On the days leading up to New Year’s Eve and continuing into the new year, I follow the old Scottish tradition called “Redding the house.” Basically, that means cleaning it out. It doesn’t follow my usual decluttering formula of starting in a room and working clockwise through it. Instead, it’s more like how people procrastinate on more important things by doing housework instead. “Cleaning a closet is nearly a silver bullet when it comes to jump starting one’s productivity” is something I read somewhere once upon a time. And this year, I had out-of-town guests coming for a party, so the house had to be orderly and clean. I didn’t want anything stagnant rolling over into 2013.

One problem some people have while getting organized is known as the Endowment Effect: having something in your possession makes it seem more valuable than if you didn’t have it but wanted to buy it. For example, something right now seems worth $10, but if it were at a garage sale you’d pay no more than $4. If it’s worth something, has a use, or seems wasteful to throw out, it becomes harder to get rid of.

Enter the disinfectant of sunlight: since I learned that this is a normal bias, it’s made it easier to get rid of things. If it has a value or a use, it will have a value or a use for someone else. Be generous and let them have it!