Life can be easier with minimalism--if you do it right!
In our previous post, 5 Common Misconceptions about Minimalism, we revealed the negative image of minimalism. These opinions are probably why people give up trying to be minimalist, or why they don't try at all. If you believe any of these misconceptions, it would be easy to get frustrated by a minimalist lifestyle!
So if you haven't already, I recommend you read that post first, then come back and learn about 5 reasons that life can be easier with minimalism. I also give you tips on how to make changes and be more minimalist. Here's a quick preview:
1. The minimalist lifestyle can improve your finances
2. Being more minimalist can give you more time to do things you enjoy
3. Minimalism can make your relationships better (or help you start new ones)
4. It's easier to stay organized with a minimalist life
5. You can reduce your stress with a minimalist lifestyle
If you don't have time to read it now, you can pin this post for later.
1. The minimalist lifestyle can improve your finances
I've only been minimalist for a few months, but I've already noticed that my bank account isn't as empty. Being stuck inside for the past ~year led me to do a lot of online shopping and ordering takeout. I did it because at first, all the stores and restaurants were closed, then because it didn't feel safe to shop in person, and mostly because I was bored.
All those shipping fees, restaurant delivery fees, and COVID price gouging started adding up. Suddenly, a $2 bottle of hand sanitizer cost $25--what?! It's a good thing that I didn't have a commute anymore and couldn't go out to dinner with friends because I didn't have money for that after buying toilet paper and cleaning supplies. 🙄
By making a few small changes in my shopping habits, I saved a ton of money and still bought things I enjoyed.
- I waited until I met the minimum purchase for free shipping before placing an order. Sometimes, things I wanted would go out of stock while I waited, but it wasn't like I needed them. I didn't apply this rule to necessities.
- I started picking up my take-out meals and doing curbside pickup of groceries instead of getting everything delivered. I know some people make a living off delivering food, and I'm sorry to take away money from them. But I shouldn't help anyone if I can't pay my own bills.
- I paid myself first. This means I set up an automatic transfer of part of my paycheck to go directly into savings. That way, I didn't have the chance to spend the money accidentally while it was sitting in my checking account.
2. Being more minimalist can give you more time to do things you enjoy
When I first started to be more minimalist, it definitely kept me busy. Making a change takes time and energy. It can also cause a lot of stress, especially if your life is already busy. This is probably where a lot of people get frustrated and give up.
This time when we're all social distancing is a good opportunity to make those minimalist changes. Chances are that you're doing less of something right now, so you have some free time. Once you've finished the transition, you get to keep the free time you gained.
I did a few things that may sound weird to you, but give them a try if you're comfortable with them. I guarantee they will give you more time in your schedule!
- I don't do laundry more than once per week. I used to do it about twice a week for just myself, and that took a lot of time. Now I just wait. I also have fewer clothes to wash, because...
- Since I rarely go out, I, ahem, re-use my clothes. Some of them, anyway. Before you get grossed out, I don't wear my underwear more than once. And obviously, any sweaty workout clothes don't get re-used. But if I'm only wearing clothes for an hour to run a quick errand, are they really dirty? If they still look and smell clean, then I'll wear them once more before they go into the washing machine. I also have a special place in my closet so they're not touching clothes that haven't been worn. I have no idea if this makes any difference germ-wise, but I do it anyway.
- Speaking of clothes, I made myself a capsule wardrobe. I'll explain more about that in my next post. But it definitely saves me time getting dressed!
- I clean for 15 minutes per day and that's it. I even set a timer. Whatever I can't get done during this speed-cleaning session has to wait until the next day. It was tough at first because I love having everything pristine. But after a few months, it stopped bothering me. It's not like my place is dirty, it's just...normal. And obviously, I don't include emergency clean-ups in my 15 minutes. If I spill a carton of orange juice on the floor, I clean that up and still get my 15 minutes of cleaning in later in the day.
