Minimalism in your life

Outline · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:13

Minimalism is any design or style in which the simplest and fewest elements are used to create the maximum effect.

This may not be a popular place to post this, but is there anyone living their life like this?

Tired of the clatter and clutter and ridiculous ritual that my life was becoming bogged down under, I started to strip away the unnecessary... Unnecessary goods, relationships, stresses, responsibilities. Now I'm down to a selection of these that actual have a value within my life, and I feel all the lighter for it. I can concentrate on my happiness, and the people around me.

A fantastic place to start if you're interested in this;
http://www.theminimalists.com/start/

To each their own. It's not for everyone, but it's enriched my life, become my religion, and I'd love to hear from others on the matter.

[FnG]magnolia · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:18

Which relationships and responsibilities did you get rid of?

JonJ678 · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:19

I prefer to live in chaos, thank you very much. I'll be keeping my clutter and relationships.

Theophany · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:25

I'm a consumerist whore. Sorry!

Dis86 · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:30

For being a site for minimalists it sure is full of unnecessary crap...

V4NT0M · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:32

I have no one to get rid of...

JoeF1 · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:32

Dis86 said:
For being a site for minimalists it sure is full of unnecessary crap...

Outline · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:34

[FnG]magnolia;24835731 said:
Which relationships and responsibilities did you get rid of?

People I was holding onto that caused stress, had not had any positive impact on my life... Yet I'd hold onto the relationship for the sake of security. This may not be a popular idea, but it allows me to focus on the people in my life that are important, as well as opening up to new relationships.

I'm not particularly here to defend it; I'm interested in hearing from others.

Freakbro · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:37

I tend to be a bit of a hoarder, combined with generally not being a tidy person, so I have had times my house can end up a tip, which does get on my nerves.

So I do go through phases of decluttering the house of 'stuff' and try to live quite minimalist with regards to material items. I'm most certainly not a consumerist whore!

But then, wouldn't buying a book about becoming minimalist be a bit of an oxymoron.....

dirtychinchilla · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:40

Dis86 said:
For being a site for minimalists it sure is full of unnecessary crap...

I thought that

OP, thanks for the food for thought. I'm going to think about this closely. I feel like some things in my life aren't really going in the right direction, and argued with my girlfriend this weekend about what I want from my life. I've realised that I need to reassess, and so this has come at an opportune moment. Thanks

Sunbed · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:44

Moving from a 2 bed house to a city centre apartment forced me to get rid of a lot of crap, and the process was ultimately worth it. I had way too much stuff that I didn't need. I'm not a big fan of ownership in general. My mate seems to get by with a laptop, clothes and some kitchen stuff. I wish I could be like that. If I didn't like PC games so much I could get rid of a lot of the hardware that comes with it.

Hobbies in general cause life clutter. It's not necessarily a bad thing though.

Theophany · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:49

Freakbro said:
I'm most certainly not a consumerist whore!

Pucker up and bend over. Papa Greenback's coming in dry.

Narj · 27 Aug 2013 at 11:58

Renovating my house made me dump a few skips' worth of crap. That felt amazing. I no longer feel the need to hoard loads of useless tat.

I've cut myself off from a bunch of waster "friends" and family this year as well which has made my life much more peaceful.

Cosimo · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:02

No thanks, I'm happy with the way everything is.

Gackt · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:02

I have often had the desire to do away with a lot of my personal possessions, certain people and 'rituals' in my life and live a more spartan, minimalistic life. But I've never quite had the push to do it, I'm still fairly attached to the idea subconsciously that I am somehow an aggregate of all my belongings.

I'll take a look at your experiences, as they might just help! Thanks for sharing!

King Damager · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:04

Interesting concept, but not for me. Especially given you should see my bedroom currently almost wall to wall in some kind of storage.

kd

elmarko · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:07

I already do it in part, but hobbies tend to make it hard to get rid of more than I have already.

I don't keep anything which has little aesthetic or practical value.

Outline · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:11

dirtychinchilla said:
OP, thanks for the food for thought. I'm going to think about this closely. I feel like some things in my life aren't really going in the right direction, and argued with my girlfriend this weekend about what I want from my life. I've realised that I need to reassess, and so this has come at an opportune moment. Thanks

Sundance said:
Moving from a 2 bed house to a city centre apartment forced me to get rid of a lot of crap, and the process was ultimately worth it. I had way too much stuff that I didn't need. I'm not a big fan of ownership in general. My mate seems to get by with a laptop, clothes and some kitchen stuff. I wish I could be like that. If I didn't like PC games so much I could get rid of a lot of the hardware that comes with it.

Hobbies in general cause life clutter. It's not necessarily a bad thing though.

Narj said:
Renovating my house made me dump a few skips' worth of crap. That felt amazing. I no longer feel the need to hoard loads of useless tat.

I've cut myself off from a bunch of waster "friends" and family this year as well which has made my life much more peaceful.

Gackt said:
I have often had the desire to do away with a lot of my personal possessions, certain people and 'rituals' in my life and live a more spartan, minimalistic life. But I've never quite had the push to do it, I'm still fairly attached to the idea subconsciously that I am somehow an aggregate of all my belongings.

I'll take a look at your experiences, as they might just help! Thanks for sharing!

Glad to hear it guys. The emotional weight that comes with owning/hoarding material possessions is definitely a huge part of it... But as mentioned, it's also your frame of mind... Realizing that it's okay to let go of unnecessary things in your life, releasing yourself of the stress. Not being irresponsible, mind you...

I find reading other people's stories lovely. Though it's not for everyone, there are so many positive revelations, it's very encouraging.

Cosimo said:
No thanks, I'm happy with the way everything is.

That's fine.

shroomz · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:11

Sundance said:
Hobbies in general cause life clutter. It's not necessarily a bad thing though.

My mountain bike, cycling stuff, kayak, kayaking stuff, tools, computer, two monitors, tablet, old computer i need to split and sell but i haven't bothered to bump my MM thread with pics, bunch of bank statements etc that live on three shelves because i don't have a shredder (yet) and don't like to just bin, quadcopter coming this weekend, shredder coming soon (both rainforest) to get rid of all my old papers. Camping stuff. I've a lot of clutter :/

Edit- that's not even going into the kitchen!

JeffH · 27 Aug 2013 at 12:13

[FnG]magnolia;24835731 said:
Which relationships and responsibilities did you get rid of?

I've just called my wife from work and and told her to get herself, the kids and all their crap outta the house before I get home. I'm looking forward to an evening of Peace and relaxation tonight now.