can either sell online or donate.
Label everything
If you still have a few boxes worth of belongings, then it’s best that you get a marker and label those boxes. Organize your items according to where they’ll go in your house. Write ‘kitchen’, ‘bedroom’, or ‘living room’ so you don’t have to open each box one by one when you immediately need, say, an extra pillow, and you can easily access it.
Another method of labeling boxes is to figure out which are the ones you use daily and sort your boxes according to how often you need to use those items. So all toiletries and other health-related essentials go in one box, important kitchen appliances (like your toaster and coffee machine) go in another, beddings and towels go in a different box, and so on. If you truly don’t want or have time to organize your belongings, having just one box for all the immediate essentials that you’ll need when you move in can also come in handy. That way, you don’t have to immediately unbox your items and you can just open one box, get the sheets and go to sleep. And you can just start organizing your stuff when you have the time and energy to do it.
Pack smart
If you have small kitchen appliances, glassware, and other fragile things in your possession, you don’t necessarily need to buy bubble wrap or plastic. Use your clothes to wrap plates and glasses or use your towels to wrap glass pitchers and other stuff, like say, your extra computer monitor.
If you have a lot of books and feel sentimental, now is the time to carefully consider whether you really need to bring your whole library with you or if you’re better off with just 5 books and an e-reader. If you have a ton of books and don’t want to part with any of those, then spread them out to all your boxes so you don’t have 2 or 3 incredibly heavy boxes that are filled with just books.
For Pet Owners
Packing and unpacking boxes, moving out of a comfortable space, and moving into unfamiliar territory isn’t just stressful for humans. So if you have a cat or dog and you want to take their well-being into the equation, you might want to consider leaving them to a trusted friend for a few days so you can unpack and make your new home as cozy as possible before your pet moves in with you.
Ask for help
If you have a lot of heavy items and you can’t fit everything in the back of a car, either ask friends or professional movers to help. If you aren’t used to moving things and carrying heavy objects, you might end up too tired and unable to function for the rest of the week.
Take some time off work
If you can, take time off work so you can focus on the tasks you need to accomplish. To make moving out less stressful, you need to be able to focus on just organizing your things and not worry about any Zoom meetings or client calls. Some people like to move out on a Thursday or Friday so they still have the weekend to finish sorting through their items and rest before a new work week starts. If it’s not possible to do this, ask a friend or two if they can take in a few boxes of belongings that you can pick up once you’ve finished unpacking your essentials. Rest as much as you can, stay hydrated, and get enough sleep.
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