Banish Clutter Forever: How the Toothbrush Principle Will Change Your Life

by Sheila Chandra

Why is it that even the most disorganised person never seems to lose their toothbrush?

How can this simple fact solve all our clutter problems?

The Toothbrush Principle is a simple yet inspired approach to de-cluttering your home. Whether you live in a mansion or a bedsit, this book will show you how to: organise according to the unconscious blueprint that naturally tidy people have, so that getting and staying organised is easy; know what to throw away with confidence; set up your wardrobe so you get much more use out of the clothes you have; work from home productively in a clear, designated space; tame your inbox!

Step-by-step, room-by-room, you'll soon find that you hardly ever lose things, massive clear outs become a thing of the past and you never spend more than 10 minutes a day tidying up.

So stop drowning in piles of clutter, learn how to be organised and start creating space to live out the life of your dreams!

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Ebooks, Personal Development

238 pages, Paperback

First published March 4, 2010

About the author

Renowned World Music singer Sheila Chandra turned non-fiction author in 2010, following voice problems which forced her to retire from her international music career. She says writing has become her 'second voice'.

After being urged by friends to share her secret to living clutter free despite having a demanding career, she wrote Banish Clutter Forever outlining her own system for home organizing - which she says makes daily tidy ups redundant 'pretty much forever'.

In 2008 she met then homeless street artist Stik and began to mentor him. Stik has gone on to become one of the most famous and collectable street artists in the world. Early on, she wrote a guide to organizing his artist career just for him - and following his success he encouraged her to expand it and get it published as 'Organzing Your Creative Career'. A new print edition of the book - including a new chapter on pricing and funding - is out on 14th January 2020.

Sheila says: 'Most thriving professional artists don't have time to coach and encourage other artists. But now I have the time to, and my loss can be their gain. I wanted to write 'Organizing Your Creative Career' particularly for emerging artists who don't come from an artistic background and who maybe lack contacts, peers and the information on work culture that's so crucial to being a success.'

She now coaches creative people all over the world via Skype.

www.sheilachandrabooks.com
www.sheilachandracoaching.com

Reviews

[Slee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Embracing the simple yet fundamental truth, that organized people who live in clean spaces are actually just as lazy as the rest of us, Sheila Chandra's method to get your house to work for you involves work, but once you apply it, once you practice it, is actually something a person can maintain.
Although I don't love the way Chandra writes and her analogies reflect some truly cringeworthy biases and misinformation, like the nearly put-it-down-and-walk-away worthy "Does being overwhelmed by your stuff and being trapped by it feel like being overweight or in debt? That's because in a way it is. Being overweight or in debt is usually caused by the wish to defer the decision and effort it takes to take control of your health or finances. It is the 'Not now, I will be sensible/sort that out later...' philosophy." I don't approve with conflating obesity and laziness, or obesity and difficulty making decisions, or obesity and any other one thing. Of course, this is a book about taking control of one's possessions and surroundings, not one's body and health, so let's move on.
I liked that while Chandra shares her personal experience with clutter and the special sort of despair it can breed, the whole book doesn't live there. It isn't a constant reminder of how horrid it was to grow up with a mother with a mental disorder as organization books can turn into. Chandra deals with the emotional clutter when it's constructive, and moves on. Better still, rather than wasting the reader's time by saying "read my whole method, then try implementing it," she suggests trying chapter two before reading any farther. If it works for the reader, great- read on. If not, put the book down and find something else.
Of course, like a good girl, I read chapter two and (nearly) followed her directions. Why just nearly? Well... I hate following directions. Actually, I felt overwhelmed by the task of finding a notebook to write anything down and figured that it was a small enough bathroom that if it otherwise worked, I'd invest in (finding) a notebook for moving forward with the rest of the house.
As a FlyLady washout, we'll see. Right now, I feel like this can work, and if nothing else, the methods and techniques I'm putting into practice here are well worth knowing, even if I don't use them religiously.
Spring cleaning, here I come.

[Eilidh Ellery · Rating 3 out of 5]

