How to Begin Your Minimalist Journey Today
When you looked into your future, did you imagine something completely different from your current life? I think this is true of most of us.
Maybe you wanted to have a family, but you never imagined it would be so much work. Or, maybe you wanted a big house, but now you realize how much time it takes to maintain.
This was me a few years ago…drowning in my own life. When I was in high school and college, I dreamed about my future, which included a family, a house, a career, weekends volunteering, as well as vacations, and hobbies.
But then I had the family and the house and I just couldn’t keep up! There was no time for anything else. I had no time for the people I loved, and definitely no time for me.
This is when I began to remove all of the “stuff” from my life that was taking up more of my time and energy than I ever thought possible. I stopped caring about what other people had, and I cut out what was holding me back from the life I wanted.
This is when I began my journey towards minimalism…without really knowing what it was.
Minimalism, in the end, is precisely what allowed me to get my life back. My life is finally my own again, and I am living out my own unique purpose. I am able to find so much more joy in life because I no longer have to set aside my best life for an okay life. And I don’t have to settle.
I would love nothing more than for you to come on this journey with me. Truly, I long for you to experience peace, contentment, and joy. And guess what?! All of that is more than possible when you simplify your life and begin to live it on purpose.
I am going to show you how you can begin your minimalist journey today by simplifying your life.
What is minimalism?
Obviously, you won’t want to begin your minimalist journey without having an understanding of what minimalism is and what it looks like in real life.
In short, minimalism is choosing to live with less so that you can live more. How much less is up to you, just as what you want out of life is up to you. Only you can know what a full life looks like for you. So, only you can know what is holding you back from that life!
In essence, minimalism is about only having and doing what you need and love. It’s about taking back control in the areas where you have let other people and things take over and dictate how you spend your time.
How can minimalism help me?
Oh man, where do I begin?!
Minimalism helps you:
- find and live out your purpose
- give who/what you love more of your time
- feel less stressed and overwhelmed
- be intentional with your money
- experience more freedom!
When you first begin your minimalist journey, you will see glimpses of these benefits for yourself. Over time, the glimpses of these benefits will turn into your day-to-day reality. And I can’t wait to hear all about it!
How to Begin Your Minimalist Journey
You begin your minimalist journey by taking steps to remove the clutter from your life. You can declutter your home, your schedule, and even your mind. And, a decluttered life is a free life!
How do I declutter my home?
To begin your minimalist journey, I recommend starting with decluttering your home. When it comes to our jobs or just our lives outside the home, we have little control. Oftentimes, our home life is causing us a ton of stress, AND we have a decent amount of control over it!
In order to declutter any area of your home, simply follow these four steps:
- Remove anything from your home that doesn’t serve an important purpose (i.e. you don’t love it or use it often).
- If you come across something in your home that’s broken, throw it away or fix it ASAP.
- If you decide something in your home needs to go, take care of this right away by throwing it away, donating it, or selling it.
- Find a home for everything you decide to keep.
I go into more detail on how to declutter any area of your home in this post.
What should I declutter first?
When you are just getting started, you want to think about what will have the greatest impact. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to tackle the biggest project first.
I often hear that people are simply unable to relax in their own homes due to the amount of clutter everywhere. They look around their home and only see things that shouldn’t be there.
Because of this, I recommend doing a quick sweep of the entire house before you do anything else. So, instead of being distracted by all of the stuff around you, deal with it. Walk around the house and box or bag up anything that’s not serving an important purpose in your home.
You may pick up twenty, or even fifty, things just taking 15 minutes to walk the house. And, you will probably find that it’s addicting. Once you get started, you just might not want to stop!
Next, focus on an area that’s causing you the most stress. For us women, it’s often laundry or cleaning. If that’s the case, figure out what needs to be decluttered to make your life easier.
Are you drowning in laundry or dishes? Begin by decluttering the amount of clothing in the house or the number of dishes that can get dirty.
Does vacuuming take too long or do you always push it off? Focus on decluttering the things that tend to get left on the floor. Most likely, these are toys, shoes, and possibly clothes.
Do you never get around to thoroughly dusting because of all the stuff in the way? Start by decluttering decor, knick-knacks, and other items that take up valuable surface space.
If you choose to declutter an entire room, that’s great! This may sound weird, but I actually recommend that you practice maintaining this clutter-free zone before moving to another room.
That’s because the hardest part about decluttering is actually maintaining it. After all, there’s a reason your home got to the way it is currently. 😉
How do I stay motivated and keep going?
