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The 100 Thing Challenge
- Thread starter ::::BASSIST::::
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Update on my end since I said I was going to try this. I unloaded a couple garbage bags of old clothes, odds and ends from fixing computers, tools I no longer use, and leftover pieces from various projects. I am still way, way, way over 100 things. This weekend, the weather should be nice, so I'll make a go of it again.
At this point, I am having a hard time letting go of some things since it feels like I am wasting money by getting rid of them. I have adjusted my strategy now to not replace some items as they wear out. For example, the next white dress shirt that wears out, I won't replace since I keep a few in rotation anyway.
-Mike
At this point, I am having a hard time letting go of some things since it feels like I am wasting money by getting rid of them. I have adjusted my strategy now to not replace some items as they wear out. For example, the next white dress shirt that wears out, I won't replace since I keep a few in rotation anyway.
-Mike
That's the easiest thing. Put them all on your iPod. Now where there were many things, there is just one.
I probably have 100 things in my pockets.
Seriously, I can't imagining limiting myself to 100 books, or cds, or albums. Never mind the house and all the items inside.
Seriously, I can't imagining limiting myself to 100 books, or cds, or albums. Never mind the house and all the items inside.
The idea is to reduce the amount of things you personally own to just 100. The more you have, the more you have to maintain.
In our society we are such avid consumers that we just get over-burdened with stuff. Granted not all of it is junk, but one idea is that if you havent used something in 6 months to a year, get rid of it. Give it away, sell it, drop it off at the local thrift store. Free yourself from it.
Its not about choosing to be poor. Its about choosing quality over quantity. I'd rather have one really nice bass than 10 junkers.
I am in the process of undertaking such a challenge but at this point its going to take me a long time. I might just get down to 200 things and see how that goes. I just hate tripping over junk I dont use, or when I need something I cant find it because I have way too much stuff. So far I have started with clothes which is easier for me. I am down to 10 shirts and 4 pants. I am still keeping lots of underwear and socks.
Anyway, I have started this process about 2 weeks ago and it is really freeing to de-clutter my life. I saw this one vid of a guy who got down to just 50 things! That's pretty hardcore.
I have read that 80% of the time most people only use 20% of their stuff. I have gotten rid of quite a bit of stuff already, and I dont miss any of it. For me it just a matter of finding the time and energy to get the stuff out of my house. My goal is 3 things per day.
Time To Get Rid of Your Stuff? Take Dave Bruno's "100 Thing Challenge" - YouTube
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What would you tell someone who uses most of what they own on a regular basis, for work, hobbies, or whatever? Would you consider 'tools' as one thing? I hope so, because I have a lot.
I am still on this quest, but admittedly I am have not found the time to get rid of as much stuff as I would have liked. My goal is 200 and maybe just maybe 100 down the road. That said, somethings will be categorized such as tools, cds, underwear... need at least 10 pairs of that. I got rid of about 8 shirts I found in a box yesterday. Still tons to go!
Yeah, its totally up to you. I would definitely categorize things. If I was single without a family I would be ALOT more brutal with my stuff.
I don't know if too many of the guys over in the "Effects" forums will buy into this...GAS seems to be a few of their middle names. Lol.
Bryan R. Tyler
TalkBass: Usurping My Practice Time Since 2002
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I have two rolling tool cabinets and a Snap-On top tool box. For that matter, I have three work benches.
