Project 3000
If I asked you to guess how many items can be found in an average Western household, I promise you wouldn't come close to the right answer.
Nobody I have asked has guessed correctly. My mum guessed it must be thousands. "Maybe 5,000?" My sister reckoned that was an underestimate and doubled it. "At least 10,000." Guesses ranged from the hundreds to about 50,000 - but that guesser thought this would be the very high end of average.
None of them are even close. Because amazingly, the average household has 300,000 items in it. 300,000. 300,000. That's an absolutely bonkers amount of stuff.
If you're scratching your head and wondering how that figure could possibly come close to the truth, keep in mind this number is the combination of every single item, not just item categories. So each and every toothpick in your house, every pencil, every sofa, every sock, every frying pan and every shampoo gets counted.
All of a sudden the amount of stuff in your house is feeling pretty overwhelming, right? Do you really need 300,000 things?
I did some serious decluttering in 2017 and completed two rounds of the #minsgame (if you haven't heard of it, check out the rules here: https://www.theminimalists.com/game/) but for 2018 I want to kick my decluttering up a notch (and loosen the rules for an easier life!)
I'm fairly certain I don't have 300,000 items in my home. Or at least I really, really hope I don't. Nonetheless, I'll be aiming to clear out 3,000 items from my house this year - just 1% of the estimated total average amount! I'll also make sure not to bring in any new unnecessary items.
Each and every day I will get rid of one item or more. Some things will be donated, others recycled. Products that are used up but not replaced will be counted. By 31st December 2018, I aim to own 3,000 (or more!) fewer items and to have simplified my lifestyle greatly in the progress.
You can follow my progress daily on my Instagram page where I will use the hashtag #project3000. Feel free to join me and play along - or make up your own rules! To share your decluttering progress, use the hashtag #thetidylifecommunity.
Happy decluttering!
-Claire xoxo