One size fits some advice: not very Millennial friendly

It's alright... But like other books of this nature it assumes a certain normative lifestyle. It doesn't take into account actual physical or mental health issues that need addressed or help even though the author grew up in a household of hoarders; she doesn't actually appear to understand the psychology or mental health issues that cause hoarding. The tips about zoning areas and bundling tasks - keeping things you'll use in the place you'll use them is very good advice. But a lot of what this book talks about only really applies to people that have no additional mental or physical issues and really just need a bit of common sense advice to help them get started when they know they really need to be a bit more organised. This is aimed at working mum's and mainly cis het women who want to make their space nice for nice for girls night in with their ladies wot lunch chums and people who want to build an efficient home office space when starting a new business. This book is not helpful for people who are struggling to deal with the mess because they are disabled and had to move back into the hoarders nest that was their childhood home, that they got out of and then due to poor health were forced to return to after uni or become homeless as their only choices. Despite the author's experiences, it is not for the millennial who cannot afford to move out of their parent's house, who even if in a "heteronormative" relationship have to start their married life with the in laws and live in just one room having had to move 2 flats worth of stuff into that space (the only consensus to single room living is "you might live in a fancy at studio apartment"). This is a book for the same audience as every other tidying and mindfulness book. And I am not that audience. My problem is that I am physically disabled and trapped by my hoarding parents and the stairs in my unsuitable and unadapted childhood home at almost 30 who no matter how many times I try to get rid of stuff it finds its way back into the house via method of any not immediately collected charity bags being brought back in as "useful, I could sell that" by a dad who claims to car boot far more than he does. And a room still full of "I'll donate that to x place for you" 2 years after the original promise. This book will help you if you're 40 something and need to tidy your messy bathroom. It will not help you if you're 20 something and living with your parents who don't want you to get rid of your old teddy bears even though you don't use them anymore, trapped in your childhood bedroom. It won't help you if you are a genuine hoarder (or live with them) and not just a slightly messy and disorganised person.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is certainly the best de-cluttering book that I've read so far. The toothbrush principle certainly helped me get rid of old makeup in the bathroom. Most of the tips and suggestions here are very useful. However, I am still having trouble getting rid of books and magazines. A shredder is also necessary.

Chandra writes well and she even manages to make this book interesting. Her book deals with de-cluttering in an extremely well-organised way - she has chapters for each room. It also explains why people have clutter. She even has suggestions for having a better wardrobe! I also liked the website, and I did the quiz. However, I kept getting an error message when I tried to sign up for the newsletter.

[BookBec · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reasonably good decluttering book. Clear principles, good reminders that you must get things out of the house before your job is done, helpful thoughts about how clutter is often a result of deferred decisions.

But the book has some definite slants that may or may not work from you: the work-from-home office, the child-free lifestyle, the British English (some favorite terms here: While Mum's away for the bank holiday, I stopped by her cosy flat to get the post and saw her new shower tidy from Tesco).

[Alyce Hunt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Painfully repetitive.

Once you've read the first couple of chapters, the rest is pretty much obsolete. Sheila states that other decluttering guides don't take their readers by the hand and walk them through every step, and there's a reason for that: it makes the writing cluttered, and meant I was falling asleep while I was reading this.

[Gwyneth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook. It was okay. There are some decent ideas. But honestly, Dana K White is Better. Some of their advice is similar, but Dana gets it more. Also, the areas where their advice differs (like start de-cluttering in the most visible places versus starting in the attic) I think Dana makes a lot more sense (she’s pro starting in the visible areas because the progress keeps you motivated. Plus the stuff in the attic is usually more emotional and harder to let go of, better to start with easy stuff not the heirlooms or baby clothes while you are learning how to de-clutter.) I don’t think this author truly understands the brains of us clutter bugs. She thinks she does because her mom was one, but Dana is one so she truly gets it. She understands how my brain works and helped me understand myself better (and understand my husband more) which then emotionally helped me with the de-cluttering process. Plus she’s more funny and entertaining.

This is not a bad book. There was good food for thought. But Dana is just better.

There was also a section about working efficiently like with your day planner and emails, to-do-list type stuff as a self employed creative, which I think is useful and I was not expecting that. Her thoughts on looking and dressing smart was interesting too.

Sometimes books like this feel like Ted talks. It’s inspiring, sometimes annoying and preachy, but by listening I attended the church of “get your life more organized” and so it was good. But I probably will not listen to it again, while Dana I have re-listened to a few times…

[TwoDrinks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve had this book for years and have found that it’s been most effective to follow when I started living on my own. Yes, decluttering a person from my house made a difference!🙈 I imagine that if you live with others who are resistant to decluttering then you might not be able to implement everything.

That said, I haven’t got the perfectly organised space. But I think the principle is that you can do *something* such as clearing a drawer if you don’t have the time / headspace to do everything. And if you’ve recently moved house, making wholesale changes may not be affordable.

I particularly liked the recognition that you aren’t often in the right mindset to declutter and that Chandra linked time savings and life aspirations to the decluttering / organising task. There are questions that prompt you to ask questions and better understand what your own sticking points are. And a recognition that you might need to tweak your work and systems you thought would work to keep you organised don’t always at the first pass.

I think the only challenge is the state of flux we are in at the moment. Some items I’ve not worn for two years because of lockdown but I’m not ready to get rid of them as I don’t know what will change again. But, making a start on decluttering is better than not starting at all.

I preferred this method to the KonMari one. I get that they are heading in the same direction but the language in this book resonated more with me.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title really says it all. We never lose our toothbrushes because they have a home. If everything had a home in our homes, then our houses would no longer be messy/cluttered and they'd be easier to maintain.

