Ready to finally calm the overwhelm and create a home and life you actually enjoy? The Wannabe Clutter Free podcast is here to help you clear the clutter, simplify your routines, and find freedom in the life you’re building. I’m Deanna Yates, a busy mom who knows what it’s like to juggle family, career, and the never-ending piles of stuff. From selling 80% of what we owned to travel with our toddler, to managing the daily chaos of running a home with a school-aged kid, I’ve learned that living with less isn’t about deprivation. It’s about creating more space, more peace, and more joy. Each week, I share real-life stories, simple decluttering strategies, and mindset shifts that make it easier to let go of what’s weighing you down. You’ll also hear from inspiring guests who share practical tips and fresh perspectives on minimalism, home organization, intentional living, and building habits that last. If you’re tired of feeling buried in clutter and crave a home that feels calm, welcoming, and easy to manage, this show is for you. It’s not about perfection. It’s about progress, freedom, and finding space for what truly matters to you.
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The Hidden Digital Clutter Draining Your Day and the 15-Minute Fix (Ep 316)
Season 316
Wednesday, July 1, 2026 • Duration 24:54
Have you ever spent a Saturday morning deep cleaning your entire house, and by noon you still feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and a little annoyed at everything? Your house looks great. You should feel amazing. But you don’t.
That’s not you being a perfectionist. It’s the sneaky kind of clutter that almost nobody in the decluttering world ever talks about.
Calendar clutter (or the mental load of keeping everything running)
In this episode I’m bringing it to light and giving you a real system to clear it. You’ll learn the two distinct forms calendar clutter takes (an overbooked calendar full of other people’s priorities, and the quieter weight of undone decisions with no home), the weekly capture method that gets everything out of your head and onto paper, and why protected blank space is not wasted time, it’s the time that makes everything else work.
This is the finale of my four-part series on the invisible weight of clutter, the stuff that doesn’t pile up on your counters but piles up in your mind instead.
In this episode you’ll learn:
Why a clean house doesn’t always feel like a calm house
The two kinds of calendar clutter (most people only ever deal with one)
How to build a “vision filter” so you stop saying yes out of guilt
The weekly capture method for clearing undone decisions out of your head
Why blank space on your calendar is not wasted space
A simple script for saying no without feeling like a flake
How to Declutter With Kids Without the Power Struggles with Dana K. White (Ep 315)
Episode 315
Wednesday, June 24, 2026 • Duration 52:54
Your kid won't get rid of anything. You know their room has too much stuff. But every time you try to do something about it, it turns into a battle. What if you never had to be the bad guy again?
Dana K. White is the creator of the No Mess Decluttering Method, the blogger behind A Slob Comes Clean, and the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Decluttering at the Speed of Life. She has spent 17 years teaching overwhelmed, messy people how to get their homes under control without shame or perfection. And now she has taken everything she knows and put it into her very first children's book, Winnie's Pile of Pillows.
In this episode, Dana shares how to use a picture book as an actual decluttering tool, why her container concept works even better on kids than it does on adults, and how to get through a decluttering session with your child without convincing them of anything. This one will change how you approach your kid's stuff.
Covered in this episode:
How to use Winnie's Pile of Pillows as more than a bedtime story
Why the container concept makes the space the bad guy instead of you
The five-minute pickup test that tells you if your child has too many toys
What to say when your kid insists they need to keep everything
How to declutter with your child without starting a power struggle
Why you should never start with your kid's room
The age when kids can really start to grasp the concept of having enough
How to pass on a no-shame, no-guilt relationship with stuff to your kids
If you are fighting the toy clutter battle and losing, this episode is for you. Hit play, grab the book, and go find that trash bag.
Digital Declutter: Clean Up Your Email, Phone, and Brain for Good (Ep 314)
Episode 311
Wednesday, June 17, 2026 • Duration 35:27
Digital clutter doesn’t pile up on your counter, but it absolutely piles up in your brain. Every unread email, every unused app, every notification going off every eight minutes is quietly draining your focus and your energy.
In this episode I’m giving you three moves for your inbox, three moves for your phone, and a simple weekly habit that keeps all of it under control going forward.
