Minimalism Can Change Your Life

Today on No Sidebar, a minimalism website, an article of mine was published. It's called "Skeptical of Minimalism? Here's how it Can Change Your Life." 

I go over five reasons why adding minimalism can seriously change aspects of your life. From your finances to your time, relationships, and peace. And having experienced all of these benefits of minimalism, I profess they are all true. Read the article to see what I'm talking about. 

If you've found this blog because you just read the article, then hurrah! Glad to have you here.

But as I was thinking through this topic again, I realized I needed to add one more; there are six reasons why minimalism can change your life, and the last one is all-encompassing.

Freedom. The sixth reason is freedom. I even mention it in the article, but I want to devote a few more paragraphs to it.

Adding minimalism to your life allows you to reprogram your whole day, and ultimately, your whole life. You literally create the day you want to live, and you do this on repeat. Reprogramming your day through minimalism includes the five things I listed in the article: money, time, peace, love, and relationships. But minimalism also gives you the freedom to restructure your entire day to include everything you want (and exclude what you don't want.)

I mean, who doesn't want freedom? 

When you've given up the extra jobs because you aren't happy with them, you now have a day filled with fewer hours in the office.  Or perhaps you've chosen to cut back from full-time to part-time work. Whatever it is, fewer hours doing what you don't like is a huge win. Even if you're making less money.

Working the job you love creates days that are more freedom-filled. 

Maybe you're only working one job now but it's a job you adore. The hours you once spent on other jobs are hours of freedom to do the things you value. It could be spending time with family, reading more, exercising, or even sleeping!

You may give up income to minimize your life, but if you choose to live the minimalist lifestyle, doesn't that mean you're purchasing less too? If you're buying less, and working fewer hours, it works out in your favor.

When I got rid of a couple part-time jobs that were draining me of my creative energy, my income dropped. But the time spent on the jobs I kept (that I loved) is far more productive today. Ultimately, I'm making more now because I'm focused on the work I want to do. And I'm far less stressed. 

Funny how that works.

Minimalism can change your life whether it's minimizing the clothes in your closet or taking out extraneous hours of work that pull you away from your true calling. When you love what you do - when you streamline your life - you have more freedom to live with your finances, time, relationships, peace, and love.

I've never been more productive in doing what I love to do since becoming a minimalist. My life has completely changed. I wake up overjoyed that I get to do what I love and know my schedule is my creation - and I'm doing it all exactly like I want.

When less is more, you've learned the secret of succeeding in everything you put your hand to. And that success correlates to freedom: freedom to travel, freedom to love what you want to love, freedom to live a more fulfilling life. 

The photo in this article is a picture I took seven years ago today! I was in Venice with one of my greatest friends on the trip of a lifetime. This was the vacation that started my quest for minimal living. When you live out of a very small suitcase for ten days, it's liberating. And I yearned to have that simplicity of living with a small wardrobe for my life at home. The rest is history.

Minimalism can change your life. All you have to want is freedom over anything else. And when you have freedom, the benefits of money, time, peace, love, and relationships all come in as bonus counterparts to support your new way of living.

Start small. Maybe work on your closet this month, and your garage next month. As you work your way to creating the intentional and minimal life you yearn for, those small changes add up to one giant life of freedom.