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approachingmindfulnessblog · 7 years

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Day 7 - Planning My First Steps into Minimal Living

Meet Riley, my motivational succulent! I said I wouldn’t buy clothes, I never said I wouldn’t spend $5 on a plant! I suppose you could argue that this is proof I’m still and irresponsible spender caught in the grips of consumerism, but I don’t think so. I’ve saved a lot of money these last few weeks by not allowing myself to buy, and after saying for such a long time that I wanted to buy some succulents and never actually doing it, it felt good to pick out my new friend while I was shopping for pizza ingredients. Not to mention, she’s good for me! Studies have shown that being around plants can lower your stress level, and when I lose track of what I’m writing on the blog I like looking at her for a moment to refocus. I named her after my roommate in Guatemala, who inspired me during the trip and was the first to comment on my new plant!

Since I’ve committed to Minimalism without really spending any time at home, or being around my stuff, I’ve been trying to brainstorm things I can do as an initial purge of my belongings when I get back, whether that’s in a couple days or a couple weeks.

empty the cabinets in the bathroom. separate them into things that are used on a regular basis, like toothpaste and cosmetics you incorporate in your daily look; things you’re saving for something specific (i.e. empty Lush pots that are being saved to be turned in and recycled in exchange for a face mask); and things that are just taking up space, like samples from Sephora two years ago that you saved for no apparent reason, seeing as they’ve never been touched. sell, give away or toss anything that is just taking up space. clean the inside of the cabinets, and then clean the items themselves. put them back in the cabinet in an organized fashion. consider investing in an organization system to keep them tidy, but buy nothing yet. will your reused jars work instead? bequeath tampons and pads to mom & sis, and invest in a menstrual cup instead.

empty desk drawers one at a time. anything that hasn’t been used in a year, should be tossed. things that have been kept for sentimental value but are never actually looked at, should be tossed. old paychecks should be tossed. see if instruction manuals can be found online, then toss physical copies. take a picture of prescription information, then toss unimportant papers. figure out what is and isn’t working about your current organization system. consider updating it. Buy nothing yet. replace items that you actually use or care about.

go through bookshelves and remove any book you did not enjoy or know you will never read again. reorganize remaining books. sell unwanted books to a local used bookstore.

purge jewelry box. anything that you don’t wear or love, sell or gift. throw away broken pieces. return remaining pieces to box. consider a new organization system, but buy nothing yet.

clean out closet shelves. if you’re not using it, ditch it. if you feel the urge to keep something you’re not using, ask yourself why. consider what value the item brings to your life. donate blankets that have been sitting at the top of your closet for at least a year. if something has been broken and not fixed, give yourself 30 days to mend it, and if it is still unaddressed, toss it.

go through your wardrobe. any clothes that you dislike or know you haven’t warn in the last year, sell or donate. any clothes that are too small, or uncomfortable, sell or donate. set aside clothes you need for work, and your go to pieces. with the remaining, in between clothes, ask yourself what you like and dislike about each piece. if the dislikes outweigh the likes, consider getting rid of it. monitor the remaining pieces over the next two months and see what you reach for. get rid of items you ignore. consider what holes might have been left in your wardrobe by your purging, or what might be more comfortable or functional than what you currently have. buy nothing yet.

collect loose change taking up space. take it to the bank.

go through drawer of memories and keepsakes. scan anything important to you. toss everything unless it has importance (i.e., legal). consider a different organization system. buy nothing yet.

recycle all junk mail from colleges you’re uninterested in. read remaining mail and get rid of anything that doesn’t hold importance. consider new organization system. buy nothing.

go through knickknacks. Ii you don’t love it, get rid of it.

go through shoes. if you haven’t worn them in a year, sell them. if you don’t like them or they no longer ‘feel like you’, sell them. consider what sort of shoes might go better with your new style and hold up better, but buy nothing yet.

go through underwear drawer. throw away all uncomfortable or dysfunctional underwear.

go through art supplies drawer. give away all art supplies that are going unused.

get rid of all the junk in the junk drawer. all of it. get rid of any unused items in the electronics drawer, and any cords that you don’t know the purpose of, if they have not been used in over a year.

delete any photos you don’t care about from your Dropbox.

delete irrelevant files from computer.

unsubscribe from unnecessary emails.

take extra pillows off the bed. removing and replacing them is a waste of your time.

delete old text conversations and emails that are no longer important.

Look around at the now far emptier room, and breathe. Feel how much stress is eliminated by eliminating clutter.

(While the phrase “buy nothing yet” did get tiresome to type out after a while, I’m trying to make an important point to myself. I can challenge myself to think of more effective ways to organize the stuff I decide to keep, but that doesn’t mean I need to run out and buy new stuff right away. Anything that’s worth buying, is worth waiting for, so I can see whether simply getting rid of some crap is enough to make an area more organized, or whether it would make sense for me to organize in say, dividers for my drawers, a file folder for important documents or little shelves for my makeup.)

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