How Is Life In The Style Of Minimalism?
“In order to seek one’s own direction, one must simplify the mechanics of ordinary, everyday life.” – Plato
Why do you think simple life is important for smart and successful people?
Most of them have always encouraged us to live ‘simply. ‘
But what is the secret of this lifestyle?
In this article, I have answered these questions and introduce you to the most well known ‘simple lifestyle’. This lifestyle is derived from the philosophy of minimalism. A philosophy that has ancient roots, but has recently gained many fans. You may have heard its name before. But in this article I want to tell you why you should apply this philosophy in your life too!
There are many people who are tired of their busy life. For this reason, they have chosen a minimalist lifestyle. Maybe by reading this article, you will decide to change your lifestyle too. I am sure that in the not too distant future, most people will become minimalists.
What Is The Philosophy Of Minimalism?
Minimalism simply means ‘reaching simplicity’.
Simplicity in life is a kind of originality. So minimalism also emphasizes originality. The main focus of this philosophy is on reducing surrounding objects; But this simplification is applicable in every aspect of life. People who use this philosophy in their lives are called minimalists.
This term is used in art, architecture, interior decoration and even everyday life.
When the term minimalism is used, it means that everything should be in its best state. In the same way, in minimalism, order and detail are very much considered. Many artists use this style for the beauty of their works.
Using the style of minimalism makes us have more meaningful, deeper and more beautiful experiences in life. This philosophy has given peace and good feeling to the lives of many people in the world.
Now, I want to answer an important question. (This section will help you to understand the importance of minimalism in life.)
Why Should We Become Minimalists?
In the following, I want to present important reasons for becoming a minimalist.
Give yourself the gift of simplicity and peace with minimalism
Minimalism helps you get rid of the chaos and complications of the world. With minimalism, you distance yourself from unnecessary accessories, say goodbye to consumerism and return simplicity to your life. Simplicity will always be accompanied by peace. If you want to experience real peace in life, minimalism is the best choice.
Your daily stress and anxiety will be minimized with minimalism
Psychologists believe that being in a simple and calm environment helps a lot to improve your stress and even anxiety. Crowding often sets off an alarm in the brain. For this reason, minimalism creates the greatest sense of peace by balancing the colors of the environment.
For example, it is common to use neutral colors (white, black, gray, cream, beige, etc.) in minimalism. Using these colors in home design and clothes helps to reduce some anxiety symptoms.
You find your true values
When you empty your life of extra and unnecessary things, you will reach a deeper understanding of yourself. Minimalism allows you to know the best version of yourself and strive to reach it. How? When you keep your mind calm and strong with the style of minimalism, your self-awareness will be maximized. In the end, you can find your values and take a step towards reaching your meaningful goals.
Meaningful goals are different from other goals… And they can have different meaning for any of us depending on our life choices, the environment that we live, in and our priorities, and it definitely can change, as we change and bring changes to our life.
Simplicity and creativity, two eternal friends!
Have you ever wondered why people’s creativity was higher in ancient times? The answer to this question is interesting. In the past, the world was not so busy. The technology was not advanced. People lived more simply. These apparently simple factors made their minds full of creative ideas. If you look at the lives of creative and successful people in the world, you will understand that they have made simplicity the principle of their lives.
In short, live simply to become more creative. Of course, simplicity is only one of the ways to increase creativity. (There are many ways to be more creative that we have mentioned in the linked article. I suggest you read it.)
You will save the environment
When you are a minimalist, you will avoid consumption. This in turn makes you protect the environment. Nature has suffered a lot due to human consumption and waste production. One of the main values of minimalists is reducing consumption to save the environment.
You save your time, money and energy
When you are a minimalist, you don’t spend your money on unnecessary items. Also, you don’t waste your time and energy for shopping and consumption. So you spend these three vital factors for really valuable issues. In the end, because you have made the best investment, the best results will come to you.
These are the main reasons to become a minimalist. And of course, they are not the only reasons.
Everyone who makes minimalism their lifestyle experiences different positive effects. In the end, it can be said that being a minimalist improves your life and the lives of others in many ways.
In addition to these, it also reduces fatigue in decision making.
Why Are Minimalist People Special?
Being a minimalist is not only defined in the physical world. Minimalist people have minimalist attitudes. By the way, this way of thinking has made them special. Next, I want to talk about the characteristics and attitudes of these people.
Focus on simplicity:
Minimalist people tend to have everything in its best state. They avoid unnecessary crowds. They like to make their life with the least complexity.
Having accurate choices:
These people pay great attention to their smallest choices. They try to make decisions based on their life values. When buying, these people pay attention to the quality of items and conformity with the style of minimalism.
In fact, quality is more important to them than the quantity!
Having a regular routine:
Another effect of simplicity and the philosophy of minimalism is to bring order to life.
Most minimalists have a fixed routine for themselves. They also have a certain commitment to their routine. No matter how bad their situation is are, they stick to their plan 90% of the time.
Non-dependence on material things:
These people give more importance to positive and relaxing experiences in life than material things. For them, material things do not have a special priority in their life. Instead, they give more importance to the things that bring true value to their lives such as friends and family, traveling and gaining new experiences, and developing their own self instead of insisting on showing-off what they have to others in order to gain recognition or value. Their life value goes beyond materialistic things.
Respect for the environment:
One of the goals of minimalists is to help preserve the environment by avoiding consumption. Since the use of natural resources is increasing day by day, they help nature a lot.
Giving importance to real relationships:
One of the important values of minimalists is to expand their connections in the real world. They know that having face-to-face relationships with others is effective in the level of happiness and satisfaction with life. Also, establishing a deep connection with the outside world leads to new experiences and attractive opportunities.
