Project Eliminate: The Plan

One of the first steps in organizing (or really anything worthy of acknowledgement in life) is developing a plan. Perfect, because I love planning so that alone is enough to get me started.

I already shared my epiphany for why I need to Project Eliminate >> here. Below is my plan to get started, and I'll share links to future posts in this series here:
The Epiphany
The Closet
The Dining Hutch
The Kitchen
Remedy for Hitting the Wall
Kids' Rooms
Living Room
Wrapping Up in the Kitchen
A Word on Refusing
Exhausted + Not Giving Up
Dresser + Bathroom

First, I have a goal: Eliminate the excess.

I want to evaluate every item in our home, keeping only what's necessary and getting rid of everything else. I have worked on this many times before and would like this to be the beginning of the end of this ongoing time-consumer. I'm not fully convinced of my ability to be minimalist, and Daniel isn't fully convinced of the necessity of it, so while this elimination project will be a big change for us, it will by no means make us true minimalists (our concept of necessary is still blurred).

Second, I have a timeframe: 4 weeks.

We move in six, and I want to dedicate the last two to packing, cleaning, and working out the final details of our move.

Third, I have a plan: Get it done room-by-room.

I started with writing each room, and simply listing the areas that "need some work" in that room. For example, the kitchen includes the hutch, pantry, cupboards, drawers. Every area in our home needs work, but this helps me break this impossible endeavor down into manageable tasks or sections. I am basically doing two rooms per week, starting with the easy and ending with the more difficult/time-consuming. I need to build momentum starting with the quick and easy accomplishments so I don't fizzle out.

Finally, I have the inspiration: Minimalism.

The Happy Janssens are no longer living in their motorhome, but their photos are still an inspiration to evaluating what's truly essential. Basically, everything we need plus some could fit in this small space--imagine all the excess we've crammed into a full 3 bedroom, 2 bath house! The Johnson's and their Zero Waste Home (watch the video; it's worth 2 min 52 sec) is a true example of minimalism in its utmost beauty. We may never reach this level of simplicity, but it is worth aiming for. There are countless others, but these are enough to keep me going on my Project Eliminate.

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