I recently asked a question on social media I thought would be fun, “If you had the chance, what advice would you give your 18-year-old self about minimalism?”
The responses were brilliant! So much so, I decided to collect the highlights here.
The wisdom contained in these responses goes beyond 18-year-olds. There is wonderful truth contained here for all of us to hear—whether for the first time or the hundredth time.
100 Things I’d Say to My 18-Year Old Self About Minimalism
1. Don’t be in such a hurry to furnish your home.
2. I promise Starbucks isn’t worth it. You’re going to need the money, trust me.
3. Marry someone that’s on the same page you are.
4. Don’t promise anyone you will keep or treasure their possessions. It results in too much guilt.
5. There are no “Joneses.”
6. It’s okay to have a lot of kids and not a lot of stuff.
7. Don’t buy the crystal. You’ll never use it.
8. You won’t remember the things you bought at 18, but you will remember the trip you took with your friend who later died of cancer.
9. You can enjoy a book without buying it.
10. Just because it’s on sale doesn’t mean you need it.
11. You don’t need to buy an outfit every time you go out.
12. Don’t let anyone (even mom and grandma) convince you that buying a house and filling it full of family heirlooms is normal and what everyone does.
13. Experiences with loved ones will be what you cherish throughout life, not the stuff you accumulate.
14. Save for a house or a trip or a concert, not a pair of shoes.
15. Under no circumstances should you ever rent a storage space.
16. Don’t feel embarrassed by the hand-me-down 1977 Oldsmobile Omega. It’s a wonderful gift.
17. Don’t buy clothes to make yourself feel happy, it just doesn’t work.
18. Don’t use credit cards to buy more junk you don’t need.
19. She who travels lightest travels fastest.
20. Filling your new apartment with all the pretty things from Target doesn’t give you worth or your life meaning.
21. “Retail therapy” doesn’t work.
22. Start minimalism young and invest your money instead.
23. Everything you buy is an anchor. Someday when you want to pull up that anchor, you’ll find you’re stuck and can’t go anywhere.
24. Advertising cons us into buying stuff we don’t need.
25. Patience, not instant gratification, is the gateway to a more joyful life.
26. You don’t have to do what your family does.
27. That outfit won’t hide the fact that you’re unhappy and need to make big changes.
28. Don’t start collecting Precious Moments figurines.
29. Sell your used college textbooks. You’re never going to look at them again.
30. Don’t get busy “keeping up with trends.” Buy what you like, but keep it simple and classy.
31. Buy less, donate your time and money to those less fortunate.
32. All those VHS tapes and CDs are going to be obsolete in a short period of time.
33. Having more doesn’t equal happiness and stuff can actual be a cause of stress.
34. I know right now you really want to fit in. But your friends will love you and appreciate you for who you are.
35. Try extreme minimalism (for the thrill of it) while you’re still single and free.
36. A house becomes a home when you add love, not stuff.
37. Most people are buying things they don’t need with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t like.
38. It might be in style today, but give it a few months and no one will want it. Not even Goodwill.
39. Regarding clothes: By the time you lose enough weight to fit into it, it will be out of style.
40. It may have been a gift to you, but you don’t have to keep it for the rest of your life.
41. You’re going to get everything you ever wanted, and it still won’t be enough.
42. Don’t register for those special occasion dishes, glassware, and other fancy items when you get married.
43. Stop spending travel money on souvenirs.
44. Appreciate the little things. They are the big things, and more valuable than any material thing you’ll ever own.
45. If you can’t use it now, give it a new home to someone who will.
46. Don’t build a huge house, you don’t need it and it costs more than you think to maintain.
47. The $10.00 wallet holds money as well as the $300.00 one, with an extra $290.00 inside!
48. Be happy you’re poor. Nothing helps you be a minimalist better than just not being able to afford things.
49. Learn some budgeting skills! Your paycheck doesn’t have to be all spent before the next one arrives.
50. There would be a lot less cleaning to do if you got rid of stuff!
51. Forget the materialistic stuff and focus on nurturing the relationships around you instead.
52. Your self-worth has nothing to do with what you have or how clean your house is.
53. Stuff does not increase your quality of life.
54. Never take into account the salary you might make tomorrow to justify an expenditure today.
55. Do not buy a house early until you’re 100% about living in an area.
56. You do not need all this crap—your credit is way more important!
57. Instead of making Christmas lists of stuff you want, ask for adventures like tickets and passes to shows, concerts, state parks, museums, zoos, and theme parks.
