Approved List

As promised, I am posting our Approved Shopping List for the Year of Spending Less. These are items we will need to replace, or have already decided on purchasing, that will be allowed over the course of the next year.

Approved Shopping List:

• A new (used) car
• New laptop (probably refurbished)
• Protective laptop case
• Work Gear (husband)
• Guestroom futon 
• New Mattress/Bed/Foundation Support
• A tattoo (both of us, me for sure) 
• Updated Gaming Console (preferably used) 
• Messenger Bag (for my husband) 
• Sustainable Items (to replace plastics and one-use items) 
• Candles (only one per month, if desired)
• Plants/Supplies for Herbal Cooking Garden
• Outdoor/Biking Gear (as needed for trips & planned activities)

Notes about the list...

The list was compiled in no particular order, but I did decide to list the more necessary items at the top. We will need a second car in the coming months, and a new laptop has been on our list for some time. Work gear is expected but unknown, as my husband is changing directions. And we have plans, once we clear things out, to purchase an affordable futon (that we've already shopped around for and chosen) for our guest room.

The candles are not necessary, as I have a collection I'm working thru, but I listed the option because I do use them regularly and I believe there is a good chance I may run out in less than a year. The "herbal garden" is a future plan as well, for when the house is cleaned up. I have always wanted to cook with fresh herbs available, so I've included it for when the space is ready. I don't expect everything on the list to be purchased immediately, but making this list did bring our priorities to light. Seeing everything we actually wanted listed out, we could also see that our money has been wasted on stuff we didn't really care...

Other than this list, and basic consumables, we'll be focusing on not purchasing anything new for our home. Books and videos will be rented from the library or borrowed. I will be cancelling my Audible Account for the year, which will be hard. We have canceled our underutilized gym membership, and we will be looking at the necessity of any subscriptions we currently have.

We have decided to keep our shared Spotify account, because we use it daily, and for the $10 per month, we believe it's worth it for the content. We don't have cable or internet at our home, and unless it becomes necessary for income purposes, we will keep to just our cell phone data service.

Avoiding Temptation

Something that Cait did her book (link to previous entry about this) that I thought was really smart, was that she unsubscribed from all digital adverts. She stopped receiving emails about sales, and anything that she might want to shop for. It will take us a moment to get ourselves off of every list that we have subscribed to, but we are planning to do the same.

My only exceptions for this are emails from Kroger (where we buy most of our groceries), and emails from the company that I work for... Even though the emails are advertising sales and new products, I still plan to review them in order to stay informed for our customers, everything else will have to be cut.

Clearing Out Clutter 

As for our excess of physical items, I will be clearing things out using three options: Throw Away, Donate or Sell. I think there is a lot of junk and paperwork that can just be tossed. A fair bit of it can be donated and used by someone else. And for some nicer items, I will try to resell them at a marked down cost to put toward savings.

I'm going to try to Throw Out or Donate most of the clutter, because it's too easy to put higher value on stuff than it really deserves. I don't want a whole room of stuff that I'm keeping, because I'm waiting tosell it. My planned limit is one month, and after that time I will donate any items that haven't sold.

I will still be using Poshmark, and possibly FB marketplace, to sell my items, but I will not be shopping in these forums. Hopefully, as I pare down my closet, I will feel less in inclined to shop and add more stuff back to it.

What do you think? Do you have any questions about our plan? Is there anything I haven't addressed that you'd liked me to share or keep track of? Please comment below, I'd love to know your thoughts!

One TOO Many Projects

It's easy to get excited, with a picture in your mind of how everything will be, and then find yourself overwhelmed.

(Image from article at letterstoa.com)

The process of decluttering is emotionally exhausting, if not physically. And as someone who jumps into things with a positive outlook and a mapped out plan, I have hit this point over and over again.



So what gives?

I don't have all the answers, but I can tell you what has always worked for me: If you want progress, then PACE YOURSELF.

That doesn't mean go as slowly as possible (if you're like me and you itch at the idea of sitting down when there's so much to do), I mean that you should do a FINITE amount of work at a time. Just like exercising, learning a new skill or studying for a test, doing a little each day will ALWAYS prove more productive than a couple days jammed full of tasks.

Added bonus: It's much less overwhelming, exhausting, and time consuming then trying to do it all at once.




Do a little Each day
(Or 3 days a week, whatever works for your schedule)

Start with 30 minutes and set a timer. When it goes off, stop. Take a breather, take a look at what you've accomplished, and decide if you want to work for another 30 mins. If 30 mins is too much, break it down into 10 or 15 mins at a time (with a short break in between).

If you're new to this approach, give it a week to see what you think. It might feel like you're not geeking anywhere at first, but after 6 days you'll have put in 3 hours of focused productivity!

Considering the amount time you have been able to consistently put toward cleaning or decluttering... and I promise this approach will be an improvement.

Setting yourself this daily task, WITH a time limit, will also allow you the peace of mind move on to other important tasks, like cooking dinner, getting to the gym, or taking some down time for yourself. 




FIRST - Make a List of Priorities
(I like to focus room by room) 

This might sound pretty obvious, but take the time to make a list of everything you want to accomplish. Not just tasks for one day, but for the week. If you're really inspired, you can make a long-term list, just write it all down.

Try to be specific in your tasks, like "reorganize patry next to fridge" rather than clean the kitchen. The more specific you are, the more likely that you are going to get that task done without being sidetracked. Being specific also breaks bigger tasks down into manageable sizes.

Here's a sample of one of my lists:

Actual photo from my personal day planner...

Once you have a list (big or small) then map out your week. I like to pick a few tasks from the list, and leave some space in case I need more time to complete a task. You might have break up one task into parts, if it proves to be more time consuming.



SECOND - Use your list to create a Focus Area:
(Example)

Monday - Focus: Laundry

1. Wash Sheets
2. Put Away Towels
3. Sort Laundry (colors & types)  

Tuesday - Focus: Kitchen

1. Kitchen shelves (clean, mount, organize)
2. Move Toaster & Microwave to new counter location
3. Clean up Counters

Wednesday - Focus: Task Completion

• Work on anything not finished from Monday & Tuesday. If there is time, do general household cleaning (ie, wipe down bathroom, take, etc.) 

As you can see, I did not put EVERYTHING from my list into one or even two days. Focus on between 1-3 tasks total. This will keep you on task and ensure that you accomplish something.



THIRD - Observe  the Progress:

After a few weeks, you'll discover how much time you should schedule certain tasks. And after a month you'll be amazed at what you were able to do in such little time! 

There were things I had been TRYING to do for months, and I found I had finished them completely in just a couple weeks. It doesn't seem like much when you start, but you can get so much done in 3-4 hours each week when you pace yourself and map it out.

TRUST ME. This is part of Finding Balance.