currently, leo babauta is hosting our guest post at zen habits titled “the lost practice of resting one day each week.” check it out. it is a practice that our family has worked hard to incorporate into our lives and never regret. we are confident that your family would benefit from it too.

we used to be a typical, suburban family of four living in vermont until a conversation with our neighbors two years ago turned us on to the simple lifestyle of minimalism. since then, we have encouraged hundreds of thousands of families around the world to give simplicity and minimalism a chance.

to get a flavor for the blog, be sure to check out some of our most popular posts:

• the unmistakable freedom of contentment and how to achieve it
• find a rational minimalism that works for you
• when you’re a minimalist but your partner isn’t

to follow us a bit closer, we are on twitter.

and if you would like to contact us for comments, questions, or other requests, you can reach us here: becomingminimalist@gmail.com.

“Contentment is natural wealth, luxury is artificial poverty.” – Socrates

There were many reasons that we chose to become minimalist and simplify our lives. We were frustrated with clutter. We discovered the time that was wasted managing our possessions. We realized that joy was not found in our possessions. And we determined that we value other things far more than physical belongings. This initial process of simplifying our home required energy, effort, and encouragement.

But the process of remaining minimalist and living this counter-cultural lifestyle against all odds requires something completely different. It requires contentment. Contentment is the lifeblood of minimalism. And without it, the journey towards minimalism is short-lived. Discontent will always rear its ugly head and become the great obstacle to fully thriving in a simple life.

Not only does contentment provide the opportunity for minimalism, it also reduces your stress level, improves your outlook, relaxes your body, and makes your life enjoyable. There is an unmistakable freedom that follows contentment: a freedom to be who you are, enjoy who you are, and live the life you were destined to live.

Yet in our consumeristic-culture where discontent is promoted and material gratification is encouraged, learning to be content can be very difficult. It is certainly a personal journey that we all must travel and nobody’s journey will look the same. Truly, there is no one-size-fits-all, seven-step program to fully-attain contentment in your life… but here are six keys that have helped us further develop contentment in our lives:

1. Become grateful. It is impossible to develop contentment without gratitude – they are inseparable. And a grateful person is one who has learned to focus on the good things in their life, not the things that they lack. When you begin to question what you have to be grateful for, just start making a list – a literal list of all the good things in your life. Don’t worry about finishing, you don’t need to. The simple discipline of beginning the exercise will undoubtedly shift your focus back to the many good things you already have.

2. Take control of your attitude. A person who lacks contentment in their life will often engage in “when and then thinking” – “when i get _______, then i will be happy.” Instead take control of your own life. Remember, your happiness is not reliant on the acquisition of any possession. Your happiness is based solely on your decision to be happy – and this may be one of the most important life lessons you can ever learn.

3. Break the habit of satisfying discontentment with acquisitions. For many of us, it has been ingrained into our lives that the proper way to diffuse discontent is to purchase the outward item that is seemingly causing the discontentment. Almost no energy is spent determining the true root of the discontent. Are you dissatisfied with your wardrobe? Go buy new clothes. Not content with your vehicle? Go buy a new one. We have gotten into the habit of satisfying our discontent by simply spending more money. We must break that habit. Understand that material possessions will never fully satisfy the desires of your heart (that’s why discontent always returns). The next time you recognize discontentment surfacing in your life, refuse to give into that bad habit. Instead, commit to better understand yourself and why the lack of that item is causing discontent. Only after you intentionally break this habit will true contentment begin to surface.

4. Stop comparing yourself to others. Comparing your life with someone else’s will always lead to discontentment. There will always be people who “appear” to be better off than you and seemingly living the perfect life. But be advised, we always compare the worst of what we know about ourselves to the best assumptions that we make about others. Their life is never as perfect as your mind makes it out to be. You are unique. You are special. And it’s always better that way.

5. Help others. When you begin helping others, sharing your talents, time and money, you will find yourself learning to be content. The practice will give you a finer appreciation for what you own, who you are, and what you have to offer.

6. Be content with what you have, never with what you are. Never stop learning, growing, or discovering. Take pride in your personhood and the progress that you have made, but never become so content that you cannot find room for improvement. Contentment is not the same as complacency. As soon as you stop growing, you start dying.

recently, david r. shared his story of becoming minimalist through our share your story page. we hope you’ll enjoy hearing his story:

My story is interesting in that I’ve always held minimalist beliefs, just never knew until recently what exactly to call it.

