Does Minimalism Make You Happier?

Have you ever heard people saying things like, “junk clutters the mind” or “less is more” orrrr “spending money doesn’t buy you happiness” ? I actually made up the third one – like a spin off of money doesn’t buy you happiness. Because , y’know, especially nowadays money can buy you overall happiness like it brings security, allows you to get groceries, and keeps your electricity on. But spending money on useless things doesn’t really make you happy. I think the time we live in is just so centered in consumerism that we don’t realize the difference between the things we need and the things we want. It feels like we see ads 24/7 , so it’s hard to not be brainwashed into thinking we need all sorts of things to be happy. The ads are made to give off the energy that “everyone needs to try this” making you feel like you’re not going to fit in if you don’t try it or have whatever it is the ad is trying to sell. When in reality, whatever the product is – you’ve probably made due without it and would have continued to.

I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m a minimalist because I, like everyone else, have a lot of junk. It’s almost like there’s memories attached to my little nicknacks that I’ll miss if I get rid of them. I’ve started to avoid buying cute little toys, because even though there’s a nostalgic/child-like feeling that comes with it – I’m an adult and I’m going to look at it for a couple of days, and eventually kind of forget about it. Until I look at it to debate its demise like giving it away, donating it, or sadly trashing it , and then I think of the time I bought it. What was I doing that day, or who was I with? This is actually a big problem with hoarders which makes me think, do we all have a little hoarder inside of us? I think so. 

With minimalism, though, there can be a lot of benefits. Junk really does clutter the mind. Getting rid of some things can open up your living space, letting you feel more peace and getting more benefit out of your home. You don’t have to go all out and literally only have your bed, stove, and toilet – but think to yourself, “when was the last time I even looked at this little doodad, trinket, or random kitchen supplies?” . I added the last one because I don’t know about you, but I got a bunch of rando kitchen stuff that I haven’t used in literally who knows when. The trick with minimalism is that a big minimalist will say “you’ll be happier by adopting this mind set, get rid of stuff!” but isn’t that just the same as big companies saying, “you’ll be so much happier with these products, buy some stuff!”. I say, just do what makes you feel good, but don’t do anything just because someone tells you to.

 Thanks for reading!