奇创岛

From «Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less»

Complete a 30-Day Subtraction Action Plan

You'll choose one 'non-essential' thing from your work or life and use the 'reduce friction' and 'design routines' principles from Essentialism to build a quantifiable 30-day subtraction schedule — logging daily removal actions and weekly 90% Rule iteration scores — and produce a real, reviewable execution record as your finished work.

Final work

A '30-Day Subtraction Action Plan and Execution Record'

Estimated time

1–2 hr (planning) + 30 days execution

Submitted

…

Your final work

Purpose:Transform the book's 'reduce friction' and 'design routines' ideas from concepts into 30 consecutive days of quantifiable action — using one daily removal, weekly 90% scoring, buffer protection, and progress tracking so that essential behaviors happen naturally without relying on willpower.

Parts:

  • Subtraction goal statement: name one non-essential commitment + explain why it scores below 90
  • Friction list: 3–5 anticipated obstacles with corresponding 'friction-reduction' designs
  • 30-day daily subtraction schedule (including buffer slot arrangements)
  • 4 weekly 90% iteration score records
  • Progress check-in log (at least 21 days of actual execution records)
  • Day 30 review: where did the energy freed up by the removal actually go?

Use cases:

  • · Use it as the starting point for real behavioral change, not just a cognitive shift
  • · Use it to show family members or a partner your essentialism practice in action
  • · Use it as the action-data source for future quarterly review archives

Pick a topic

Pick the topic closest to you, or write a custom one when you submit.

Personal Life

Work / Projects

Tools you'll use from the book

Daily Removal Log

Take one small removal action each day, breaking a '30-day change' down into 30 minimum action units.

How to use it here:

Create a 30-row table where each row includes: date / what you removed today / actual execution status (done / skipped / partial) / one sentence of feeling. The removal action can be large or small — what matters is having one concrete 'deletion' behavior each day rather than a vague resolution.

Boundaries:

Don't record 'I was too busy today so I didn't remove anything' as a success. Log skips honestly — skipped data is data too.

90% Rule Iteration Scoring

The core tool from Essentialism: re-score the thing you're removing (1–100) each weekend — below 90 means keep reducing; above 90 means check whether you've already reduced enough.

How to use it here:

Each Friday or Sunday, re-score 'the thing you're reducing': 'If it disappeared entirely tomorrow, would my overall state be better or worse?' A score below 90 confirms your subtraction direction is right — keep going. Above 90 suggests you may have over-cut and need a small adjustment. Four weeks of iteration produces 4 score records.

Boundaries:

Scores must be based on genuine feelings, not what you 'should' feel. A rebound score in Week 2 is allowed — it means your subtraction has hit real friction.

Buffer Slot Design

A core execution principle from Essentialism: proactively reserve 'leave-it-empty' protected time in your schedule so the space freed by removal isn't immediately filled by something new.

How to use it here:

In your 30-day schedule, mark at least one 2-hour-or-longer 'buffer slot' each week — this time belongs only to the void left behind by what you just removed. No new items are allowed to be pre-scheduled into a buffer slot. The buffer slot is the visible proof of your subtraction result.

Boundaries:

A buffer slot is not 'free time' — don't use it to scroll your phone or handle random tasks. It is a protected zone for energy recovery and deep thinking.

Friction-Reduction Checklist

List 3–5 specific obstacles you'll likely encounter when executing the subtraction, and design one 'minimum countermeasure' for each so the behavior doesn't depend on daily willpower.

How to use it here:

During the planning phase, write out: 'On which day and for what reason am I most likely to quit?' For each obstacle, design one countermeasure you can execute *before* the subtraction begins (e.g., 'Worried others will see me as unenthusiastic' → tell one supportive friend in advance; 'Afraid I'll regret it' → set a 7-day pause instead of a permanent removal).

Boundaries:

Each countermeasure must be something you can complete before the subtraction starts — not last-minute mental preparation. Don't design countermeasures that depend on other people's cooperation.

Progress Check-In Tracker

Use simple visual markers to let the sense of achievement from 'consistent subtraction' accumulate, leveraging the 'don't break the chain' effect to sustain 30 days of momentum.

