How To Declutter Video Games & Electronic Toys
Today's Declutter 365 mission is to declutter video games and electronic toy clutter from your home, so you and the kids can enjoy some of these electronics without being inundated with too many toys and games.
This mission continues on with the tasks we've been working on this week, to declutter toys and games throughout the house, while we work on the Organize Toys & Games Challenge, as part of the 52 Week Organized Home Challenge.
Yesterday we focused on decluttering board games, card games, and puzzles, and now we're just continuing on by focusing on electronic games, toys, and video games.
What Types Of Games & Toys Does This Mission Apply To?
As always, I try to make these missions broad enough to apply to a variety of toys and games, while also providing a narrow enough focus to allow you to only need to deal with one or two categories of items, so you don't get overwhelmed.
The mission applies to these types of items, of whatever variety you've got in your house for kids, or adults:
- Video games, including the consoles, cartridges or discs, and accessories such as controllers, joysticks, headsets, etc.
- Portable and handheld electronic toys and games
- Video and other games that you may play on your smart phone or other device (you might want to delete some apps or other digital clutter!)
How To Decide What To Keep Versus Declutter
Video games and electronic toys are decluttered in a similar way as the other recent toy decluttering missions we've been working on.
As always, I'm not suggesting that you get rid of all of these electronic games and toys, but instead to use this as an opportunity to get rid of the ones that are clutter, so you can enjoy what you do keep.
Suggestions for what to at least consider decluttering include:
- Games you no longer (or never) actually enjoyed or played;
- Games you haven't played in 6 months, or a year, or even longer
- Broken or scratched games, that no longer play properly
- Old or out of date games or consoles, that are no longer the most current version (especially if you've gotten the upgraded version since then)
- Cartridges or discs for games that you no longer even have a console for
- Games, cartridges, or consoles, that you do not have storage space to hold in the area designated for this entertainment item
Once you've decided what to get rid of, you'll really thank yourself because what will be left is the stuff you really do enjoy playing, or that your kids enjoy, and it will be easier to actually find and play what's left.
What To Do With Games, Consoles & Electronics You Decide To Get Rid Of
Once you've decided what items to get out of your home, the next step is to properly dispose of it, either by donating, selling or recycling them.
Because these items are electronics, make sure if you're going to trash or recycle the items that you do it properly, as discussed in more detail in the electronics disposal guide here.
If you want to trade in these games or consoles to recoup some cash, that might be a possibility, depending on what types of games and consoles you're decluttering.
One of the simplest trade-in programs I've found is the Amazon Trade-In program, where you can trade-in older consoles and video games in exchange for Amazon gift cards. You have to make sure they will accept your exact gaming system or game, but when they do it can be a simple way to recoup some of your money.
You can find out more about the program here (scroll down the page until you see "other trade-in categories, and choose "gaming"):
Photos From Reader Who Has Already Done This Mission
Below I've got some photos from readers who've already done this mission. My hope is that when you see these photos they'll inspire you to see what you too can accomplish in your own home, and get you excited to tackle this task as well.
Seena sent in these photos about how she decluttered video game cases, and also stores her family's video games. She said, "This is an ottoman I bought years ago for my husband's games. But, I think any storage ottoman would work for video games." She then continued, "I got rid of the individual cases for most of the games but, I agree children are more difficult to keep organized. My husband is very good about putting his games away and making sure my twelve year old does the same."
It's a personal decision, with pros and cons, about whether you want to get rid of the cases for video game discs or not, because while it certainly takes up a lot less space to store the discs in a book like Seena does, if the video game players in your house don't put them away consistently it can cause disorganization, or scratched or lost discs.
Here's a similar storage ottoman and CD/DVD/Video Game Disc organizer like Seena shows in her photos above.
Storage Ottoman {Referral Links}
Are You Ready To Get Rid Of Your Electronic Games & Toy Clutter?
This photo above was provided by a reader, Nina, who had already decluttered excess video game cartridges, and said, "No duds in this drawer of Super Nintendo and Gameboy games! All still played regularly."
That's awesome Nina! That's exactly what I hope we can all accomplish in our homes!
Want To Do More Decluttering Missions? Get Started With Declutter 365 Today!
Once you declutter one type of item in your home I bet you'll want to declutter some more. After all, decluttering gives you a great reward for even a small investment of time and energy.
The Declutter 365 system is designed to help you declutter, over the course of a year, your entire house, with just 15 minutes of decluttering each day!
Hundreds of thousands of people use this proven system to get rid of their clutter, and bring peace and calm back to their homes.
Declutter 365 works to guide you to clear the clutter without overwhelm, focusing on just one small area at a time, and without making a huge mess in the process, so you see consistent forward progress without all that "messy middle" that makes it even harder to function in your home than before you started.
In addition to building a daily decluttering habit, the Declutter 365 program, along with the accompanying 52 Week Organized Home Challenge, teaches you the skills, habits, routines, and mindsets necessary to maintain the clutter free and organized state of your home from now on, so it'll never be as messy and cluttered as it is right now, ever again.
If you haven't already, make sure to get your copy of this year's Declutter 365 annual calendar here (it's FREE!), find today's date, and do 15 minutes of decluttering on the day's mission. Then, repeat again tomorrow, and again and again. Over the course of the next year, if you do this 15 minutes per day, you'll declutter your whole house!
Get This Kids Decluttering Checklist + 32 Other Decluttering Checklists For Your Home
Right now you're decluttering kids' clutter, but as anyone who has kids around knows there's a lot of types and varieties of this type of clutter around your home.
I've done the hard work of breaking down these tasks into smaller more manageable steps for you, so you don't get overwhelmed or worry you're forgetting a task, and you can go at the pace you want, whether that's fast or slow.
In addition, you can tackle these decluttering tasks in whatever order you want when you use these checklists!
Check out lots of missions to get rid of kids clutter here.
Top photo courtesy of Plat, and video game console in mission collage courtesy of Blake Patterson, and the Gameboy image in mission collage courtesy of Gehirnfussel
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Related Pages You May Enjoy
How To Declutter Your Kids' Playroom
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