Last month I joined my friends Anya and Suzy in a minimalist game. A challenge to get rid of things for 30 days. On day 1 you get rid of 1 thing, day 2, 2 things, all the way to day 30 where you get rid of 30 things. In total, you are getting rid of 465 things in your home.
When the challenge started I was knee deep in overwhelm because of the clutter in my 650 square foot apartment. I was in a mood to throw everything away. (No wonder I joined them!) So, I decided to do the challenge backward. Start with 30 things and go down to 1.
On the first day I went big. I brought out all the things I had saved from my wedding day. Things that I will never use again. Like my candle holders, my head piece (and all the bobby pins still with it), my wedding planning book, etc. I had been thinking about it for a while and this challenge gave me the push I needed to clear it out.
Most days weren't that hard. I had wanted to clear out a lot of the kids books but I had to do that slowly otherwise they got really upset. I also went through my closet and drawers several times getting rid of two or three items each time. I went through my boys drawers often too and got rid of the things that no longer fit or they refused to wear. I cleared out the things under my bed and got rid of a lot of old papers from my previous jobs and planners from years ago.
I went through my bookshelf which held so much more than books and got rid of all the things we don't use (like a handful of odd paperclips, wires, and broken pieces of who remembers what!), I went through my linen closet and got rid of sheets that had holes and after Thanksgiving gave away my table cloth and napkins I only used once a year. I went through my jewelry and if it was broken, missing a match or I didn't wear it in the last five years I got rid of it. I never wear bracelets because they hurt my wrists (or fall off while I wear them) so I gave away my entire collection.
I even brought my kids into it. They could tell I was giving a bunch of stuff away and I asked them to join in. We went through all their trucks and animal toys. I let them keep most if it -- they are sentimental creatures it seems. But we got rid of 17 cars and plastic bugs! I was so proud!
I wish I could look around my home and tell that I got rid of 465 things . . . but I can't. I feel like I didn't even make a dent. There is one shelf that looks different but that's it. It felt good to let go of a lot of things I had been hanging on to, just hoping for an occasion to wear it or a situation that called for just that one thing. But those situations never really arise (and if they do, I forget about the thing I had stored away). It's amazing what we hang on to!
It was a fun challenge and I was thankful to do it with friends. We messaged each other daily with pics and conversations about what we got rid of each day. Without their accountability I wouldn't have been as motivated as I was to finish. They made it fun. We're talking about doing it again after the New Year... want to join us? (This time, I'll start with just one thing on Day 1 . . . )
Last month I joined my friends Anya and Suzy in a minimalist game. A challenge to get rid of things for 30 days. On day 1 you get rid of 1 thing, day 2, 2 things, all the way to day 30 where you get rid of 30 things. In total, you are getting rid of 465 things in your home.
When the challenge started I was knee deep in overwhelm because of the clutter in my 650 square foot apartment. I was in a mood to throw everything away. (No wonder I joined them!) So, I decided to do the challenge backward. Start with 30 things and go down to 1.
On the first day I went big. I brought out all the things I had saved from my wedding day. Things that I will never use again. Like my candle holders, my head piece (and all the bobby pins still with it), my wedding planning book, etc. I had been thinking about it for a while and this challenge gave me the push I needed to clear it out.
Most days weren't that hard. I had wanted to clear out a lot of the kids books but I had to do that slowly otherwise they got really upset. I also went through my closet and drawers several times getting rid of two or three items each time. I went through my boys drawers often too and got rid of the things that no longer fit or they refused to wear. I cleared out the things under my bed and got rid of a lot of old papers from my previous jobs and planners from years ago.
I went through my bookshelf which held so much more than books and got rid of all the things we don't use (like a handful of odd paperclips, wires, and broken pieces of who remembers what!), I went through my linen closet and got rid of sheets that had holes and after Thanksgiving gave away my table cloth and napkins I only used once a year. I went through my jewelry and if it was broken, missing a match or I didn't wear it in the last five years I got rid of it. I never wear bracelets because they hurt my wrists (or fall off while I wear them) so I gave away my entire collection.
I even brought my kids into it. They could tell I was giving a bunch of stuff away and I asked them to join in. We went through all their trucks and animal toys. I let them keep most if it -- they are sentimental creatures it seems. But we got rid of 17 cars and plastic bugs! I was so proud!
I wish I could look around my home and tell that I got rid of 465 things . . . but I can't. I feel like I didn't even make a dent. There is one shelf that looks different but that's it. It felt good to let go of a lot of things I had been hanging on to, just hoping for an occasion to wear it or a situation that called for just that one thing. But those situations never really arise (and if they do, I forget about the thing I had stored away). It's amazing what we hang on to!
It was a fun challenge and I was thankful to do it with friends. We messaged each other daily with pics and conversations about what we got rid of each day. Without their accountability I wouldn't have been as motivated as I was to finish. They made it fun. We're talking about doing it again after the New Year... want to join us? (This time, I'll start with just one thing on Day 1 . . . )
No comments:
Post a Comment