“The process of living seems to consist in coming to realize truths so ancient and simple that, if stated, they sound like barren platitudes.” –C.S. Lewis
The minimalist lifestyle is about living with only the things you need. Minimalists are free from the desire to buy and accumulate more. Instead, they find happiness in relationships and experiences.
Memorial Day weekend, years ago, I got my life back.
I’ve relived the scene a thousand times. I woke up with a simple job to do: clean out the garage. It was not a project out of the ordinary. In fact, I did it every spring. But on this particular Saturday, for the first time, I’d be introduced to the truth that I didn’t have to. I’d be introduced to the minimalist lifestyle.
Our lives were typical: work hard, make money, spend it on mortgage payments, fashionable clothes, nicer cars, cooler technology, and more toys for the kids. But when everything from my garage was piled high in the driveway while my son sat alone in the backyard, it was a conversation with my 80-year old neighbor that opened my mind to a new way of thinking. She said it like this, “Maybe you don’t need to own all this stuff?”
And a minimalist was born. In that moment, I made a life-changing realization: Everything I owned had not brought meaning, purpose, fulfillment, or lasting joy into my life. In fact, not only were my possessions not bringing me joy, they were actually distracting me from it. We immediately began pursuing a minimalist lifestyle by removing the unnecessary possessions from our home and lives.
This journey towards this simple lifestyle has been far more life-changing and life-giving than I expected. The possessions in our lives define who we are on a far deeper level than we realize. And as a result, the process of removing them teaches us valuable truths about ourselves and the lives we live.
As I consider the years and all that I have learned, the following life-giving truths reveal themselves as the most significant.
Life-Giving Truths About the Minimalist Lifestyle
1. Desiring less is even more valuable than owning less. Minimalism has many amazingly-practical benefits into our lives. It costs less. It requires less time and energy to maintain. It brings freedom, rest, peace, and calm into a hectic world. And it provides greater opportunity to pursue our truest passions. But I have found, over the years, the desire to own less is even more valuable than owning less.
Over time, I have been able to remove myself from the incessant desire for more–even in a society that idolizes consumerism at every turn. And when our life’s desire shifts away from pursuing physical possessions, we are finally free to pursue lasting worth with all our heart.
2. Allow the journey towards less inward. Dropping off a handful of clothing at Goodwill is not hard. Dropping off a full van load of unused possessions is not even that difficult. But pulling up to the Goodwill drop-off for the fourth time with a van load of completely unnecessary possessions initiates a lot of soul-searching. The journey toward minimalism runs through the heart and soul.
Correctly pursued, it forces us to ask some hard questions in deep places about our most intimate motivations in life. Why did I buy all these clothes? Why did I buy a house with rooms we never use? Why do I still flip through the ads every Sunday even though I own so much already? Why am I still envious of my neighbor’s stuff? These are hard questions to ask with no easy answers. But the darkest truth is that unfortunately, far too many people, will never even ask them.
3. The potential of minimalism lies in the addition, not the subtraction. Minimalism is not the goal. Minimalism is, after all, less about the things you remove and more about the things you add. The potential of minimalism lies in what you choose to pursue with your life in place of material possessions.
Choose contentment. Pursue gratitude and generosity. Invest in relationships, grow spiritually, discover truth, and find purpose. Your life is far too valuable to waste chasing possessions. And you’ll discover this life-giving truth as soon as you stop.
4. Minimalism will always vary. I live with 33 articles of clothing. But Leo Babauta lives without a toaster, microwave, or paper towels. And Daniel Suelo lives without money. I am very thankful for Leo and Daniel because I am inspired by those who own less. They cause me to reevaluate my presumptions and strive towards even greater intentionality. But I have long since removed the comparisons.
I am called to live a different life than them. I have different values, different passions, and different pursuits. As a result, my minimalism is always going to look different. Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it. And by definition, this means minimalism will always look different.
5. We can change lives. We can change the world. I sat behind a computer screen years ago and started this blog with just a few keystrokes. It was to be nothing more than an on-line journal of my journey towards minimalism. But along the way, something unexpected happened. People started reading. And found new life because of it.
The inspiration continues to grow… both through this blog and in my life. This is a far better way to live than most people realize. It is available to anyone who hears the message of living with less and chooses to accept it with their whole lives. May the invitation to a minimalist lifestyle continue to change lives. And ultimately, the world. This is my hope.
Thank you so much for reading and supporting Becoming Minimalist. There are still exciting days ahead.
