We, in the Western World have a lot of things. Our closets are brimming, and many families have two or more vehicles. We love our electronic gadgets and brand new sporting equipment or kitchen appliances and BOGO days at the shoe store. Maybe art is your thing, and your walls are lined with it; or music? Perhaps there are lots of vinyl originals or dusty instruments in your storage room.
We love our stuff so much that we are also then obsessed with both decluttering and storing it. There are hundreds of titles available to purchase from Amazon on the subject of purging: The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up uses Feng Shui to accomplish this. Getting rid of things is an industry growing as fast as buying things seems to be. Acquiring new things strokes an emotional pleasure chord and for a large percentage of the Canadian population, it’s a growing problem. Our debt per capita is increasing, most families have no savings and there is always another thing on the list to buy. Mini storages have never been more plentiful, or busier — in many cities there are waiting lists to get a spot. And still we keep shopping.
Most of us are aware of the trend towards tiny houses, have watched some of those hoarding TV shows and donate our little-used things to charity. What if we told you about some even more radical approaches to stopping the cycle? One idea is to have a 33-item wardrobe: just 33 pieces of clothing and nothing more. That would certainly cut down on the number of loads of laundry you need to do. There are online groups for minimalist parents who share tips about how to not buy a bunch of things for your children. There are videos to watch on minimalist holiday entertaining and survival guides for big box store shopping.
The minimalist trend is catching on huge with millennials — the people reaching adulthood now — who see their parents’ over-stuffed garages and credit card bills. They want a different life for themselves: one that is free from the anchor of too much stuff and allows them to buy life experiences with their paycheques instead of drawers full of things. We think they might be onto something - a life of excess belongings might truly be less fulfilling than a life full of great stories and vivid, inspiring memories. Pass that empty box — the idea sounds more and more appealing to all the time.
“There are two ways to be rich: One is by acquiring much, and the other is by desiring little.” —Jackie French Koller