Looking back at my blog posts over the years I started to realize how far I have come on this journey. How did I get here and why am I on this path. Understanding that my minimalism journey has changed the way I see my life now and how naturally things that were unwanted have just fallen away without much effort. I am very mindful of how and what I am purchasing and in a constant battle to “avoid the consumerism trap” <<< insert blog post
Things I have changed since minimalism
- Excessive food purchases~ I used to purchase food like the end of the world was tomorrow. I wasted so much food because by the end of the week the food had to be thrown out. I was ashamed at how wasteful I was being. I have started to use curbside pick up and it has been the best thing for my family. This stops me from impulse buying and only getting the quantity I actually need. This has really stopped all the waste in our household.
- Impulse clothing buying~ I have really stepped back and looked at my closet and what it consisted of and that was mostly “fast fashion”{insert blog post} I evaluated what was a true need for me as I am retired and I no longer need work clothing. I thought of myself as a “shopping survivalist”{blog post} and made it my mission to buy all the sale items because they were such a deal. those buys are not such a deal if they sit in your closet because you have duplicates of those cheap shirts you got such a deal on. “shop til you drop {link to blog} was motto of mine for years , but no longer! I have begun to only shop thrift and ethical companies. I also shop online as that tends to stop my impulse buying in its tracks.
- Things over experiences~ We live in a culture that says we need to purchase things and the more things you have the better you are. I soon learned that when we have all those things we have to take care of them all. That takes lots of energy and time. I started thinking of gift giving in a new way. I thought of giving experiences instead of a box of stuff you have to manage and take care of. I started buying movie tickets, food subscriptions, manicures & pedicures, hair appointments. I realized that these gifts were well received and no management required. I was also helping the environment as I gave nothing that had to be managed or end up in a landfill.
- Entertainment shopping~ I no longer fill my down times with a quick trip to the mall. That “Urge to Splurge” {link to blog} virus that was always in the back of my mind was finally tamed and controlled as I did not need that dopamine high of heading to the outlet mall for my daily fix. I have found other ways to fill my time. The time is now filled with things that bring me joy and inner peace.
- Value of Time over money~ I look at money a little differently now that I used to. Money always controlled me and I needed to continually find a place to spend it. The choices I made on my spending was appalling and embarrassing to be honest. I am not by any stretch of the word perfect , but I am so much more aware of how my money is spent. Minimalism has helped me understand that I truly needed to step back and look at all areas of my life and see what needed to change.
The strange by product of minimalism is that it slows you down enough to see exactly what is meaningful in your life and what is a waste. I think if we all stepped back and took just 5 minutes a day to see where we are wasteful in any area we will become a better steward of our time, money and relationships. It is just a natural side effect of minimalism.
Making of a Minimalist 