Declutter to Detox: Minimalism and The Minimalists

The Definition of Minimalism according to the Minimalists

The whole idea of minimalism based on The Minimalists is to live meaningful lives with less stuff. Their podcast and website and books touch on all different topics of life and all of the things we accumulate. They talk about living minimalistic life with kids,  minimalism in education, in relationships, and so much more.

Want less, have less … start living consciously!

The main lesson I took away from this was to simply stop buying so much stuff. I realized I already had so much, and I definitely did not use all of it. Their advice is to make a list of all the things you might buy. I suggest organizing it into wants and needs. Look at the needs and ask yourself if all of them are really “needs”. Then, with the “wants”, write it down and let it sit for at least a week. If you are still thinking about the item and wanting it after that week, look in your closet or house and see if you have anything similar and make sure it truly is one of a kind that you really love and will use.

My biggest take away is to not over-buy. One of the main discussions within my university classes is the way in which our society today is so focused on having more and so afraid of scarcity. Generally, people don’t realize that we already live in a world of abundance. But that is often still not enough. We buy because we feel that we will be prettier if we wear that face product, and we will be skinner if we can wear that dress, and we will be successful if we can have the big house. All those messages come from our contemporary capitalist society telling us to consume so they can profit off of our fear of lacking. That is not always bad, and often times we need things but try to become more aware and simply be more critical as to what you are bringing into your life and space, physically.

Box it Away … did you miss it?

The “action” component that I took away from the minimalists is what they called a “Packing Party”. They called it a party because they invited people over to help them do this to an entire house, but a one-person party works just as well! The idea is to pack everything in your house or in one room up into boxes for a few weeks or a couple months. Then, as you live in this space, you only take out what you need. For example, you need a pan to make breakfast, take it out! If you need that second leather jacket, unpack it! Whatever you unpack you keep out and at the end of the time frame you have set for yourself, whatever is left in the boxes goes away – don’t even look at it.

Personally, I think this is quite extreme. This might be a great tactic for you and I think it could definitely benefit people who have a tendency of collecting things and not even knowing what they actually have, or for people who have such big homes where things are just completely neglected and not used anyways. For me, my “stuff” consists mainly of my one bedroom in the house I share with my two roommates. I have very few books, pictures, and frames, all of which are in use. I also wear the majority of my clothes.

My Version ... do what works for you!

So instead of putting everything into boxes, I went through my closet intensely and took out clothes and accessories that I hadn’t worn in a long time or where I would always opt for another piece of clothing instead. I had so many leggings for working out but I only ever used 2 pairs. I also had a number of cute tops but they either did not fit my body the way I wanted them or the weather in Canada where I study wasn’t where I would be wearing them.

I put all of these clothes into boxes and put them in the basement for 3 months. This was in January, so three months would be the end of March beginning of April, to try and give myself a range of seasons. I put these clothes away with the intention that if I missed something or needed it, I could go down and get it out, just like in The Minimalists’ “Packing Party”. I had 3 big garbage bags of shoes, tops, sweaters, scarfs, old slippers, etc. that I somehow just didn’t feel I needed to get rid of prior to this. The amazing thing is that I completely forgot about all the stuff in the basement. I went down only twice and took three things out over the course of the three months. It was really an eye-opening experience.

Purging the Closet

The second part of this process is still to come next week with “Project 3,33”, or as I call it “1,33”. I did this process of boxing things away with what I learned from The Minimalist together with this 3,33 project! I will talk more about the actual process of decluttering and minimalizing my closet and what specific steps were taken. Lots of pictures to come as well! 

The Emotional and Psychological Impact in Life

Though this process of listening and reading their philosophy, I developed a new perspective to how I approach "stuff". My first concern was the amount of waste that was being created by buying and storing things and then getting rid of them shortly after. We live in a fast-paced world where we are constantly stimulated by media and the newest fashion, technology, fad as pushed in our faces every single day. It's hard not to feel compelled to keep up. 

Spending the last few months listening to The Minimalists, I have started incorporating their practices that resonated with me into my life. I make lists of what I want to buy and think about it for a week before buying. I have a few things on my list even currently and I am getting much better at not buying something just because I see it hanging in the store. I don't feel like the same want any more to buy buy buy. 

Every time I feel the need to feel that dopamine high we all get in the moment we buy something new, I think about the greater effect. If I buy this product, will it add value to my life? Or will it be forgotten or thrown out in the new few months? Will I be adding to more pollution to the environment with this (impulse) buy? I am slowly finding that even with what I buy now, I am looking for environmentally friendly, biodegradable, and sustainable products. 

I want to continue to live a more conscious and aware life. I want to continue to be amazed by how little we need to live and truly be happy. I want to practice a more sustainable lifestyle by incorporating my version of minimalism into my life. Minimalism is a great way to declutter your home in regards to your physical belongings, but it can also declutter your life. Find your version of minimalism because it is all about the kind of life you want to create for yourself.