Fifteen years ago, in Vermont, I discovered minimalism. While cleaning a garage full of clutter, my neighbor changed my life with a couple of sentences. She said, “That’s why my daughter is a minimalist. She keeps telling me I don’t need to own all this stuff.”
The scene that played out in front of me changed my life. My garage, full of dirty clutter, had taken up hours of my morning, while my 5-year old son played alone on the swing-set in the backyard.
I realized the need for change. All the things I owned were not contributing to a better life. Even worse, they were keeping me from it.
My wife and I, along with our two young kids, embarked on a journey to remove all the unnecessary possessions from our home and life. And with it, came countless benefits. Real things like: more money, more time, more focus, and less stress.
One of the most surprising benefits I discovered along the way was the ability to own higher quality items without increasing my spending.
Owning high quality items wasn’t necessarily a benefit I foresaw when I decided to embrace a more minimalist life. But it’s absolutely true!
Let me share how this realization dawned on me.
It began with my wardrobe. Like many, my closet was crammed with cheap, fast-fashion and items I had found on clearance racks. My closet was literally full of hundreds of different items.
Shortly after pursuing minimalism, I discovered the Project 333 Experiment started by Courtney Carver. I decided to give it a shot and cut my wardrobe down to just 33 items (at first, for just a three month trial).
But when I made that decision, I noticed something fascinating: Almost all of the 33 things I decided to keep were higher quality items than those I chose to discard.
“Wait a minute,” the thought occurred to me for the first time. “If I purposefully own fewer items, I could own much higher quality things. Minimalism and frugality are not the same.”
I could immediately upgrade the possessions in my life by spending twice as much on an item, but only buying half as many!
If I don’t need 20 pairs of pants in my closet, I could spend twice as much on the ten that I do own. If I don’t need ten pairs of shoes, I could spend twice as much on the five pairs that I do buy. If I didn’t need to own six different watches, I could buy one really nice one.
It was a simple yet life-changing realization: By owning fewer things, I could afford to invest in higher quality.
Spend twice as much on an item, but buy half as many.
Clothing is just one example. Think of all the areas in life where we could adopt this same principle: towels, linens, shoes, coats, purses, watches, ties, tools, cookware, knives, furniture, decorations, travel mugs, personal care items, technology, televisions, sporting equipment, even cars and houses. The list is virtually endless!
The quickest way to upgrade your lifestyle without spending an extra penny is to buy higher quality and lesser quantity.
And it’s available to anyone, right now, who wants to upgrade their lifestyle.
Of course, this principle will play out differently based on your income. A family making $250,000/year would apply the principle of “fewer, but better” differently than a family making $50,000/year. But unless you are already living an extreme minimalist lifestyle, there is always room for you to apply this life principle.
You can upgrade your lifestyle today without needing to spend more. Buy better, but fewer.
In the long run, in fact, my guess is that you’ll find this principle actually costs you less. When we choose to purchase higher quality, the items tend to last longer, we tend to love them longer, we tend to take better care of them, and we probably even receive more personalized care where and when we bought them.
The magic formula for upgrading your life doesn’t require more money. It just requires buying less.
Kim D says
I have recently adopted this principal, since I am an empty nester, and looking to downsize. I have combined it with Swedish death Cleaning, and it is going very well. Many items that were sentimental have been sent to my family in New York so that they can enjoy them as well. I’ve also donated extra blankets and towels to charity. I already live green, so this is just an extension of that. Extra things means more garbage in the future.
Amy Mills says
This is just what I’ve been needing. I am turning 40 next August. I have never been great at budgeting. This is my goal for 2024, to learn how to save money. This article really motivates me to get on the right track. Amazon is a terrible thing for people that lack budgeting skills. For instance, a couple of months ago I bought a cordless vacuum which I really needed due to a dog that sheds. I didn’t hang the vacuum holder on the wall, I just propped it up. It fell several times finally damaging the power cord and would no longer charge. What did I do? Went on Amazon and bought a cheaper cordless vacuum. I am short and this “new” vacuum is almost child sized. Glad I’m short. It doesn’t work the way my old one did. Why didn’t I just buy a new charger for the one I had that worked well? I could go on and on but I think you get my point. I have got to curb my spending spastically. . . I don’t make the kind of money I am spending. I’m tired of being broke one week after I get paid and not having a savings account. Thank you so much for this article. Thank you for motivating me to push myself to spend less, clean out/donate what I don’t need, and to have a higher quality of life getting rid of junk! This is amazing.
Carol David says
Sounds like you were at a crossroads and recognized the better road. I’m pretty much at the same point and also had an Aha moment. Wishing both of us much success on this journey, and many happy smiles on the faces of the good people at Goodwill, shelters, etc. who received our donations. My local Animal Rescues are getting my old towels and blankets today!
Nora says
Hi Joshua,
Thanks for sharing these thoughts. I stepped on my minimalist journey not that long ago, but I already feel many positive effects of it. I sold and donated many of my unused stuff and I don’t miss them at all. As I get older and look back at my life I start to realise that I don’t even remember any of my clothes that I had in the past, but I remember nice holidays, experiences, the people I was happy with and simply nice memories. Our house was not over decorated at holiday seasons, but still, it fills my heart with warmth when I think about childhood Christmases. We came to this world naked, and we will go without any possessions. What we own in between just comes and goes.
Kelly says
Little by little I am making progress in my home! I have already donated more boxes of things than I ever thought, I would and I know I still have a lot to sort through still. I already have in mind some jackets and clothes to donate (that ironically, I thought I never would get rid of, but aren’t my go to items for when I need something like that!)
Grateful for your website & community!
Rich says
Hey Joshua,
I really enjoy reading your stuff. I wish I could get my family on board with this process. Personally I’m over the material side of life, but my family isn’t close.
It is what it is. I’ll make the best of it until they come around I guess. LOL
Thanks for all you do!!!
Kinnera says
Love reading your articles. I signed up for your course but have never finished it. I hope to one of these days. I declutter a bit and then I am back to square 1. I hope I can make permanent changes.
Moya says
I was recently at a Christmas market, when i picked up a beautiful ornament,I walked around and around with this ornament in my shopping cart, and eventually put it back realising it’s a want and not a need, and that the adrenaline rush would wear off after a day.What I’m trying to say is , if I hadn’t found you ( this article on minimalism) I would have bought it , and ended up with more clutter, so thank you.
eva andrew says
Joshua, this post really hit home. I made it a goal to become totally decluttered this year…and I reached it last week. Already I can see it’s going to affect my life in such a peaceful and positive way…having it done before Christmas, having told everyone about what we are doing for Christmas gifts and focusing on enjoying the Christmas season in a simple way.
I see replacing clothes and shoes with higher quality items…but with my income level, I shop the consignment shops.
Thank you for your posts Joshua…your experiences have guided me this year towards my journey.
Betsy says
Joshua, you’ve touched on this subject in other postings but taking it as the main focus really hit home with me. I tend to buy basic clothing and it’s true that when I buy better quality I get years of wear out of the items. Sometimes I’m drawn to clothing that has a little bling to it but I never get the lifespan out of it that I get with a better quality basic.