The Ultimate Declutter Challenge

I have always liked the idea of organized and neat rooms where everything has a place of its own, but if I’m honest, my house right now if very far from that! I go through phases where I work hard to sort and organize items to help eliminate the mess, but it always seems to get messy and cluttered again. About a month ago, I was feeling very frustrated, exasperated, and sick of the over all situation I keep finding myself in. A fleeting thought popped in my head and I had a bit of an “A-ha” moment as I thought “Man, if I didn’t have so much JUNK I wouldn’t be in this mess!”. And then it clicked! “Well, why don’t I get rid of it?”

I admit, I’ve always been the type to hold onto items whether it be for sentimental reasons or the possibility of needing it in the future. My reasoning is that if I have it and may end up needing it, why get rid of it? Although there may be some truth to this, I am starting to see that there is so much freedom in letting go of useless items and to free up space in my home!

I’ve been thinking a lot about the pros and cons of decluttering and parting with certain things. Besides the possibility of needing something down the road, I’ve only thought of the positive benefits such as:

1. More space
2. Easier to find things
3. Less clutter=less mess=less work put into cleaning the house-Without all the unnecessary possessions, it is so much easier to keep the house neat, tidy, and clean. Check out my 5 Fast Ways to a Tidy Home post for more tips!
4. Less stress- Surely I am not the only one that feels stressed and agitated when the house is a wreck! The more items laying around (even if they are put away or where they are supposed to be) the more stressed I feel which is not the best way to live my life!

I first heard about this challenge from my sister and our cousin who both gave it a try last year. Both of these girls are true minimalists at heart and appreciate the “less is more” concept more than a lot of people I know! When they first explained the challenge to me, I quickly reasoned that it would be much easier for both of them to do because of their love for simplicity and minimalism. However, after visiting my sister’s apartment, I was shocked to see that she already has much less than me! This helped me realize that if my sister could do it, than surely I could as well!

So, without further ado, let me introduce to you this challenge that I’m accepting in hopes of helping me declutter my home!

This challenge will last a full month and will consist of getting rid of items every single day! The number of items depends on the date of the month (i.e. on the 5th I will get rid of 5 items, the 6th I will get rid of 6, the 7th 7 items and so on.) I don’t know if it has crossed your mind yet about how quickly that will add up, but let me do the math for you! I will be doing this challenge during the month of February which means the total items I will need to get rid of is: 406

That averages out to be 14.5 items per day! Eek! It’s a good thing I chose the shortest month of the year to implement this challenge! 😉

I plan to have 3 separate categories. Items to toss, items to donate, and items I may possibly try to sell. Fortunately, we have a fairly large outdoor shed that is surprisingly somewhat empty at the moment. My goal is to immediately move my unwanted items to the shed for two reasons:

1. To start clearing more space in our spare rooms (where the majority of our clutter has migrated.)
2. To get it out of sight and help prevent me from changing my mind and pulling items out of my piles!

This Declutter Challenge will honestly be a real challenge for sure! But that’s the point and I’ve been so excited to see how this month of parting with unnecessary items can help change the over all appearance and function of our home! I’m excited to get our guest room tidied up and ready for last minute guests. I’m excited to have more drawer/cabinet space in my kitchen. I’m excited to have more room in dressers and have the ability to be more organized. Lastly, I’m excited to feel the sense of relief when there is less clutter for me to deal with throughout the week!

Feel free to join me on this adventure and be sure to let me know how it goes for you!

Jen