the simple guide to a minimalist life

Book by Leo Babauta

Minimalist Life

“Be Content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” - Lao Tzu

Life stripped of the unnecessary to allow room for happiness, freedom, time, room, health

Minimalist vs More Values

Minimalist	More
Beauty of less	More
Happiness	Consumption
Content	Bigger
Quality	Quantity
Essential	Needless

“Fear less, hope more; eat less, chew more; whine less, breathe more; talk less, say more; love more, and all good things will be yours.” - Swedish proverb

How to Become a Minimalist

Realize you already have enough

Halt getting non-essentials
- Non-essentials must be on a 30 day lists before being bought
  - Rethink essentials like cars, meat food, clothes, housing
- Be happy by doing (walk, cook, create, sing)
- Know when is enough
“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” - Socrates

Cut back on possessions, schedule, commitments

“If your mind isnʼt clouded by unnecessary things, then this is the best season of your life.” - Wu-Men
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” Lao Tzu
Take only the most important commitments (like 4-5)
Reduce to do list
Clear clutter to free space, time, and mental health
- Less makes easier cleaning and maintenance
- “Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” - William Morris

Principles to Fight Fear of not having something
- Remove items not used in 6 months unless seasonal or known occasional
- It is a waste to keep unused items
- Take a picture of sentimental items
- Put items in a “maybe” box before removing them
- “We donʼt need to increase our goods nearly as much as we need to scale down our wants. Not wanting something is as good as possessing it.” - Donald Horban

Slowly apply minimalist values

For cutting back, start small such as cleaning, remove 1 appointment, 1 room to be minimal
- Start with 1 surface of home and clear it and put into pile for you to check if needed
- Repeat for all items
- Clean surface
- Use “maybe” box or:
  - Donate
  - Reuse with others
  - Sell
  - Gift
  - Recycle
  - Create from it
“Great acts are made up of small deeds.” - Lao Tzu

Minimalist Spaces

Home

Clear surfaces, minimal but usable furniture
Clear floor, not used for storage
Storage is organized and out of sight
Some art for accent like one art piece or plant

“One can furnish a room very luxuriously by taking out furniture rather than putting it in.” - Francis Jourdain

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupe

Work

Check requirements for your work and remove unneeded items or items that could be done in a more simple way
Clean desk only with essentials for work
- Example:
  - Go paperless where possible, avoid outdated technology and knick knacks on desk
  - Replace all processes with digital flows
  - Stop physical mail
  - Make old records/photos digital
Have one working file folder either physical or digital

Computer
- Aim to have a clean desktop
- Use keyboard for speed and simplicity
- Avoid filing and use search
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” - Leonardo da Vinci

Travel

Carry a minimal packing list like:
- Travel documents
  - And copies
- Toiletries
- 2 pairs of top, bottom, underwear, seasonal wear
  - Prefer quick dry materials
- Electronics and stationery
“I travel light; as light, that is, as a man can travel who will still carry his body around because of its sentimental value.” - Christopher Fry
“A good traveller has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

Clothing, Grooming

“Be wary of any enterprise that requires new clothes.” - Henry David Thoreau

“When you are content to be simply yourself and donʼt compare or compete, everybody will respect you.” - Lao Tzu

Clothing:
- Prefer classic styles and colours that can match other colours and high quality clothes
Grooming:
- Reduce to essentials for your needs

Food

Eat until you’re almost full (~80%)
Prefer small, light meals
All food groups meals, fiber and water rich like fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, whole grains
- Prefer food consumed in most natural state
  - No processed food
  - Simply ingredient and simple cooking at home with essential tools
- Prefer baking, grilling, stir fry and soups
- Cook for more than one meal

Fitness

Small exercise times work
Reduce equipment requirements like using bodyweight and transition later to weight training

Finances

“Too many people spend money they havenʼt earned, to buy things they donʼt want, to impress people they donʼt like.” - Will Rogers

No consumerism
Reduce debt, avoid credit spending
Save for emergencies

Family and Children

Realize kids can be messy and have clutter and accept and take a relaxed approach
Declutter with them
- Identify most important items
- Periodic purging like holidays and birthdays
- Leave space
- Contain clutter in storage system
- Teach them cleaning
  - Clean before bed
  - Clean once a week with them
- Prepare things for next day ahead of time
Lead by example and educate them on material goods

Living with Non-Minimalists

Focus on your area of control
Lead by example
Educate
Ask for help from them and find an accepted situation

Minimalism = End of Organizing

“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.” - Hans Hofmann

Less things means less need to organize them, less of these things means no need for “organizers”:
- Clothing
- Tasks
- Finances
- Files, use search instead

Sustainability

“Walk lightly in the spring; Mother Earth is pregnant.” - Kiowa (indigenous American) proverb

Buy less stuff
Consume less energy, food, things, packaging, fuel

“Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art.” - Frederic Chopin