How to live a more minimalist life
By Amanda Scali

16/03/2021 4:31pm

How to live a more minimalist life

The last year might have you reevaluating what it means to live a happy and fulling life.

Are you looking to spark joy at home and become a bit more minimalist in your living style?

Minimalism is all about living with less. This includes less financial burdens, such as debt and unnecessary expenses.

For many people who seek to live as minimalists, the philosophy is about getting rid of excess stuff and living life based on experiences rather than worldly possessions.

So if this is your aim, here are our top tips for getting there.

 

Set your rules for minimalism

When it comes to being minimalist, you set the rules. Minimalism is different for everyone. Some people define their minimalist lifestyle by only owning a certain number of items at a time – only clothes you wear regularly or having fewer things in your home.

Other people achieve a minimalist lifestyle by minimizing the actual space that they take up in the world and may seek out smaller living arrangements like a studio apartment or tiny house, or you might be looking for a space that is less about having a big house and more space outdoors to explore and relax.

 

Use or lose

Becoming minimalist means that you need to be able to part with things that either no longer bring joy or add value to your life. We tie a lot of emotions and memories to stuff, but it can have the ability to clutter our lives and keep us from enjoying the day today.

Look at your things around you and adopt a policy of use it or lose it; start small with things like clothing and kitchenware and then move through the house one room at a time.

 

Organize items by category

The next step in your minimalist journey is to organize and declutter your home.
Some people like to organize everything by location. In this scenario, everything in the living area gets organized, and then everything in the kitchen, then everything in the bedroom, etc.
 

 

Ask yourself the hard questions

Sometimes we are too emotionally tied to our sentimental items.Minimalism forces us to let go of those emotions and focus on functionality.
When you find yourself struggling to decide if an items should stay or should go, ask yourself these three questions:

  1. Is it useful?

  2. Is it the only one I have?

  3. Does it bring me joy or love?

If you answer yes to any of the above questions, then it can stay.

 

Bring in less

Once you’ve minimized the number of things you own, make sure that you start to limit what you bring into your home, as well. You didn’t do all this work to be undone by a few impulsive shopping sprees.