What is Minimalism?

• Minimalism is considered a concept or lifestyle that focuses on simplifying your belongings and simplifying your life. In other words: own less, buy less.

Why Minimalism?

• There are many benefits to living a minimalist lifestyle. Buying less means spending less money. This allows you to put that money that you may have spent on something you really don’t need towards something more important (i.e. bills, savings for the future) or something more meaningful (i.e. vacation, concert). This can create a domino effect that leads to better financial wellness, which down the road leads to less stress.
• Owning less can definitely help with finding things. A lot of times we sometimes go out and buy multiples of something unintentionally because we may have lost that item, or even forgot we already had that item. Sometimes we intentionally buy multiples so we can always find one of said item when needed. This can be considered wasteful spending if it is not necessary for you to have a duplicate of that item. When you have less clutter in the way, you also are less likely to be scrambling to find something important throughout all the clutter.
• A benefit to some may be the visual appeal. A space that is more maximalist can be overwhelming for some. Minimalism can help create a more visually clear space for a more peaceful state of mind.

How to practice minimalism?

• Decluttering can be a great first step. Evaluate the things you own. Have you used this in the past year? Does this still fit? Is it comfortable? Does this item bring me any joy? It’s also important to discern when you are keeping things for good reasons VS making excuses to keep said item. One common thing that many minimalists do is create a capsule wardrobe. This is a small collection of clothes that usually have more simple, maybe even timeless pieces that mix and match very well. This allows you to keep from spending money on clothes and can help save time when getting ready or when doing laundry.
• Now that you have decluttered, it’s important that you do not just refill your space with more items that you also do not need. The same questions can be asked when shopping as you do while decluttering. Currently there is a challenge called Project Pan that can be very useful for this. The idea is to completely use up one item before buying a second. For hygienic products, makeup, and similar items, that can mean using every drop so long as it is not expired or a hazard to your health or well being. For something like technology, it can mean not upgrading your phone until you actually need a new phone or attempting to repair an appliance before going out to replace it.