There’s more to life than buying stuff.
There are many wonderful people pursuing and promoting simplicity. Fortunately, some of them are gifted in communication and choose to encourage and inspire us with their words. I enjoy reading their unique perspective. I’m sure you will too.
So fix yourself a nice warm cup of coffee or tea on this beautiful weekend. Find a quiet moment. And enjoy some encouraging words about finding more simplicity in your life today.
Buying begets buying: how stuff has consumed the average American’s life | The Guardian by Madeleine Somerville. Our addiction to consuming things is a vicious cycle, and buying a bigger house to store it all isn’t the answer.
Declutter your wardrobe: Lessons from people who’ve done it | CNN by Emanuella Grinberg. “You may have fewer items of clothing in your closet, but you have more space, more time to enjoy your morning, more opportunity to wear your favorite clothes.”
Drastically Increase Your Standards | New Minimalism. Clutter builds up when we stop making decisions about our stuff.
This couple lives on 6% of their income so they can give $100,000 a year to charity | Quartz by William MacAskill. We constantly overestimate the impact income will have on our happiness levels.
Photographer Removes Phones From His Photos To Show How Terribly Addicted We’ve Become | Bored Panda by Dainius. The project inspiration came from a chance encounter in a NYC cafe.
I read and enjoyed “Drastically Increase Your Standards”. I went through a big de-cluttering in my previous home, and came to the same conclusion at the end of the process: Be mindful about what you bring into your home in the first place. (It is better for your budget, and better for the environment, too).
When I moved into my current home, I found that the process of decluttering influenced how I organized things and used my space.
The article talks about the idea that clutter also builds when we don’t want to make a decision about the items in our home (Coincidentally, I just shared an anecdote on my blog about this same idea). I find that I procrastinate about making a decision because of sentimental attachment or the “what if I need it later” factor. Thanks for sharing. :-)
Hi Joshua, I just want to say how much inspiration and encouragement I have found from your blog. I look forward to your weekend reads and re-read your blog posts. It is so fantastic to know that there are others trying to live minimally and simply.
A great collection of links, as always. I think the point about clutter being the result of a lack of decision making on our part is so true. I recently wrote about how guilt and obligation can make us feel paralysed and unable to clear our clutter. The solution is to give ourselves permission to take action. http://simplefamilyhome.com/2015/10/26/give-yourself-permission/
A great collection of thought-provoking articles — thank you, Joshua!
Very neat article, I was just writing about that stuff this morning. Very inspiring, I love it!
Thanks for the post! I loved the photographer removes his phone from the photos especially. This is so true of today’s life! We live together yet leave each other unnecessarily alone…sad :(
I look forward to these articles every week. Thank you for posting.
More is leaving every day…sometimes I’m “stuck” with what I need to part with and how to get rid of things. I was struggling with that last extra set of dishes, then seen that my job is having holiday charity silent auction, now I will be donating my Christmas set.
It’s freeing to get rid of more and more…
In April 2008, my husband and I decided to do what it took to get completely out of debt to the tune of over $100,000. A few months later, by July, we had sold our home, bought 6 1/2 acres and built an 800 sq ft house with our own 4 hands. We were completely out of debt and enormously happy. Then we had added on to the house as we had a couple of grandchildren, doubling the size of our house. Seven years later, we decided we had gotten too big again with all the junk that goes with it, and decided to sell our house. We sold it within one month and put it on 4 1/2 acres that we split from our previous purchase of land. We bought a 5th wheel camper with 4 slide outs and can never even think about building another house. It is just perfect for us, nestled in the trees and our park like setting. We don’t just talk about living minimally, we live it.
That’s my plans. Buy either a 5th wheel or travel trailor.
The past few years I have given away or threw away a lot of things I thought I needed. If I haven’t seen it or touched it in 6 months, I don’t need it. If its in a box, in the closet or stored in the garage, it’s like not having it at all. So what’s the point.
Those phoneless photos are sad and convicting
Hi Joshua, thank you for these excellent collections of reads every weekend. I always look forward to them! I have one small request — an unsolicited $0.02. Is there any way you could set up this list of posts so that each article url opens in a new window?
Navigation is a little tricky when I’m making my way down the list. (I use Bloglovin to read your posts). The back button doesn’t work from Bloglovin, so it always takes a few extra clicks to find my way back to the original post to click on the next one.
I wasn’t sure if you were aware of this issue but I think it would remove some friction just to have the links open in a new window.
Thank you so much!
Emily
Emily!
I click with the scrolling wheel on every link. Then they all get a separate window. Maybe it will work in Bloglovin too?
(English words is not my speciality.. ;-) )
Good luck!
Hey Emily, if you’re reading on a computer another option could be to right click on the links and select “open in new tab” or “open in new window”. This worked for me when I tested it with Bloglovin’ and could save you a few clicks!
Excellent resource list of great articles to get people on the right track. Life is about living and the moments we experience, not the stuff we can collect and amass. :)