Since John and I have been together we’ve moved six times, three of those times across state lines. Every time, as we’re loading up the boxes, I step back and wonder, “how do we have so much?”
With every move we sell, donate or trash the things we don’t really need, and yet every time, there’s so. much. stuff.
My mom’s garage still holds about 10 boxes of our crap that we couldn’t bring with us on our most recent move to New York. While there are some things in those boxes I remember and want, like our Christmas decorations and a particular throw pillow, the majority of the stuff hasn’t even crossed my mind. I think there’s an entire Tupperware bin of old electronic cords—not even the devices they belong to, just the cords. Why?!
It really makes me question my idea of what’s “essential.”
Around the time of our most recent move, I watched Minimalism: A Documentary About Important Things (affiliate link). While the wannabe film critic in me gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars (I thought the story line was a little disjointed), the idealist in me gave the concepts in the film two thumbs up.
The documentary profiles minimalists from different walks of life to explain how our lives can be improved by dramatically paring them down—in the form of possessions, time commitments and even the people we allow into your lives. It struck a chord with me in a major way.
As the years go on, I’ve felt less and less inspired by material purchases and more drawn to spending my time and money on experiences. Most of the time I downright avoid shopping because our apartment is so strapped for space as it is.
Though I don’t think I could ever go hardcore minimalist (I love my souvenir coffee mug collection and walls covered with photos), there are a few aspects of minimalism I’d like to more consciously incorporate into my life over the next few years.
Buying Fewer Things In Better Quality
Being cheap helps a lot with buying less stuff, but I have a tendency go for the item with the lowest price tag rather than the one that will last the longest. I’d like to change that.
I want to get better about buying better quality pieces that will last for a decade rather than crappy versions that are cheap but will have to be replaced in a year or two.
My current closet situation in all its glory. That cardboard box toward the bottom would be our Christmas tree.
Paring Down My Wardrobe
Since I don’t work in a traditional office, I very rarely need to shop for clothes. When I do, it’s usually for an occasion or upcoming event. But that means I don’t usually put much thought into what I buy. Will this dress work for that dinner? Does it fit well without making me look like a hooker? Great. Sold.
Instead, I’d love to move toward a capsule wardrobe, one where each piece is carefully selected with the idea that it can be worn a ton of different ways in different styles. In theory, this sounds like my dream come true. In practice I can’t even begin to imagine how to actually do it, but a girl can dream.
Saying No To Commitments
Saying ‘no’ feels so freaking good.
No to marketing projects I’m not interested in. No to assignments that feel like busy work. No to too many social commitments that make me feel like a slave to my calendar. No to questions that give me anxiety just thinking about them.
It sounds like a downer, but when you think about it it’s really the opposite. I recently read somewhere that saying ‘no’ is really just a different way of saying ‘yes’ to the things that really matter to you #lifewisdom.
For me, that’s saying yes to projects I know instantly that I want to be part of. Opportunities to be more creative. Commitments that don’t feel like a one-way street. Get-togethers with friends and family I love spending time with.
I haven’t yet mastered the art of saying no, but I’m definitely getting better at it.
Letting Go Of The Idea Of Being ‘More Productive’
This is hands-down the most challenging thing for me.
I’m forever caught in a tug-of-war of wanting to work less but feeling guilty that I’m not working more. Of wanting to veg out on the couch but obsessing over all the things on my to-do list. Of wanting to disconnect but having anxiety over not checking my notifications.
At the beginning of 2018, I ordered this ‘daily goal’ calendar after a few glasses of wine, promptly forgot about it, and was genuinely surprised when it showed up on my doorstep a few days later. I realized about two-and-a-half seconds after plastering it to the wall next to my desk that that setting goals for each day was probably not something that was going to work for me, but damnit if I was going to let my husband tease me about a blank wall calendar for the rest of the year. So I started using it in reverse.
At the end of each day (when I remember), I write down the most important thing I accomplished that day. I try to focus on things that will either make my business more money or fulfill some creative goal of mine, but sometimes it’s just ‘did two loads of laundry.’ Small victories.
While it hasn’t inspired the meaningful epiphanies my merlot-filled brain had hoped for, it has helped me see that yes, I am getting things done, even when it doesn’t feel like it.
So these are the things I’ll be working to improve in the near future. Call it my mid-year resolution.
What’s your take on minimalism? Do you think it could ever work for you?
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