How much stuff does one person or one family need? I find myself asking this question almost every day? America is especially prone to materialism because we are a consumerist nation. This means that most of our gross domestic product comes from spending money on things.
So how do we defeat the urge of materialism? After all, everywhere we turn we are being advertised to. We can’t even leave our home without someone or something telling us to be scared, get in shape, or live a healthier lifestyle.
Enter minimalism. In my own words, minimalism is living a life where relationships and experiences take precedence over material things. Searching the internet will net you many different definitions of minimalism. However, I like to keep it simple, and more importantly, I like to live my life on my own terms. You should do the same.
Are Limiting Beliefs Keeping You From Greatness
Striving to become a minimalist can lead to multiple advantages in life.
1) You save money by not trying to “Keep up with the Joneses.” Keeping up with your friends or neighbors is one of the easiest ways to stay in debt for your entire life. Buying new cars, boats, or even houses to impress others is a recipe for disaster. However, America has recently turned to this type of lifestyle. Being a minimalist, you only buy things that will bring value to your life.
2) You will focus on relationships. Relationships are the heart of our lives. Some people never realize how important relationships are. With me turning 40 in two weeks, I am in a position to be surrounded by many retirees. There is nothing sadder than seeing 40 and 50 years olds who are alone. They decided to focus on obtaining money or things, as opposed to building friendships and relationships.
3) You will focus on experiences. Now that you have built a large stable of relationships, you will want to spend time with “your people.” But why do the same ol’ thing? Try something different. Just because you don’t own a boat doesn’t mean you can’t rent a boat. Same with RVs, motorcycles, and sports cars. There are so many different experiences to try in the world, why not try them with your friends and family?
My Grandkids: The Reason that I Will Never Work For Anyone Again
4) You will be able to truly focus. When you don’t buy into the hype of materialism, you will have an ultra-clear focus in life. You will see clearly when someone is selling you something. You will recognize this because you will not be interested in buying anything. If you are a consumerist, you will always be on the lookout to spend money, which is what everyone wants from you. When your priority is relationships and experiences, you will only purchase things that truly build a better life for you and your family.
5) You will reduce your overall stress. When you are a consumer first, you will always be a step behind in your finances. There will never be enough money because you will always “want” something new. This can be extremely stressful. Flipping new cars, upgrading your home, and buying toys (boats, RVs, and motorcycles) are all things that cost a lot of money. When you strive for minimalism, you will focus on relationships first. Spending time will family and friends is the highlight of your life. Your true inner circle does not care about what car or boat you have. You will find the right people to spend time with, in turn, your stress level will reduce dramatically.
How to Create “Luck” With Money
6) You will give back. You will have no need to hold on to things forever. You will give your things away to friends, family, or charity. You will also find that you will want to support local businesses more. You will respect people who are trying to better their lives by building businesses. When you are not feeding your money to the biggest brand names, you will see a completely different world of real people, with real businesses.
7) You will be happier at work. Your job wants you to be a consumer. Why? Because they want you to “need” to make more money. The more money you need, the harder you will work towards promotion. This starts a never-ending cycle that ultimately leads to extreme frustration while being in the workforce. You can buy yourself out by keeping your expenses to a minimum. When you can live on $3,000 a month, and you are making $6,000 a month, how bad do you really need that promotion? Trust me, your job hates when you don’t need a promotion. They are always looking for people that they can bully and bribe. You will not fall into that category, and they will not like that.
8 Reason to Start a Micro Business
Becoming a minimalist is not hard to achieve. The hardest part is the people around you will not like it. People love to feed into their own materialist needs. That means they want you to feed into this need with them. When they buy new things, they will want you to be impressed and spoon over their new shiny toy. When you really don’t care about it, they feel empty. They are seeking approval from you, and you just aren’t impressed. This will strain most relationships.
However, you will find more friends. You will start to meet humble people who truly are giving back. The funny part is that the more you give back, the more good things that will happen to you. You will build a network of solid people that you can trust and who aren’t secretly jealous of you.
You can search the internet for minimalism, however, I recommend creating your own definition. There are people who shame you for not following “their” definition of minimalism. You don’t have to live in an empty house, reusing your toilet paper. The main thing is that you focus on relationships and experiences. Everything else will fall into place. God created us to live in tribes. We have gotten away from this, and sadly, I do not think that this has made us happier or better. Let’s get back to what we know to be true. We need people more than things.
Check out our Merchandise Shop on Redbubble: (here)
Follow us on our Facebook Page (here)
Join our Facebook group (here)
Follow us on Pinterest at:
Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. I am an Amazon Affiliate. Please research any investment vehicles that are being considered. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Leave a Reply