Have you been thinking about starting your own minimalism journey? Or have you already started embracing a minimalist lifestyle just to soon discover how overwhelming it is to part ways with the things you’ve had for a long time? If you find yourself struggling with being a minimalist in any way, then this post is for you.
I hope this post will help you get into minimalism and make it enjoyable.
1. Define what minimalism means for you.
”I’ve learned that minimalism is not about what you own, it’s about why you own it.” – Brian Gardner
A lot of people perceive minimalists as people who own only a few shirts, one pair of shoes and still somehow manage to switch through all seasons.
Minimalism is much more than your material possessions and I apply it in all areas of my life. For me, minimalism means bringing value into your life. If you have 5 shirts because you only really enjoy wearing those or you have 15 of them because you’re interested in fashion and see it as a way of expressing yourself and your creativity, both cases are minimalist in my opinion.
As long as each thing you own provides you value, and as long as each and every person you surround yourself with (online and in real life) is making you feel good – you are on the right path. Of course, this is only my point of view. But that’s the thing about minimalism – you can create your own definition.
What does minimalism mean for you? What meaning do you want minimalism to have in your life?
Those are some questions for you to answer on your own when you’re just getting into a minimalist lifestyle.
Read next:
9 Ways Minimalism Changed My Life for the Better
2. Why specifically do you want to be a minimalist?
Is it because you’re starting to realize that even though you have a closet full of clothes, you’re still switching between your few favorite outfits? Or do you find yourself wasting your time perpetually organizing and cleaning, and wasting your money on boxes and drawers to make organizing things easier?
Whatever the reason may be, finding the answer as to why you want to start your minimalist lifestyle is going to help you when you start your decluttering process and you start to question whether or not you should part ways with that shirt your mum bought you a few years ago and you don’t even like it, but… your mum bought it…
What is it about minimalism that interests you?
Why do you want to declutter your life?
What is it that you want to change with minimalism?
Read next:
10 Things I Stopped Buying // Minimalist Tips to Save Money
15 More Things I Don’t Buy Anymore // How to Save Money
3. Start decluttering.
Just start getting rid of things you don’t find valuable, simple as that. Take small steps.
Even getting rid of 1 thing every day will help you build momentum and lead to great results. Or get rid of a bunch of things all at once, whatever makes you feel good. The key is to start.
There are tons of tips specifically for decluttering so I won’t get into details about that in this post, I’ll just name a few (aesthetically pleasing) YouTube channels that have helped me when I was starting my own journey of minimalist lifestyle.
Rachel Aust and her minimalism series
MuchelleB and her life-changing ”30 days to simplify your life” challenge
Madeleine Olivia and heaps of her minimalism videos for your binging pleasure
SAVE FOR LATER 🙂
4. What if you live with a non – minimalist or a hoarder?
”Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like” – Will Rogers
Sometimes it can be frustrating if, on one hand, we are falling in love with the minimalist lifestyle and we’re doing so great but, on the other hand, a person we live with is constantly buying new things which they (from our perspective) don’t need.
And that way it may seem that they are cluttering our space as well. Don’t stress about their journey. Focus on your own journey and lead by example. Don’t judge others if they are not at the same point in life as you are. Accept them and enjoy your differences.
Also, here is an entire post I wrote on this topic – living with a non-minimalist, so check it out if this is something you find relatable.
5. Make a minimalist lifestyle fun.
Minimalism is a journey. We constantly buy new things and our relationships change, so don’t think of it as a one-time destination that you’ll reach and that’s going to be it. Think of it as something that you can improve each time while seeing yourself growing as a person. You can see how things that once meant a lot to you, now just don’t hold the same value. And yes, that’s okay.
More on the minimalist lifestyle:
3 Ways Minimalism Will Make You More Productive
6 Things to Declutter for a More Organized Life
Until the next time,
Ivana
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SAVE FOR LATER 🙂
beginner minimalist living with a non minimalist minimalism minimalism lifestyle
Really nice post!! Very useful for our life😜 Thanks for sharing with us.
My pleasure 😀
I would love to try living the minimalist lifestyle. My biggest struggle is to decluttering things that I thought still needed in my life XD I guess my habits is to keep holding on to things that are no longer necessary. Thanks for the tips!! <3
You could put all those things into one ”maybe” pile and give yourself a deadline for them. For instance, if you don’t use them in the next 2 months – get rid of them 🙂
interesting read, I feel like I could get into this but need to accept that my husband will not, he loves his things!! LOL
No need to worry about that, focus on your own things 🙂 Maybe he’ll eventually feel inspired by your approach and decide to join you 🙂
Thanks. I listen to podcasts on minimalism and keep trying but it’s hard. This really simplifies things!
Taking small steps and trying out some minimalism challenges (there are a bunch of fun ones on Pinterest) will make it easier, I believe 🙂
I love this topic, because I feel like I have been living a life of excess, especially since I have a million things I want to sale or donate and just haven’t had the chance. You’ve inspired me to start sorting things out and make more room. I think adapting to a minimalist lifestyle would make my mind feel less cluttered along with my house! 🙂
Oh, I’m so glad this has inspired you 😀 Yes, it’s so beneficial both for your mind and environment. Selling and donating is a great idea, I just sold a bunch of clothes online so it’s great way to earn some extra money as well 🙂
Are you succeeding at selling and what site so you use. I have a lot of stuff to get rid of but i know they ate worth money.
Yes! There are always people that would enjoy the stuff we don’t use anymore. I’m from Croatia so I use one Croatian site, but I’m sure there are sites for your country as well, or at least Facebook groups where people sell/give/buy stuff in your country. I hope you’ll find something for yourself 🙂