Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.
Now what can we declutter this week. I have mostly been decluttering craft materials but not everyone would be into that. So I’ll have to come up with something else. I know, we’ll have a verb loaded decluttering week. Each mission will be about what you do with stuff. Confused? Well you’ll soon figure it out.
Monday – Declutter something you eat from.
Tuesday – Declutter something that is played with.
Wednesday – Declutter something you wear.
Thursday – Declutter something the decorates your home.
Friday – Declutter something used for entertaining. Books, CDs, DVDs…
Saturday – Declutter something for grooming.
Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.
Good luck and happy decluttering
Eco Tip for the Day
Be economical with your grooming products. Using more than necessary doesn’t give a better result. Any wastefulness is not good for the environment.
It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow
How do you come up such creative mini missions….great week ahead.
Thanks Colleen
I think all the craft creativity is having an overall effect on my thinking Calla. I certainly don’t have crafter’s block at the moment. Just as well too with Mother’s Day just around the corner and a new art space to set up and stock.
Here’s what I’ve come up with so far:
Eat from…..old flatware set that I replaced
Wear….purple nail polish
Grooming….New bottle of body wash
Entertainment.. .2 dvds (gone girl & get on up)
I’ll have to think further about the other categories,decoration & play item
Well done Calla, you have interpreted the missions well so far. Don’t forget decoration could mean home décor, adorning yourself (jewellery etc), party supplies etc.
Hi Colleen,
We are still on Easter in my part of the world… Easter is one of my favorite days to declutter, to show my appreciation for all that I have been given (taking care of it or passing it on to someone else, etc)… My husband went through some things in his room this morning and got rid of a few… I recycled a Kahlua bottle so far LOL… At my nieces house, I (gently) promoted decluttering as a hobby 🙂
Hi Peggy, good point, Easter is a good time to be grateful for what you have been blessed with. I like to share that with the world through my crafting and I sure am getting a lot of that done of late. Which in turn declutters my storage space.
Can I assume you also decluttered the contents of that Kahlua bottle?
Ha! We were going to declutter the contents of the Kahlua bottle last night but found only some “sludge” at the bottom… must have left the lid loose and it evaporated (we don’t often drink)… very disappointing! But the cupboard is a wee bit roomier now LOL
Yesterday my dear Husband decluttered his office area. Two drawer units were removed and lots of bits and pieces went into the the recycling bin.
He also removed a sheet of plaster that has been sitting in the lounge room after the bathroom renovation.
During the week my daughter has been decluttering items on Gumtree , she even said I should try it ?!?? ( don’t you love it when your kids tell you about something you have been doing or done before)
I can see my eldest son is going to need some motivation to downsize his possessions. He bought home a few boxes of laptop bags that they don’t use at his workplace. His intention is to sell them , I can see them at the thrift shop.
His girlfriend would like the bookshelf we are getting rid of, the problem is getting him to deliver it for her.
I am removing a few extra dessert bowls from the cupboard this week.
The DVDs sitting next to the TV can go , we don’t have a DVD player .
I’m going to concentrate on my car this week. Taking the dogs to the beach each day creates a small sandpit in my car. I keep takeaway coffee cups in there to collect their poo. A water bowl and some treats. A towel for the seat if I get wet . I also like to keep some shopping bags in the car. Everything ends up covered in sand.
Thanks for the list Colleen.
Cheers
Wahoo Wendy F, you must be excited about Kent’s efforts. As you know I have seen is office and it must be vastly improved right now. Good luck getting the kids to declutter. And yes, fancy your daughter trying to give you advise on selling on Gumtree. Hello!!!
Very inventive missions, Colleen! Story time: Up at my in-laws Friday night. “We’ve sold our two camp trailers and want to get rid of the contents. Take all you want!” These trailers were PACKED with old dishes, blankets, vases, on, & on & on! I half-heartedly scanned the items and selected a very pretty little milk glass vase. Honestly, there must have been 50 coffee mugs and maybe 45 vases. Then my MIL said the words I longed to hear. “I wish I hadn’t taken so much of my sister’s things that no one wanted.” I think I just got the OK to get rid of that second afghan.
Ah Michelle, I hope your MILs words will be the catalyst to let go of that dreaded afghan. And well done with selling the camp trailers.
Thanks Colleen, but you know there is still the first afghan to contend with. My nemesis! My MIL has a great heart and I know she thinks it is a loving thing to give, but I have tried so hard not to accumulate any more stuff. More things can become a burden. Storing, cleaning, maintenance. Boy, I don’t want it. The less time we spend maintaining our property, the more time we can spend with loved ones or doing thing we enjoy or simply enjoying the peace. That’s what I am learning from your blog – peace. Love it.
And when you put your back out like I did this weekend you can forget the housework for a few days and convalesce.
