Do you have a friend who is throwing out everything and has declared that she is now into minimalism? Maybe you’re looking at her life from the outside and it all seems too extreme. I think as Americans there’s always room for us to live with less, but I don’t think that has to look extreme. I practice a form of what I call Gentle Minimalism. It allows me to keep what I love in life, but also helps me analyze what I truly value so that the stuff I collect doesn’t get in the way of my happiness and goals.
I want to share with you how that has practically worked for us. I hope maybe you will find one or two ideas that will help you spend less time doing things you hate, so you have time and money for the things you love.
1. Minimalism Makes it Easier to Clean
If paper trash and clutter are removed, there is less to make your house messy. If you take some time upfront to get rid of things you will truly never use, it will save you time in the long run. This step keeps you from sorting the same pile of papers each week as it inevitably gets out of order over and over again. Taking an hour to throw it all out in one day means you only have to spend minutes each week maintaining little amounts of accumulation. Having less clutter in your life has been shown to decrease stress, and allows your home to have an atmosphere of peace. It also makes day to day clean-up simpler.
If you just started getting rid of the things you KNEW you didn’t want, you might be surprised how much stuff you could actually say goodbye to!! I’m not suggesting that favorite t-shirt from high school or your grandma’s ugly plate, that you feel you should keep. I’m talking about the winter coat you haven’t worn in 5 years, and the stack of Tupperware that are missing lids. I bet if you look up you can see one of those kinds of things in front of you right now! Maybe take a second and just throw it away right now!!!
2. Minimalism Means you Work Less
If I’ve thrown out everything that tends to become unorganized easily, it takes me less time to clean up on a daily and weekly basis. I have more room to store the things I want to keep, and makes picking up a breeze. This gives me more time to write, watch my favorite show, read a book, hike, or do the other things I love.
I once interviewed for a private cleaning job. The house I visited had piles of paper everywhere, shoes of every size on the floor, and broken toys spilled out of all the bins. The hour I was there, the homeowner moved several piles of things to a different location, without throwing out anything. That meant that a few hours later she would have to spend more time moving that pile to yet another location. If you are willing to take a few minutes and sort what to keep and what to just throw out, it will save you HOURS of time moving piles from one location to another.
3. Minimalism Saves Money
We all want more money to spend on the things we love. I went for 3 months without clothes shopping and wore the things I loved (you can read about that here). This challenge allowed me to save up the money I wanted for a new trench coat, and also showed me the things that I had and LOVED and what I quickly got sick of and never wanted to wear again. Living with less so that I can buy what I TRULY want has been something I’ve never regretted.
Maybe becoming a minimalist isn’t your goal, and that’s okay, but living with a little less baggage is something I think we could all benefit from. Maybe that means clearing that one stack of papers that has taken over the kitchen counter, or even just one thing you can see from your chair right now!!
