Minimalism is no longer a foreign concept to us, it is not only encapsulated in changing the layout of the house but also aims to change all aspects of life, especially lifestyle. According to Kyle Chayka, author of The Longing for Less: Living with Minimalism, minimalism has its roots in Buddhism and the first theories of it were coined by a British art theorist. Nowadays, minimalism has become popular in many places and at one time became a feverish trend.

What is a minimalist lifestyle?

There are many definitions of minimalism, however, they all share the same concept: this is a meaningful philosophy of life oriented towards simplicity and less materialism. According to Joshua Becker, author of The Minimalist Home: A Room-by-Room Guide to a Decluttered, Refocused Life and the blog Becoming Minimalist, “Minimalism is the promotion of the things we value most in life by removing anything that prevents us from paying attention to those important things.”

Minimalism can be applied to all aspects of life: work, relationships… However, the focus of a minimalist lifestyle is often directed at changing the living space.

When thinking of a minimalist home, the first image that flashes in you must be white paint, smooth walls with open space. The truth is that everyone can practice a minimalist lifestyle in their own way, and as author Joshua Becker said, a minimalist lifestyle is a purposeful lifestyle, every object in the house has its meaning. Accordingly, typical steps in practicing a minimalist lifestyle include: “decorating”, “organizing” and “cutting” – all aimed at providing a simple living space but each location in the house has its own role.

Benefits of a minimalist lifestyle

• Cost savings: owning fewer materials means spending less money. You also don’t have to spend extra money every month on preserving and maintaining the items you own. At that time, you will realize that instead of shopping, you can use that money to travel with your family. Experiences with relatives will be more valuable than dozens of items you buy at leisure.
• Have more time: owning fewer objects saves you time caring for, cleaning and organizing them. Even going shopping regularly takes up a lot of your time. Cutting down on what’s not really necessary gives you more time to invest in what’s most notable.
• Improve your health: having to spend time and monthly “taking care” of all the items easily makes you stressed. Becker advises, “Owning fewer objects means less stress.” From there, we can improve our health.
• Environmental protection: when we buy and use less, we contribute to the conservation of natural resources. Environmental issues always need attention and priority. Therefore, you can protect the environment starting from changing your lifestyle.
• Be more grateful: a minimalist lifestyle helps us appreciate everything around us more. This bears a striking resemblance to the concept of “mindfulness” when minimalism directs us to focus on the present and take careful consideration of the things we are truly concerned about.

Ways to practice a minimalist lifestyle

1. Focus on one room

The hardest question when starting something is always, “Where should I start?” The advice for you: choose the easiest room to decorate and focus on minimizing it. You can then use that room as a reference for the next room in the house. Besides, you can use the Clutter Free application to assist you in minimizing your home.

2. Start from the most visible areas

Once you’ve chosen a room to practice in, you should start from the most conspicuous areas such as bookshelves, tables and chairs, or floor areas. Easily obscured areas such as closets or drawers can be accessed later because you will likely be discouraged or overwhelmed by putting it all out at once. By minimizing easy-to-see areas first, you’ll see the progress of simplifying your living space and be motivated to move on.

3. Keep only what is absolutely necessary

While cleaning and redecorating the house, you should go through each item and consider carefully whether you really need this item? Is this item helping the house? Or is it just hindering you in rearranging your home?

If you’re confused about what to do with these items, Becker recommends asking some of these questions:

• Do you need this item?
• Are you using this item?
• If you don’t use this item, what will you replace it with?
• Why do you have to have this item?

4. Decorate with meaningful items

Many people tend to decorate their homes with lovely items purchased from a sale on e-commerce floors or from local stalls. However, when you have committed to a minimalist lifestyle, you must get rid of that habit and replace the decorations with the most meaningful objects such as family photos, heirlooms … When we remove unimportant things and keep the most valuable ones, we give them space to look out and reflect the culture of the family.

5. Clean up regularly

Cleaning is also an effective method to keep your living space in a minimalist state. Cluttered houses are inevitable, so we should clean regularly so that everything is organized and clean. “There are areas that need seasonal care, there are areas that need weekly care, and there are areas that need to be taken care of every day,” Becker said. Therefore, maintaining a cleaning routine is also a way to practice a minimalist lifestyle.

6. Overcome the “temptation” of shopping

In an age of rampant advertising with lots of creative content, it’s hard to resist the allure of shopping. Therefore, you should cut down on the frequency of watching ads by limiting watching TV, blocking advertising emails, blocking ads on social networks. Besides, you should also clearly define your style, what items you really like and fit into your current lifestyle to arrange a living space that makes you feel more comfortable and happy.

7. Define the purpose of a minimalist lifestyle

This is the last and most important step in these lifestyle practices. Take the time to think carefully about the purpose of this lifestyle choice, do you want to live minimalist to save money, save time or to have more living space? This is important because the ultimate goal of minimalism is to live a full, meaningful life, not just to live with less material things.