Adopting a minimalist lifestyle: 7 tips for living a lot more with lot less
“There are two ways to be rich: One is by acquiring much, and the other is by desiring little.” —Jackie French Koller
How often have you heard someone wish for a simpler life or had a similar wish for yourself? Quite often we are sure. It’s common for people to desire an uncluttered mess and mayhem free life. The idea of leading a minimalistic lifestyle involves owning a lesser number of things so that you do not end up spending a whole lot of time, efforts and money to maintain them.
You can choose to have only those items that you strictly need and forgo the unimportant ones. This minimalistic life will lead to a “Clear Mind”. Quintessentially, minimalism, is all about living an enriched and fruitful life, with less and ridding yourself of all excess baggage be it physical, emotional or mental.
Ways to adopt Minimalistic Lifestyle
There are ways to start living a simple and hassle free life when you have minimum objects to maximize the living.
Declutter and create a must have list
Declutter your interiors. This means that you need to reduce the stuff present in your home. You need to remove stuff that is not important and is just there, occupying space. At the same time, you need to create a list that includes items that you identify as really needed ones.
Take the case of decorations and knick knacks around the house. Looking at them with a critical eye will make you realise, many of them hold no personal value in your life and are simply there because they caught your fancy at one time or the other, or just maybe happened to meet the color of your décor. Walk through your home with a discerning eye and ensure you retain only those decorations which are close to your heart and tell your story i.e. the ones which are meaningful in your life and get rid of the others.
Discuss your choices with your partner
If you want to go for minimalistic lifestyle but your partner does not appreciate the idea, you will end up confused and all the more perturbed. Hence it is very important to sit down with your partner and talk it out; explain them your need to declutter and let them see the light if they can.
Simplify upbringing of your children
Some parents get over emotional when it comes to child rearing. They want to give the best possible gadgets and set of toys to their children thinking that this will make them happy and satisfied. But they hardly understand that the child needs their time and attention much more than the updated technical gadgets. Get rid of the excess toys and the baby laptops, go out with them, be close to nature, spend quality time and showcase your love and concern that is often times enough.
Manage your wardrobe
If one is to believe the statistics, a person ends up wearing 20% of his or her clothes 80% of the time. Well this is not as farfetched as many statistics go, and one might have seen this from experience. Take a long hard look at your wardrobe; remove clothes that no longer fit or the ones you haven’t worn in more than a year. Also invest in classic pieces which will last you much longer through changing trends and needs.
Don’t always get tempted by ‘buy my product’ ads
It is nice to be a shopaholic, sometimes. However, in today’s time, big brands and online marketplaces spend a great deal in constantly persuading us to buy their product by offering an attractive deal. Some brands even try their best to make you believe that your lifestyle is nothing without their product and by not buying their product; you are surely missing something in life. More often than not, we end up exploring these deals and well, end up opening our wallets. While there is nothing wrong in this, you need to create a fine balance within yourself as to how much you get tempted and give in to these offers.
Spend time with loved ones
Instead of sending time with gadgets and on social media and comparing yourself to your peers, spend time with your family and loved ones. They deserve your time and attention. This will help you get inner pace and the warmth instead of the constantly nagging pressure of matching up to the standards of a make believe world.
A lot of women end up spending a great deal of time in cleaning and arranging stuff in the house while the children keep nagging and crying for her attention. What is the use of having such things at home that eats up the time which you should have spent with your little one? Declutter and connect with your dear ones.
If you really wish to adopt a minimalistic lifestyle, you should start working towards it by taking small steps. You will have to realize that you will have a lot more by having less and you will have the things that are wanted. Initially this can be painful but soon you might start loving the new lifestyle
When we purge ourselves and our living spaces of the junk we have accumulated in the name of possessions, we create space and tranquility in our lives. Create room in your life for meaning instead of possessions. Stuff accumulated over time acts like an anchor, weighing you down. You are terrified of losing it and too occupied in maintaining it. Let it go to experience freedom.