Welcome to Becoming Minimalist. If you are new, welcome! With over 1M readers every month, we’re honored to have new readers every day. If that’s you, welcome. I’d love to make your experience as comfortable as possible.
Most importantly, Becoming Minimalist is designed to inspire people to pursue their greatest passions by owning fewer possessions.
To find out more about my new book, Things That Matter, click here.
About Joshua Becker
My story begins in suburban Vermont while I was cleaning the garage, my wife was cleaning the bathrooms and my 5-year old son was playing alone in the backyard. I struck up a regular conversation with my neighbor who commented, “Maybe you don’t need to own all this stuff.”
The juxtaposition was striking. My possessions piled up in the driveway… my son in the backyard… my day slipping away… I immediately recognized something needed to change. My belongings were not adding value to my life. Instead, they were subtracting from it.
My family and I began donating, recycling, and removing our unnecessary personal possessions. We embarked on an intentional journey to own less stuff.
As a result, we discovered more money, more time, more energy, more freedom, less stress, and more opportunity to pursue our greatest passions: faith, family, friends. And we decided to write about it.
Becoming Minimalist quickly became a place to encourage others to embrace minimalism. It does not boldly require anyone to become minimalist overnight—nor does it specifically define the word for you. Instead, it encourages each reader to discover their own journey and the far-reaching benefits that come from owning less.
We are dedicated to rational minimalism and discovering what that uniquely means for us. And the more who are introduced to this life-changing message, the better! Because we’re all just trying to make the most of this journey called life.
Over the course of the last eight years, I’ve become a best-selling author and have written four books:
- Simplify: 7 Guiding Principles to Help Anyone Declutter Their Home and Life*
- Clutterfree with Kids: Change your thinking. Discover new habits. Free your home.*
- The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own.*
- The Minimalist Home.*
- Things That Matter*
Past media coverage includes:
CBS Evening News, The Wall Street Journal, National Public Radio (NPR,) The Guardian, The Boston Globe, The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Forbes, TIME, Fox News, The Huffington Post, Minimalism Documentary (Netflix), Reader’s Digest, LA Times, Sirius XM, CNBC, TODAY Show, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, Good Housekeeping, and countless others you can find all over the Internet.
Our Articles
Get introduced to our simple message by reading some of our most popular posts:
- How to Declutter Your Home: 10 Creative Decluttering Tips
- What Is Minimalism? The 8 Essential Aspects of Minimalism
- The 10 Most Important Things to Simplify in Your Life
- 10 Reasons to Escape Excessive Consumerism
- 15 Clutter Busting Routines For Any Family
Or, to discover the importance of owning less, try one of these posts:
- Don’t Just Declutter. De-own.
- Minimalism Benefits: 21 Benefits of Owning Less
- Living With Less: 7 Ways to Sample Minimalist Living
We learned quickly that our journey to live with less on the outside would force our attention inward:
- How to Be Happy: 8 Ways to Be Happier Today
- How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
- 20 New Ways to Measure Success
- Learning to Consider Gratitude a Discipline
And would be entirely unique because of our life’s values:
If you really can’t get enough, browse our most popular articles. But be warned, there’s a bunch of information there.
Our Community
If you would like to receive new posts via e-mail, sign up here. We are also connected to our community through social media. Find us here:
- Facebook: Inspirational quotes and links.
- Twitter: Quotes, thoughts, links.
- YouTube: Promoting simplicity in home and life.
For interviews, media requests, or general questions, contact us at becomingminimalist@gmail.com
For more information on Joshua, visit his Wikipedia entry here.
Vanessa Hayes says
Joshua,
Just had the pleasure of meeting and hearing you, Joshua Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus at WDS. Candidly, I knew nothing about y’all but was so excited to hear your stories about how less is more/better. Looking forward to getting updates in my RSS feed!!! Thanks so much for sharing and inspiring.
Keano VD says
Hi Joshua,
I’m a student interior architecture in Belgium. I’m busy with a project for school to design a restaurant started from the thoughts of a fashion designer. Now i’ve chose Yohji Yamamoto. A Japanese fashion designer who looks different in some ways, his thinking, working are not like other fashion designers.
For me is minimalism has always been a start for my designs as a interior designer because the emptiness is inspiring me. Now on my search to find a food-concept for my restaurant i found this blog about living as a minimalist.
Something more about this project. We have a industrial building which we have to keep. Now my concept of this project is “contrast”. So i make a contrast between the industrial building and a minimalistic installation which i will design.
Now my question is for my food-concept. Is there some way for a restaurant to make a contrast with for example McDonalds, to have something minimalistic?
Thanks for your time.
greetings K.
di says
The design concept may depend upon the menu as well as the customers.
The menu may be as simple as whole grains, vegetables and legumes with or without spices and herbs.
Natural healthier, anti-inflammatory foods are always a good menu option, because inflammation expedites aging.
