Minimalism is not new. It has been around for a while now. But still, so many people have not seen the benefit of it. But you are here to give it a try. In this post, I will tell you all about what it is and how you can be more minimal. As well as teach you how to declutter.
What is minimalism?
Minimalism is the concept of getting rid of your extra things and just living with the items that you need. Though because everyone’s needs are different minimalism looks different to everyone. It is an attempt to minimize your intake of things to maximize the calmness in your life.
What makes you a minimalist?
The only thing that makes you a minimalist is your effort to live with the perfect amount of things. Nothing more nothing less. It is important to note that you DO NOT need to have any specific number in mind. How many things you own does not matter. It is more important than the things you own you love and use. And that you don’t strive for the perfection that you may never find.
How To Declutter
You will want to set aside some time to declutter the things that you do not want. If you take the time and go through the things you own you will be so happy with the result. You have no idea just how much that extra stuff is weighing you down. There are so many things that you probably have forgotten you even have. Declutter anything you don’t need.
Decluttering Physical Items
There are many different ways to go about decluttering your possessions. In my upcoming book The Minimalist Guide To Life, you learn all about three of the methods you can use to declutter. Though today I am just going to stick to one.
The most direct way to declutter is to declutter by item type. You will go around your house and gather up all of one type of thing. For example, all your skincare. Then you will go through it one item at a time. Ask yourself if you have used it in the last 3 months or if you will use it in the next 3? If the answer is no to both you can go ahead and throw it into your Get Rid pile. If the answer is yes to one of the questions decide if it is worth keeping. But if you are not sure put it in your Maybe pile. However, if you answered yes to both questions you can keep that item.
Tips
Instead of going through your stuff by type, you can also go through it by the room. Just remember when you put things away to put all the things of one type away in the same spot. Even if they are from different rooms. You want to get in the habit of knowing where things are. Storing similar things in the same space will help you remember where to find them later.
Don’t try to do it all at once. Spend a couple of weeks going through one category at a time if you need to. You don’t want to get burnt out before you even begin. Decluttering can be a draining process and you will want to take breaks between decluttering sessions.
Decluttering Digital Items
For this one, the process is very similar. Go through your apps one at a time and decide if you use them enough to keep. Once you have gone through your pages of apps, go through each app. Going through apps like your photos and emails. For your emails make share that you unsubscribe to emails that you don’t open. When going through email look to see if they anything you may need. Get rid of the rest.
When it comes to photos it understandably will be harder to declutter. They may contain memories that you love. With that send though, you do not need 10 variations of the same photo. Delete the worst versions of the photo and keep just one. Also, get rid of the random photos that hold unimportant memories or no memories at all. If you what to know more about digital minimalism check out this book on Amazon.
Decluttering Relationships
This one I believe can be the hardest for people. People stay in relationships and friendships way longer than they should sometimes. We all want to believe that that person will become the person we want them to be. Sometimes though, it is just not true.
Toxic people, those who take more from you than they give. Those are the people that you want to cut out of your life. It may seem kind of harsh to just say goodbye to these people especially if you have known them for a long time. So cute them out slowly. Say no to hanging out every now and then. Just decrease the amount of time you spend with them until you no longer spend any time with them.
If you need to though, do not feel bad about just cutting those people out all at once. It is your life and you should do what is best for you. You and your feelings should be your top priority.
Keep The Clutter Away
It is not just important to declutter though. You need to learn to stop bring the extra stuff into your house too. When you are at the store do not just buy the things that look cool. Put some thought into it. Is it something you will use? Is it worst the money spend? Once you answer those questions you will know if you should get it. Remember if you do buy it you want it to be worth it. If it turns out to not be it is not a big deal. You will do better next time.
Decluttering can be hard but it can be fun too. Being able to see your progress along the way is great too. I myself think that minimalism has lead to an amazing improvement in my life. And I believe that it will help you too.
If you want to know some of the benefits of minimalism, click this link to read my blog post about 5 of the benefits of minimalism.
Thank you for all of these helpful tips x
You are very welcome!
I’m a pretty minimal person and clutter makes me very unhappy. Great post! Siobhan ♡ | Vegan Babe Life
Thank you. Your blog looks great.