Why I'm Trying to Be A Minimalist

Photo by James Hollingworth on Unsplash

I never thought I’d be the one who’d want to try minimalism. When I first heard about Marie Kondo and her book, I thought it was all pretty silly. I didn’t need any less things! I loved all of my things! They all serve a purpose; you know, even if it’s all thrown in my dresser drawers and closet! (To be fair, I did recently read The Magic of Tidying Up in preparation for this, but it wasn’t really my cup of tea. Though I did glean some of her information that I liked from it!) But after a lot of soul searching and reading and watching a lot about tiny homes (I kind of went through a phase. Will get to that in a couple of paragraphs!), I kind of started to change my tune. I started to think: Do I really need all of these things that I have?

My whole life has been spent wanting things. I always thought things would make me happy. I would obsess over certain items, like a piece of clothing or a knick-knack, and could think of nothing else until I bought it. (I mean, sometimes waiting for something to come in the mail does give you a pretty good high from the anticipation!) And then...I’d lose interest in it when I finally got whatever it was. It was almost like the idea of the object or product really made me happy. But once I got it and reality set it… did it really make me that happy?

For some reason a while back, I started watching those reality shows about tiny homes. I just found them so cute and quaint! (Your own little tiny English cottage you can design in any way you liked! Sorry, that’s my Anglophile side coming out!) I loved the idea of tiny houses being environmentally friendly, as well. Plus, I liked that everything you needed was right in there. It amazed me that people could just have the basics, they all fit perfectly in their little house (no need for an attic, basement, or to rent a storage space!), and still live life in a totally fulfilled way. That made me start thinking about all of my things. Would they all have a purpose in a tiny house? Would I have room for all of them, even? And then the other questions started rolling in: do I really need all of these things? Are they a waste of money and space? And are these things really making me happy?

After reading Julie’s blog, Dark Blue Journal, where she blogs stupendously about minimalism and environmentalism, and also Marion’s wonderful and helpful blog, House of Kesar, where she also blogs about minimalism (she even wrote an ebook about it!), I got pretty inspired. Both blogs talk about how minimalism can help you, not just with your material goods, but with your life. And that makes so much sense to me. You can't do much with a cluttered mind (or at least I can’t!), but what if your space is cluttered or full of useless things? You can’t concentrate and find out what things really mean to you, if you’re so bogged down by all the things. And not just the physical things. The other important things, like who you are, what you want out of life, how you want your life to be. Those are the things I’m really hoping to get a grasp of through minimalism. I want to find a purpose and a way forward to the positive future in my life, and I’m hoping I can gain some insights to that through minimalism.

But I’m also hoping for a few other things I can learn through my minimalism journey:

• I want to be less cluttered, in material goods and in my own life (and in my head!).

• I want to be less materialistic and really think about my purchases before I buy them.

• I also want to be thankful for what I do have and learn about what I can live without.

• I’m hoping I can save some money by not being so obsessed with things (shiny, shiny things!), and put that money towards where I want to be in life.

• And lastly, I also want to help the environment and lower my carbon footprint. Thanks to Julie’s blog, I’ve really been taking a better look at how our planet is progressing, and how I can do my part to help keep this beautiful earth healthy for as long as we can.

I love that both Julie and Marion stress in their writings that minimalism isn’t one size fits all. Minimalism is as individual as the person who uses it. Some people swear by having a capsule wardrobe with only X amount of clothing pieces in it. Others are for capsule wardrobes that are sectioned off into all four seasons. Some people are into minimalism for the streamlined efficiency of it, and others really want to help the environment by seriously cutting down on the extra material goods. Either way, people are getting good and positive results from cutting back on material things (and cutting back on unnecessary things in their own lives!), that I really want to see if it can help me, too.

After this experiment, I may turn out to be a minimalist. But I may not. Or I could land somewhere in the middle! (Man, I’m always a “medium” no matter what situation I’m in! Clothes, height, attractiveness. Ugh) Minimalism isn't for everyone, but I want to see if it’s for me, or if at least the principles can help me figure out what things really mean in my life. I’m really hoping I can be at least a tiny bit minimalistic and make some positive changes in my life! I want to have less to live more! (That’s a cute minimalistic saying, right? I feel like I saved that to a Pinterest board one time. Okay, you got me, I totally have a Minimalism Pinterest board now. For inspiration, okay??)

So stay tuned on this blog while I update you on what things I’m going through (wardrobe/clothes, trinkets, jewelry, books and media, digital, and more)- physically and emotionally. I honestly don’t know where this journey is going to take me, or what I’m going to get started on (clothes? Books? Trinkets? Ahhh I don’t know!), but I’m excited to go on this ride and see what happens!

Let me know in the comments about what YOU think of minimalism? Are you a fan or not? Let me know why or if you’ve tried it! I’m curious to see what people think and if you have any tips for me!

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