The book breaks down each room, and prompts you to think about how you use the room, to store things where you use them, and not to hold onto things that aren't being used.

Later chapters addressing home offices could probably be updated in light of our post-covid world in which more people are working from home. There's also a full chapter spent on getting your work life organized rather than the physical space, and I think that should have broken out into it's own book rather than cluttering up this book on physical clutter.

Has it made a difference in my life? Well, anyone who is really suffering from an over-stuffed home isn't going to undo that problem in the space of a week or two. But there's some good advice, and as I spring clean, I'm incorporating some of it to make my home more functional and less full of stuff.

[Tara Blais Davison · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75/5 I’ve come to believe that any decluttering how-to manual containing the word “forever” in its title—immediately following the words; organized, clutter-free, tidy or clean—should be read with one’s tongue firmly planted into one’s cheek; forcefully propelling it from non-fiction to fantasy or possibly even the humour category. This misnomer, however, actually imparts some fairly useful suggestions that could possibly lead to long-lasting results. The where you place your toothbrush in a hotel room and why analogy is the precise type of thinking the author suggests we need to retrain ourselves to adopt on a more permanent basis in our day-to-day living in order to achieve the holy grail of permanence.

A cautionary subtitle should be added to the titular page of this book citing that “forever” not be taken seriously or literally if you suffer from ADHD, PTSD, PMT or if you categorize yourself as a mere mortal! .

[Audra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe it is a great beginners book. If you have not read another organizing or decluttering book this is a good bood to start with.

I've personally read many of these types of books and at some point in time implemented something from each book so starting new and creating a journal to make note of where you want to put everything or what you need to buy after cleaning/clearing takes up too much time for me and I would never do it.

Sheila Chandra's toothbrush idea is classic. It reminds me of other books that tell you to take what you already do well and extend it.

[Rory Tregaskis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite annoying at times but helpful. I have had a terrible problem with messiness my entire life (adhd), to the point it’s got in the way of every day functioning. Reading this book showed me some things that are probably obvious to a lot of people but had never occurred to me. I didn’t follow her methods exactly but reading the book did help me get to work on my own crap in my own way but I wonder if reading any book about something like this might have a similar sort of placebo effect.

If you need a little help sorting your shit out this is worth reading.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can see where this is coming from, but it presumes that you can leave things somewhere and they will still be there when you need them. Which is great if you don't share your house with three small kleptomaniacs. More than half my possessions need to be put where my kids can't find them, so leaving them where they are used isn't an option for me. But if you have a different set up, I can imagine this being useful.

[Yvonne O'Keefe · Rating 3 out of 5]

The toothbrush principle makes a lot of sense, pretty obvious! Some good tips but quite dated (writes about storing files in a filing cabinet and burning cds).

Some good tips but I stand by the fact I have a tiny house and simply no storage. Which infuriates me. Basically, if you have no storage, just don’t have as many things. As if!

[Lucy Walker]

This is a British based decluttering and the woman writing it is a reformed clutterbug, so she is speaking from a place of experience. I like the principles she writes about, they make a lot of sense, I mean you don't lose your toothbrush!

[Annamarie Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a really interesting read and I liked the principle. It got a little bit heavy towards the end. I have, however, adopted the Toothbrush Principle for items and objects in our house.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, easy, repetitive, but that's okay. A good walkthrough for getting organized.

[Janet farrow1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this and it was helpful.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Nothing groundbreaking but I listened to audio book and I like the repetition of advice / reminders to help while I reorganise, and the reader is good, so I can imagine listening to it again.

[robyn o b · Rating 2 out of 5]

2* max. Variously patronising and out-dated feeling at points.

[Eilidh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started well but not all problems applied. Worth a read for motivation if nothing else!

[Kerry Henderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look at tackling clutter and chaos in life. I loved the toothbrush theory as it makes so much sense. Really useful and gives you actual exercises to help get started.

[Jacki (Julia Flyte) · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the beginning of this book, the author says something along the lines of "have you always wanted to be like people in lifestyle ads". Yes! I thought. Yes I have.

I have to admit I was a little sceptical whether this book would teach me anything. I've read a few books on decluttering/home organisation and they all tend to follow similar territory ie Visualise what you want your spaces to be like. Be ruthless about throwing things out. Keep things that you use often close at hand. Create zones.

Chandra puts a lot of emphasis on what she called her "toothbrush principle" (to the point that I half expected it to have a TM sign). What this means essentially is putting things in places where i) you use them and ii) you can always find them. She talks about the fact that we always have our toothbrush & toothpaste handily located by the bathroom sink. When we travel, we put them by the sink where we are. When we move house, we unpack them early and put them in place. We always know where to find them and we are never tempted to leave them lying around somewhere else in the house. The moral of the story is therefore to only have things in each room that you actually use in that room.

