Fill your life with stories to tell, not stuff to show.
The simplicity/minimalism movement is a beautiful community. And I enjoy any opportunity to promote writing that encourages people to live more by owning less.
So fix yourself a nice warm cup of coffee or tea. Find a quiet moment this weekend. And enjoy some encouraging words to inspire more simplicity in your life today.
How to Let Go of Any Possession | Zen Habits by Leo Babauta. There’s nothing physical that keeps us from letting go of possessions — it’s just our attachment that gets in the way.
The Psychology Behind Not Adding New Things Into Your Life | No Sidebar by Louis Chew. We can’t have it all. For everything we include, there’s something we must exclude as well. That’s the mentality we must have when deciding whether to introduce new things into our lives.
How Decluttering Led to Realizing a Lifelong Dream | Helena K Rhee by Helena Ku Rhee. Had I spent more years rotating among hobbies and collecting more stuff, it would’ve taken much, much longer for me to realize my original dream of becoming a published author. I would’ve simply been too distracted.
Sometimes You Have to Quit to Get Ahead | The New York Times by Stephanie Lee. What if we’ve been looking at quitting all wrong? What if, rather than a step backward, quitting with intention can be a way to leap toward your goals?
How to Handle Gifts as a Minimalist | Becoming Minimalist on YouTube. (3:04)
Betty Barkley says
Wow! How inspiring. I have read a book by Marie Kondo that helps with clutter and downsizing. She has an interesting method that is in four sections: first go through your clothes, then your books, then paper, then paraphernalia. That way you are just focused on those particular items. I was stuck on my clothes one day so then decided to go to books. (I thought I will come back to clothes later.) It helped me to keep moving. I don’t do it for hours on end, I do it for what time frame suits me. But it is nice to know there is a huge community out there becoming minimalists. Thanks for your encouragement.
Ali Enza says
What a great reading list!! I’m always trying to go minimal but it’s hard to let go of certain things. I’m definitely going to add these to my weekend reading list to help me out!
Kajol says
Wow! this is really inspiring article for us, thank you very much for sharing these awesome article.
John Choe says
Started reading this blog sometime back and started avoiding unnecessary things out of life, i mean at least started trying. The psychology behind the feeling of owning everything is really complicated and cannot be stopped immediately. But I believe slowly I will be able to embrace minimalism.
Toni Downen says
Cannot get into the Facebook page to post for some reason, but this weekend and week was really great for me. With everyone’s inspiration, I emptied 3 regular file cabinets, and 1 triple one, filled up a complete recycle bin and several things to take to have shredded, plus shredded some myself. I cleaned out my food cabinet as well as my spice cabinet and filled up 5 trash bags with old things that should have not been there. Was a little embarrassing to say the least. My counter tops are now viewable. This is inspiring and also a little draining, but I will keep going. Luckily my husband is helping and discarding his things as well. Here is to next week! Week 3
Hazel says
Thank you for these reads. Every time I read them I look around my house, then I pick a few things I don’t need & put them in a box. At the end of the month I don’t open the box, I just take it to the Goodwill. I have gotten rid of all my decorations that way & I don’t miss any nor do I even remember what I had!
Glenna says
Thanks for the articles. It just reinforces what I’ve been trying to do the past 2 yrs. Yes, it is difficult to break away from what society claims will make you happy! After a life changing event of cancer early last year, it puts things in perspective real quick!! I’ve been blessed through it all and am on the path to a simpler life.
Jason Swanson says
I just came across your article on helping other achieve success can help you succeed and it spoke to me very deeply as I have been trying to craft my mission to my heart. It was the perfect article at the right time. Thank you for writing this, it made an impact on me.
Atowle says
Thank you for the list! I look forward to reading Louis Chew book. Atowle|https://formationvacations.com/
Abbie says
Thanks Joshua! I always enjoy the thought-provoking and helpful articles you gather for us. I will be watching this week to see where saying no (quitting) lets me be intentional.