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.
4 Decluttering Epiphanies That Have Changed My Life | Louder Minds by Michele Connolly. One thing has brought a joy that is profound, and honestly, unhyperbolically life-changing. That one thing is stripping down our possessions.
Not Doing All the Things We Want to Do | Zen Habits by Leo Babauta. If you want to actually put that class or gym pass to use, if you want to get that personal project done or read that ebook you bought … here are some suggestions.
Millennials Aren’t Big Spenders or Risk-takers, and That’s Going to Reshape the Economy | LA Times by Don Lee. Millennials tend to prefer experiences over buying things and accumulating stuff.
Mall of America Takes Bold Stand by Closing on Thanksgiving This Year | Star Tribune by Kavita Kumar. The nation’s biggest mall has drawn a line in the sand when it comes to opening on Thanksgiving Day.
Simplicity Voices by Claire. More hand-picked articles about the important things in life.
Cecil Vedemil says
Thanks for sharing, I’ll read one of these for the next few weekends :) I’m always looking for good articles related with minimalism.
xx Cecil // http://www.wednesday19th.blogspot.com
John P. Weiss says
Thanks for including Leo Babauta’s wisdom. I think we all fall victim to trying to do too much.
Michele says
Hi Joshua! Thank you so much for sharing my ‘4 Decluttering Epiphanies That Have Changed My Life’ post. I’m grateful for the share and grateful to have found your blog. I’ve just subscribed. :)
Mindy says
Thank you for your consistency with Weekend Reads. I look forward to them every week. The Louder Mind’s article was beautifully written and a pleasure to read. And Not Doing All the Things We Want to Do might be my favorite article I’ve ever read at Zen Habits. It’s so dead on – as a busy homeschool mom there are just so many things I never get around to, and there are perfectly good reasons for that inescapable fact. Off to read the next three articles. Keep up the good work! Encouraging others toward a simpler life is a worthy cause on many levels.
Krista says
Thanks for introducing me to Claire and her two blogs! I look forward to following her work. And a big, YES, to Leo’s post. Everything takes double the time AND i am a slow mover to boot:) I have needed to make peace with this.
Michael says
Thank you, Joshua. Great blog! Just started following it and am already finding inspiration and nourishment for my soul as I make changes more and more in the direction of simplicity in my own life.
Amanda says
Was so happy to see that MOA is going to be closed on Thanksgiving! Its crazy how “black friday” has been starting earlier and earlier every year. It seems to have become a bigger holiday than Thanksgiving is, all so we can fill our homes with cheap things that we don’t really need or are of subpar quality. I agree with Jeffery, hopefully this creates a ripple effect and gets other stores thinking about something other than their profits.
Betsy says
I’ve worked retail for years. We recently ran the numbers from the previous 5 years that we were open on Thanksgiving and saw that we did the same amount percentage wise when we just opened up on Black Friday as we did being open both days. It’s not worth running the lights and paying employees if we aren’t making more profit. Many retailers are coming to this conclusion so they decide there bottom line is better opening on Black Friday. I don’t think they are concerned about people being with family and friends on Thanksgiving. it’s still all about the profit.
Susan says
Thanks Joshua. I always enjoy starting my weekend with your blog and some coffee, as suggested. :)
Jeffrey Pillow says
Hats off to Mall of America for reversing course and not opening on Thanksgiving. Hopefully their decision will cause a bit of a ripple effect and other stores will follow suit. Holiday shopping has really gotten out of hand in America. I’ve been really disappointed in what this country prioritizes more and more as the years past. Consumerism is out of control… How about quality family time? Remember that America?
Annie says
Amen! And how about volunteering time to someone who needs it? That would be a good way to express gratitude for what most of us have in our lives that many others suffer a lack of. For some families the traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner most of us take for granted is only a dream. I would rather see people sharing their bounty than shopping for stuff they don’t truly need.
Jane says
The Louder Minds post is brilliant! Just saying. Thanks for uniting me with fellow amazing minimalist introverts.