Two weeks ago, the writer Cait Flanders wrote a farewell blog post to her readers. Perhaps you’ve read her blog, known as Blonde on a Budget in the early years, or her book, The Year of Less. While she is still working on projects like podcasts and a second book, she has decided to stop writing her blog. She’d been blogging about her life, particularly about money issues, for eight years, so who could blame her? Her farewell post is interesting and thoughtful, giving several reasons for her decision. One reason in particular stood out for me:
“I’ve found myself experiencing a growing frustration with some content in the minimalism/simple living space. In short: the solutions we are offering are way too simple. We can’t keep telling people that simplifying is going to solve all their problems . . . The real work comes next and it is hard.”
I quickly looked over my own blog posts to check if I had fallen into that trap. Thankfully, I see that I had not, at least not as a blanket statement about the benefits of minimalism.
I’ve been as transparent as possible about glitches and stumbles on my own minimalist journey. I’ve shown my frustrations along with the ups and downs about living a simpler life. Most recently, I’ve described how quitting a job I’d had for more than a decade to try a more meaningful one didn’t work out as planned. Oh well. That’s life, right?
Minimalism doesn’t mean that all our problems will be solved. There are no guarantees that we will be happier. While I believe that living a simpler life can lead to a better life, I also understand that it’s not for everyone. Nevertheless, for those of us who do lean towards minimalism and simple living, it’s a good idea to re-examine periodically what that means to us. This has led me to review some of the myths that surround a minimalist lifestyle.
Minimalist Myth #1: Minimalists can’t go shopping. Some people go on self-imposed shopping bans (as did Cait Flanders), but these are temporary and for varying lengths of time. I still buy books, clothes, and household goods that I don’t absolutely need to have. However, I don’t indulge in compulsive or excessive consumerism. I plan for purchases and don’t go into debt to acquire them. The goal is to be mindful and deliberate when consuming.
Minimalist Myth #2: Decluttering = Minimalism. Many people first leaning into minimalism focus solely on getting rid of their stuff. It’s certainly a good place to start, and it’s a tangible task, which is quite satisfying. We see the results right in front of our eyes! The pitfall is assuming that decluttering is all there is to living simply or that decluttering is a linear process with a finishing line.
o matter how often we play The Minimalism Game (or use some other strategy to jump start the process), there will always be stuff. We still have to buy things now and then, and as we go through life, we may acquire new perspectives about what is truly necessary, which will lead to more decluttering. It slows down, but it never completely ends. Then there is the matter of decluttering our digital world, our schedules, our obligations, our relationships, etc. It’s not just about the clutter.
Minimalist Myth #3: A “real” minimalist has X number of possessions. This is related to myths #1 and #2 as it focuses on limitations of what we own. It is perpetuated by books relating (bragging?) how an author lives with 100 or 50 items or perhaps how all the author’s possessions fit in one backpack. I enjoy reading some of these accounts in the same way I enjoy reading about fixing up a house in Tuscany or traveling around the world with children. They are interesting narratives and I may pick up some useful information, but I wouldn’t want to do it myself.
The size of home, amount of possessions, or number of obligations is very personal. Having books to read and buying pretty tea dishes to enjoy teatime add value to my life. That doesn’t kick me out of the minimalist club. We must each decide what is essential and what adds value to our lives.
Minimalist Myth #4: A minimalist lifestyle has no stress. Like other minimalist myths, there is a grain of truth to this, but the promise of stress-free living is misleading. The writer Gretchen Rubin often discusses the idea that “outer order brings inner calm,” and her next book will focus on this concept. Of course, “order” could apply to being tidy or organized or time management, but her discussions and the summary of her upcoming book show that she emphasizes getting rid of clutter. To be fair, she includes the caveat that outer order leads to inner calm for most, but not all, people.
I love living in a home that has little clutter and is (usually) neat and organized. However, I have friends, and you probably do too, who feel better when surrounded by piles of their stuff. More important for me and, I suspect many others, is to have fewer obligations cluttering up my schedule and little to no debt in my banking accounts. Stress is a part of life, so proceed with caution when falling too much in love with this myth. Minimalism may help you minimize stress, but it won’t make stress go away completely.
Minimalist Myth #5: Being a minimalist and living simply will bring happiness. We may know in our heads that happiness is subjective and no single way works for everyone, but too often, we get sucked into this myth. We want to believe it in our hearts. It’s right up there with all the other myths of being happy. “If I could get rid of all this crap in my basement, closet, garage, etc., I’d be happy.” “If I could just lose 25 pounds, I’d be happy.” “If I could win the lottery and quit my job, I’d be happy.” Yes, these events may make us somewhat happier, especially in the beginning, but happiness, or a general contentment with life, is more complex. They are the beginning steps, and as Cait Flanders writes, “The real work comes next and it is hard.”
Perhaps it is because I’m in mid-life and have, hopefully, become wiser with experience, but I’ve never believed any one lifestyle or worldview can solve all our problems or make us all happy. There is no one-size-fits-all, nor is minimalism is a cure-all. In our search for simple solutions, we forget that life is often messy.
Decluttering in itself does not lead to more contentment; it is the change one experiences while going through the process. For those of us with too much—possessions or obligations—a deliberate evaluation of how much is enough can help us lead more intentional lives. I do believe that less consumption will improve our lives, our relationships, and our planet. However, whether a minimalist lifestyle solves our problems or leads to our happiness is up to each one of us to decide.
Pretty dishes for tea time bring me joy!
RESOURCES
Why I’m Retiring from Personal Blogging by Cait Flanders
For more resources, go to this page: Resources
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My Minimalist “Don’t” List: 10 Things I Don’t Do Anymore
A Few Side Effects of Minimalism
Gaining Perspective: Friendship
Good post!
Thanks!
Cait advised her news letter readers to observe the patterns of consumption…for a week. I have been logging for a few days now. There are some sources I gather inspiration for simpler living from. I subscribed to several minimalist groups on FB, several news letters, and I watch some documentaries once in a while. I see there are some variations in Minimalism and I need to find my own eventually. I am glad to be a part of this movement, and it is about each of us eventually….we have to find out what we value more than consumption. I am enjoying the process so far!
I find that tracking my expenses really helps me. Too often it’s easy to forget what we spent money on, and we tend to underestimate our expenses. I completely agree that what we call Minimalism (or what some call simple living or essentialism) has a wide range of interpretations. I also enjoy reading various minimalist blogs, listening to podcasts, and exploring the movement because it helps me see the diversity and decide for myself what works.