If you want to live a minimalistic lifestyle, we’d got the rules you need to implement to do so. Like anything in life, minimalism takes practice, and after a while it will simply come naturally and be a state of being, rather than something you need to think about.
Accept It’s An Ongoing Process
Minimalism is a way of life and it is something that you need to practice on an ongoing basis. After you’ve adopted a minimalist lifestyle, you’ll continuously need to keep decluttering and ensure that you do not accumulate things that you don’t need. It’s amazing how quickly we can accumulate things and revert back to old consumerism habits if we are not self-aware.
Declutter First, Organise Second
If you organise first, you may not get rid of all the clutter as your home looks neat and tidy again. Rather declutter first, and only once you have eliminated everything you do not want or need, then organise what’s left.
Ignore the Magic Number Theory
There really is no magic number of things you need to live a minimalistic lifestyle. Some people can get by on very little, while others need a few creature comforts or have different priorities. As soon as you accept that you don’t have to only have x number of belongings to be part of the minimalism world, you’ll be a lot happier!
You Don’t Need To Spend a Cent
You may see photos of amazing minimalist living spaces with stunningly simple yet stylish Scandinavian furniture and be tempted to go and buy everything you need for your new look. Especially if you have recently found amazing AFL Premiership odds and are sure that your bet is going to pay off in a big way.
Stop! This is the absolute opposite of minimalistic living and it goes against the whole idea. Rather get rid of your clutter and streamline your belongings, while retaining only what you really need. You may find that you could even give your essentials a makeover or repurpose them once you’ve got rid of everything that doesn’t spark joy.
Accept It Is Not Easy
The principle of minimalism is to remove distractions and create more space so that you can make a more meaningful contribution. The principle is not about making life easy, but more about making it easy to pour your energy in to what really matters. The sooner you embrace that there may be some struggles, the better you’ll cope.
Don’t Swap Experiences For Things
While there is a trend at present to swap things for experiences, especially in the case of giving gifts, be careful that you don’t fall into the trap of swapping one type of compulsive behaviour for another.
If you adopt a minimalist lifestyle you should not be intentionally purchasing experiences left right and centre to make up for the lack of buying things. Minimalism is about embracing your choice and putting your energy into a new and less cluttered way of life that is good for your body and soul.