Oh no! I’m sorry, Colleen! Rest up and feel better so, my friend. 🙂
Hi, Colleen. I really enjoy the creativity of your missions!
I am glad Nicole.
I guess this one goes under the Sunday mission. I just decluttered a uni Diploma course I started this semester. I wasn’t learning the things I thought I would be, so felt there was no point in continuing. That has now freed up more time to work on the other missions! ( I work almost full time, so the study ams assignments were taking up the rest of my time) Feeling so much lighter now!
Well done, it takes courage to do that! I decluttered a uni course after two full years a while back, and do not regret it for a second.
Good for you Andie B. Studying can be hard enough but when you aren’t interested in the course it makes it all that much harder. Best to let that you go and move on.
Bad News: I really don’t have time for the mini missions…
Good News: … because mum’s decluttering…
Bad: … by dumping *all* her unwanted stuff on me…
Good: … but I’m allowed to sell it, yay!…
Bad: … meaning I have to spend HOURS sorting and ebaying it…
Good: … but I can keep any money I make!
Looks like that trip to New Zealand just got one step closer!
Exactly! I’m guessing about 10-15% of the total I’ll need to save will come from all this, so it probably got a few more steps than just one 😉
Or it will once I upload all the photos. (There’s a funeral of a close family member coming up, I can’t do *anything* until after it, but I can prepare things, take photos, find boxes, etc. I just can’t put anything on Ebay)
Sorry you have to do all of that work but so glad your mom has decided to declutter. WooHoo!!
Probably less of a headache than going out to work to earn the money would be, Deb J. At least I’m telling myself that to make it less painful!
Niriel,
Sounds like a win-win to me.
Absolutely, Kimberley. I’m going to keep track of how much I make from her stuff.
Yay and ohhhh! Yay you get to keep the money but oh what a pain in the ass going to the bother of selling it. But Yay, your mum is decluttering.
Colleen, I wouldn’t have said yes if I didn’t get to keep the money. It’ll certainly be nice not to trip over so much clutter, but she’s not doing it willingly. She’ll have to downsize soon and is fighting hard not to get rid of anything, so I’m being a willing receptacle for anything of value she wants to toss!! Like Wendy B said, it makes the trip to New Zealand that much closer…
Just did some of these mini-missions over the weekend so they are fresh in my memory.
Monday – cutlery – I’d been on the fence about donating theses extras or giving them to my parents. But I decided that it will just add extra they don’t need to their already crowded drawers, so I put them in the donation box.
Tuesday – tossed out a couple of old balls from our toy box. Too old and mangy and we have at least 10 rolling around our floors for the cats anyhow.
Wednesday – husband and I decided to part with our beloved ice skates. Neither of us have worn them more than 3 times in the past 20 years so we don’t really need to be hauling them around the rest of our lives anymore.
Thursday – a pretty trash can! – it really is the prettiest trash can I’ve ever owned. I bought it so it could be visible under my desk when we staged the home we sold. At first the cat left it alone but eventually he started sorting through the contents every night. Nothing I could do to keep him out. Now we have two cats and I’m sure it will never sit out under my desk again. Might as well donate it for someone else to use.
Friday – VHS tape – I still have a pile of these! They are old family videos that I need to have transferred to digital. Tossed a tv program I had recorded and put the family videos into a box to send to the digital service. Wish I would have digitized all of these back when my VCR was working.
Saturday – dental floss – I put myself on a use it up challenge to go through our small collection of dental floss. Motivation to actually floss every day. It is working. I think I’ve disposed of 4 half used dental floss containers (used them up first) in the past week or so.
I didn’t get much of the photo project done last week as it was Easter Weekend here weekend ie long weekendand we went away and are going away this weekend. So I’m going to stay on that for now.
Does returning the doggie we’ve been dog-sitting count for decluttering something you play with????
The missions don’t really work for me this week but I don’t care. We had such a successful weekend – reduced 4 boxes of Ian’s ‘treasures’ to one box, and that may shrink when he makes the time to deal with his photos. He’s finally ready to release items from his many former lives so he can free up his energy for the life he wants to live now.
My scanner and shredder are being put to good use and I’ve emptied out about half a drawer of the filing cabinet. The closer we get to putting our house up for sale, the more critical I have become about what papers I need!
Wow Wendy B, busy busy busy, and success success success. Ian has come a long way in the time you have been visiting us here at 365. Glad to hear you are been choosy about what paper you keep. Being too careful about this can lead to a lot of hard to move clutter. Thank goodness for computers, scanners and shredders I say.
I”ve gotta say I use every product and sample packet that comes across my little hands.
I use it to the last drop and find myself cutting open the toothpaste and body lotions to get that last bit.
My husband looks at me like I’m an oddball …
Just keep being an oddball because using things up to the enth degree is good for the environment. And trying before you buy isn’t a bad idea either. Better to realise then that something doesn’t work for you rather than when you have a 500ml container of it.