How to use it here:

Next to your schedule, build a 30-box check-in grid. Each day you complete your removal action, check or color in the box. Mark a small milestone (e.g., ★) every 7 consecutive days. On Day 21, when you cross the 'habit formation threshold,' record a self-celebration note. The check-in chart is progress evidence you can show directly during your review.

Boundaries:

Check-ins must correspond to real execution — don't fill them in retroactively. Mark skipped days in a different color; skip data itself has analytical value.

Work rules

Your work MUST include

  • One clear subtraction goal (specific about *what* to reduce + a 90% Rule score explaining why it falls below 90)
  • 3–5 anticipated obstacles with corresponding friction-reduction countermeasures (completed during the planning phase)
  • A 30-day daily subtraction schedule (with a daily-removal record + buffer slot markers)
  • 4 weekly 90% iteration score records (each with one sentence of reasoning)
  • At least 21 days of progress check-in records (skipped days must be honestly marked)
  • Day 30 review: where did the freed-up energy *actually* go after the removal?

Your work CANNOT just be

  • Don't write vague resolutions like 'I plan to use my phone less' — you need a specific target and a quantifiable action
  • Don't submit a plan with no execution record — work with fewer than 21 days of check-ins is not considered complete
  • Don't mistake 'planning to do more important things each day' for subtraction — subtraction means *removing*, not adding
  • Don't let AI fabricate your check-in records or feelings on your behalf
  • Don't set your subtraction target as 'total elimination' — a reasonable reduction pace is the sustainable form of essentialist practice

AI can help you here

Round 1: Help me choose a subtraction target

When to use: You know you have many non-essential things on your plate but don't know which one to start removing first.

I'm using *{{book title}}* to complete the '{{route name}}' project, with the goal of creating a 30-day subtraction action plan. Based on my situation, please help me pick the single most suitable topic from the 8 options below and explain your reasoning.

My situation:
[Fill in your background: profession, family situation, the area currently draining you most, 1–2 things you find hardest to let go of]

Available topics:
[Paste the topic list from the page]

Please output:
1. The most recommended topic and why
2. A 90% Rule score estimate for this item (1–100)
3. What kind of work this topic could become after 30 days
4. Information I need to gather before starting (e.g., review one week of my schedule first, talk to someone first)

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Round 2: Help me design a friction-reduction system

When to use: You've chosen your subtraction target but worry you'll quit halfway — you want to design a system in advance to prevent relapse.

My project is based on *{{book title}}*, route '{{route name}}'.

My subtraction target is:
{{topic}}

Please use the 'reduce friction' and 'design routines' principles from Essentialism to design a relapse-prevention system for this 30-day subtraction plan.

Requirements:
1. Anticipate 3–5 obstacles most likely to make me quit in Week 1, Week 2, and Week 3 respectively
2. Design one minimum countermeasure for each obstacle that can be executed in advance
3. Suggest what I should put in my buffer slots
4. Give me a simple daily-removal table template (5 columns: date / action / status / feeling / 90% score)

Please output:
- Anticipated friction list (3–5 items) + countermeasures
- Buffer slot design suggestions
- Daily-removal table template

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Round 3: Help me complete my Day 30 review

When to use: You've finished (or nearly finished) your 30-day execution record and are ready to write your final review and submit.

I'm submitting my Shufang Island project work.

Book: *{{book title}}*
Route: {{route name}}
My subtraction target: {{topic}}

My draft work (including the 30-day execution record):
{{draft work}}

Please check and help me improve my review against the following criteria:
1. Is the subtraction goal specific (has a target, has a 90% Rule score — not just a vague resolution)?
2. Do the weekly 90% iteration scores have genuine reasoning (not just a number)?
3. Is the check-in record honest (are skipped days marked accurately)?
4. Did the buffer slots actually protect the space (or were they taken over by other things)?
5. Does the Day 30 review clearly describe where the energy actually went (not just 'I feel so much better')?
6. Is it ready to submit?

Please output:
- Overall assessment
- What you've done well
- What must be revised
- What could be strengthened (especially the depth of the review)
- Suggested revised work structure

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Submit my work