MINIMALISM and the intentional individuals
The following quotes were collected from interviews with 5 different of “minimalists” and photos from 4 “minimalist” spaces (with a few additional locations).
Minimalist A: I had so much stuff, it was overwhelming.
Minimalist B: My mom and step dad, they are both just really bad with money and very materialistic. And they work like crazy ... I feel like she just spends all her money getting all this stuff. And then, the house is just cluttered like crazy, and cleaning’s annoying. And then, I feel like she doesn’t invest time in my two little brothers ... She works nonstop just buying more crap, it seemed like, it didn’t make any sense.
Minimalist C: People show what they have and it’s literally a whole room full of Ikea drawers. They’re all the same, and they’re just filled to the top with stuff; all this stuff gets wasted.
Minimalist D: It’s really easy to get caught up in physical appearances and the way that you look towards other people. You can make your life really complicated ... I would make it more of a problem for myself.
Minimalist E: I really wanted to simplify and not have to worry about so much stuff.
Consumerism is a big issue. Anti-capitalist.
Me and my wife met in Bangladesh ... you see people there; a lot of people seemed to be a lot happier than I was and they didn’t have very much.
She’s so happy and she has so little, why am I looking for happiness with stuff.
Privilege, we all have it to some extent ... When you see other people that have nothing, but are able to have so much joy, I mean yeah, they go through a lot of darkness, but because of that, they learn how to rely on themselves and hold on to life.
It started with reducing what I owned, but then it really became more about what I kept, less about what I got rid of, and really more about having and keeping those things that were important to me.
I would go shopping all the time and I would just accumulate clothes and buy something once and never wear it again. So now, it’s more about really thinking about if I’m gonna want this in a couple years and how much I’ll be able to use it.
But then my dad and step mom, a couple years ago when they retired, they got rid of their stuff and got an RV and they sold their house and all that. And I remember they said they were worried about making that transition ... to not have a physical home, but then they just love it, and they’ll never go back.
This summer I became really comfortable as a person and I got to know myself more ... I didn’t need a lot of material things, but I also didn’t need other people to reaffirm me in the fact that I like myself.
I just wanted to simplify stuff.
People just see it as like “Oh, you’re cheap.”
Every time I would buy something or want to go shopping, my parents would always give me a word of caution ... I would never get allowance either, they would give me the things that I need. And they would value family time and eating together more than they would value gifts ... our love language is through quality time.
Experience: the language of love
I used to think that it was cheap, but now I understand they really treat things with true value and they don’t take things as if they were not worth anything. They show a lot of respect for the things that they consume.
In East Asian culture in general, people view stuff there as very valuable.
I usually buy enough to last the week so I eat fresher food. And then I don’t have to worry about all the things that might go bad.
Every time my husband wants to buy something ... I always tell him to question if it’s actually worth doing.
I still feel like I have a lot of stuff to be considered a minimalist. For me, it’s more like applying the mindset, making sure that you really use what you have.
What you had and the stuff that you had was a definition of who you are. And I saw that a lot at school, like I was one of the last people to get an iPod. My parents are pretty adamant about not paying much money for that electronic device. And they’re like you can make do with something else, we don’t need to buy it.
Just because you’re minimalist, that doesn’t mean you don’t have a personality. Every single minimalist can achieve minimalism in different ways. It’s just about being intentional about what you’re choosing and making sure those things serve some sort of purpose or function in your life.
They’re like, “Oh, I’m not even minimalist, but I own less than you.”
When friends come over, they think it’ll be that traditional German minimalist, nothing on an walls or services. Well, no ...
A lot of people thing that minimalism means not having any furniture and having 10 belongings in your home. Or others might think that minimalism is all about having an all black and white space and no personality and being really “unjoyful.” But for myself, and a lot of people in this movement, minimalism means being satisfied with where you are and just a simple amount of belongings that are just your necessities, and not consuming yourself over so many things or tasks that you have to do every single day ... It’s not about paring it down to a specific style or aesthetic or number of belongings, it’s really just about your individual perspective of how much you own and your relationship with your stuff.
I’m kinda of a Marie Kondo fan ... she got me on that path of getting rid of things that weren’t important to you, not accumulating the things you didn’t need, and just keeping the things you truly needed and were truly significant.
The whole Marie Kondo thing was that you hold it and does it spark joy? And if it does, you keep it, if it doesn’t, you talk to it and you thank it for it’s service.
If I have something that is meaningful to me, I’ll display it.
I had all this sheet music that was my mom’s and grandmother’s ... I couldn’t let go of it ... I realized I don’t have to keep it sitting in a drawer. It’s not bringing me any joy sitting in a drawer.