Increasing self-awareness:
Self-actualization and self-awareness are two of the important goals the philosophy of of minimalism. Minimalists are always trying to know their reality, personality and mind, better. They believe that the best science is self-knowledge. Also, meditation and yoga are the daily routine of many minimalists. This is why they often seem like wise and calm people.
Paying attention to your time, energy:
Minimalist people are those who know the value of their time and energy. They don’t waste their time on meaningless things. Also, they put their energy only for important and purposeful tasks. This makes them have multiple results in a shorter period of time.
Reduction of digital pages in life:
The common feature among all minimalists is that they have made the virtual world very dim for themselves. They know that too much use of technology and the digital world does not benefit them much. Even many extreme minimalists do not have the updated versions of smartphones. This means they know what problems the presence of cyberspace will cause them. This not only gives them privacy but also increases their concentration.
Knowing the priorities and having a purposeful life:
One of the important habits of minimalists is that they review their priorities and values every once in a while.
Prioritization is one of the principles of their life. If their priorities change, they adjust their lives accordingly. Also, by classifying their priorities, they plan and act to achieve their goals. So, they can create a purposeful life for themselves.
If you learn goal setting and do basic planning to achieve your life goals, you can achieve the results that you are looking for in a more organized way. If you don’t know how to set goals and plan properly, you will not fail in life but having a clear plan and knowing you direction will definitely help you moving forward in a more result oriented way.
Has Minimalism Been Criticized?
Certainly, every philosophy has its supporters and opponents. This also applies to the minimalism. Here, it is good to have a look at the opinions of the critics of this philosophy:
-Some people believe that minimalism may cause communication problems. For example, as a minimalist, you should have fewer communication devices than others. You should minimize the use of virtual networks. This makes you less connected to the virtual world.
In response to this issue, we must say that it does not matter how much your virtual communication decreases. The important thing is that you can expand your real connections. Some researches has proven that having real relationships increases the feeling of happiness in people.
-Some critics believe that the use of minimalism in art has caused the destruction of beauty. They see the beauty in extra clutter or too much complexity. Of course, this depends on people’s taste as art has many different forms. But if you look at the history of human beings likings you can see that people have always been very interested in simplicity.
-Many critics think that by using the style of minimalism, people neglect their life needs.
If we say that the goal of minimalism is to provide the basic needs in the best possible way.
To implement minimalism in life, we need deep thinking and careful decision making. For this reason, some consider this work to be complicated and time-consuming. However, every lifestyle has its own difficulties and maybe minimalism has the least complexity. A person who really wants to live well chooses this lifestyle based on their budget, their life occasions and their own personal choices in most cases.
How Can I Become A Minimalist?
I don’t know how different your lifestyle is from the minimalist people, in some cultures minimalism in part o f life while in other cultures it is not. But if you have decided to become more minimalistic in your life, it’s never too late to become a minimalist.
If you want to implement minimalism in your life, you can start today by using the contents of this article. You have to start with your own mentality and declutter your own mind and reality in order to prepare your life to become more minimalistic. Practice a lot, to think and act like a minimalist. Definitely, you can learn based on your own life choices, and hopefully the points that I mentioned in this article will help you too.
You should practice so much that the mentality of minimalism becomes part of your mindset. That means you have to turn this lifestyle into a habit. If you don’t know how to do this, it’s good to look at the the habit-forming subjects. Everything about habituation is mentioned there. When you create the habit of being a minimalist, your personality and way of thinking will be very close to minimalist people.
Remember that becoming a minimalist is not an easy task. You must continuously strive and be committed to this lifestyle. Instead, when you can become a minimalist, you will feel the change completely. You will experience the joy of simple life. That’s when you say to yourself it was worth it!
Does Minimalism Conflict With Having Valuable Possessions In Life?
This does not mean that having material possessions is inherently wrong. The problem today seems to be the meaning we attach to our things: As the society dictates us, we must be like other to have security in our status somehow, so we tend to give our things too much meaning. For example, not having a certain look, or certain brand, or outfit that is the new trend may make us feel insecure in a crowd. Too often, we don’t use our health, relationships, interests, personal growth, and desire to help others. Rather, we only allow the realm of these about ourselves. Do you want to own a car or a house? Great, have it! Do you want to start a family and have a job? If these things are important to you, then great. Minimalism is not against having good things in life, its about knowing the reason, the real value and our real intentions for wanting them. Minimalism is a way of thinking that simply allows you to make these important decisions more consciously.
What Does Minimalism Help Us With?
Following the techniques of minimalism or the art of decluttering will help you to:
- Eliminate grievances
- Take back your time and manage it
- Live in the moment
- Look for your interests
- Discover the main missions of life
- Experience true freedom
- Produce more and consume less
- Focus on your health
- Experience personal growth
- Help others beyond yourself
- Get rid of extra things
- Discover your life purpose
Minimal life and happiness
By incorporating minimalism into our lives, we can find a calm and lasting happiness, and that’s what we’re all looking for, isn’t it?
We all want to be peaceful and happy in our life. Minimalists seek happiness not through wealth, but through life itself! So, it is up to you to decide what is necessary in your life and what is superfluous.
Beware of taking minimalism wrong!
Remember that minimalism is a tool like any other tool, and like many other good things in life, you shouldn’t become extreme about it… It is enough to do the exercises that are useful for you and your own reality and help you live a happier life.
Remember that when we risk our lives to have more things than others, we are not rewarded. Also, due to having much less than others, we do not receive a reward. The important thing is to do what makes us have a better life and help us feel better deep in our own heart.
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