Hello friends! Have you heard about minimalism lifestyle? We think so because we talk about it a lot for about 2 years. First, it started as a minimalistic interior and architecture Facebook page, but now it is grown into something more. We still search and publish interiors and exteriors, but now we are exploring the lifestyle as itself much deeper.
What can you say about minimalism as a lifestyle? Let’s take a look at what it is and what are the advantages of minimalism.
The consumer society that dictates the rules to us
A truly happy person becomes the person who realizes: What he has is all that he needs.
Leo Tolstoy
A small digression. We are representatives of the so-called consumer society. Numerous companies urge us to buy more and more things that we don’t need. Discounts, holiday sales … It’s hard to resist the temptation to buy. Why not? The more things we have, the more comfortable our life will be, right? But in reality, owning a lot of things makes life difficult.
In Wikipedia there is a list of arguments against consumer society, the first paragraph reads: ” The consumer society makes people dependent, non-self. ” Why does it happen? The following two questions will help you understand the topic:
- Do you find it difficult to choose what to wear to work or a party?
- Is it because you have no clothes?
It’s not that there are no clothes. On the contrary, many are faced with the difficulty of choosing from what is. Clothing is just an example, this question can be about any aspect of life.
Another example is the constant excitement for new models of smartphones. We buy them at least once every couple of years, although most do not use even half of the technical capabilities of new gadgets. Mobile phones are becoming more and more expensive every year because we will buy them anyway. I mean that we do not acquire things because we need them.
It seems to us that we need these things because we have been told so.
Instead of getting busy with arranging our lives and communicating with loved ones, we work from morning till night to buy a new thing that we do not need, and then move on to buying the next one, or even take a loan for it.
What does this lead to:
- Excessive spending of money;
- Distraction of attention and waste of life on unnecessary things;
- Decrease in the value of each item;
- Cluttering the house and head.
We are not saying that you need to stop buying, after all, we are dependent on material wealth. We suggest paying attention to what we buy and how much we store.
Read also
What is Consumer Society
Minimalism as a lifestyle
Psychologists have proven that littering of living space is harmful to health and the psyche. Getting rid of all that is unnecessary will save you a lot of time and money for the things that really matter to you.
It’s not always that we need to do more but rather that we need to focus on less.
Some people mistakenly think that becoming a minimalist means throwing everything away, using a cheap phone, living without furniture, and wearing only one shirt. In fact, minimalism is a balance between excess and lack, where you only have what you actually use.
The house where I grew up had no scent of minimalism. You are probably familiar with this accumulation of trash “just in case”: let’s leave this board, it may come in handy someday. As a result, our balcony was so littered with things that might come in handy someday that just getting there was not an easy task. And the truth is, if you need anything, you can buy it. This option is much better than keeping everything at once and waiting for the hour of this or that useless thing.
What minimalism will give you as a way of life
Minimalism has a number of positive aspects, here are some of them:
- It will become easier to breathe. When we clear our house of trash, we create a free space in which to breathe easier and the claustrophobic feeling disappears.
- There will be more freedom and tranquility. The accumulated things are like an anchor, we are afraid of losing them and constantly pay attention to them. Getting rid of this anchor will allow you to feel free, like never before: from greed, fear, obsession with things, debt.
- There will be time for hobbies and health. When you stop spending so much time on your things, you will have more free time that you didn’t have enough before. Now you can take up a healthy lifestyle or some of your hobbies.
- The obsession with material goods will disappear. The media and consumer society tell us to buy over and over again. But when you learn to give up unnecessary things, you will no longer need to fill your life with them. Money does not provide happiness, but it can provide comfort. Buy whatever you need and stop. Stop filling your life with material things and you will find a place for the spiritual. Moreover, this way you will save money .
- There will be less fear and more confidence. Look at Buddhist monks – there is no insecurity or fear in them. They have nothing to lose. Everything they have is inside. When you let go of attachment to things, there will be less fear and more confidence in your life, this will open doors for you to previously unattainable accomplishments.
How to start using minimalism in life
Minimalism as a lifestyle is good, but where do you start? We must say right away that for many, the transition to minimalism will be associated with a change in habits and lifestyle. Below is a checklist of simple steps to help you get started in that direction.