I started out with my belief system in my 20′s after a surfing trip to Costa Rica and a growing, panging feeling inside me that as a society we were just spinning our wheels with uselessness. This feeling was strongly confirmed after I was given the book Ishamel by Daniel Quinn and I spent the next few months digesting it slowly.

I jumped a bus with some friends for Mexico from Houston with nothing but backpacks, some laminated surfmaps, a tent and some surfboards. I spent a month there surfing, living and exploring the country and its people. I had an amazing time and a first hand experience at just how little we need to live. When I returned home, I was destined to get on a right track. As my lease expired for my apartment, I moved back home and that was the defining moment for me.

I found myself packing my things and cleaning my apartment knowing good and well that I was planning on moving back in with my parents to get the ball rolling on something massive, so I just began throwing everything away!

I worked and examined my life for another year until the following summer came and it was time to embark on yet another trip south of the border. My friend and I jumped in my Toyota RAV4 with a propane grill, snorkling equip, fishing equip and surfboards and headed out for the unknown. 73 days, 7015 miles, 2 countries (Guatemala and Mexico) and over 12 Mexican states later… I figured out that I wanted to do this full time.

I came home, quit my job and got a full-time real job that would get me out of debt faster. I have been at this job for 2.5 years and I’ll be ready to hit the road this August on a perpetual road trip/vacation just exploring Central and South America, surfing and learning the real truths of our lives. I’ll be making the ultimate downsizing minimalist move as I’m currently outfitting a van to live in. Short of cooking, cleaning, tools, clothes, surfboards and books; nothing much else is coming with me. I’ve been giving things away left and right to friends and family and to be honest, it feels pretty good.

I know my case of minimalism is extreme but I accept that and actually look forward to its simplicity. I already practice a heavy form of minimalism in my every day life. I dont buy clothes until it’s a total and complete necessity. Frankly, I dont buy ANYTHING I don’t need in my life. I usually think hard and long before I purchase any item. I think about its uses, its needs, how often will I actually use this and why? Or do I just want this to be cool because the media and mass consumerism tell me I need it.. these are ways to get yourself out of buying useless things.

After you get good at this game, it usually becomes pretty apparent that we don’t need much of anything to exist after all. Enjoying time with our families, spending time exploring the outdoors and taking up a useful hobby are all we really need.

 thanks for sharing your story with us, david. may the waves be bombin’, brah.

related posts:

• read more stories.
• share your story.

Some people that I speak with get nervous when they hear the term “minimalist.” For them, it conjures up images of destitution, barren walls, and empty cupboards. Rightly so, they decide that is no way to enjoy life. Believe me, I agree – that is no way to enjoy life.

Maybe that is why I have been called a “rational minimalist” and I wear the label with pride. If you walked into my home today, you would not immediately deduce that a “minimalist” lives here. When you look in our living room, you would see a television, couches, books, and family photos. In our coat closet you would find a variety of coats, boots, scarves, and gloves. In our toy room downstairs, you would find a video game system and some toys on the floor (unless we cleaned them up before you arrived, of course). Since deciding to become minimalist two years ago, we have been on a journey to define what that means for us and how it fits into our life.

We live in suburbia. We have two small children. We are active in our community. We love to entertain and show hospitality. While not exceptional, our life is not identical to anybody else. It is our life – nobody else’s. And if we were going to become minimalist, it would have to be a style of minimalism specific to us. It would require us to ask questions, to give-and-take, to identify what we most value and be humble enough to change course when necessary.

Your particular practice of minimalism is going to look different from anyone else. It must! After all, you live a different life than anyone else. You may have a large family, small family, or no family. You may live on a farm, in a house, or in a studio apartment. You may collect antiques, stamps, or bottle caps. You may love music, movies, or books. You may cherish old photographs, family heirlooms, or romantic letters from a lover.

Find a style of minimalism that works for you. One that is not cumbersome, but freeing based on your values, desires, passions, and rational thinking. Be aware that your definition will not come overnight. It will take time. It will evolve – even change drastically as your life changes. It will require give and take. You will make a few mistakes along the way. And thus, it will also require humility.

