Minimalism – It’s a Lifestyle Change, Not a Panacea

The coin dropped as Elly would say. It hit me as I read a minimalist blog. Nonsense I thought. Stop implying that you (anonymous blogger, podcaster, YouTuber) are somehow happier or more self-aware and fulfilled than your audience because you’ve achieved some personal standard of minimalism. Other than how you feel, you have no data to support it.

I struggled with the books, writings, blogs… that promoted the (alleged) inexplicable joy that occurred when they started getting rid of their stuff. Of course you feel better. You just went on a material possessions diet and you lost 20 pounds. But life still needs to be lived, your kids are still going to scream at you, your spouse will be mad at you and your boss will be disappointed in you. It is the way life is, jobs need to be done and relationships need to be nurtured. Life is not easy, it takes work. Life can be challenging.

Henry David Thoreau famously wrote in his groundbreaking classic Walden, Life In The Woods;

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms...”

We had this goal in mind when we began our version of minimalism.

I urge you to follow your compass. Feel free to fail, make mistakes. It’s OK to buy stuff, but feel how you feel. Be in that moment. Does it bring you peace or stress? Learn from those experiences, learn to live differently, deliberately. Challenge your impulse to buy, and nurture your passion to live. But live your life, not someone else’s. Minimalism makes life better by making life easier. When we remove the clutter, our lives become inherently less complicated, providing the energy and focus to tackle life’s challenges. But it doesn’t solve every problem. Life can be difficult and that is OK. It takes work.

Some benefits of the minimalist journey are discipline, peace, direction, maturity and growth. I would argue that these attributes can help make us better problem solvers.

I would never imply that I am happier or more content than you, I don’t know that. But I can confidently say as a result of this voyage, I am the most happy and content version of me.

Increase the peace.