Minimalist Disagreements

 As I've mentioned previously, there are quite a few 'rules' or 'instructions' regarding minimalism and simple living that I really disagree with, for me personally but also for the minimalist lifestyle in general. I wanted to discuss a few of them here just to give you an idea.

Source

Take this image as an example (there are some good points on this list too, but I'll bring up the ones I think aren't that great).

1. Make a list of things you don't need.
This is something KonMari touches on and something I discovered was true for myself. When you sort by category instead of by room you must gather everything within that category together from every nook and cranny of your home. I found things I didn't even know I had or hadn't seen or used in months (even years). By making a list of things you don't need you are bound to forget something. Say you've written down "payslips" on this list - do you then spend hours or days searching your entire house for all your payslips? This would get quite frustrating. Personally, I'd get hung up and stressed wondering where I've put them all and if I've gotten rid of all of them. This is where the KonMari method would work extremely well -the entire category is sitting in front of you and you can decide then and there what you don't need.

5. Simplify mealtime.
Yes, this is a good idea by all means but I pretty much disagree with it because I love cooking and I feel that 'simple meals' can too often sound like 'bland, same old meat + veg' and you'd get bored pretty quickly. I think the challenge here is to find recipes that you love and you deem are worthy to be in your regular rotation of meals - they might not necessarily be 'simple' - but if you love them enough they will fit your lifestyle because you won't mind the time and effort required to make them.

6. Downsize.
Good for some things, not for other things because size does matter! Downsize clutter, downsize your stress and anxiety and downsize your list of obligations that you don't give a f**k about. But, downsizing your car or home may not make your life more simple. Downsizing your home can mean you don't need as much stuff to 'fill it' but that's not the goal we are trying to achieve and I don't think this is good motivation for wanting to de-clutter or live more simply. To me, I'd prefer downsizing to mean de-cluttering - downsize unnecessary clutter. I always thought we needed a bigger home and more storage but after de-cluttering just a few categories after discovering the KonMari method I realised our home had become a storage shed and with less stuff it didn't get as messy and I found more room.

9. Embrace the 'one in, one out' rule. 
This one is a bit here and there - I've found when I've gone shopping and found something I like I do think about things like "Where will I store this, do I have room to store it, do I want to store it, can I get rid of something else I don't want/love/need as much as this?" So not quite as simple as buying a new sheet set and getting rid of another sheet set because I may not want or need to get rid of one. Its a good starting point to get you thinking about what you already have and what is the reason behind wanting to buy/bring home this item.

xx Emily