This is an appealing and logical idea in theory but it raised immediate questions in my mine. Like firstly, what if you need more things in a room than easily fit there (my home study comes to mind)? And where do you store all the other things that don't belong there?

Well one thing she suggests – simple but genius – is to start by decluttering all the storage areas in your house, so you make space to move things to. Don't hang onto things that don't use (exception for stuff like ski gear if you plan to ski, but not if you just have this vague idea that maybe one day you'll do it).

She also spends a lot of time talking about organising your home office – not just what’s in it, but how you operate. She has a system for email organisation and using your diary, which is simple but makes sense and yes, it will get rid of clutter and leave you feeling more organised. In fact, this book is much more about getting your life organised rather than the singleminded focus on clutter than the title suggests. Will it change my life? Probably not, but I’ve taken away a number of very helpful ideas and a lot of inspiration to get started.

One comment: I read this book on a Kindle and comments like “see p176” are not terribly helpful. However I read an advanced reader copy for review purposes so possibly that will be changed in the final edition.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for review.

[GONZA · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all I must admit that this book that seeks to help people to become more orderly getting rid of all the things accumulated in excess, it is not just directed at me, since I consider myself a pretty organized person, but most of all I feel great joy in throwing away things accumulated, so maybe my problem is the reverse. Returning to the book, however, I found it very clear, starting from the Principle of the toothbrush (no one has ever come to lose their toothbrush) to switch between the lists and the ordering of one room at a time. So if you are an "hoarder" and if you feel that the space around you is absolutely not organized and lose hours trying to find things, this is the book for you.

Prima di tutto devo ammettere che questo libro che cerca di aiutare la gente a diventare piú ordinata liberandosi di tutte le cose accumulate in eccesso, non é proprio diretto a me, in quanto mi considero persona piuttosto organizzata, ma soprattutto provo una grande gioia a buttare via cose accumulate, quindi magari il mio problema é quello inverso. Tornando al libro comunque, l'ho trovato molto chiaro, a cominciare dal principio dello spazzolino da denti (nessuno é mai arrivato a perdersi il proprio spazzolino) per passare dalle liste e dall'ordinare una stanza alla volta. Quindi se siete degli "accumulatori" e se sentite che lo spazio attorno a voi non é assolutamente organizzato e perdete ore a cercare cose, questo é il libro che fa per voi.

THANKS TO NETGALLEY AND RANDOM HOUSE UK-NORTH AMERICA FOR THE PREVIEW!

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book I have read on organising and the only one I have come across that deals with the emotional/psychological reasons for clutter in any sort of detail. (Most just mention we shouldn't hold on to too many things for sentimental reasons) This looks at why we might hold onto things and offers practical suggestions for working through these type of problems.

That being said, it isn't heavy at all. You get the feeling the writer is really speaking from personal experience, but all with a very can-do approach.

No pictures -- which actually is better I think, as it makes you look at what you have, not what someone else has.

[Char]

Well, it's no life-changing magic of tidying up but I wasn't expecting it to be. It had never occurred to me that I've never lost my toothbrush and trying to apply that principle to other objects was interesting. (Though, I have actually lost my toothbrush before because sometimes it migrates between two bathrooms...)
However, once this idea had been discussed a bit, there wasn't a lot more to say. The step-by-step guide to Chandra's decluttering method became quite tedious to a fan of the Konmari method. It's also very much written with a large house in mind rather than something like a small flat, or a bedroom in your parents house. There is only one short chapter about smaller spaces.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know that I'd call the idea that we all always know where our toothbrush is a "principle" and try to expand it into an entire book on managing clutter, but this book is fairly decent out of the many clutter books I've read. A place for everything and everything in its place is not exactly a new concept in clutter books so the analogy that I already know how to use and apply this principle because I know where my toothbrush is becomes fairly weak when applied to an entire house full of much more complicated clutter.

[Rebecca Emin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can see that this book would be very useful to people who spend a long time looking for things and wading through clutter. However I personally felt that the tips were mostly things I already do.

If I'm honest I do think that the information in this book could be given faster - personally I would rather be actually using the time to tidy than spending the amount of time reading the book that it takes.


I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Glenda Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is well written and orderly, much like we want our homes to be. It contains lots of background information and various systems to help yourself clear out clutter. If you are just beginning to deal with clutter, it would be very helpful. I have read many books on the subject, so I found only a few new ideas that intrigued me, which is why I gave it only three stars.

[Karen Swift · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm always looking for ways to be more organized but this book is for the person with the serious clutter problem - which isn't me. Probably would be helpful to those who live with others in keeping everyone's stuff organized.

[Tasneem · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this a useful and interesting read. I am going to go back to it and use it to clear out some of the clutter in my own home. I understand the principle now, I think, and applying it should make keeping things organised a lot easier.