Decluttering 2,020 Things in 2020 – What I’ve Learned So Far

Decluttering 2020 in 2020 - What I've Learned So Far - Simply Nourished Wellness

When I decided to challenge myself to declutter 2,020 things this year, I wasn’t really sure what the results would be. Would I start and then give it up? Would I be able to find 2,020 things? Or what if I found way MORE than 2,020 things?

As we approach the end of March and are almost 1/4 of the way into 2020, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my progress and what I’ve learned as I go through this challenge.

To jump back a bit, I want to talk quickly again about why I even decided to do this. Because having a why is what keeps us going when we’re faced with another closet, basement, or attic to tackle. I have two big whys…

1. I want to have a simplified house that is easy to keep clean & organized.

2. We want to downsize our house in the next couple of years and I do NOT want to move anything we don’t truly love, want, or need.

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What I’ve learned from decluttering so far…

I’ve been actively decluttering our home for a few years now. I didn’t take the approach to do a drastic, massive declutter in 6 months. Instead, I have worked progressively on it. Taking off one layer, then coming back around to take off another.

The 2,020 in 2020 challenge has been attacking another layer, but I’ll admit I have been more aggressive with what I’m getting rid of this time around. I’m asking more questions of myself and really evaluating every item. Here’s what I’ve found so far…

I don’t need to keep things for hobbies that I really am not going to do

I’m not a crafty person. It’s taken many years to come to this realization. I’ve done various crafty things over time, but most I didn’t really enjoy. I didn’t hate it, but it wasn’t something I looked forward to or got excited about. The only craft I really enjoy is knitting.

Yet I had piles of printed ideas or projects clipped from magazines. But how likely was it that I would do these things? (hint: very unlikely) Neither of my teen daughters is a big crafter/project maker either. So other than keeping a few things on hand for any school projects, we let go of a LOT of things.

Additionally, I let go of a pretty decent bead collection that I had been holding onto. As a girl who has always loved pretty gems & rocks, it was still a bit hard to let those go even though I knew I wouldn’t be making jewelry (I really had no interest). But they were so pretty! I hope they can bring someone else joy who will actually use them.

Holding things for “someday” just clutters up your space

I spent a recent afternoon cleaning in my basement. I had some bins of things stored from when I used to run a handmade soap business. It’s just been sitting down there for years, taking up a whole 6 ft tall shelving unit. I thought maybe someday I’d use a bunch of it, but after being real with myself, I decided to only keep a few essentials so that I could make small amounts for our family. And nothing fancy! All the colors, fancy molds, etc were decluttered. Now I have 2 small bins left (and some very full trash bags…).

Moving takes SO…MANY…BOXES

My mom is in the process of moving right now. We helped unload some trailers at their new place recently and I’m thankful that she