In this episode you’ll learn:
The one reframe that changes how you think about email forever
How to cut your inbox in half this week without losing anything important
The 30-day app audit (and why you don’t have to fully delete things to get them out of your way)
The Favorites list trick that lets you protect your peace without missing important calls
The three-habit digital maintenance system that takes under 15 minutes a week
If this episode resonated with you, share it with one person who needs to hear it.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if you have two minutes, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts makes a real difference.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction to Digital Clutter
00:29 Understanding the Impact of Email Clutter
03:44 Reframing Your Email Inbox
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Declutter for Real Life: Flexible Minimalism Tips for Families with Desirae Endres (Ep 313)
Episode 312
Wednesday, June 10, 2026 • Duration 57:28
Have you ever looked at a "minimalist" home on Instagram and thought, well, that is never going to be me. My kids alone would destroy that in four minutes? Or convinced yourself that your clutter-free journey isn't working because your house just doesn't look the part? You are not alone. And this conversation is for you.
The Paper Clutter System That Took Me From 6 Piles to Zero (Ep 312)
Episode 312
Wednesday, June 3, 2026 • Duration 36:26
Paper doesn't ask permission. It just shows up in your mailbox, your kids' backpacks, and somehow on every flat surface in your home. And if the piles keep coming back no matter how many times you deal with them, it's not a discipline problem. It's a system problem.
In this episode I'm sharing the exact system I use to keep paper from taking over, including what to do with everything that comes in, how to handle the stuff that's been piling up for months, and two bonus sections for the things nobody talks about: your kids' school papers and the one document organizer every family needs.
In this episode you'll learn:
Why paper piles keep coming back (it's not what you think)
The Paper JAM System: three categories, every piece of paper, no exceptions
How to set up a weekly processing routine that takes under 30 minutes
The landing spot rule that stops paper from spreading during the week
A simple system for kids' artwork and school papers that doesn't require keeping everything
What an Emergency Binder is and the one document it cannot be missing
Why Your Schedule Will Never Work Until You Fix Your Home with Lori Oberbroeckling (Ep 311)
Episode 311
Wednesday, May 27, 2026 • Duration 42:23
Time management expert and Secrets of Supermom host Lori Oberbroeckling joins Deanna to talk about why energy runs out before time does, how clutter quietly sabotages your best-laid plans, and the small routine changes that actually stick.
You bought the planner. You made the schedule. You had a whole plan. And then a super busy day happened.
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How to Declutter Thousands of Photos Without Losing Your Mind (Wannabe Clutter Free Ep 310)
Episode 310
Wednesday, May 20, 2026 • Duration 34:14
Digital clutter doesn’t feel as obvious as a cluttered closet. But if you’ve ever had that pit-in-your-stomach moment of not being able to find a photo that matters, you know this isn’t small.
In this episode I’m breaking down the three phases of getting your photos in order (Declutter, Organize, Maintain), the two specific starting points that build momentum without making any hard decisions, and the triple backup system that means you’ll never lose a photo again.
In this episode you’ll learn:
Why photo clutter is an emotional problem, not a storage problem
The three-phase framework: Declutter, Organize, Maintain
The burst photos trick that eliminates hundreds of photos in 20 minutes
The calendar method for going through your entire catalog one day at a time
The triple backup system that keeps your photos safe forever
This episode is Part 5 of a series. Start with Episode 304 if you haven’t already.
Next episode: The Paper Clutter System That Took Me From 6 Piles to Zero
If this episode resonated with you, share it with one person who needs to hear it.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if you have two minutes, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts makes a real difference.
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The Real Reason Your Kids Aren't Helping Around the House (And How to Fix It) with Katie Kimball (Ep 309)
Episode 309
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 • Duration 55:17
Your kids are more capable than you think. Katie Kimball, creator of Kids Cook Real Food and founder of the LifeSkillsNow summer camp, shares the practical systems that take kids from passengers to contributors -- and why cooking is the gateway to all of it.
What if the key to a calmer home (and a lighter mental load) was already walking around your house asking for snacks?
In this episode, Deanna Yates sits down with Katie Kimball of Raising Healthy Families, a former classroom teacher, two-time TEDx speaker, and mom of four. Katie created Kids Cook Real Food (named the best online cooking class for kids by the Wall Street Journal) and runs LifeSkillsNow, a virtual summer camp that teaches kids everything from cooking and budgeting to entrepreneurship and mending their own clothes.
