Is Minimalism For You?

Minimalism and simplicity are words that have are often used interchangeably lately, but we hear both words commonly heard in everyday conversations. But are they the same thing? There are many different stages of minimalism. Many view minimalism as living your life without any luxuries.

If you feel like life is too busy or lacks purpose, minimalist ideas may support growth that’s more centered and fulfilling.
Simplifying your life is about reduction, but minimalism extends further to include actual elimination. You physically remove things from your life.

Are you wondering how this lifestyle change can help you? Here are some questions that, once answered, may able to see if minimalism can help enhance your life.

1. You have items that you seldom use and get in your way. Unnecessary clutter negatively impacts your life in the long run. Mentally, it creates barriers for creativity. They drain your energy and can waste your time. Look for these space wasters and box them up. Decide whether to sell, donate, or toss them, but be sure to do it fast and follow through.


2. You have excessive debt. To live, you must have food, shelter, and clothing. Luxuries make our lives comfortable, but if you have a lot of payment obligations in your life, most likely, you’re purchasing too much. Before making any purchase, identify if it is a want or a need. If it is something you want, ask yourself if you are willing to do what it takes to upkeep this item, like dusting or polishing, etc. If the answer is yes, next ask yourself, do you already have a place for it? If you can answer yes again, then make the purchase. If you answer any no to any of the questions, then put it down until you are ready to make all of your answers a yes.

3. You’re upset that you don’t own a newer car, a more beautiful house, or other items. If you have a vehicle that is continuously in need of repairs, then, of course, you’d like a more reliable car. But what if your transportation is already reliable? This thought process poses a different question entirely. Is owning a $100,000 car needed to have a happy life? If you spend some time on yourself in self-care and journaling, you can find more meaningful things to occupy your thoughts and needs.


4. You’re busy, but your life lacks meaning. Everyone has days filled with busyness that still left us feeling empty at the end of the day. Practicing minimalism helps remove the excess from life to make room for more intentional living. Luckily, there are many different approaches to embracing a life of minimalism. Here are a few to help get you started.

How to introduce minimalism into your daily lifestyle:

1. Pick up the clutter from the floor. Not only will your space look cleaner, but you will feel better about it. Find a place for your those things on shelves, in closets, or even that giveaway box. Make sure everything has its place.


2. Clear those countertops, shelves, and tables. Clean each item off, and as you do this, ask yourself if you’ve used them in the last six months. Do you need it? Clear off those flat surfaces as much as possible. You made find it difficult at the start, but in 6 months, you may find that you are ready to part with even more items.


3. Check your closet. Most people only wear 20% of their clothes 80% of the time. That means the other 80% of your clothes are just taking up space. If you’re holding onto those somedays or one-day outfits, give them away and let them be someone else’s today. If you haven’t worn it, or if it hasn’t fit in the past year, let it go.


4. Take inventory of all voluntary “obligations.” Include all the scheduled gatherings, organization requirements, clubs, team sports, happy hours, etc. Eliminate one and don’t fill that time with any other commitments. Next month, eliminate another duty. Fill those time slots with things that lift your attitude, fill your spirit, and grow your mind. Create your white space by living intentionally and choosing your “yes.”


5. Repeat the process every year. Cycling through this process of elimination will dramatically reduce the complexity of your life.

You don’t have to live under a tarp in the woods to use minimalism to your advantage. It’s merely a matter of removing excess and meaningless things from your life. Use some of the extra time and space to introduce new, amazing things into your life. You’ll be glad you did!