Less about acquisition and more about retaining what is important and meaningful.
It’s hard because I have a lot of hobbies. I’m an outdoorsman, I’m a musician, I’m a visual artist, I work crews so I have a lot of gear, I’m a disaster worker. I have tons of equipment that I have to have for my various jobs and hobbies, so it’s hard to balance not acquiring more gear, and storing and organizing it.
They say if you want to be a minimalist you have to get rid of everything, like you can’t enjoy things ... “Oh you can’t be a minimalist and like makeup.” But, you can apply minimalism to you different interests.
Everyone has different opinions. Some people said they have less things than me and they’re not even minimalist. Then, how can I call this a minimalist apartment tour? Other people say I have no personality whatsoever.
For our wedding, my wife and I said very specifically we didn’t want gifts from people ... I said, “Throw it all away, we’re trying to get rid of this crap!” “No, somebody gave it, we have to care about it!” It’s been a source of tensions, like we’ve had fights about it.
Most folks, they envy the benefits. Oh, it must be nice to have no clutter, it must be nice to let go of things. But at the same time, they almost feel threatened because they’re like, “I can’t do that, I would never do that, I could never get rid of my things, but oh what if somebody needed it one day.” Well, that’s okay. You keep what’s good for you. I’m gonna keep going down this path.
You realize you’re never gonna be able to keep, or buy, the nicest things ... The futility of it just kinda dawned on me.
We’re taught not to worry so much about this world, but look at the things that are going to be everlasting and eternal.
The more that I read the Bible, the more that I kinda looked into the way that Jesus lived, the more I saw that he was a very simple man himself, and he himself told people, don’t worry about the things that you eat, the things that you’re wearing.
My mom drives me to the train station and on the way, we pray together. I think in that way, I’m able to calm down before the day.
Instead of spending $4 to take the light rail, everyone just wants to Uber ... ends up cramming your schedule like crazy so you don’t have any moments of pause to chill.
It’s physical and mental. When you let go of the physical part, then everything becomes simpler mentally.
We fall into the comfort of a lot of material things.
Because we have enough money to live on and buy things we don’t need, we fall into that comfort of thinking that you will have all these things forever. But everything is temporary, except for the way that you know yourself and they way that you know God.
I have a lot in my brain. To be able to simplify that, I have less to worry about.
In general, I’m able to not worry about the way that I look and the way that I’m thinking of things; I’m just able to live in the moment.
Just rely on the person that you are to say everything, you don’t really need all these extra things.
I just brush my teeth, wash my face, put on some moisturizer, and I walk to the car; it doesn’t get more simple than that.
I think a lot of people think you need a million things to do what you’re passionate about ... if you can do that without really expensive things, when you have nothing to work with, it shows what you’re actually capable of ... You’re actually able to grow and test yourself.
I think a lot of people don’t care [if I’m a minimalist] ... Some people when they get to know you, they see that you’re happier or you’re able to do some things differently; the contrast makes them realize that they can make some improvements if they want to.
All these added benefits. I had more money, I had less clutter, I had more time, it was easier to clean. I felt better, it was really changing.
Lack of clutter
Practical and clean
Intentionality
Simplifying your life
Simplicity is key
Living minimally means that I live with only things that I need.
Minimalism is really about just living with only what you need and not getting the stuff you don’t need.
There’s the stereotypical idea of minimalism like you only have what you need to live and have to get rid of everything you own. But, it’s really personal and it’s more about knowing yourself and what you actually need.
Aika San Diego: I’ve used to look at “minimalism” from one perspective. Minimalists I would see on YouTube were pretty similar where they all advocated for productivity, creativity, and/or good finance practices. They would talk about how much happier they were once they applied “minimalism” to their life. So I thought if I wanted to be happier, I needed to do what they do. I listened to their stories, looked at what they got rid of, what they kept, and overall how they lived their life. Sure, I was able to implement some of their practices. However, I could never reach their level of “minimalism”. I couldn’t apply their specific lifestyle to mine 100%. I learned the reason is because my life, my upbringing, and my circumstances are much different than theirs. What is best for them won’t necessarily be best for me. Some might be happiest with as little things as possible. But what if you have a strong sentimental relationship with your things. So, instead of keeping stored away, you might display the ones that keep you happy and get rid of the ones that don’t. Maybe you’re someone who spends too much money on things that end up going to waste. So, you limit yourself in what you buy, while saving money at the same time. Maybe it’s not about things at all. Your focus is on your relationships with others and yourself. Ultimately, “minimalism” is about being intentional. Whether it be the intentionality of your belongings, clothes, priorities, or relationships, it is up to you determine that. Being mindful of this is what makes you a minimalist.
2018