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The Nightly 10-Minute Declutter Routine Every Busy Mom Needs (Ep 308)
Episode 308
Wednesday, May 6, 2026 • Duration 25:54
You can declutter your entire home and still end up right back where you started. I know because I’ve lived it. This episode is the piece that makes everything permanent. I’m teaching you the closing shift, the exit bin, and why stacking habits beats scheduling them every time.
In this episode you’ll learn:
Why I went from owning almost nothing to filling up a house, and what finally broke the cycle
The restaurant-inspired closing shift my family does every night
What the Lightning Tidy is and how to make it fun for your whole family
Why the one-in-one-out rule doesn’t work (and what to do instead)
The habit stacking trick that makes routines stick forever
If this episode resonated with you, share it with one person who needs to hear it.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if you have two minutes, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts makes a real difference.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction to Clutter-Free Living
02:18 The Journey to Minimalism
04:45 Establishing a Daily Routine
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The Science of Why Your Spaces Shape You (And How to Take Back Control) with Leidy Klotz | Ep. 307
Episode 307
Wednesday, April 29, 2026 • Duration 01:07:39
Behavioral scientist Leidy Klotz reveals how your home feeds or starves three core psychological needs, why clutter blocks connection, and how to make your spaces actually work for your family.
Desirae Endres is the host of the Minimalish podcast, and her decluttering journey started in 2018 when she sat down as a brand new mom and watched a documentary that completely changed the way she thought about her stuff, her home, and her identity.
Since then she has built an entire community around the idea of "minimal-ish" living, not a perfect aesthetic, not a stark white capsule home, just a real and intentional life with less in the way.
In this episode, Desirae gets honest about the postpartum anxiety that made her desperate for a calmer home, what it felt like when her husband said their house no longer looked minimal-ish, and the beautiful shift she had about what this whole journey is actually for. We also dig into how to get your kids involved in decluttering without it turning into a battle, and the single most powerful thing you can do to raise kids who genuinely understand how to let go.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
What "minimal-ish" means and why it has nothing to do with how your home looks
The real connection between clutter and mental health
Why letting go of stuff is really about letting go of past versions of yourself
How to involve your kids in decluttering without forcing it
What age kids can meaningfully participate (and when it is okay to just do it yourself)
The one thing you can do today that quietly teaches your kids to let go
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Introduction
2:59 Desirae's origin story: the documentary that changed everything
5:37 Why changing your nature is harder than changing what you own
9:21 How decluttering helped manage postpartum anxiety
11:37 Letting go of clothes and letting go of past versions of yourself
15:02 Baby stuff, the "what if" fear, and letting go anyway
20:20 Feeling like an imposter when your home does not look minimal
22:45 The minimalist aesthetic vs. the minimalist mindset
24:56 Accepting certain areas of clutter in your current season
32:43 Teaching kids to declutter: where to start
37:21 The power of narrating your own decluttering out loud
43:28 What age should kids start participating?
47:07 What Desirae wishes someone had told her at the very beginning
49:13 Decluttering as a gateway to bigger life changes
We’d love to hear how you’re applying the strategies discussed in this episode. Share your stories and tips with us on social media (@wannabeclutterfree). Don’t forget to subscribe for more insightful episodes designed to make your busy life a bit easier.
Sound familiar? This week Deanna sits down with Lori Oberbroeckling, a working mom of four, corporate project management leader, and host of the Secrets of Supermom Show. Lori has spent years helping busy, ambitious moms figure out why their best systems keep falling apart. Spoiler: it is almost never the plan.
In this episode, Lori introduces her framework of energy bleeds, energy blocks, and energy boosts, and explains why your home environment plays a much bigger role in your daily productivity than most time management advice will ever admit. When your physical space is draining you before you even start your to-do list, even a perfect schedule cannot save you.
Lori also shares the moment she and Deanna both recognized in themselves: we think we need a better planner, when really we need more energy boosts built into our days first.
