I'm on week two of purging, donating, and selling most of our belongings; I've been selling several items every day, from an Apple keyboard to air mattresses and sleeping bags. When my husband saw the prices I put on those items he got that *we need to talk about this* look on his face. He was wondering if I was going a bit too low, and I completely agreed that I am - on purpose.
The way he looked at it is that we both worked really hard for the last 12 years and now we're giving it away for next to nothing. And I totally get that. We did work very hard to earn the money that bought all those things. However, I have always valued my time more than I value things, or money. I know I could take better pictures, share the items to more Facebook groups, maybe even boost the occasional post, and get more money for it - but would that be enough? And how much is enough, anyway? All I know is trying to get more money means giving more of my time and I'm not willing to do that.
My time is priceless and sacred to me. I want to sell our stuff with minimum effort, and fast - so I keep the prices low. If I can't get at least $10 for it I will either donate it or throw it out, and if I post and and it's not sold within three days I do the same. It definitely helps that I'm not attached to anything. I worked for it, I bought it, I used it {and it may or may not have sparked joy}, and now it's time to move on. Holding onto it for a few bucks more would mean it's holding me back.
I tackled the spare room in our basement this week and thanks to the mid-week holiday yesterday {Canada Day, eh} I've made solid progress and finished it up today. {Check out my IGTV video about it here.} I sold a few things for a few bucks and it's all picked up and gone. We're probably keeping more from that room than from any other room in the house because all our winter coats and hunting gear is stored there; we'll definitely need those winter coats in the Cariboo {plus, the ranch sits at 3,700'}. Everything's packed up in plastic totes, ready to go.
It feels fantastic, I have to say. Every bag of trash I throw into our utility trailer to be hauled to the dump makes me breathe a little easier. It's funny how you don't even realize how all this stuff is weighing you down until you get rid of it.
As for the question: how much is enough? - I'm not sure my husband and I are on the same page yet, and that's perfectly fine. Everyone gets to make their own decisions when minimizing, because different things are important to each of us. We both have our non-negotiables and those are not up for discussion, and everything else has a price. A low one, if you ask me. 😁