2019 Declutter Challenge
Get Rid of 2019 Things in 2019
Who doesn't love a good game? And this one will help you purge your life of excess clutter that is causing you stress and thwarting your ability to keep your life running smoothly. You in? It will be small, managable steps, I promise...
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The game is this: we are going to get rid of 2019 things this year that are holding us back. Studies show that the more cluttered your home, the more stress you perceive your life to have. We are going to whittle away at that, a mere 5 1/2 items per day. Easily achievable. Not overwhelming. But by the end of the year, we will have purged some trouble spots, dealt with some things that tend to accumulate, and refined our inventory.
Of course, you are more than welcome to eliminate more than 5 1/2 items if you are so inclined, but 5 1/2 is the minimum daily quota to stay on pace to complete the goal in one year. Setting a small, easily achievable target for the day keeps you from being overwhelmed by the magnitude of the project, and helps build a habit by making it a daily routine to look around and evaluate whether or not you still need the things you see.
The Math
Every Day
365 days = 5.53 items
Weekdays Only
260 days = 7.76 items
Weekdays + 4 Vacation Weeks
240 days = 8.41 items
Since it's not practical to get rid of a fraction of an item, rounding up is an easy way to accelerate your progress. On a weekday only schedule, that's like working five days and getting a sixth one free!
Rules of the Decluttering 2019 Challenge
You can make any rules that will work for you. You decide what counts and what doesn't.
Be generous when you set your rules! I keep a donation box in a corner of the dining room with a running tally on one of the flaps, and when it gets full, I drop it off at the thrift shop. As a reward for myself, I allow the box to count as an item I'm getting rid of!
Does each individual sheet of paper you eliminate count as one item? Or every half-inch stack counts as one item? Or each file-folder worth? Up to you! Whatever helps you win! My personal rule is that if I eliminated papers today, however much it ended up being, that all counts as one item.
Maybe you want a rule that says for every new item you bring IN to the house, you need to pick out something additional to remove over and above your daily quota. But only do something like this if you find it motivating. Do not make rules to punish yourself.
Where to Find Some Things to Purge
- Storage Containers -- Containers without lids, lids without containers
- Fridge -- y'know all those old condiments?
- Any one cupboard -- expired food, extra serving dishes, mugs, things you'll never actually eat
- Junk drawer
- Sock drawer -- solo socks
- Underwear drawer -- surely you can come up with at least one item that you resist wearing because it is ill-fitting, holey, or just not your favorite
- Clothes -- one drawer or closet, kids
- Jewelry
- Video Collection -- only keep the ones you can't live without!
- Holiday Decorations -- If you don't put out this year, ask yourself why you are keeping it
- CD Collection -- Isn't all your music digital now?
- Bookshelf -- Save your faves, donate the ones you'll never realistically go back to
- Medicine Cabinet -- Expired medications (take these to the pharmacy or police department to dispose of properly), old cosmetics
- Desk top
- Desk drawers -- one at a time
- Files -- old manuals, old bills
- Craft Supplies -- If you make it and then donate or gift it, it counts! That is, as long as the supplies came from your stash
- Toybox -- get the kids on board and have them find some things they never use any more! Also, broken, stray, or missing parts
- Basement/Attic Storage -- If you aren't using it, why are you storing it? Sometimes you have good reasons, and that's perfectly okay, the important thing is to know why you choose to have whatever you have.
Strategies for Eliminating Clutter
As for strategies, there are many ways you can work this into your day, and you will probably want to utilize more than one over the course of the challenge, depending on what works for you on a particular day.
- Go on a hunt at a specific time every day to find your things. Find your quota, be done for the day.
- Be mindful of looking for things as you go about your day. Keep a running tally.
- Set aside 25 minutes to go through one drawer, cupboard, or area. This has the potential to garner you way more than the daily quota in one sitting.
Keeping Score
The easiest way to keep track of where you are is to keep a running total on your regular monthly calendar. In the bottom right hand corner of each day's box, keep a small tally for each day, and a running total for the year-to-date. So, if you found a total of 9 things during the course of the day (because of course you are slightly ahead of the game), you can keep track of how many things you eliminated today, and add that to the total from yesterday and note what number you are at as of the end of the day today.
The goal is to finish the challenge, not necessarily to drag it out for a whole year, so don't feel obligated to stick to the daily quota. The sooner you finish eliminating your 2019 items, the better! If you want to make it a race to get done as soon as possible, that's fine too--as long as that's not too stressful!
Everything is funner* with a friend, so throw your challenge out there on social media, and see who else wants to join you. Bragging is absolutely allowed and encouraged, especially if friendly competition fuels your fire!
*Yes, I know "funner" isn't a word, but I like it anyways...
Another thing you might want to consider, especially if you're doing it with friends, is some kind of reward for finishing. Maybe a celebratory night out? Lunch date? Concert tickets? What will you find motivating to work towards?
