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Four Organizing and Simple Living Books for Your Reading List

August 30, 2017

Imagine living in a home that you can easily keep clean and organized. If you think living without furniture or in an empty house is the only easy way to keep it clean, you are wrong. You will find that there are plenty of things you can live without and still enjoy more out of life. Whether you are thinking of downsizing your life or looking for ideas on how to organize your home, here are some of the best books that can help you get started.

1. The Curated Closet by Anuschka Rees
If you constantly find yourself lacking space for your clothes, you might be buying more than you really need. The Curated Closet is a good read with plenty of tips and practical ideas for people who want a more streamlined closet.

2. The Joy of Less by Francine Jay
The Joy of Less is a classic read for people who want to explore the minimalist lifestyle. It provides insights on minimalism as well as handy and practical guides on how to declutter, organize, and keep your home clutter-free.

3. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondō
In this book, cleaning and organizing consultant Marie Kondō shares ideas on how to simplify the process of keeping your home organized. She provides tips and helpful methods on how to clean and organize every space in your house one step at a time.

4. The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own by Joshua Becker
The more you own, the more you have to clean. In The More of Less, author Joshua Becker offers tips based on his and his family’s experiences as they downsized their possessions and removed the nonessentials thus paving the way for a more enriching life.

Journey to Less – The Things That Happen When You Become a Minimalist

July 19, 2016

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|lifestyle, minimalism

The journey to less may initially be a daunting idea especially if you own a lot of stuff. You might wonder how it can be comfortable when you have to give up so many things. One thing those who have chosen this lifestyle will likely tell you is that it would not be easy in the beginning. It requires a lot of adjustment. And letting go of stuff and resisting the urge to acquire more than the barest essentials may be among the hardest things to do. On the flipside, living with a few possessions leaves you more room for things that matter.

Less time spent cleaning and organizing

It gets tough to maintain a clutter-free home and life. There are days when you may be too busy to squeeze some time to clean and organize your stuff. Decluttering becomes an overwhelming and burdensome task when you have to deal with so many possessions. All the cleaning and organizing you need to do can eat up a huge chunk of your time. A great thing about becoming a minimalist is that you begin to reduce your possessions into more manageable numbers. You can cut back on the time you normally spent with housework. This should give you more time for rest or leisure activities you rarely get to do when you are busy cleaning house.

Start saving more

You can save more of the money you usually spend shopping for clothes, footwear, and other luxuries. This does not mean that you live like a pauper and deprive yourself of simple pleasures. Rather, you become more selective with your choices. You avoid buying things that you really do not need and would just become clutter once they have outlived their usefulness. You may even earn money from the stuff you are finally letting go. You can sell them for cheap in garage sales or to your friends.

Travel more

You can travel more given the additional savings and less worries about leaving your belongings at home while you are on vacation. Living with less also makes it easier to pack up and go when you need to move house or if you want to go on an extended trip to see more of the world. It is like taking on a more nomadic lifestyle where you can freely leave anytime you want without making a lot of arrangements for your stuff.

How a Minimalist Lifestyle Can Transform Your Life

May 16, 2016

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|lifestyle, minimalism

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The minimalist lifestyle has been gaining ground over the years. Many have embraced this way of life after experiencing the benefits that can be gained from it. But there have been renewed interest to the concept in recent months. Features about some Japanese people taking minimalism to new heights have captured many people’s attention. More than just hype, minimalism has proven itself as a path towards simple living. It is a lifestyle choice that can transform your life in more ways than you may initially imagine.

Weeding out the unimportant things

Whether it is life priorities or material possessions, you learn to weed out the unimportant things. A minimalist lifestyle is about paring everything to the barest essentials. It is not an easy feat given longtime habits that may need to be changed. It is a process that requires time and commitment. You do not embrace minimalism in an instant. And the good thing about taking it slow is that it does not add unnecessary pressure. You can take the challenge one step at a time until you get used to living with less.

Enjoying more freedom and flexibility

You develop attachment to possessions whether you like it or not. It may be in subtle ways that you would not even notice. It becomes harder to make certain decisions when you have to consider all the things you own. It does not leave much room for freedom and flexibility. Nomadic people do not own much. This makes it easier for them to leave one place and set off into another. Imagine doing that will tons of things you need to lug around.

Pursuing the things you are passionate about

Owning and wanting to own less allows you to reallocate your resources into your dreams or pursuits that you are passionate about. You can spend time and money on learning new things, taking up a new hobby, or traveling to your dream destinations. This is not something many people can do given varied reasons and limitations. To be able to do any of those things or more are some of the perks of living with less stuff.

Experiencing the simple pleasures

While acquiring new things brings happiness, there is also joy to be found in the simple pleasures in life. Living with less does not make you miserable. Instead, it makes you more appreciative of whatever it is that you have. And you begin become more mindful of simple things that actually make life more pleasant.