I just discovered the '27 Fling Boogie' technique, and it finally makes decluttering fun

News
By published

Make a game out of tidying your home

A person decluttering clothes in a cardboard box
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Decluttering is one of those tasks you know you really need to do and the longer you put it off, the worse it gets. And since you have to live amongst the mess, you can't ever really avoid it.

But, the process of decluttering can be incredibly hard. It's not just about ridding your home of clutter, it's about letting go of objects you've grown accustomed to having around.

What is the 27 Fling Boogie technique?

Decluttering clothes on the floor

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

The '27 Fling Boogie' is a trend created by Maria Cilley aka. FlyLady, a "personal online coach" that strives to help you clean. And so, she came up with this unusually named method that tasks you with throwing away 27 items and giving away 27 items.

I've tried many a decluttering method, from 'the poop rule' to the KonMari method to Swedish death cleaning. By now, she clearly needs help tidying: "She really needs helping decluttering" and you'd be right.

So, when I heard that the 27 Fling Boogie wanted me to run through my home gathering up items firstly with the idea of throwing them away and then to giving them away, it felt like a game I could finally get onboard with.

My main problem with decluttering is how much of a chore it is and how overwhelming it can be. By gamifying the idea, the 27 Fling Boogie gave me an opportunity to stop thinking about it like a task and, really, stop thinking altogether.

Why does it work?

Decluttering clothes on the floor

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

I quickly realized by using the 27 Fling Boogie technique, I had to focus myself onto one room or one particularly messy spot, like my wardrobe. And that's when it really started to work.

Running around like a headless chicken was fun at first, but then I was struggling to find 27 items just strewn across my home and it was far too easy to ignore populated spots.

And focusing my attention was the key. The 27 Fling Boogie gave me a straightforward look at what I had and less about sitting there endlessly staring at each item. It wasn't, "Should I keep it?" It was, "Throw or donate?"

And, sure, it definitely did work, but I also came to the realisation that 27 was just a number that gave me a goal. Most of the time, I surpassed 27 in the throwing away pile, but came under the quota in donating – and that was totally fine.

At the end of the day, I was focused on doing something with my clutter and slowly, but surely, my house became less messy without me feeling any kind of guilt – especially as I dropped off items to charity to find new homes.

More from Tom's Guide

Grace Dean
Grace Dean

Grace is a freelance journalist working across homes, lifestyle, gaming and entertainment. You'll find her writing for Tom's Guide, TechRadar, Space.com, and other sites. If she's not rearranging her furniture, decluttering her home, or relaxing in front of the latest streaming series, she'll be typing fervently about any of her much-loved hobbies and interests. To aid her writing, she loves to head down internet rabbit holes for an unprecedented amount of time.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.