1. Get rid of unnecessary trash in the house
The house is our fortress, it is there that we drag our belongings, accumulating trash. Therefore, you need to start with it.
First, collect all the things that you have in several copies. For example, if two meat grinders are stored in your kitchen, then one of them only takes up space and collects dust.
Also, collect what you have not used for a long time. These can be old towels, pens covered with writing, boxes of equipment, broken things. The list can be continued for a very long time, you can familiarize yourself with it in more detail by looking into your cabinets and shelves.
All this “good” can either be distributed to those who have not read this article. Well, or just throw it out, this action has a special charm. We recently moved to a new office, and a decision was made to get rid of many things. Frankly, this is a pleasant event, a stone from the heart!
We use the following criterion: We look at a thing, if we are not going to use it in the near future, then we can safely say goodbye to it.
2. Revise your wardrobe
The topic of emptying the wardrobe deserves a separate article. We can only say that it is enough to leave the minimum set of things for all occasions and get rid of what you rarely wear or that can be replaced with something else.
Examples of minimalist dressing celebrities include Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs, who dress the same day after day.
This approach not only eliminates the problem of choosing clothes but also develops its own memorable style.
3. Buy only what you really need
Things tend to break down and products tend to run out, so even minimalists go shopping.
Those who have ever dealt with sales will agree: the seller’s business is not to wait for the one who wants to buy but to sell to the one who was not going to buy. For decades, mall and store workers have been learning the science of commerce, learning new techniques and tactics. And all in order to sell you a new multicooker with Wi-Fi, which is much better than yours. Add to this loud music and bright advertisements – and you already want to buy it!
We personally have nothing against sellers, We ourselves are connected with sales to this day. But now our task is not to buy too much. Therefore, before going to the store, you should make a list of what you need, and before each purchase, ask yourself the following questions:
- Do I really need this?
- Do I have things that perform the same function?
- How often will I use this?
- Maybe it is more profitable to rent this thing?
- Why do I want to buy it – for myself, or for others to see that I have it?
The same rules apply to the wardrobe. Before buying another T-shirt or dress, think about what you will wear it with and if you have similar things. Unfortunately, this approach will not suit shopping lovers, as well as the concept of minimalism in general.
4. Buy quality items
As you know, the good is the enemy of the best. Buying cheap things is just getting you new junk. The best option would be to buy a quality item that will serve you for a long time and will regularly fulfill its purpose.
This applies to everything from clothing to home appliances. By the way, many manufacturers deliberately shorten the life of their products to increase turnover. So it’s better to pay more once than pay over and over again, accumulating junk.
At the same time, do not forget about reasonable savings, look for an opportunity not to overpay. Sometimes the best option is to purchase a used item.
5. Apply minimalism in all aspects of life
It would be wrong to assume that everything is limited to throwing things away and cutting back on purchases. In this context, we consider minimalism as a lifestyle, because it concerns all its aspects. If you create a daily routine for yourself, then you know how important it is to get rid of all useless activities in order to be in time for more and more important things.
By starting to maintain minimalism in the apartment and using minimalism in the interior, it will already be easier for you to move on to the next stages.
Limit your social circle and stop wasting time on those with whom you just greet and do not even remember who they are. This may seem like a controversial point, but time is really wasted on such people.
Also, pay attention to how much time you spend on numerous social networks and blogs, We advise you to subscribe only to the most interesting ones!
For us, an important point is also to limit the installed applications in the smartphone to the list of the most necessary ones, and it’s not a lack of memory. We just like it when there is a lot of free space and there is nothing superfluous, even if it concerns the phone. An analogy could be made with a computer, but we usually have so many documents on laptop desktop that our example will not work.
Conclusion
Minimalism requires more detailed consideration, but using these simple recommendations will already allow you to experience all its advantages.
Everyone determines for himself what he needs and what does not. You cannot say “My minimalism is better than yours,” in this matter, everything is subjective. Therefore, decide what you can easily live without, and get rid of this rubbish!
Friends, how do you solve the problem with the accumulation of unnecessary junk? Write in the comments!