If you have ever felt like you are doing all the right things and still ending every day depleted, this episode is going to reframe everything.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
Why a cluttered, chaotic home is an energy bleed that quietly tanks your whole day
How to do a simple time and energy audit to figure out where your energy is actually going
What to do when you hate a task but still have to do it
Why routines fall apart and the one question to ask before you try to build one
The small change that helped Lori's family of six stop tripping over shoes
How to get your family actually on board with new home routines
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction to Lori Oberbroeckling
03:05 Why home environment matters to your schedule
08:25 Energy bleeds, blocks, and boosts explained
10:01 What to do when you have to do an energy bleed task
16:18 How to find your energy boosts when you do not know what they are
20:24 Flying trapeze and other energy boost revelations
21:32 Why routines fall apart and how to build ones that stick
24:11 Small changes that create big impact for the whole family
26:58 Getting family buy-in with carrots, not sticks
29:28 Why the planner is not the problem
32:27 Where to start when everything feels out of control
34:26 Rapid fire: what clutter free means, what is making Lori happy, and one takeaway
We’d love to hear how you’re applying the strategies discussed in this episode. Share your stories and tips with us on social media (@wannabeclutterfree). Don’t forget to subscribe for more insightful episodes designed to make your busy life a bit easier.
This conversation is all about kids as contributors, not passengers. Katie shares how her teaching background shaped the way she thinks about agency, choice, and raising the bar for what kids can actually do. She talks through the moment she realized her mental and physical load didn't have to fall entirely on her, the summer she intentionally taught her kids to cook, and the chore system her family is still using ten years later.
You'll also hear why Katie calls cooking the gateway life skill, how the skills gap happened across generations, and the three-part framework she uses to help any parent hand something off to their kid in a way that actually sticks.
If you have ever stood in your kitchen thinking it would be faster to just do it yourself, this episode is for you.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
The summer everything changed: how Katie went from "forgetting the faces of the children she was feeding" to building a family system that actually works
What her classroom teaching taught her about agency, choice, and why raising the bar is always a good idea
Why teenagers need even more autonomy than young kids -- and how she built Teens Cook Real Food around that
The story of her 14-year-old vacuuming on a day off with no one asking him to
Cooking as the gateway life skill: why starting in the kitchen spills over into everything else
The three-part framework for handing something off to your kid: teach the skill, find the motivation, set the expectation
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 -- Katie's Parenting and Cooking Journey
04:37 -- What Teaching Taught Her About How Kids Learn
07:31 -- Raising the Bar: Kids Are More Capable Than We Think
10:33 -- Teaching Teens: Why Choice Is Everything
13:14 -- Cooking as a Pathway to Empathy
19:20 -- The Long Game: What It Looks Like When It Works
22:27 -- The Life Skills Gap: What Kids Are Missing
30:05 -- Values, Vertical Transmission, and Family Culture
32:36 -- Cooking Is the Gateway Life Skill
36:50 -- LifeSkillsNow Summer Camp and Where to Start
We’d love to hear how you’re applying the strategies discussed in this episode. Share your stories and tips with us on social media (@wannabeclutterfree). Don’t forget to subscribe for more insightful episodes designed to make your busy life a bit easier.
Leidy Klotz, an engineering professor at the University of Virginia, is the author of Subtract and his brand-new book In a Good Place. He has spent over a decade studying the relationship between our physical environments and our psychological well-being, and today he is breaking it all down for us.
This conversation changed how I think about my home. We are not just talking about decluttering (although we do get into that). We are talking about why our spaces either feed or starve our deepest needs, and what we can do about it.
In this episode you will learn:
The three core psychological needs your home either supports or works against
How clutter literally gets between you and the people you love
Why you use your spaces the same way every day (and a simple research-backed way to break out of it)
The renovation trap: when updating your home actually makes it less meaningful
How to involve your kids in decisions about your home (and why it changes everything)
The beautiful story of Josie's Way and what it teaches us about legacy and space
Content note: Leidy shares openly about his daughter Josie, who passed away unexpectedly at four years old. Her story is woven throughout this conversation and is both heartbreaking and deeply beautiful.
Time Stamps:
00:00 Introduction and Leidy's background
05:40 The intersection of environment and behavior
11:24 The three core psychological needs: agency, growth, and connection
17:25 Agency and connection in the home (plus tips for renters)
20:30 How clutter literally blocks connection
26:50 Behavioral changes through environmental cues
32:23 The family that moved dinner outside
36:06 Functional fixedness: why adults are worse at this than kids
40:42 Nostalgia, the renovation trap, and protecting what matters
50:57 Josie's Way: remembering through spaces and stories
We’d love to hear how you’re applying the strategies discussed in this episode. Share your stories and tips with us on social media (@wannabeclutterfree). Don’t forget to subscribe for more insightful episodes designed to make your busy life a bit easier.
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