Hmm lets see
On My person:
1 Wallet (1lbs)
1 Cell Phone (1lbs)
1 Set of Keys (1lbs)
1 Folding Knife (1lbs)
1 Pack CIgarettes (1lbs)
Total 5 Items (5lbs)
At Home:
1 Volvo V70 (4750lbs)
1 Queen size mattress (50lbs)
1 2X10 Combo Amp (65lbs)
1 Ibanez SR505 (3lbs)
3 Pairs of shoes (7Lbs)
1 Glock Model 17 (5lbs)
1 Handgun Safe (15lbs)
5 Pairs of Jeans (6lbs)
8 T Shirts (7lbs)
2 Button Shirts (4lbs)
2 Slacks (5lbs)
10 Socks (2lbs)
1 Jacket (7lbs)
1 Toothbrush (1lbs)
1 Tube of toothpaste (1lbs)
1 Shaving Razor (1lbs)
1 Can Shaving Cream (1lbs)
1 Bottle Shampoo (2lbs)
1 Bottle Body Wash (1lbs)
4 Towels (3lbs)
3 Prescription Mediations (1lbs)
14 Medications ie. Tums (3lbs)
1 First Aid Kit - ~350 pcs - (12lbs)
1 Laptop (7lbs)
1 PS3 Console (15lbs)
1 21" Flat Screen TV (10lbs)
1 Digital Camera (3lbs)
1 Tool Kit (15lbs)
1 Blanket (2lbs)
2 Pillows (1lbs)
2 Rats (2lbs)
1 Rat Cage (7lbs)
1 Bag Rat Food (10lbs)
1 Bag Shaved Wood Bedding (8lbs)
4 Plates (2lbs)
4 Bowls (2lbs)
12 Utensils (3lbs)
5 Pots and Pans (10lbs)
Total: 101 Items (5,037lbs) 225sq/ft
At Work:
1 Kenworth T700 (53,000-80,000)
4 Shirts (2lbs)
4 Jeans (4lbs)
4 Socks (2lbs)
1 Jacket (7lbs)
1 Pair Gloves (1lbs)
2 Pairs Shoes (6lbs)
1 Towel (2lbs)
1 Blanket (2lbs)
2 Pillows (2lbs)
1 Bottle Shampoo (1lbs)
1 Bottle Soap (1lbs)
1 Tooth Brush (1lbs)
1 Toothpaste (1lbs)
1 Shaving Razor (1lbs)
1 Shaving Cream (1lbs
10 Medications (4lbs)
1 Laptop (7lbs)
1 Paperwork (5lbs)
Total: 39 Items 53,053lbs 64sq/ft
Grand Totals
Items: 145
Weight: 58,095 lbs
Space 289 Square Feet
I decided to add up the weight and space that I and my things take up. The class 8 Kenworth Truck is the bulk of the weight at 53K lbs. But home owners can add up anywere from 80K to 600K lbs depending on the size of the house.
*Weights are Aproximate
On My person:
1 Wallet (1lbs)
1 Cell Phone (1lbs)
1 Set of Keys (1lbs)
1 Folding Knife (1lbs)
1 Pack CIgarettes (1lbs)
Total 5 Items (5lbs)
At Home:
1 Volvo V70 (4750lbs)
1 Queen size mattress (50lbs)
1 2X10 Combo Amp (65lbs)
1 Ibanez SR505 (3lbs)
3 Pairs of shoes (7Lbs)
1 Glock Model 17 (5lbs)
1 Handgun Safe (15lbs)
5 Pairs of Jeans (6lbs)
8 T Shirts (7lbs)
2 Button Shirts (4lbs)
2 Slacks (5lbs)
10 Socks (2lbs)
1 Jacket (7lbs)
1 Toothbrush (1lbs)
1 Tube of toothpaste (1lbs)
1 Shaving Razor (1lbs)
1 Can Shaving Cream (1lbs)
1 Bottle Shampoo (2lbs)
1 Bottle Body Wash (1lbs)
4 Towels (3lbs)
3 Prescription Mediations (1lbs)
14 Medications ie. Tums (3lbs)
1 First Aid Kit - ~350 pcs - (12lbs)
1 Laptop (7lbs)
1 PS3 Console (15lbs)
1 21" Flat Screen TV (10lbs)
1 Digital Camera (3lbs)
1 Tool Kit (15lbs)
1 Blanket (2lbs)
2 Pillows (1lbs)
2 Rats (2lbs)
1 Rat Cage (7lbs)
1 Bag Rat Food (10lbs)
1 Bag Shaved Wood Bedding (8lbs)
4 Plates (2lbs)
4 Bowls (2lbs)
12 Utensils (3lbs)
5 Pots and Pans (10lbs)
Total: 101 Items (5,037lbs) 225sq/ft
At Work:
1 Kenworth T700 (53,000-80,000)
4 Shirts (2lbs)
4 Jeans (4lbs)
4 Socks (2lbs)
1 Jacket (7lbs)
1 Pair Gloves (1lbs)
2 Pairs Shoes (6lbs)
1 Towel (2lbs)
1 Blanket (2lbs)
2 Pillows (2lbs)
1 Bottle Shampoo (1lbs)
1 Bottle Soap (1lbs)
1 Tooth Brush (1lbs)
1 Toothpaste (1lbs)
1 Shaving Razor (1lbs)
1 Shaving Cream (1lbs
10 Medications (4lbs)
1 Laptop (7lbs)
1 Paperwork (5lbs)
Total: 39 Items 53,053lbs 64sq/ft
Grand Totals
Items: 145
Weight: 58,095 lbs
Space 289 Square Feet
I decided to add up the weight and space that I and my things take up. The class 8 Kenworth Truck is the bulk of the weight at 53K lbs. But home owners can add up anywere from 80K to 600K lbs depending on the size of the house.
