why we can’t be afraid of minimalism
It seems like everyone has an idea of what minimalism is. If you immediately think of white walls and simplistic, futuristic furnishings, you are probably thinking of the art movement that began in the 1960s and early 1970s. I’m not referring to that kind of Minimalism here. I’m often hesitant to even say the word minimalism to my organizing clients because I’m afraid of the negative connotations associated with the word. I’m afraid they’ll think I’m going to make them get rid of all their stuff, (which, of course, I wouldn’t do).
When I was growing up, I knew I never wanted to live in a cluttered home as an adult. As a child, I learned that it was more peaceful to me to have the things in my room carefully organized and curated. I found peace in having control of my stuff, rather than my stuff overwhelming and controlling me. This was my first fling with minimalism.
However, here’s my dilemma. Despite knowing the way clutter makes me feel, I still have had a long, uphill battle in my relationship with “stuff.” For a long time, I still struggled with impulse spending and debt. And I was really fighting this battle on four fronts. I was dealing with an inter-generational scarcity mindset and a “save everything” frugality starting with my grandparents who grew up toward the end of the great depression. I was battling generational habits of accumulating and passing down materials and “priceless heirlooms,” i.e., more STUFF. I didn’t realize a lot of it also relates to our consumer-centric society and the nonstop marketing to which we are exposed daily. AND I didn’t realize that my ADD makes me more likely to spend impulsively when I’m feeling bad. Can you see how easy it can be to accumulate stuff?? It’s almost mindless in our society. However, there is an alternative to this endless consumerism. It’s called minimalism.
So here is my two-fold definition. In one way, I think of being minimalist as being a super-enlightened consumer. I am aware of my needs vs. my wants, and I won’t be frivolously doling out my discretionary income to whoever can distract me the fastest and entice me to part with my money. I think of it as as small kind of F-U to this crazy, consumer-culture we have built and a sly way to rebel without actually having to chance any authorities. But because I’m not actually anti-consumer, and because I don’t have a better term, I’ll stick with the term minimalist for now. Becoming more minimalist in our culture is a long, sometimes life-long, process that requires breaking up with our society’s idea that more stuff is desirable. And dismissing the idea that owning more stuff and expensive stuff is a status symbol… bigger houses, pricier cars, and more of everything. It’s a breakup on many levels that often goes deep within our hearts.
So please don’t be afraid of the term minimalism, because the other way to define it is simply being intentional with your life and carefully curating the life you want. Instead of focusing on what to remove or exclude from your life, it’s about placing your priorities first and being intentional with your time and your money. But let’s be real, sometimes we do need to actively let go of the things that don’t help us become the best version of ourselves right now. It might be it physical clutter, habits that don’t serve you, or the mental clutter of limiting beliefs and negative thoughts. Removing all the nonessential things in our lives allows us to say yes to the things that truly matter to us.
Minimalism is a pattern of thinking that says, “I have enough and I am enough.”
Becoming more minimalist in both regards, to me, is largely a mindset change. Minimalism is a pattern of thinking that says, “I have enough and I am enough.” It’s accepting and believing that you will have your needs met. If you are spiritual or religious, you can probably hear the undertone of feeling God’s presence or feeling content within yourself and trusting in God. Or maybe you feel want to feel that peace not as an undertone but as THE most important thing to strive for. It doesn’t mean that you don’t have desires (after all, we are human), but it means that you realize that desire only leads to wanting more and more. You realize that the satisfaction of wanting the life you have can be more fulfilling in the long run.