This year, my new year’s resolution looks a little bit different from typical resolutions like “get more sleep,” “exercise more,” “drink more water,” and “drink less coffee!”
Currently, the lack of sleep is inevitable. And honestly, I just really love coffee and I couldn’t imagine my days without it. I’ve successfully stuck to my resolution from 2014, which was to start exercising, and I love water more than life.
But, I also love stuff. So, I’m trying to embrace minimalism.
Minimalism, as defined by Merriam-Webster, is “a style or technique (as in music literature or design) that is characterized by extreme spareness or simplicity.”
Here are 5 things that I’m doing to embrace my new year’s resolution of minimalism.
1. Winter Cleaning
The first thing I have done in embracing minimalism is going through all of my possessions. I have found little use for notes I printed out for finals or notebooks from high school. Clearing out things I don’t need helps me see the things that I do need and clears mental space as well
Photo credit: commongoodandco.com
2. Shop less.
I’m also a broke college student, but I spend a lot of time browsing clothing websites and not buying anything. Not only does this waste my time, but it makes me yearn for things that I don’t have, which takes away from appreciating the things that I do have.
Photo credit: moneycanbuymehappiness.com
3. Reduce Plastic.
In trying to own fewer items and be less owned by the items that I own, I’ve been thinking about the impact I make on the environment. I have always been environmentally conscious, but I’ve been making more of an effort to bring my own coffee cups into coffee shops and reduce my consumptions where I can.
Photo Credit: Frank Michel, Flickr
4. Rent instead of buy.
This mostly applies to textbooks for the semester, but I rented all of the books that I needed so I am not stuck with something that I have no use for once the semester ends.
Source: theweekendedition.com.au
5. Be wary of sales.
As a seasoned retail worker, sales are just a ploy to get consumers to buy things that they don’t need—so, I’ve been even more conscious about it with post-Christmas sales. I don’t have space for the beautiful sweater from the Gap Outlet in my hometown (even though it only cost 9.99!) Everything about a retail store is designed to maximize profit as much as possible, so be aware of that when you’re out and about.
Source: twinpickle.com
Overall, trying to embrace minimalism has decreased the clutter in my life as well as increased my overall mental clarity. In a world inundated by stuff and unnecessary items, it’s been interesting trying to actively oppose unnecessary purchases and items.
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