Never underestimate the importance of abandoning crap you don’t need.
Encouragement is important in all areas of life, but especially when trying to live a life different than those around us.
It provides us with motivation to persevere. It invites us to dream dreams of significance for our lives. And it begs us to work diligently with optimism and promise.
Overcoming the pull of consumerism is a difficult challenge regardless of our stage in life. Simplicity requires encouragement. To that end, I hope you will find motivation in these articles below.
Each post was intentionality chosen to inspire simplicity in your life. For maximum effect, find a quiet moment this weekend and enjoy them with a fresh cup of coffee or tea.
How Living with Less Can Give You More | SUCCESS by Melissa Balmain. Discover how people improved their lives by paring possessions, forgoing conveniences, and downsizing their homes.
The Science Of Simplicity: Why Successful People Wear The Same Thing Every Day | Elite Daily by John Haltiwanger. We waste so many precious moments concerning ourselves with frivolous details.
Your Kids, Too? Practical Advice When Kids Have Too Much Stuff. | The Washington Post by Sharon Holbrook. It may be an uphill battle, fellow parents, but let’s do it. We’ve got nothing to lose but the junk.
Modern Moms Looking For Perfection in All the Wrong Places | New York Post by Karol Markowicz. There’s an instinct in every parent to try to give our kids everything. But “everything” doesn’t have to be living up to some picture-ready ideal you saw on the Web.
Jenny says
Anyone else getting an error message on the Success link?
Jennifer says
I can tell that you really put careful consideration into these round-up links. I always enjoy reading them. Thank you! Your blog gives me real and useful information, not just empty “inspiration”. I have been slowly moving towards a more minimalist lifestyle with my family, and believe that the method and path can be different for everyone. Recognizing and visualizing the goal has been important for me. As for a mantra, when faced with so many commercials and e-mails telling me to buy buy buy this season, I tell myself, “Don’t need it. Never did.” It applies to so many things that companies are telling you that you NEED. No, I don’t.
Judy says
I’m so pleased, I’ve been making some really good decisions lately and it feels great. :) Thanks, Joshua.
Vishnu says
Yes!! Finally some justification for a simple wardrobe and wearing the same thing repeatedly. The commenters in that Elite Daily article do bring up an interesting point about how much more socially acceptable it is for men to wear similar clothes daily than it is for women. It’s not the way it should be but does society give men much more leeway in dressing than it does to women?
joshua becker says
Here is a female perspective on the same topic: http://hello.jcrew.com/2014-10-oct/alice-gregory
Mary Stogsdill says
Living in a life of excess “crap” I find myself wishing this info had come my way 50 years ago. — This should be require study for every young adult who is preparing for their future!
,
I hav recently realized that this excess junk is stressful.. It seems
A hopeless task!
Thank u Cindy Harder for sharing this info. M
LL in Prescott says
It was available in the 90’s. Elaine St. James. Simplify Your Life. I read every book in her series, but you wouldn’t know it from my life! She did it all. Ditched the job. Downsized from a McMansion to a condo. Said no to commitments and dead end friends. Sold and gifted her crap. SO inspiring. But after all that reading, I was still living the Big American Dream. I think you hear what you want to hear. Talking about it means nothing. Thinking about it means nothing. Doing it means everything.
Bob Pepe says
Right to the point…. Too Much CRAP….. To think of the money I would have today if I read this 30 years ago…. I have been chasing that next thing for decades….
I guess better late than never
Kathleen Nixon says
I have cut out a piece of bright green paper, printed in Calibri Bold, font 48, and tacked to my office wall, the words,
“Never underestimate the importance of abandoning crap
you don’t need.”
Below sentence is a picture of Josh, with his name, and caption, “Inspiring others to live more by owning less.”
Thank you for these ten words of sanity and common sense!
Daisy @ Simplicity Relished says
I always love these roundups and share them with my followers! Thanks for finding these– I am so on board with the idea that kids have too much stuff! Would love to teach them to be more generous.
Lea says
Joshua, I read one of your suggested reads for this weekend and will read the rest later. I read The Emptiness of Accolades and completely agree with you. It is nice to have the encouragement and appreciation of others but if we rely on this to be our driving force then where is the joy in what we are doing? I did some work helping 2 different organizations not for money and not for accolades or a pat on the back. I worked hard and enjoyed the work and supporting the cause(s) through the work I was doing. My reward was the satisfaction of the work and those it helped. It was from the heart. Sure it was nice to get accolades but bottom line regardless if I did or not I would have just kept doing it anyway.
Hannah says
Love it! Thank you for all the new content I will be reading.
I have a blog about minimalism also with some good stuff (I hope you think so anyways). Please check it out guys and subscribe.
http://becomingminimalistic.net/