“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” - Leonardo da Vinci
Take a long hard look at all your stuff. Now throw it all out.
Accumulation vs Liberation
I would argue that up to 80% of what people own is functionally useless to them and can even cause more stress and unhappiness. The fact is, most people are caught up in an accumulation mindset. We are taught from a young age to always strive for more, work hard, buy a house and become just like mommy and daddy. It's an insidious concept inceptioned into our brains from childhood, and most never cure themselves of this ailment. In actuality, what really makes humans happy is not getting more stuff, its getting more freedom. We have it all backwards. And believe me, no one was worse than me. I always wanted the new thing or gadget. Luckily, I converted not long ago.
I took a good look at my posssessions and went throguh the arduous task of throwing away, or giving to charity all the things I didn't need. It's still not perfect, and I'm pretty sure there's a lot more stuff I can get rid of. But I'm also pretty sure I could pack most of my life into a suitcase or two and bounce.
And I've never been happier.
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| In case you didn't know |
The biggest difference however, is not just what I own. It's the mentality I employ. I still buy new stuff, but the focus is completely different. You need to realize that any material thing you buy ultimately equates to an experience. When you spend money, you essentially spend time (the time you spent making the money) and so indirectly spend a portion of your life. When you think of it that way, it makes you think twice before blowing cash away.
So, when you spend money (life) to buy things (experiences), don't get too wrapped up in the thing itself. Having something is not a goal unto itself and people who hoard things better have a good reason (for example an art collection that serves as an investment vehicle). Getting something just because you want to own it, means you want the experience of taking something and keeping it just for yourself. This is an essentially childish mindset and you now have something in common with kindergarden children (gimme! its mine!). Let's all try and be adults here.
The Neonaissance Human, wise in the ways of the world and enlightened, always attempts to move away from a mentality of accumulation and towards liberation. In this, the goal should not be to accumulate things, but to strip away superfluous fatty tissue and lean out your life experience. Any thing you spend life credits on should be toward giving you an experience which will enrich your reality.
An accumulation mindset is a little old fashioned and most of our older generation are plagued by this; the desire to accumulate and collect. You see the afflicted lugging around possesions and spending whole weekends "clearing out the basement". What a waste of life credits. The modern definition of wealth means mobility, freedom, and happiness. Money is a tool that facilitates this. Objects and things are tools that facilitate this. Sure, it's important to make money and have the things you need, but it's important to look at how you do this. What is the net experience of life you want? If you wind up just working for money and things at the expense of mobility, freedom, and happiness, you'll wind up with a negative balance. There are plenty of suicidal millionaires out there, believe me.
The reason our parents' generation were so obsessed with accumulation is that most of them either came from destitution and poverty or were raised in a post-world-war/cold-war era where resources and jobs were scarce, owning things was considered high status, and equal playing field platforms like the internet didn't exist. People living in our modern world are faced with the opposite problem. Information overload, cheap, foreign manufactured products, and millions of impulses bombarding us on a daily basis. Our challenge now, is managing information. Most of us can whip out our phone and google anything about anything. It's a miracle actually. The challenge is how to deal with it.
The best way to manage information and our material possessions is through constant simplification. Constantly striving for elegance; the smallest number of moving parts.
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| Is it a spoon? bowl? fork? Its all of them! |
The 80/20 of Minimalism
Pareto's law states that 80% of the effects of a given circumstance arise from 20% of the causes. In sales, this means that 20% of your clients likely give you 80% of your revenue. In personal minimalism, it stands to reason that approximately 20% of your stuff provides you 80% of your happiness and functionality. The trick is knowing what the 20% is.
If in doubt as to whether something is a part of that elusive 20%, ask yourself these questions:
1. Have I used this item in the last month?
2. If this item is a "memory" do I regularly enjoy that memory or intend on passing it down to my offspring?
3. Will my offspring be happy to have this "memory" (or will it be a burden for them to manage)?
4. Does owning and taking care of this item make me happy?
5. Am I keeping this item because of the "sunk-cost" phenomenon (i.e. I'm keeping it not because I need/like it, but because it was expensive)?
6. Would someone less fortunate be better off with this item?
7. If a hurricane was coming in 3 hours and was going to blow my house down, would this make it in the list of items I could fit in one suitcase?
If you answered NO to any of the questions 1,2,3,4 and 7, and YES to any of the questions 5 and 6, you need to seriously consider why you're still keeping this item.
The Progression to Minimalism
Ok, so you've realized you're a hoarding materialist who can't even let go of the blankie you had when you were five, now what? Well, in the beginning, you'll probably spend a great deal of time just organizing and getting rid of stuff, which is ok. Don't feel bad if you have to throw stuff out. Yes, you may be being "wasteful" now, but in the long run you'll consume far less that you're throwing away by eschewing a life of hoarding and embracing a life of minimalism.
Here's a good progression to follow:
1. Start Big (1-2 days): In my experience, It's good to have one big blow-out to get you started. Put away a weekend, rent a van, and get nasty. Your grandma gave you those shoes? Too bad, you haven't used them since 1985. Chuck em'. You don't need to be specific, and if there's a few casualties on the way, you'll survive them. The idea here is to use this as an emotional catharsis, a purging. An emergence of the new, minimalist butterfly from the sluggish, unsightly larvae from whence you came.
2. Fine Tuning (1-2 years): Now that you've done your big move, the next few weeks, months, or years will be dedicated to all those niggly little things that just won't go away. Things that you simply can't find a place for, objects that have a medium level of memory attached to them that are hard to let go of, or things that are simply difficult to dispose of. This will take time. Just remember our 80/20 rule.
3. Maintainance: (2+ years): Now that you've pared down your items to the crucial 20% the goal is maintaining this, with constant vigilance and mindfulness. Also, profylaktic measures can be taken to ensure you don't get into a situation which will cause hoarding. Assosiating with like-minded people helps, or converting your misled brethren. I have friends who have lived out of a suitcase for almost a decade, are successful and perfectly happy; like my coach and friend, Steve Maxwell.
The Cure and the Cause
In our efforts to create more and do more, humanity (at least in the developed world) have become far too good at this. We are literally drowning in our own consumerism. But this doesn't mean we all need to become bhuddist monks and give up all our possesions, we simply need to be mindful and intelligent consumers. Take what you need and be precise in what you want. The way things are going right now is DEFINETLY unsustainable, and ironically, the thing that will make your life better, will also save the world.
So don't be lame.. You want to save the world right?!
