Project 333 is not just for the ladies. Some of these men have participated in Project 333, some not, and well, some have likely never heard of it.
They do all have a few things in common though. They are each very passionate about what they do and they all dress with less.
Leo Babauta
Do you wear a similar uniform each day and can you describe it? I wear one pair of jeans every day, and a gray T-shirt. I also have a pair of workout shorts and a gray workout shirt that I use for running, workouts, and wearing around the house if it’s warm enough.
How many shirts and pants do you own? One pair of jeans, two gray T-shirts, workout shorts & two workout shirts, and a pair of dress pants and dress shirt for going to nicer restaurants.
What is one benefit of thinking less about what you wear? Getting ready for the day, or to go anywhere, is fast, painless, stress-free, with no decisions to be made. I can use my decision-making powers for more important stuff.
Joshua Becker
Do you wear a similar uniform each day and can you describe it? My employer has only one clothing restriction (no shorts), so I am able to wear clothing of my choice to work Monday-Friday. And I do wear a similar look each day. I wear jeans with a black or gray v-neck t-shirt, black belt, and black sandals. Once each week I present in front of several hundred people, on those days, I choose to wear a black or gray short-sleeved polo shirt along with jeans and sandals.
How do you get dressed up for date night or special occasions? I have one outfit for special occasions: khaki-based dress pants, a black blazer, white dress shirt, and black dress shoes. I find it to be appropriate for almost every special occasion. I also own a black suit which utilizes the same white shirt, shoes, and belt.
What is one benefit of thinking less about what you wear? There are several benefits that come to mind right away: less time to get ready, less expense, less to care for, less staring into my closet wondering what to wear. But more importantly, I have begun to care less about ever-changing fashion trends and I worry less about impressing people with my clothes.
Joshua Millburn
Do you wear a similar uniform each day and can you describe it? I tend to wear a variation of a uniform: a T-shirt or a slim button-down oxford, either paired with jeans. In the summer I wear TOMS shoes because they’re incredibly comfortable on my daily 8-mile walks. During the winter I wear colorful stripped socks and leather boots. When I dress for more formal occasions, I wear a crisp white button-down dress shirt tucked into jeans with a pinstriped navy blazer.
You recently moved to a cabin in Montana. Did you have to buy anything new or change your wardrobe to fit your new environment? Because it’s going to be cold, and I’m going to be chopping a lot of firewood, I bought some thermal underwear. I also purchased a bear-spray holster (does that count as an accessory?).
What is one benefit of thinking less about what you wear? Actually, “thinking less” is the biggest benefit. In other words, getting dressed requires very little cerebration these days—no more searching closets or aimless color-coordinating. Now I just pull on some jeans and a t-shirt or an oxford, and I’m good to go. Another great benefit is that I own only clothes that I love—clothes I enjoy wearing. Thus, every outfit is my favorite outfit. It feels great to be able to wear my favorite clothes every day.
Barack Obama
In this Harvard Business Review article, President Obama said, “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits. I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.”
Andrew Odom
Do you wear a similar uniform each day and can you describe it? My day-to-day (as I am a telecommuter) are Reebok Men’s Crushed Basketball Shorts. I have 3 pair of them and all are black. My shirt is typically a T-shirt from Duluth Trading called the “Long T”. It keeps the plumber from showing if you know what I mean! I have one pair of sneakers and they are cross-trainers that get replaced every year like clockwork! When I work outside (either on the tiny house or in the garden/farm) I wear well-worn Carhartt Overalls and my ‘ol trust pair of Georgia Boots.
Clothing is so cheap. Is it tempting to focus on quantity over quality? No, not at all. I used to focus on quantity. I was a bit addicted to variety and following trends. I would gladly get a $25 pair of jeans from Old Navy and then replace them the next month as opposed to an $80 pair of similar looking Carhartt jeans that would last me a couple of years. Because I have moved to living a more simple, budget-minded, lifestyle I prefer to make an initial investment and have a return on that investment (ROI = TIME in this case).
What is one benefit of thinking less about what you wear? I feel more comfortable than ever in my clothes. They represent who I am and what I do. Thinking less about it means I am more in touch with who I am and that just creates a more optimistic attitude in life; internally and externally.
Mark Zuckerberg
“I mean, I wear the same thing every day, right? I mean, it’s literally, if you could see my closet,” Zuckerberg said, adding that he owns “maybe about 20” of the gray, scoop neck shirts he’s become somewhat famous for.
