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Tired of the rat race? Looking to simplify your life? Are you sick of and tired of being sick and tired? Hate looking at the credit card bills that come in each month? There is a solution to these problems. It’s call living a minimalist lifestyle.
If you are considering the minimalist lifestyle, welcome to the club. My daughter, Aly, started living minimally a year or so before she introduced me to the lifestyle. Once I started, I’ve never looked back because it has truly made my life much more simpler. Simpler has equated to happier for me BUT I do own a house, truck, and run my business from my property. To me living minimally means to only use what I consume.
If you are ready to get started, don’t just get rid of everything you own or try to be like those folks that allow themselves to own 100 items. It’s not practical or sustainable in the beginning when you’re learning not only how to live minimally but if it’s something you’ll enjoy doing.
Start slowly. Maybe begin with a room or even more simply, a drawer in a room. What I love the most about living minimally is not being cluttered. My counters are clean and clear and uncluttered to me is peaceful. The first room I started with was the kitchen and it has stayed uncluttered for quite some time now and that makes me happy.
Also living minimally does not just apply to what you have in your house. It’s a lifestyle. Take a day and just unplug from the world. Set the phone down. Don’t clear your emails. Spend time doing something you love or with your family and really talk and enjoy each other.
Learn to just say no. No you don’t need to buy another pair of shoes. No your kids don’t need another video game. No your family does not need to add another activity to the other 5 already on the schedule. No you don’t need to volunteer for another event. Don’t add anything else onto the busy life you are already living for a few weeks and see how it feels. If it still feels like too much, take something off the list and continue until you feel a sense of calmness and balance for you and your family. Only you know what is right for your family.
Choose to make a living by doing something you enjoy and like to do. I personally walked away from the corporate world 15 years ago and would never go back. Too much stress and too little time and money was the rule when I worked for someone else. I prefer to make my own rules and live my life my way. Yes I have two businesses but I love marketing and I love fitness so it doesn’t feel like work.
Make memories not more bills. Yes you can still travel and vacation but really think about it before you start whipping out the credit card. There are many great ways to find affordable places while traveling including renting full houses for less than you would a night in a hotel. Another option that my family did when the girls were younger was camping. We camped all over the state of Florida in a little pop-up camper. To this day, both my girls love to be outside.
Living minimally doesn’t have to be a shock to the system. Do it your way.
Blessings,
Denise
For tips on how to begin your decluttering journey, you can Start Here, or snag a copy of the 30 Day Challenge (our Minimalism and Decluttering eBook).
Purchase Your Copy on.... Amazon | Nook | Smashwords | MIS Store
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