Image: Moyan_Brenn
Angela says
This post is exactly what I needed to read coming back to the rat race after a long weekend off! Thanks for the motivation and inspiration (:
http://capturingsimplicity.wordpress.com/
Sarah T. says
I want to add my thanks as well. I found Becoming Minimalist at just the right time. Funny how when you are ready to hear the message, it seems to find you, huh? While we never considered ourselves materialistic, we still ended up buying the bigger house for our larger-than-average family. We hated it. So much cleaning, such high electricity and gas bills, rooms we never set foot in. I found Becoming Minimalist and immediately took action. My deadline was the community garage sale. By the time the garage sale came, we had found out we were moving half-way across the country. That was the impetus for another round of purging and a completely new set of criterion for our new house. Just under half the size of our old one, the 1400 square feet of our new home fits our family of 6 perfectly. We have a full basement which is pretty sparse and perfect for long winters of playing inside. Our kids share rooms now and wouldn’t have it any other way (as of now, anyway!). We use all of the rooms. We were able to buy based on location (biking distance to work) since we chose a “less desirable” smaller house. Editing continues daily. Each day still brings opportunities to reflect what we have, why we have it, and conscious decisions regarding keeping or tossing. We continue to realign our possessions with our priorities.
Dana says
I have been following your blog for this entire year and it has been so inspiring to go on my own minimalist journey! Getting rid of the stuff truly is just the beginning of the journey, and I have found that minimalism is more about living the way you want to live rather than how others say you should live. My husband has also come on board with the philosophy! Thank you for your continued inspiration! I look forward to tuning in more!
Debra says
Thank you for writing about your journey. It is truly inspiring!
Christin Judd says
Love it! Thank you for the inspiration. We are officially moving from our big house I waited to 43 to get that I dreamed of for years with rooms we have never used. Lord knows what it would have costed to furnish this place. We’ve been here for 2 years and just got a contract on it. I’ve been anxious in this space since we moved in it, although its all so beautiful but feels continuously overwhelming. I have been on a minimalist journey for a number of years, but feel into the “buy the big foreclosed house because its a deal and everyone wants a big house, right?” lie. A part of me is sad and scared because we have no idea where we are moving, and its my job to find us a downsized house that is still in a nice area. Sometimes thats hard to do in Atlanta. Nonetheless, I will stay the course because I read your material everyday. It reminds me not to veer left when I want to look for houses just another $50,000 more would not be a big deal and we’d get a nicer house. So thank you for your persistence and speaking the truth. I know the truth sets me free, and I hope God directs us to the exact place we are to be so our whole family can spend more time on whats important rather than working to keep up and cleaning what we have and maintaining the grounds, etc. Be blessed with less!
Lisa says
I love the thing about “the desire to own less is even more valuable then owning less”. How true! As an expat wife, stay at home mother, who has lived in many countries, I spent many, many years shopping :-) I thought all the things were needed and I thought they made us happy. But then a year ago I stumbled upon bloggs like this one and realized I was wrong. We have now drastically downsized what we own. I personally went from 4 full wardrobes to 2 only half filled. I went from always traveling with the allowed maximum weight baggage to traveling with one small backpack. I don’t shop anymore, and I have no desire to do so. I no longer re-decorate our house every second week, and kept only our favorite things. My kitchen cupboards are no longer filled with extra stuff we could need if we ever have 15 guests at the same time, and while downsizing these things we got to help out a less fortunate family who had just moved to the country where we live right now (Luxembourg). And all of this make me much more happy then owning too much, has ever done! Thanks for inspiring me!
Working Mom says
A cluttered area leaves for a cluttered mind…
Minimalist Wannabe says
“Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it.”
Perfect description… Thank you for the inspiration over the years!
Lorraine says
I thank you for this blog. It’s made me realize that I’m not alone in the pursuit of owning less. My husband and I have been downsizing for a few years and we finally hit the point where we can stop purging. We have one child and we don’t want to burden her with what we leave behind when we’re gone. We’re moving from an almost 3000 sq ft house on half an acre to an 1100 sq ft house on a small lot. It’s going to take time to adjust, but we definitely won’t miss spending our weekends cleaning the big house, cutting the grass, trimming the shrubs, etc. We’re going to the beach instead! :)
Jim Erickson says
I began my journey almost eight weeks ago when I lost a job and realized that I had no excuse to keep working and not deal with the 100 plus boxes that I had been moving from city to city now, some of them date 40 years or more. I am 53 years old. I started collecting as a kid and my collections have been sold and moved and added to. I made the decision to do this in stages, and at times it has been the most difficult thing I have ever done. I am not yet complete, but nearing the end of the storage place that has held them. Now I will just fine tune and peel off more layers of the onion. Many thanks for giving me something to read daily and I am on my way to new freedom and few things, Will share more later as I can. Much gratitude. You give me hope, and light in this darkness.