Don’t Throw My Stuff Out!

Starting this journey into minimalism seemed so easy, just throw out all the things you don’t use.

This is the philosophy I started with. That attitude sent my husband into sheer panic, so much so he actually put on his varsity jacket one day (1986 graduate) insisting I not throw out his stuff.  Upon his departure from the house he would say “don’t touch my stuff!”. I quickly began to realize that we were not on the same page. The minimalist lifestyle is more likely to succeed if all family members are on board, but if they aren’t quite there yet, here are some helpful tips to guide them through the purge.

• Start a conversation about how great it would be to donate all the extra, unused things you have to the less fortunate.  Show excitement about how your home will be less cluttered and clean.
• Choose a charity that you all can be excited about donating to, feeling like they are part of a movement is important.
• Share involvement in the organizing process by letting your family help you figure out where to put the things you decided to keep, organize a closet, shelf, drawer.

I will caution you that throwing out things without permission will cause resentment and anger.  I would suggest just having open and honest conversations about the new lifestyle you are adopting and you will soon see your family joining in on the journey. I witnessed this myself a few weeks ago, my husband came out of his closet all excited because he cleared out things that were old and didn’t fit.  Its all about the journey not the race.