The Path of Happiness With Minimalism
the mantra of disconnection from distraction.
Minimalism is the philosophy that frees us not just from physical clutter but from all the excesses of modern life so that we can focus on what’s important to us.
You can formulate it in terms of your stuff, schedule, or thoughts, but in each case, it’s about clearing out the noise to live more intentionally.
The Essence of Minimalism
Central to minimalism are the notions that more isn’t necessarily better,
more can indeed be less, less can be more, and more often than not, less is actually more.
It’s about recognizing that our stuff, commitments, and habits work for or against us and that by consciously editing out what doesn’t work, we create space for what does.
Decluttering Your Physical Space
The most immediate and ‘tactile’ expression of minimalism would be the clearing of our space, the physical space around us.
This means examining every possession, one by one, determining which of these items are useful to us, and discarding the rest — clothes that have been hanging in the wardrobe without being worn for years, for example, some piece of hardware that has been lying in a drawer unused for months, old trinkets that no longer carry a special meaning. This is decluttering, and it helps us create a clean, harmonious living space.
But true minimalism is not just about decluttering.
It is also about being more mindful about what you allow into the world in the first place. After all, before you buy things, isn’t it worth asking yourself whether this buy is consistent with your values and will this transaction enrich your life in a positive way?
If you practice a more discriminating form of consumption, you will accumulate less surplus and that surplus will not drain your finances. It will also train you to treasure what you already have.
Streamlining Your Daily Routine
It’s not just about the things. Minimalism also requires us to cut down on the activities and commitments that take up so much of our time. In some societies, being busy is a mark of status. In ours, it’s a usual standard of living. We’re encouraged to do more and more. We’re expected to.
Minimalism teaches you to say no to activities and commitments that don’t align with your priorities or with what you believe will make you genuinely happy.
Look at your calendar:
where can you pare down and simplify?
Can you cut back on social events to have more time for self-care or relaxation?
Can you delegate tasks at work or at home to others so that you have less cognitive work on your plate?
We can create a fuller and more meaningful life by paring down the clutter.
Clearing Mental Clutter
Our thoughts and feelings can be cluttered with all the messages we hear and images we see in this digital era. It is up to us to choose to have a peaceful mind or otherwise let external factors control it. Among various practices’ mindfulness is one technique for handling our own consciousness, meditation on the other hand leads to inner peace.
This reminds me of mindfulness, which is when you pay close attention to what is happening right now with an open mind and with curiosity but without making judgments or getting stuck on what you see.
mindfulness means getting in touch with your thoughts and feelings in a way that makes you more aware of what is happening in your mind and body. When you are able to do this, you find it easier to distance yourself from unwanted thoughts or feelings and to allow them go because they do not serve you well in any way; even if you frequently carry them around like something precious which occupies almost all the place in your headspace. Therefore, once all of these are eliminated from your head, one creates room for happiness, cheerfulness, thankfulness and even creativity.
Embracing the Benefits of Minimalism
We don’t need fewer things — or fewer commitments — to become minimalists. We only need to figure out how to regain control over our lives, and to make more space in them for what really matters.
Once we clear the decks of our things and the cobwebs from our calendars and to-do lists, we might be better positioned to gain much-needed clarity about what is most important in our lives. Perhaps we’ll be satisfied with having a roof over our heads and food in the cupboard while others sacrifice more for us. Or maybe we’ll be able to enjoy our solitude more, or have more time for the pursuits we care about or for connecting with others in deeply meaningful ways.
Perhaps, if we are minimalists, we will live more simply in order to live more fully.
In a place that emphasizes ownership and occupation as signs of economic and social progress, minimalism might be the opposite of more. But it could also be the way to more.
possessing less of what doesn’t matter.
So why not begin to live more minimally today? Release the unnecessary clutter in one part of your life, your closet, calendar, and mind.
Notice what happens when you let go of the less essential things in your life. Experience what it is like to live more minimally; there is more space for clarity, peace, and joy.
Choose minimalism and experience the freedom and fullness that await you when you choose to live with less.
Hey, thanks for checking this out! I’m eager to hear your thoughts on it.