Once you begin your minimalist journey, you may struggle to stay motivated. Decluttering and maintaining it is a lot of work in the beginning as you are reforming healthy habits.
First, you can stay motivated by doing small tasks that give you a quick win. These small wins help you gain momentum and want to keep going.
Second, remember the kind of life you want. When you have a clear purpose for your life, you are able to put in the work that you know will get you there.
For more great tips on getting (and staying) motivated decluttering, check out this guest post by my friend Melissa at Simple Lionheart Life.
The Simplify My Life! Starter Kit
Want even more tips and advice about how to begin your minimalist journey? Get the “Simplify My Life” Starter Kit!
The Simplify My Life! Starter Kit will help you simplify your life so that you can live the life you’ve always wanted!
This starter kit will help you:
- find a clear vision for your life and home
- declutter your home so that only what you love is left
- maintain and organize your newly decluttered home
- simplify household chores such as cleaning and laundry
- create a meal plan that’s simple and sustainable
- declutter your schedule and get your time back
- establish an effective routine that lines up with your priorities
- learn to use your time more wisely so that you can begin living the life of your dreams!
Begin your minimalist journey today by getting clear on your purpose in life and decluttering anything that doesn’t fit within that purpose or is holding you back. With a clear purpose at the forefront of your mind, you CAN live a more minimal life that you actually love!
Theresa Bedford is a syndicated freelance home and travel writer with regular contributions to the Associated Press wire and MSN. She helps everyday people love the life they have through simplicity, organization, and prioritization.
I’ve begun doing this in my own life and love it. A new move, new outlook, new opportunities to enjoy. Decluttering is huge, too. Thanks for sharing!
That’s great! Isn’t it great to get a fresh start?
As a newlywed and having recently moved in with my now husband, this really speaks to me. I’ve seen the appeal of minimalism… I just have yet to get him to see the light! I think that’s been the toughest part of “purging” the house and our things: convincing him to let go of things that haven’t been touched since he moved in 3 years ago! It almost always ends in a fight, but you have some awesome tips here! Thanks for the post!
I wouldn’t worry too much about converting your husband. Just do your part to live more minimally, and more than likely, he will slowly come around when he sees and experiences some of the benefits. 😉
Less is better, but most people, at least in the beginning, insist on carrying out their dream of a large house. They don’t realize just how much work- and how costly- it is to own and maintain a large home. Most people cannot and will not “live below their means” as they say, and they end up house poor and overwhelmed with stress. You provide useful advice on reversing this tendency.
I’ve seen that a lot too, Bryan. And, I try not to assume that having a big house or whatever won’t bring them fulfillment. Maybe it will…I know that we are all wired differently. But, you’re right. Often times they are unaware of the costs of their dream…the amount of time and money they will sacrifice to attain it and maintain it. Thank you for your kind words and for taking the time to comment!
I really like that you suggest practicing minimalism in one room and maintaining this practice before moving on.. it can become overwhelming to try to declutter too much. Great tips!
Decluttering is very overwhelming for some people, Heather! That’s precisely why I recommend they do that. It gives you a more realistic picture of what it takes to change your habits and maintain the progress you have made! Then, I think. They are more likely to be successful with maintaining the rest of the house…then any other areas they move on to in their lives.
I love being a minimalist
Me too!
Hi Sheila. 😀 Your blog is great so I thought of nominating you to a 3 Day, 3 Quotes Blog challenge here: https://therisingbliss.wordpress.com/2018/05/04/3-day-3-quotes-challenge-day-2/
Thank you so much, Nina!
I am so glad I found your blog! I have been slowly working myself into a capsule wardrobe. I keep getting rid of more and more because I work from home now and I don’t have much need for a lot of clothes. And the decision fatigue is a struggle. I start feeling overwhelmed and guilty about all of the clothes in my closet because I only get “dressed” to go out maybe once a week.
This feeling is also moving past clothes now. I look at all the stuff in my house, especially in closets and cabinets, and I start feeling anxious and stressed. Like I have this need to declutter and just have less.
Not sure how I can get my husband and daughter on board. But, maybe I just start with ME.
Thanks, Shelly! I know what you mean about decision fatigue. Fewer choices is better for me! I’m glad that you are slowly working towards simplifying other areas as well. It’s a process, and one thing usually does lead to the next. It’s a beautiful thing! Sometimes you just need to get started to find the motivation to keep going. You are so right…start with you. Check out this post about doing this while you have a family.