Joshua Becker - Simplify: 7 Guiding Principles to Help Anyone Declutter their Home & Life

Copyright 2010 by Joshua Becker

All rights reserved.

Smashwords Edition

to my wife, Kim: thanks for journeying with me. to mykids, Salem and Alexa: thanks for cheering for me.

to Martha and Jana: your insights made thispossible.

Principle #1 Be Convinced

Principle #2 Make It Work For You

Principle #3 Jump Right In

Principle #4 Stop the Trend

Principle #5 Persevere

Principle #6 Share the Joy

Principle #7 Simplify Everywhere

SimplicitysInvitation

Any half-awake materialist well knows that whichyou hold holds you. Tom Robbins

Two years ago, Memorial Day weekend turnedout to be a beautiful spring weekend in Vermont. I woke up earlythat Saturday with one goal in mind: clean the garage. I knew itwas going to be an all-day project and set my alarm early to get agood start. My wife and I had decided to spend our three-dayholiday weekend cleaning the house from top to bottom. After all,thats what families do.

And we are, by definition, just yourstandard, run-of- the-mill, middle-class family of four living inthe suburbs. My wife and I are in our early-thirties. My son is 7,my daughter, 3. We are everything typical (minus the dog and whitepicket fence).

It all started harmlessly enough thatSaturday morning as my son and I began to clean the garage. Theneighbors also happened to be outside planting gardens, wateringflowers, and tending to the outside of their two-level home.

Nearly four hours later, we were stillworking on the same garage and our neighbors were still working ontheir home. My neighbor, noticing my frustration with the project,turned to me and said sarcastically, Ahh, the joys of homeownership.

I responded by saying, Well, you know whatthey say, The more stuff you own, the more your stuff owns you.Her next sentence struck a chord with my mind, heart, and soul, andchanged the course of my life forever.

She responded, Thats why my daughter is a minimalist . She keeps telling me that Idont need all this stuff!

Call me uneducated, naive, whatever you want but I had never heard the term minimalist before. Yet, somehow, it was the one wordthat defined a desire that had been building in my heart. I wentinside to tell my wife about my short conversation. Her responsewas the same as mine, I think thats what I want.

I immediately went to the computer (garagestill unfinished) and began researching the idea of minimalism. Ifound a variety of websites that described a simple lifestylefocused on owning just the essentials of life and removing theclutter. The more I read, the more I wanted it. And a minimalistwas born.

Why Minimalism was an EasyChoice

Now, two years later, I can look back and seewhy minimalism was an easy choice. Why it resonated with my soulfrom the very beginning:

I was tired of spending vacation dayscleaning.

There are things in life that I value morethan possessions God, family, relationships, character, etc.

I enjoy clean, tidy, uncluttered rooms...but dont like to clean - minimalism scratches that itch.

I enjoy minimalist design in most things from clothes & watches to art & interior design.

We love to entertain minimalism keepsthe house in order.

I dont fear change becoming minimalistwas definitely a life-change for us.

We are done having children although mykids are still very young, we have no need to hang on to somethingjust in case. When they outgrow clothes, toys, or supplies, wejust give them away.

Im frugal. Not cheap, frugal there is adifference (or at least, thats what I tell my wife).

I love inspiring others to live aworthwhile lifestyle. Our story has now inspired millions of peoplearound the world through our blog (www.becomingminimalist.com).

You probably identify with one or two of thereasons above (just not the cheap one, right?). If so, you canprobably agree that minimalism may be an easy choice for you. Ifyou do not directly identify with any of our reasons and have somedoubts, just keep reading. A simple, minimal lifestyle has benefitsfor all.

Since becoming minimalist, we have savedmoney, reduced clutter and removed distractions. Our home iscleaner. And three-day weekends are spent together as a family, notcleaning the garage.

Over the past two years, we have learned manylessons about minimizing our possessions and simplifying our life.This book is a compilation of those life lessons. We live typicallives... just like you. And if this family of four living in thesuburbs can simplify their home and life, so can you!

This book is a collection of 7 Guiding Principles that we have learned over thepast two years. These principles are transferrable to anyoneslife, and I am confident that taken to heart, they will help youdeclutter your home and life.

You cant have everything. Where would you put it? found in my sons fortune cookie

There are many reasons why you may be readingthis book: you desire a simple lifestyle, you are interested inpursuing a simple lifestyle, or your partner is interested in youpursuing a simple lifestyle. No matter your state of mind enteringthis book, Guiding Principle #1 of simplicity is always the same: Be Convinced .

Our Actions Follow OurHeart

Our actions will always follow the truedesire of our heart. What our heart believes and loves alwaysdetermines the path of our life. We can mask our true wants foronly a short while. Without a true heart change, we always returnto our hearts first love.

This truth applies to all areas of life: ourenergy, our time, our relationships, our spirituality, our money,and our possessions.

Before any of us can simplify our homes andlives, we must be convinced that the lifestyle is worth our effort.To accomplish that task, I have listed 10 benefits of living aminimal lifestyle:

Benefit #1SPEND LESS.

One benefit of living simply is the simplereality that it costs less. As you accumulate fewer things, youspend less money. Many people believe the secret to financialfreedom is earning more money. Unfortunately, when they begin tomake more money without spending restraints in place, they justspend more money. The reverse is probably more true: the realsecret to financial freedom is spending less. If you live a lifethat accumulates less stuff, you will spend less.

Benefit #2LESS STRESS.

Leo Babauta, of Zen Habits , reminds us that aminimalist home is less stressful. Clutter is a form of visualdistraction, and everything in our vision pulls at our attention atleast a little. The less clutter, the less visual stress we have inour environments. A simple, minimalist home is calming. I havefound this to be true and you will too with a simple experiment. Gocompare two counter tops one that is clear (minimal) and one thatis cluttered. Look at each of them separately. What is yourinternal emotional response? Doesnt the clear one bring about acalming effect while the cluttered counter arouses emotions ofdistraction or anxiety? Its true: a simple, minimalist home isless stressful.

Benefit #3EASIER TO CLEAN.

When we began to declutter the decorations inour living room, I was surprised at the amount of dust that I foundon the shelves (particularly the top shelves). Clearly, the vastnumber of knick-knacks on the shelving made the proposition ofdusting a daunting task. When we finished decluttering our kidstoy room, we suddenly noticed that it took much less time to puttheir toys away in the evening. When we began decluttering ourwardrobe, we found it much easier to keep our closets tidy. Thefewer things in our home, the easier it is to clean.