- I use apps on my phone and laptop to restrict my social media usage. I actually HATED using these apps at first, because I would be in the middle of something and get locked out. But it really does save time! And really, I wasn't doing important things. My friends all know I use the timer so if I suddenly disappear, they know why. 😁
- All my bills are paid automatically through my bank. I had this mostly set up already. But I never set up my credit cards to withdraw automatic payments, because I was scared I would overdraft my bank account. Now that my budget is more organized, I feel comfortable enough to set this up for an automatic withdrawal. I have a list of all my regular bills, when they come out, and how much they are. I just check my balance once a week to make sure there's enough money for the bills and how much is left over. It only takes about 5 minutes.
- I decided to cut back on TV watching. I used to just keep it on in the background. But now I only watch my very favorite shows, and I limit it to two hours in the evening. Then I do other things before bed that don't involve screens, like some easy yoga and reading a book.
3. Minimalism can make your relationships better (or help you start new ones)
I'm not a very outgoing person, but I do like to spend quality time with close friends. Freeing up extra time meant I could concentrate more on those relationships, even though we couldn't see each other in person the same way.
Since my gym has been closed, some of my friends and I started doing "walk dates" where we'd meet at various parks or trails and take walks with our masks on.
We also text or call each other like we did before, but more often. I think everyone in my circle of people, including me, has felt the need to check in on each other more during this strange time. Luckily, none of us got infected so far, but we still worry about each other and need some extra support.
I've been really good at following the social distancing rules. I haven't invited anyone over, and I haven't visited anyone's house. Sometimes my place feels lonely, but I have more time to work on hobbies! I think it's good to be alone and get re-acquainted with yourself every once in a while.
I also decided to join some online groups when I wanted to learn more about minimalism, as well as some forums that talk about hobbies I'm interested in. I haven't met any of these people in person, but it's been nice chatting with like-minded individuals.
If you're hesitant to meet people in person right now (you should be!), it's relatively easy to find free online groups to join in just about any category of interest. These interactions can lead to genuine friendships based on those common interests.
4. It's easier to stay organized with a more minimalist life
This is in part because of all the recent online shopping, but my apartment started to feel very claustrophobic lately. I felt like I spent a lot more time cleaning and trying to put things away because there was so. much. stuff.
I even ended up buying a few things that I already had, because I couldn't find them! And my apartment isn't that big, so it's pretty sad that anything got lost inside it.
Luckily, because it's such a small space, decluttering wasn't that bad. I used the methods listed in our article, How to Declutter in 5 Steps. I got it all done in 2 weekends, and bam! Life got so much easier.
It wasn't just my physical space that became more organized because of minimalism. As I mentioned, I freed up time by cutting back on things that I didn't need to do and weren't as important to my life. It's crazy how much time I was wasting, and I didn't even realize! But if you add it all up, it leaves big gaps in your schedule so you can easily organize the stuff you actually need and want to do.
5. You can reduce your stress with a minimalist lifestyle
As you read the above reasons that explain how minimalism makes life easier, you could probably guess that making these changes would reduce your stress level.
Having more free time for friends and family, relaxing, exercise, healthier eating, or hobbies would certainly reduce stress.
Making even small changes like these had an unexpected side effect: a shift in my mindset and perspective about life in general. I became happier in many areas of my life, and at least more content in others. Of course, we're still in the middle of a pandemic, and there are lots of problems with the economy, social issues, and lots more. So to say I'm ecstatic about life would be a stretch.
But despite everything going on, I'd say I'm reasonably happy and fulfilled. Especially compared to last year. I see now that I was trying to self-medicate with empty distractions, like mindless spending and consumption of media.
I'm definitely not perfect. I'm new to all of this minimalist stuff and have a long way to go before I'd consider myself really minimalist. But I'm sure that things are still way better for me than they would be if I hadn't become more minimalist.
These steps were fairly painless and didn't make me feel restricted at all. Maybe I'll make more cutbacks in these categories in the future, but for right now I'm good with things how they are.
If you're thinking of making any of these changes, I suggest going slowly and taking breaks. It's important to give yourself time to adjust to anything new. That way, you're less likely to get burned out and go back to how things were before.