Recently as I have been surfing through the internet, I’ve come across the term minimalism quite often and decided to look further into what it is all about. Minimalism is defined as a style or technique that is solely based on simplicity. One of my favorite minimalist writers, Joshua Becker describes it as “I am intentionally trying to live with only the things I really need.”
So many of us look at our closets and see clothes that we haven’t worn in months but we still hold on to them. We walk into our room and there’s a clutter of junk from throughout the years crammed into every bit of space. I could go on and on about how so many of us have things just to say we have it or just because we were convinced that we need it because that’s what’s “in” at the moment. In reality, there is very little that we need. The word need is actually used very loosely in this day and age. In order to obtain minimalism we must refrain from adding value to the distractions in our lives and simply get rid of them. This doesn’t mean that you have to cut absolutely everything out of your life but it means when you decide to add to your life and to your space, you must ask yourself; what benefit does it truly serve, if it even is a benefit at all. You must be able to identify and differentiate an absolute need/necessity for the betterment of yourself versus a want for the sole purpose of having something material to flaunt.
a minimalist bedroom
After diving into the specifics of minimalism, I became inspired by the fact that minimalism is freeing yourself of the consumer culture thats been thrown in our faces from the time we’ve been able to comprehend it. Marketers have a brilliant way of making us believe that we don’t have enough and so we buy and buy resulting in clutter– physical clutter that turns into mental clutter causing stress. Having a minimalistic lifestyle isn’t just freeing up space but it is freeing your mind. Being a minimalist is about putting energy into ourselves and our craft instead of putting value in materialism. Believe it or not, sometimes less is more. If anything, less is relief. The difference between a minimalist and someone who is not is that a minimalist solely focuses on putting their value into themselves, their beliefs, relationships, and experiences instead of materialistic possessions.
By no means am I claiming to be the spokes person for minimalism but it is something that I am progressing into. After reading articles and watching videos demonstrating what a minimalistic lifestyle entails, the first step I took in achieving minimalism is decluttering my space. My space is my room, that’s where most of my time is spent but figure out what your space is and start there. I went through my closet and got rid of items that no longer serve a purpose which included shoes, dresses, books, jewelry, bags, etc. I noticed that once my space was clear, my mind was clear. Having a clear mind, 
allowed me to be more attentive to what’s important in my life at the moment. I am now able to work on my blog and school work in my bedroom without being distracting by the extra miscellaneous objects crowding my space. Getting ready in the morning takes less than thirty minutes because I’m not searching through piles of clothes anymore. I’ve also learned how to wear some of the same pieces but in multiple different ways (another example of less being more). Another way I progressed into minimalism is by being aware of the food I consume. I’m not saying to eat less but do you really need to eat a whole bag of chips in one night, or could you just have a bowl of fruit and feel proud that you’re consuming food that benefits your health?
Even if you don’t want to be a complete minimalist, you can still apply it to certain aspects of your life. I love everything minimalism stands for and I aspire to live a minimalistic lifestyle, ridding myself of everything that is excessive. Listed below, I have shared two of my favorite and most inspiring minimalist/minimalism articles.
- https://www.becomingminimalist.com/what-is-minimalism/
- https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/
