Some people think that minimalism or simple living is all about saving money. Why else would we buy less stuff or live in a smaller home? To be sure, many of us do wish to live more frugally and bring down our cost of living. I’ve certainly worked hard over the past several years to decrease debt and increase savings. I knew that if I wanted more job choices or experiences like traveling, I’d have to reduce my cost of living. For many of us simplifying our lives, spending less eventually becomes more a by-product than the end goal. Joshua Fields Millburn, one of The Minimalists, writes, “when I was first intrigued by minimalism, “better” meant smaller, less costly, dispossession. But over the years, minimalism has helped me find the middle ground. Today, “better” means more appropriate, ideal, fewer but higher quality.” Quality over quantity.
This realization hit me sometime around my third or fourth kitchen decluttering. I noticed that all my bowls were the same size, shape, and color. Boring! The uniformity of the bowls, which I use for cereal, salads, and soups, did not represent the color and variety I want in my life. A small thing? Yes. But I reasoned that if I was going to minimize the items I deemed necessary in my life, I wanted those items to reflect more than the fact that my dishes matched. I donated those bowls and started collecting ones I loved. Sure, these bowls cost more money, but even after a couple of years, I still enjoy choosing which one to use. I have fewer, but more beautiful, bowls. Quality over quantity.
When I quit my job a few months ago, I knew I’d have to be extra careful with my budget. I already track my spending, so I have a good idea where my money goes, but I knew I’d need to cut back more. I eat out less, give up outings that may tempt me into needless shopping, go to the library more than bookstores, and check my account balance frequently. Nevertheless, a few weeks after quitting, I splurged and bought a bike. I went to a specialty bicycle shop to get a higher quality bike (though one of their least expensive). Then I shopped around for a helmet, basket rack, basket, and lock. All in all, it cost me a pretty penny (lots of pennies). Why didn’t I just go to a big box store for a cheaper bike? Quality over quantity.
Why would I spend so much on an unnecessary item when I’m on a tight budget? I’d been thinking of getting a bike ever since I moved to Florida. When I moved to my smaller house in a more bike-friendly area, I was determined. I had, and still have, plans to bike more instead of drive, to decrease my carbon footprint. And yet, when I did a test ride in the store’s parking lot, all I thought was how joyous it was to ride a bike on a beautiful day. I felt like I was 10 again, back to the days when I had a purple stingray with purple and white handlebar streamers and rode a bike for the pure fun of it. I still feel that way when I go riding. Was it worth it to spend the money? It was for me. My savings may have decreased, but my joy has increased. Quality over quantity.
Of course, opting to declutter items that are lower in quality and replace them with higher quality ones has to be balanced with available funds. Fortunately, higher quality or value doesn’t necessarily mean higher cost. Beauty is in the eye of the minimalist beholder. Just don’t get too bogged down in how many items or how simple a life you think a “real minimalist” should have. As Leo Babauta writes, “It’s not just a matter of reducing clutter or saving money … it’s a matter of slowing down to enjoy life more, of savoring life’s simple pleasures…” Quality over quantity!
RESOURCES
Babauta, Leo Zen Habits
Millburn, Joshua Fields and Ryan Nicodemus The Minimalists
For more resources, go to this page: Resources
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Love your posts! Always inspiring. Like your points of view:)
Thanks so much, Caren!
Spectacular! You hit the proverbial nail on the head. I love the new bike – may it bring you endless amounts of joy and functionality too.
Thanks! I’m enjoying the bike a lot!
Good for you on the bike purchase. Now that warmer weather is arriving, I want to get on my bicycle more.
I’ve been thinking about that whole issue of quantity over quality and oddly, enough, made a decision a while back that when I am done with my spending ban I want to slowly start replacing dishes with fewer but more beautiful pottery pieces.
That’s kind of what I did. Slowly but surely, I replaced the cheaper or less joy-sparking items with ones that I really loved, even if they cost more. I may have fewer items, but the ones I have, really do “spark joy”!