In this interview the Facebook founder said he lets his wife have the run of the closet in their Palo Alto, Calif., home and keeps his shirt “collection” in a single drawer.
Project 333 is working for men and woman all over world.
I love the concept of your own personal uniform. Sometimes it’s hard to get out of my head, thinking about whether or not people notice that I wear the same thing all the time. As long as the clothes I wear is an extension of my personality and that I am comfortable in them.
Not to mention the sleek simple look of your wardrobe. Great article.
Galo, After wearing less than 33 items including accessories, jewelry, clothing and shoes in 3 month intervals for more than 2 years, I can say with confidence that no one notices.
This is true. Love the project by the way. Project 333, has encouraged me to start my own small project in an effort to minimize my belongings while maximizing my fitness strengths and feats. It’s crazy how less allows the opportunity for more.
Six months ago I gave away at least half of my shirts because they were cheap and I hardly wore them. The 100% cotton shirts are of such poor quality that I only buy blends now, no matter the price. For every nice shirt I buy, I discard one low quality shirt. Additionally, limiting the color palette (red, black, grey, white) gives me fewer choices in mix/match combos. Less stress, time, and (hopefully) money spent in the long run.
I agree with Mr. Millburn. It’s nice to wear my favorite clothes every day.
I have been using project 333 for about a month now and absolutely love it. Yesterday I went through my books and went from 71 books down to 14 books. It is so freeing to not have so much dirty laundry. It is nice to be forced to do laundry more often so that I actually get to wear the clothes that I really like.
Don’t forget the late Steve Jobs and his ubiquitous black turtlenecks.
For some reason, having a personal uniform always seems to work for guys. This greatly applies to men who really have the brains and guts to do so. Despite wearing almost the same thing each and every day, these guys still appeal to the opposite sex for the fact that they manage to still look interesting despite and in spite of their appearance and clothes. But one thing that I have also noticed with men who dress less is a great pair of shoes. I guess men are naturally more particular about their shoes rather than their clothes.
I learned about your website from the Minimalists blog and loved the concept. I went through my closet and weeded out all but my favorite 33 items and am quite happy with the results. My husband has always had a work “uniform:” blue button-down shirt and khaki pants, and puzzled why my clothes were so much more complicated. As a busy mom of 4 kids, I realized from reading your blog how simplifying my wardrobe could make my life a lot easier. Clutter has always been a problem for me, but somehow the magical number of 33 just makes sense to me and gives structure to the whole world of clothes. Yesterday I ventured into my kids’ rooms and found clothes spilling out of their drawers and all over their floors. Obviously some editing was in order. I told them they could each keep 33 items for the next three months. When summer actually arrives, we’ll revisit their clothing situation. Having a concrete number caused them to make choices and prioritize which clothes they needed most. I didn’t see any posts about applying this to children–am I missing them? If you’d like, I would be happy to write about our experience with applying your system to my kids’ closets. Thanks for such an inspiring blog!
yes! I would love a post from you on kid’s closets! Please use these guidelines: http://theproject333.com/how-to-guest-post-for-project-333/
Hi! I’m wondering if that article about P333 for kids ever made it onto the blog. By default, my daughter’s wardrobe has pared down as she’s outgrown things and I’ve replaced judiciously. But my son is just 1 now, and we’ve been receiving generous hand-me-downs from others! Time to pass them along to folks whose drawers are less full, I think.
I think guys can get away with looking the same. My son wears the same pair of jeans day in and day out.
Women, I think have a harder time looking the same. I don’t care how many combinations you can make out of skirts and slacks etc. Women keep track of what we wear.
I live in the southwest. I need church clothes, work clothes, happy hour clothes, vacation clothes, work out clothes, evening dresses, sleep wear, bathing suits. Sometimes my bathing suits haven’t dried out from a morning’s swim, so I use two to three a day.
Then, add on accessories like bracelets, necklaces, handbags, heels, tights, camis etc.
Another reason I avoid a certain color combination is it can clash with my mood of the moment. If I feel pink, fine I put on pink…..
While I have pared down, I’m not at 33 yet and don’t know if I can make it.
One thing I don’t understand is how much time do people think about what they are going to wear?? I never spend time thinking about it. It doesn’t detract from my day either.
You never know until you try it.