But ultimately, you will begin to remove the unneeded things from your life. You will find space to intentionally promote the things you most value and remove anything that distracts you from it.

the preceding is an excerpt from Simplify: 7 Guiding Principles to Help Anyone Declutter Their Home and Life.

ex-dance student/current yoga enthusiast, everett bogue at far beyond the stars has just released a brand new e-book dedicated to the minimalist lifestyle.  it is titled, “the art of being minimalist” and is receiving great reviews around the blogosphere.  in the interest of honesty and full disclosure, i have not read the book yet.  but here are some of the accolades that it is receiving:

• “a simple and beautiful introduction to crafting a simple and beautiful life.” – chris baskind of the minimalist century.
• “…this ebook will help you rethink your life choices, your consumption patterns and how you see the world.” – tammy strobel of rowdy kittens

everett lives the 100 item challenge.  he blogs on the benefits of minimalist living as a tool to craft the life that you want to live.  he made the leap out of the work-a-day world and is working on using his blog as his primary source of income.

“the art of being minimalist: how to stop consuming and start living” is currently being offered at $9.95 for a limited time.

when you do your taxes this year, don’t forget to deduct the fair market value of your non cash charitable contributions.  they can add up quickly.

here are a few quick tips to get you started:

• clothing and household items donated must generally be in good used condition or better to be deductible.
• if you make any non cash contribution, you must get and keep a receipt from the charitable organization showing: 1) the name of the charitable organization, 2) the date and location of the charitable contribution, and 3) a reasonably detailed description of the property. you are not required to have a receipt where it is impractical to get one (for example, if you leave property at a charity’s unattended drop site).
• to claim a deduction for contributions of cash or property equaling $250 or more you must obtain a written acknowledgment from the qualified organization showing the amount of the cash and a description of any property contributed, and whether the organization provided any goods or services in exchange for the gift.
• if you claim a deduction of more than $500 for all contributed property, you must attach irs form 8283, noncash charitable contributions, to your return.
• taxpayers donating an item or a group of similar items valued at more than $5,000 must also complete section b of form 8283, which requires an appraisal by a qualified appraiser.
• to determine the fair market value of a charitable contribution, there are no fixed formulas or methods. you should claim as the value the price that buyers of used items actually pay in used clothing stores, such as consignment or thrift shops.  the salvation army offers a value guide to get you started. 

if you have questions regarding the process of deducting your non cash charitable contributions, you can find the heavy reading right here or consult a tax professional.

and as 2010 begins and your minimalizing continues, keep these guidelines close so that you can collect and store the appropriate paperwork for next year.

related posts:

• april 15 – when things get flipped upside down

dear reader,

thanks for making becomingminimalist.com one of the top million websites on the internet: alexa traffic rankings

“pagerank”… another example where less is more.

joshua

even when you win, you lose…

related posts:

• benefits of minimalism
• minimalist moment – the amusement park

new to becomingminimalist.com?  if so, start here:

most popular pages:

1. benefits of minimalism
2. causes of clutter
3. share your story

most popular posts:

1. the journey begins
2. letting go of clothes
3. benefit #1 – simple dollars and sense
4. causes of clutter – laziness
5. 7 things – the master bedroom
6. starting easy
7. benefit #10 – possessions do not equal joy
8. keys to mental well-being
9. leveling vs. minimalizing
10. accomplishment – minimalist kitchen

i’ve never kept a journal.  i’ve always wanted to because i think it sounds cool and smart.  unfortunately, my life has never been that exciting and i could never think of enough to write about.  perhaps, my search for a journaling philosophy that works for me has ended.  finally, a minimalist approach…

200 years ago, john quincy adams kept a journal during his travels to russia as a diplomat.  each of his daily entries fit on one line of paper and averaged between 110-120 characters (they are being referred to as twitteresque…). for example, the entry for august 7th reads like this, “Fog. No Observation. Spoke a fishing Schooner from Grand Bank, bound to Plymouth. Read Chantreau’s travels.”

you can read the entire story here: John Quincy Adams, Twitterer?

or you can celebrate the 200th anniversary of the diary by following the daily twitter feed: twitter: JQAdams_MHS

and here is today’s entry for my journal: Hot and Sunny. Business Lunch at Panera. Pizza with family for dinner. Continued reading Wiseman.

not bad for a first entry if you ask me… what would your daily entry look like for today?