Welcome to Becoming Minimalist™. If you are new, welcome! We are honored to have hundreds of thousands of regular readers, and brand new readers every day. If that’s you, welcome. I’d love to make your experience here as comfortable as possible.
Most importantly, Becoming Minimalist™ is designed to inspire others to pursue their greatest passions by owning fewer possessions.
Our Story
Our 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.
We 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.
Our Writing
Get introduced to our simple message by reading some of our most popular posts:
- 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:
We learned quickly that our journey to live with less on the outside would force our attention inward:
- Stop Comparing Your Life. Start Living It.
- 20 New Ways to Measure Success
- Learning to Consider Gratitude a Discipline
And would be entirely unique because of our life’s values:
Our story has been seen on the CBS Evening News, the Wall Street Journal, National Public Radio, The Guardian, The Boston Globe, and countless interviews/reviews you can find all over the Internet.
Over the course of the last eight years, we’ve written three books. And they sell pretty well:
- 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. Available everywhere: Barnes and Noble | Amazon | IndieBound | BAM
And 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:
I was unable to finish the course as we were out of town. Am I permitted ti sign up again and just start over?
Dear Joshua,
We really, really appreciate your writing. Your site has been a very positive force for change in our lives.
The minimalism concept is giving us our time back.
Many, many thanks.
The Rookie Catholic
I’m in love with your words. I would like know if your book will be translate in Portuguese. Please!!!!!!
I signed up for the course and got the page where it said: Instant Access. I was unable to get in. Does that not open until tomorrow? There isn’t an easy way to get information once “paid” which is frustrating.
The same thing happened to me….what from here?!
We have sent you an email Sandy.
The same things happened to me…what should happen from here. There is also a disclaimer with a 7-day money back guarantee; then it says just “email me” an I can’t find an email address anywhere.
I signed up for the first course, but l couldn’t do it because of family’s medical issues. I would like to take the course again, but I don’t know how to go about it. Would you please help me? This has been the only site that has helped me even think about getting rid of my stuff. Thank you! Sandy S.
Sandy, please send an email to [email protected]. They can help you better over there.
Hi Joshua
I am the founder of Millington’s, which is an online ebookstore (a lot like amazon)
We have a team of media marketers who promote our store.
I am looking for great authors who would like to publish their books through Millington’s.
Please send us an email at [email protected] with any questions you have.
Thank you for your time.
Tim
Thank you for talking and blogging and writing about this.
You may have information I can use like decluttering my space, home, etc.
What are your thoughts on minimalism regarding printed/digital photographs & memorabilia handed down from generations?
I have the same question.
Thank you, your words have really helped our family. Looking forward to seeing how this plays out in years to come.
New idea. Have stuff you just CAN’T GET RID OF because IT DOES THIS OR THAT (my problem) or it came from….
Put all those things into a box with a detailed list of what it is and look at the list everyday until you’ve convinced yourself you don’t need it!!!
I need to speak to someone about my purchase. I’ve not taken this course for the $89 I paid. I had a family member become sick that I’ve had to care for and would like to take this course again in the future. Now is not a good time for me. How do I receive a refund. I’ve got a receipt I received for the course and I do receive a weekly email which I’ve not read except for this one from this Monday, October 17th. Please respond. Thank you and blessings
Please contact [email protected].
Thank you for a great blog. The idea of minimalism could be beneficial to so many people. As a psychiatrist I meet a lot of people with stress related disorders which to some extent could have been avoided just by not chasing money and by working less.
The following message is printed in the REI CO-OP HOLIDAY 16 catalog. I think it is very interesting that this message would appear in a retailer’s catalog.
More is sneaky. It tricks us into thinking we need it. That because we can, we totally should. Well, more is a liar. If something doesn’t get us out doing what makes us laugh and sweat and surprise ourselves, it’s just another thing we have to dig though to get to what does. As malls fill up and credit cards overheat, let’s get back to what really matters. Let’s lose what’s weighing us down and spend more time doing what we love. Together. Outside.
I appreciate you sharing. I discovered this very thing for myself after I moved ALL of my clothes into a heaping pile and spent a couple days trying on all of them and chucking ones that meant nothing. I believe I got rid of about 1/2 to 2/3 of all of it. I still keep an awareness and it really does simplify things! I will say, though, I have used it as an idol and it has distracted me from the love of God before: so I pray it remains an effective form of use rather than a healer. Thanks, again. Blessings,
Julie
Hi Joshua,
My sister and her 3 adult daughters in Lincoln & Omaha, NE took your online course this year and told me so many great things about it that I want to do the same! I have a book club who has been together for 11 years and we all agreed, your book would be a great book for the start of 2017. We would also like to sign up for the online course, but I cannot find information about how to do so? I believe the next course begins Jan. 9th, I submitted my name and email, but I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing the chance to register?
Thanks!
I have noticed that the more I reduce the clutter of my physical space the more open my mind becomes.
This has had many significant impacts upon my teaching environment within the high school classroom I occupy oh for so long with oh so very many different types of learners.
When I provide materials for each student to grow and prosper I find that each student is able to thrive for themselves.
Removing materials and allowing them to function upon their own is the most useful learning strategy I know.
Reducing clutter is not going stark or barren; it’s being very specific to what gets to stay within the classroom to be used intentionally for the instructional process.
Great.
Thanks for the support.
I wish to sign up for the course that starts Jan 9, 2017 with the 25% discount from the book. I ordered the book tonight from Amazon but it won’t be shipped until next week. Can you send me the code to use for the 25% discount so I can sign up for the course?
thank you,
Barbara, please send us an email at [email protected]. We’re happy to help.
