10 Awesome Benefits Of Minimalism

I love minimalism before it I ever heard about minimalism. Back then, I didn’t even know what, if any, the benefits of minimalism are.

I found the joy of having less by accident, or was it by necessity? When I was younger, my family moved 5 times over a decade. Each time we moved, I donated/toss more things. Moving is such a hassle, you want to make things easier. At one point, 9 of us and 2 cousins lived in my sister’s 3-bedroom apartment. That was the turning point for me. We all had to really pare down our belongings.

By the time I moved back to my sister’s apartment, I’ve lost most of my childhood and teenage baggage and didn’t miss them. It became a habit to regularly assess my inventory and reduce what I could let go, because (1) it felt good to do it. It made me feel light, though only for a while. I got pretty addicted to that feeling.

Later on, it progressed beyond good feelings and started to (2) make me more conscious about my relationship with things. I became more mindful about what I own and what I buy. 

This was when I was in my mid 20’s, an age where the norm is to accumulate belongings. Whenever I buy something, I started to think about the space it’ll take up, and whether I really need it.

After several rounds of decluttering, (3) my space became so clear and tidy it made me happy just to look at it. I had an uncluttered desk, a shelf with less than 10 items, space in my little wardrobe, and my 2 drawers were only half filled. (4) Minimizing had created more space for me.

Needless to say, it was (5) really easy to clean my room and keep it tidy. 

Eventually, the need to declutter went away because I got rid of the excesses. (6) My focus turned inward and I became more intentional in the way I live.

You would think having lesser would make you more possessive about your things or maybe care about them more, but the reverse happened. (7) My obsession over my things subsided.

(8) Instead, I realized that things don’t give me joy, and that not having them, even something I really like, didn’t make me less happy.

I learnt that when I gave away a dress and saw it in a picture later on. I thought, “man that dress was cute, why did I give it away?” Then I quickly realize that I’m okay not having it. I have other dresses, which is why I gave that dress away in the first place.

By this time, I had become so used to questioning every buying decision that (9) I was able to step back from the society’s rampant consumption habits. With fresh eyes, I began to see how many things we buy and how many things are at the mall, the supermarket, on amazon. I began to think about the resources that went into making, packaging, delivering, and selling them.

(10) It made me more mindful about the effect of consumption of material goods on the environment, which led to a desire to reduce my carbon footprint.

And that’s my minimalism journey so far, a journey of unexpected learning and inner growth. It touched every aspect of my life, from my environment to my mindset, and left them better than before.

If you’re more into practical benefits, minimalism would help you too! Check out this post!

It’s not about not owning things and not buying things, it’s about being more conscious about how you consume things, and it extends to what you fill your space, time and mind with. It really is a lifestyle, and it’s awesome. I’m so glad that the movement has become popular over the years.

Are you a minimalist? Do you agree with these benefits of minimalism?

Or do you love having lots of things? Try me about your experience and preferences! At the end of the day, it’s all good if you’re happy with your lifestyle. This is just how I prefer mine.