Decluttering Your Digital Life

We often think of decluttering as something we do with physical stuff — drawers, wardrobes, kitchen cupboards. But digital clutter can be just as stressful. If your inbox is overflowing, your phone’s out of storage, and you can’t find a file when you need it, it’s time for a digital refresh.

With summer approaching and the pace slowing down slightly (hopefully), now’s the perfect moment to clear the virtual mess and make space for ease and calm.

Start with the Inbox

Your email inbox doesn’t have to be a source of anxiety. Honestly.

Here’s a simple process:

• Search for “unsubscribe” and bulk-delete marketing emails you’ve never opened.

• Create folders for key categories like Receipts, Travel, Work, Kids, etc.

• Move important emails to folders and delete the rest.

• Set a timer for 10 or 15 minutes to avoid overwhelm.

If you want to go a step further, unsubscribe from anything you haven’t read in months. Less incoming email means less to deal with.

Tidy Up Your Desktop

A cluttered desktop on your computer is like a messy hallway — it makes it hard to think clearly.

• Delete old screenshots, downloads, and duplicate files.

• Group documents into folders by type or project.

• Rename things so you can find them again. “Document-final-FINAL-3” isn’t helping anyone.

Your desktop should feel like a calm entry point, not a dumping ground.

Clean Your Camera Roll

Photos take up so much space, especially when we’re snapping every moment of a holiday or night out.

• Delete blurry, duplicate, or accidental photos.

• Organise the rest into albums (Summer 2024, Family, Events, etc).

• Back everything up to the cloud or an external drive so it’s safe.

This is a lovely one to do with a cuppa — you might rediscover some beautiful memories.

Review Your Apps

Phones and tablets are often crammed with apps we never use. If it’s been untouched for months, it’s probably time to remove it.

On most devices, you can check which apps you’ve not opened in a while. Delete the ones you don’t need. Move the ones you do use to your home screen, grouped into folders like Travel, Health, Productivity, or whatever makes sense for you.

Make It Ongoing

Digital decluttering doesn’t have to be a one-off. You can build little habits into your routine:

• Delete 10 photos while waiting for your coffee

• Archive yesterday’s emails before logging off

• Uninstall one app every Friday

These tiny actions help you stay in control without needing a big reset.

Digital clutter creates mental noise we often don’t even notice. When you clear it, everything feels just a little bit lighter. And who doesn’t want that heading into summer?