We live in a very materialistic culture, where consumerism reigns and people accumulate lots of stuff. Some of it is good stuff, but a surprising amount of it is usually just junk. Unbridled consumerism can negatively affect many aspects of your life: your finances, your time, your focus and energy, and more. We need a remedy for that.
I’ve pondered minimalism for a long time as an answer to materialism, although I have yet to fully realize it in my own life. I’ve managed to acquire lots of stuff myself, and every time we’ve moved, I’m baffled by how much stuff comes out of the woodwork. We’ll have a yard sale, donate a few carloads to Goodwill, sell some items online, and then by the following year, have to do it all over again. I suppose that’s the reason for spring cleaning—a process that I actually really enjoy, which is a benefit.
Practical Minimalism
In my quest for a remedy to materialism, consumerism, and the accumulation of stuff, I’ve become very interested in the KonMari method, popularized by Marie Kondo in her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (2011) and her Netflix show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. The essence of Marie Kondo’s method is to get rid of anything that doesn’t “spark joy” for you and organize everything that does so it’s in its proper place. I’ve adopted these techniques with some success, particularly with my clothes (including using her method of folding and storing clothes), as well as with other categories of items. When spring cleaning, I also like to evaluate whether I’ve used an item in the last year. If not, I’ll get rid of it, unless it is a special item that “sparks joy” or is something that is only used occasionally, like certain tools.
It’s useful to leverage natural transition periods to organize and purge your stuff. The classic example is spring cleaning, but each change of season is really a good opportunity to clean house, as some items go into storage and other items come out for use. Practicing this up to 4 times per year means it will go faster each time, too! Marie Kondo recommends going through items by category instead of by room. However, we tend to use a mix—sometimes, going by room makes more sense, such as the laundry room, bathroom, or the workshop.
For clothing, we’ve started using a modified “capsule wardrobe” method. What this means for us is that during the summer, we’ll store all of our winter-specific items (sweaters, snow pants, gloves, hats, etc.) in a bin under the bed or in the attic; and during the winter, we’ll store all of our summer-specific clothes (t-shirts, shorts, flip-flops, etc.). Year-round items stay in the dresser, as well as multi-season clothes. This helps reduce clutter in the dresser and makes decisions easier when getting dressed because there are fewer clothes to sift through.
Part of our motivation to continue paring down our belongings is to have a clutter-free house that is more readily available for hosting friends and family. Less stuff means a house that is easier to clean, a home that is more beautiful, and—at least for us—a life that is less stressful. We moved into our current house in one and a half 26-foot moving trucks, but we’re planning on moving out in a single 16-foot PODS container: a challenge we’re actively working towards now.
Buy It Once
Rebellion against materialism and consumerism may seem like a rebellion against capitalism, but I actually disagree. I’m a proponent of capitalism when used with restraint and good values. The issues with capitalism come when it is unrestrained, just like consumerism—or anything, really, and focuses on profits over people. Capitalism paired with valuing people over money means that people will be served well by the best companies in a competitive market, instead of people suffering as companies profit in a competitive market. Additionally, companies that focus on quality over quantity will ultimately meet people’s needs better, will leave them more satisfied, and will reduce the amount of stuff that we need (or think we need) to buy and own.
The concept of “buy it once” is that buying high-quality items means you only have to buy them once in a lifetime because they’re built to last. This usually means the items are more expensive upfront, but because they’ll last so long, you’ll end up saving money in the long run as well as reducing waste. Buying these types of items also helps shape the market, letting companies know that higher quality items are more important to their customers, and it shows good stewardship of not only our personal belongings but of our planet too, through reduced wastefulness. Double stewardship points!
Just kidding, there are no points awarded. However, I’d love to hear your thoughts on materialism, minimalism, and being good stewards of our stuff. Leave a comment below!