58. You will never need any Longaberger baskets.
59. You don’t need as much as you think you need. You can retire in your 50’s if you don’t waste so much.
60. You are never going to make a scrapbook. Stop hoarding junk.
61. Shopping is not a hobby.
62. Stop going to TJ Maxx every Friday after work.
63. The opinions of others cost you money. So learn to not care and save a fortune.
64. Do everything you can to save now for a down payment on your house.
65. Don’t believe the magazines.
66. Just because your mother hung onto things doesn’t mean you have to.
67. It’s much easier to never start with bad habits than to end them.
68. Scarcity mindset is generational trauma in disguise. Do the work.
69. It is possible to get through life without buying every issue of Cosmopolitan magazine.
70. Things won’t fill the holes in your life and heart.
71. You’re 18. Turn off the TV and go live life!
72. Pay more for quality, not quantity.
73. The world is deceitful and very, very temporary.
74. Get rid of it all. And live generously.
75. Stop shopping at Goodwill. Even 99¢ adds up.
76. Life is more peaceful with less stuff.
77. Don’t be afraid to be different.
78. Don’t buy anything on impulse. Write down what you want, walk away, and give it a couple of days.
79. Your dreams should include something better than a really big house.
80. Understand the difference between your real self and your fantasy self.
81. Spend more time outside.
82. Minimalism is not about denying yourself pleasure, it’s about removing dead weight.
83. Don’t buy that $40k truck. Please, don’t.
84. The bigger the wedding does not mean it’s better.
85. Don’t bother with jewelry. No one bothers to tell you that when you get older, you can’t stand having it on.
86. Clothes are not the answer to career success.
87. We don’t buy things with money, but with hours of our lives.
88. When Beanie Babies become a thing, just don’t.
89. You don’t need to buy the biggest house the bank says you can afford.
90. Develop the habit of living on less money than you make.
91. It’s not how much you acquire, it’s what you do with what you have.
92. Don’t waste your money on high-end brands.
93. Nobody really cares what you have.
94. Most people spend half their life acquiring things, and the other half getting rid of those things. Just skip the acquiring part.
95. You don’t need to upgrade your phone every year.
96. Find Dave Ramsey sooner.
97. Don’t go shopping just because you’re bored.
98. You don’t need one in every color.
99. Buying things won’t fix your depression.
100. Just because it’s free doesn’t mean you need it.
What would you add to the list? If you had the chance, what advice would you give your 18-year-old self about minimalism?
Sharon Paavola says
A wise and insightful list full of guidance and basic principles to find the real joy in life. Bravo! I made many of the mistakes on this list and know the heartache that comes with them. I will give these to my grandsons when they are older, maybe their parents, too!
I’m using minimalism now so that my kids won’t go through what I did when my folks moved on to their heavenly home. God bless you!
Erika M says
8, 20, 32, 41, 82. Wish I knew this 40 years ago !!
Elizabeth says
Since we started following both Becoming Minimalist and some of the money management books and blogs, I was able to quit my stressful job and start working part time for my husband. And this year because we are living more lightly, we have been able to spend the winter in sunny CA instead of our dreary, frigid home state. It is doing wonders for my mental health. Thanks to this site for all the nudges in the right direction.
JEvans says
Only buy shoes you can wear comfortably immediately, breaking them is not an option – If you’re feet hurt because you have to break them in means you will remember that, and likely NEVER break them in – waste of money, pain, and of course TIME !
Linda Sand says
Don’t enter a sweepstakes in which you don’t want to win the prize.
Sandy O says
My daughter won lots of prizes on The Price is Right. Her parents had to pay the California and federal taxes. We were so glad she didn’t win the Showcase!!
Sean says
This is an excellent article! Just sent it to my 18 year old son.
Emily says
Thank you so much for this list, Joshua! I have saved it in my email inbox so that I will see it often. Your epiphany story about missing out on time with your son as a result of taking care of stuff has always resonated with me. My husband and I welcomed a baby boy last July and currently live in a tiny apartment. Now that I am back at work. I have realized how much time taking care of my work clothes take and how much time I have spent trying to “figure out” my wardrobe. It makes me sad to realize that I have missed out on quality time with my baby to take care of work clothes and how, at times over the past seven months, I have turned to shopping to offset the stress of being new to parenthood and wanting to be a “perfect” mother. My husband and I are minimal and regularly clean out our possessions. I now realize that I can be doing so much better with this one area of my life. Your guidance on minimalism has taken on new meaning for me and I am grateful for having a clarity of my priorities thanks to your blog. Thanks so much for your work!
Mary says
I agree with this writer. Joshua’s regular article motivates me to clear out unneeded stuff. I’m 72 years old and I have accumulated stuff from my mother, my grandmothers, my husband’s parents, and his grandparents. Yes, the china, crystal, silver-plated trays, etc., vases, numerous linen tablecloths with matching napkins, napkin rings. And I could go on and on. All of it was stuffed into every nook and cranny of my small house. The very thought of getting rid of it flooded me with guilt. But I did get rid of it and much more. The first load I took to Good Will made me feel so free that I took another load, and another. I have bought into minimalism wholeheartedly. And I have set myself free.
Cynthia Johnson says
Decline invitations from friends AND friends of friends who are hosting “home parties” to sell you crap. Examples are Longaberger baskets (#58), Pampered Chef, and Christmas Around the World. After storing stuff from the Christmas…….home parties for 15 – 20 years, I donated it unused to charity.
Richard says
Once you see: Act now, limited time only, over 90% sold……. Run.
Sandra says
Thanks for the great list! I used to joke with my kids to love God, love your mom, and take care of your teeth ( which saves money in the future!)
Kaye Sims says
Great list full of good advice. I would playfully disagree with one part of #15. I agree with the premise not to rent a storage unit – generally – but we found one circumstance where it worked wonderfully well.
We had lived for 40 years on homestead property in a house my husband built and turned into a Christmas tree farm. We decided to try living on the road for awhile, but weren’t sure we would do it for a long time. We got rid of most of our stuff. When the farm finally sold and we had no place to call home but our 28′ RV, we rented a 10’x20′ storage unit for our archives, winter clothes, and a few pieces of furniture my husband had built. We enjoyed life on the road but decided not to do it indefinitely. … Our treasures were in storage less than 18 months. It was totally worth the freedom it gave us to try out some crazy stuff. We blogged about our journeys and have now published a book.
But yes, that was a rare exception and I do agree that generally it is not wise to rent a storage unit.
Christine Razler says
I love your decision to go on an adventure.
In this case, your storage unit was a placeholder for living an untethered life for a while, until you decided what came next.