A simple new-age trend would be a great contrast to what is most currently offered.
Newt says
I’d like to consolidate my belongings. Any tips? I can get rid of all my paper documents by scanning them into a computer. I can donate clothes I no longer want. Any others?
di says
Try a handheld computer that can be taken anywhere. You may be able to eliminate books, CDs, a TV, radio, office, office supplies and more.
di says
Recombine just a few clothing items to create several different outfits.
Sarah says
Been reading for over a year now, and besides vastly improving my personal quality of life, your blog inspired me to start my own! Now I write about the burdens left behind by a collecting/hoarding parent as I try to clean out my father’s storage unit.
di says
Cleaning becomes more efficient with practice. Start with a list and think it over for a while. Then, when you have the time and feel up to the effort, everything proceeds more quickly.
Cheryl @ handcraftedtravellers says
Living a simple life truly is the future. We must focus on qualities, rather than quantities, in every aspect of our lives if true happiness is what we are searching for.
Justin @ The Family Finances says
Josh,
I’ve been a reader for probably a year or so. I find your posts very thought-provoking, and they encourage me to focus on the important things in my own life. I like how you laid out this post and gave an overview of everything.
Keep it up!
Rob says
My quest to become a minimalist initially added even more work to my daily doldrums of duties until I finally bit the bullet and sold the TV and stopped watching senseless programs that only severed to distract me from my goals. I turned on the Radio like my Grand Parents did when I was very young wile we all did our chores and would you know, I actually forgot somethings are still free in this country. Now, instead of sitting on the couch watching the TV (costing me money) I started working on selling and giving away everything I own on Craigslist (Making money and saving me time). Once I really put effort in to getting out of the “I need it phase” it only took me a few months where I had nothing left. With nothing to haul around I decided to sell my car. Now with no car or cable bills; no car insurance I was putting money in the bank and I recognized I could afford to quit my full-time job. This week I gave notice of my rental since I quit the American Way of Life of credit and debt I can afford to move from city to city and find that job where I am working for me.
However, my end run to finally becoming a minimalist actually started with a 3 year battle of paying off my debts and that was only accomplished after I moved to a much smaller and less expensive apartment. Cutting loose of that ball and chain associated with spend, spend and spend even more using the American Way of Life “Credit Machine” just so I could maintain a Credit Score that is acceptable to “someone else” so I can be able to get more credit to obtain more debt was no longer a part of my life.
Now, I am not going to stowaway on a cruise ship or become a rail ridin Hobo but, I think I can work summer jobs and then take off the winters and move from city to city until I find the place that gives me the best cost effective opportunity for my new life style of living on the cheap; more money in my pocket and so much time on my hands as I only have to work part-time that is resulting in a better quality and more productive life.
I owe Becoming Minimalist Blog for proving much needed motivation and tips to guide me along the way. Reading other people’s success stories helped me when I could not just yet see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Mission Accomplished !!! And Loving It !!
Brown Vagabonder says
I commend you for giving up on the broken American Dream and going for freedom! It is a hard journey to undertake especially when there are so many people out there and companies who are trying very hard to make you do the opposite. I hope that you are able to find more joy and happiness in this new life of yours than ever before. Maybe you will share your journey on a blog and inspire others. Thanks for sharing! And inspiring us.
di says
I’ve always maintained a simple lifestyle with a part-time job, 2 children and no child support. I had plenty of time to take good care of my children, parents and possessions.
My responsible behavior encouraged my family to leave me all their heirlooms. Now, I have three extra households of items and plan to give everything to the grandchildren.
Both of my brothers earn more than $100,000 per year, but neither of them have ever offered financial or physical help to anyone in the family. They’ve always lived beyond their means and will probably die in debt.
I’ve never had a credit card and have never been in debt, other than a $3,000 loan from my parents that I returned within a few months time. I borrowed the money to purchase a better car while it was on sale.
Renata says
Thanks for this welcome message. I came across your becoming minimalist about six months ago, and enjoy it very much. I have it in my ‘blogs I read’ list on my blog. I love how you can pinpoint the very moment that began you and your family on your minimalist journey. Thanks so much for sharing what you learn along the way with all of us!
Meredith says
Great post! I can’t recall any advice on how to organize one’s calendar (daily agenda for home/work). Any tips or a post/site to refer to? Thank you for your site!
di says
For homework, a quick note such as “Math Test” or “English Essay” on their due date may be sufficient. Daily homework may involve more details, such as page numbers of a book, etc.
Work may be by the hour or by the day.
I also include annual chores, such as wash windows and clean closets in the Fall, sort toys after Xmas, plant the garden in the Spring.
I prefer indoor chores on a rainy day and outdoor chores on a sunny day.
Becky King says
my favorite blog…. joined about 5 months ago… best choice I ever make.. next to marrying my best friend 40 years ago… (smile)