When Kim and I (+ two kids) began to attenuate our possessions, I used to be just on the lookout for a bit of relief.
I used to be uninterested in living paycheck to paycheck. I used to be uninterested in spending a lot money on myself knowing there have been others who needed it more. And I used to be uninterested in wasting time and energy cleansing, organizing, repairing and maintaining our home.
When my neighbor introduced me to the word minimalismI started to see clearly how the surplus wealth I had amassed was stealing my time, money, and energy. And how minimalism was the change I needed in my life.
In some ways, our decision to intentionally live with less was motivated entirely by dissatisfaction.
But whatever our motivation, soon after making the choice, we found countless life advantages. Minimalism brought intentionality into our lives:
We found intentionality in our values and passions.
Minimalism is deliberately promoting the things we value most and removing anything that distracts us from that.
And while it looks different for everyone, it at all times requires the stalker to further define their passions – and discover intentionality due to it.
We found intentionality in our funds.
Having less in itself didn’t get us extra money (aside from the items we were selling), however it did give us more opportunities to make use of our money.
For example, after we were drawn to living on less and the consumerism on our checkbook was broken, we could use our money for more invaluable goals than buying off the shelf at your local department store. There were latest opportunities to assist others – and for this reason, latest decisions were forced.
We found intentionality in our health.
Six months after discovering minimalism, I used to be faced with an upcoming birthday. After spending so many months clearing clutter from our home and life, the very last thing I wanted was anything that would grow to be a large number.
While brainstorming ideas for non-physical gifts, I noticed that: fitness planet which just opened at the tip of the road from my house. And for the primary time, I had the motivation, funds and time to get in higher physical shape.
We found intentionality in our food regimen.
Interestingly, the very last thing you should put in your body after a workout is junk, processed food. So we began making healthier food decisions: more fruit, more vegetables, less sugar.
More time and fewer desire to purchase things… got me right into a gym membership… which then led me to a healthier food regimen.
I also began to make latest friends with other advocates of easy living, a lot of whom modeled themselves on purposeful diets. We have experimented with a lot of their ideas over time. Each time we discover latest foods to eat and increase our understanding of what we eat in our bodies.
We found intentionality in our spirituality.
Minimalism gave me the chance to decelerate. It also provided motivation.
As I started to comprehend how much of my considering had been hijacked by promoting and consumer society, I started to practice meditation and solitude. I used to be drawn to finding latest voices for clues.
Being raised in a non secular home, I used to be also drawn to seek out the voice of the next power – one which knew so way more and will steer my life around greater, more everlasting pursuits. This voice is soft and quiet. And it requires each of us to decelerate long enough to listen.
We found intentionality in our relationships.
Having less has opened the door to latest relationships in our lives. We have been able to have interaction our neighbors and our community more. We welcomed people into our homes more willingly since it became easier to organize for his or her arrival.
We spent less time shopping, cleansing, and organizing, and more time with the individuals who made life enjoyable. Our ability to create and value relationships has began (and continues to grow) growing.
We found intentionality at work.
The longer we lived with fewer things, the more our view of cash modified. Having loads of it has grow to be less essential to us. Our basic needs are met and now we have enough left to practice generosity – what else do we’d like?
As our view of cash modified, so did our motivation to work. Work has grow to be less in regards to the weekly financial deposit and more in regards to the value and contribution we will make to people’s lives. It has opened the door to honesty, cooperation, people, passion and joy of labor even wider.
We found intentionality in our seek for the center.
Living with less has opened up the likelihood for contentment, gratitude, and generosity to take root in our hearts. It forced us to redefine happiness.
Happiness was now not on the market on the department store. Instead, we found that it was a choice available to us all along. And after we stopped looking within the flawed places, we were capable of find happiness in the appropriate places.
We entered minimalism due to dissatisfaction with life. But amongst her best gifts, she brought us intentionality. And we couldn’t be more grateful.
If you simply have one life to live, you may as well make it as purposeful as possible.
