As I mentioned in the original Advice for Aspiring Minimalists, I had planned on including answers to four important questions. When I received responses from so many of the top minimalist bloggers, I knew I would have to dedicate one post for each question. So today, I bring you answers to question #2.
Advice From the Experts – Part Two
What is One Simple Change Someone Can Make to Live a More Minimalist Life?
Start asking yourself, “Why?” Why do I have 10 pairs of shoes? Why do I have 8 meetings scheduled for today? Why am I spending 70 hours a week at work? Once you start answering those questions you can begin living more minimally. Sam Spurlin
Stop buying things that aren’t necessary. You can slowly declutter, but if you don’t stop needless buying, you’ll still accumulate clutter.Leo Babauta of mnmlist.com
Stop browsing in stores and online. Unsubscribe to all the stores email services that send you daily deals and promotions. I’ve found these two acts have freed up a lot of time and mental energy that I can put towards more rewarding pursuits. And it has saved me a lot of space and cash. Rachel Jonat of Minimalist Mom
Easy, stop accumulating! If you keep inundating your surroundings with more stuff you’ll never have a chance to come to terms with your current possessions. Eric LaForest
Stop Shopping. Stay out of stores, mute commercials, stop bringing in more crap, get rid of the credit cards, just get off the shopping treadmill ASAP! A lot of people would say to unclutter first, but if you don’t stop bringing in more stuff, it defeats the purpose of uncluttering. Meg Wolfe of Minimalist Woman
Hide your television in the closet for a week. Just a week. See what magic unfolds. Dusti Arab
Pick an easy place to start. I recommending minimizing your wardrobe for starters. It’s a small, attainable experiment that incorporates most of the thoughts, emotions, and feelings that accompany the minimalist lifestyle. Joshua Becker of Becoming Minimalist
For me, it’s been decluttering. I did the whole house, but a closet or a drawer can be a perfect good place to start (and it’s addictive!) Laura of minimoblog.it
Identify what is essential to you. What are you all about. Getting to know this is the single most important thing you can do. Christiaan
Stop buying. That might not seem simple, but there are so many things you can do instead: rent, borrow, beg, steal. You really begin to realize just how little you need when you make a concentrated effort to stick with what you have. Matthew Madeiro
Stop Shopping. Robyn Devine of Minimalist Knitter
My response to this question is… Just get started. You can read about it, think about it and write about it all you want, but until you get started, nothing will happen. Start a monthly budget to pay off debt, cancel your cable, donate half your wardrobe and join Project 333. Just get started. How will you start or how did you start?