I’m a Chinese reader from Shanghai. I just bought a Chinese version book of last month but left it in corner of my room. Last weekend, I thought of it, then I read it and found that minimalist-lifestyle is what I’m looking for ! Thank you for teaching me the way to tell valueless from worthwhile.
the book name is ‘the more of less’. It seems this editor is not friendy to some Chinese marks.
I am an Icelandic reader and I must say that becoming minimalist has changed my life for the better.
Both my partner and me worked a lot, we have a house, had 2 cars and a lot of money. The house was filled with things; many of which had no meaning to us. We could buy anything we wanted…but it didn´t bring me any joy.
The journey started with uncluttering our home. We probably threw out/donated 1/3 of everything we have and that also feels good knowing that other can benefit from our old clutter.
Decluttering the house gave us more free time as a family and we realized how stressful it had been to own way too much. We used the precious time during weekends moving piles of junk from one place to another in an attempt to get it under control. Crazy…
When we got more free time and became more relaxed at home I started to feel even more how stressful my work life was. My working day was almost 10 hours including transport and I work in a stressful business. Only 2 weeks ago a college was transferred to the hospital in an ambulance after having collapsed at work….the diagnosis….stress, on his way to burnout.
After having Christmas holiday I was dreading going to work, which ended up with me cutting my hours and only working 32 hours a week.
Reading quotes like: “You can always make more money, but never more time” really got me thinking.
After starting to work less I have more time at home with my children (home earlier) and due to owning less I can use the time making pancakes and playing games…instead of running around and moving things/cleaning.
I am working on decluttering my time schedule and being way more picky on what to do with my time. I plan for at least every third weekend to be a weekend where we do absolutely nothing…no plans, no obligations.
That have given me the time to start reading novels again, walking in nature or just enjoying petting our cat.
Sorry it got so long….:)
I recently decided to get rid of the stuff that we keep but do not really need. It is not as easy as it seems. Some of the things belong to someone else and we have to ask permission to give it away. I find it the hardest to get rid of books. I can give away clothes, shoes and even costume jewellery but books are very difficult to part with. My daughter and I do charity work in a village and we usually ask people for toys and clothes and go with boxes of good stuff. I am stunned to see that some of the items have not been used and still have the price tag and packaging.
I watched the documentary on Netflix “Minimalism”. I can appreciate that you minimalized your home and have become aware of the evils of “stuff”, however I couldn’t help notice the plastic water bottles your family wasdrinking out of in the house. Minimalism should be tied in with zero waste. Plastic is horrible for our society. Something to think about.
Thanks Angela. Some people embrace minimalism for zero waste motivations, but not everybody. For us, we refill the plastic bottles with tap water and put them in the fridge to chill.
Hi Becker family! I just watched the “Minimalism” documentary on Netflix. My husband and I are roughly your age but we don’t have kids. A couple of years ago, we bought a 4 bedroom home near where you live. 6 months later, jobs took us out of the Phoenix region and we decided to rent our home. Why in the world would a family of two buy a 4 bedroom home? We sold a ton of stuff. In 1 week, I made close to $1700 selling our stuff – book shelves, furniture, couches, and random things here and there. $1700! I also donated so many clothes to the AZ Humane Society thrift store. We moved from a 4 bedroom home to a 1 bedroom apartment. We’ve moved around a bit more since then (always in 1 bedroom apartments) and every time we move, we still get rid of things, donate clothes, and pair down. I can’t believe we’ve accumulated so much stuff.
I realized that I have been practicing minimalism for years but I have not been doing it mindfully. Wanting that promotion or constantly returning to school to rack up degrees or certifications for a possible promotion or next job thinking it might make you happy is also a trap that one easily falls under. I made this mistake and realized that minimalism involves a lot of mindfulness.
Thanks for this site and your posts on facebook. Kudos to you, Becker family! My next plan is to sell this computer I’m typing this message on along with the speakers, accessories, and even this desk. :-)
I have been a part of the uncluttered course and have been waiting to continue this next round, but have not received any of the emails. I do not have my original email with log on information (because I accidentally deleted my entire inbox and messages a few months ago!). Could someone please contact me so I can be added back on to the list? There is still much work to do! Thank you for all your help and guidance.
Hey Stacey, send an email to [email protected]. They’ll get you all sorted out.
Hey Joshua,
I just wanted to thank you for staying on topic in your blog. So many of the bloggers have taken political stances or gone on long rants about politics in the U.S. I love your blog, your site and pretty much all your books and advice. I realize that blogs change with time, but yours is one I am always happy to read. Keep up the great work, your time and effort is appreciated!
Pam
Josh! I love your blog, I’ve been following it for years! My house looks a million times better because of your inspiration! Can you post a tour of your home?!
-Molly
Love the minimalist lifestyle! The becomingminimalist blog has been a pearl of great price to helping me and my family with this lifestyle :)
I just finished your book The More of Less and I am recommending to everyone. This past week we did some cleaning out of the basement. I moved my craft stuff into a room where it is accessible and all in one place. I ended up with about 12 bags of trash, selling off multiple pieces of furniture that I was hanging onto for sentimental reasons and I started organizing photos. I used your advice about “the best” and throwing out doubles. I have over 10,000 pictures to go through, so though I started I have a long way to go. However, I want to thank you for getting me started in the right direction. I’m excited to be able to do the crafts I love, now they are available. We have more work in the basement, but with your suggestions I think we will get the area we desire!
To what extent do you feel that computer files constitute “clutter”?
If one has for example 60 material possessions but 700 gigs storage filled with document after document of sentimental or work-related documents, is that person still a ‘minimalist’?
Hi Joshua, Thanks for the amazing website. I really enjoy your writing