*Weights are Aproximate
I'd struggle with most of this challenge due to my hoarding nature, but clothes isn't one of them.
I own about 4 pairs of shorts, probably 10 T-Shirts (could easily cut down to 5, but they don't use much space) a pair of pants and a hoodie.
No socks, 1 pair of shoes, and about 5 pairs of underwear.
They live on the floor.
If I count things like "clothes" rather than each individual piece of clothing, or "books" rather than my entire collection, I could say that I have less than 100 things.
I think the concept is 100 total "things", not categories.
Never work for me. I have hundreds of folders in my file cabinets for various purposes: business, purchases, medical, projects. A lot of the stuff I own has been purchased for business purposes, so I wouldn't count that stuff.
Most of this stuff came along before scanning was easy to do and before saving to a browser archive file was available. A lot of it needs to go. I'll get to it one of these days.
Side story: I have fire/smoke detectors in my house hooked up to an alarm service company. After about 15 years I found out that a discount on my home insurance was available because of the system. My agent looked into it and told the underwriters would be able to recapture 10 years of discount if I could substantiate the initial start up of the service.
Since I have a huge garage, keeping each year's paperwork is no big deal. I label each box for easy access. Within 5 minutes I was able to locate the first invoice for the alarm service. I faxed it over to my agent and within a couple of weeks, received a check for $400 ($40/yr discount for 10 years).
Well yeah, if we're going to get granular and count pieces of paper, I'll never make it. I'm sure we have over 1,000 pieces of toilet paper alone.
-Mike
-Mike
I think Limit-Yourself-To-100-Things is misguided. A more practical approach is the Limit-Yourself-To-Stuff-You-Actually-Use school of thought: Basically, anything you haven't used for ~12-24 months, you get rid of.
...not that I could actually bring myself to do it! But I think it makes a lot more sense than limiting yourself to some absolute quantity of "things".
...not that I could actually bring myself to do it! But I think it makes a lot more sense than limiting yourself to some absolute quantity of "things".
Hmm.
Interesting concept. We own and live in a three story home, four stories if you count the basement which is a big music room. Only two of our bedrooms are furnished. yet, from my desk chair I've counted in my head 34 pieces of furniture. Our home is pretty simply furnished for a home this large.
In my music room there are eight full drum sets, seven of which are in cases, 32 snare drums, over eighty cymbals, five guitars, three basses, five amplfiers, and two pa systems. This doesn't even count the 2,500 or so CDs.
(The tools in my garage have to number over a couple thousand.)
100 things? It's just not possible for me at this time in my life.
It sounds like a noble cause though.
Interesting concept. We own and live in a three story home, four stories if you count the basement which is a big music room. Only two of our bedrooms are furnished. yet, from my desk chair I've counted in my head 34 pieces of furniture. Our home is pretty simply furnished for a home this large.
In my music room there are eight full drum sets, seven of which are in cases, 32 snare drums, over eighty cymbals, five guitars, three basses, five amplfiers, and two pa systems. This doesn't even count the 2,500 or so CDs.
(The tools in my garage have to number over a couple thousand.)
100 things? It's just not possible for me at this time in my life.
It sounds like a noble cause though.
I like the idea, but everyones lives and needs are different. 100 is a strange number to gauge everyone by. I think the point of the whole concept is to not own more than you use, and of the things you do own, use them well. This... I like...
