5 Things you Gain When you Live with Less

I didn’t know it two years ago, but I know it now: There are many benefits to living minimally. 

My family had just moved out of our tiny Boston apartment and into a home in the suburbs. I was ecstatic: We had almost quadrupled our living space. Now we had a toy room! And a basement! Guests could sleep in an actual guest room instead of on our pull-out couch! I squeezed my husband’s hand as the now-empty moving truck pulled out of our driveway. We had made it. Together, we had achieved the American Dream.

We unpacked the boxes and set up our furniture. We purchased more stuff to fill our bigger space. It wasn’t long before I realized we had made a mistake. Having quadruple the space meant it took quadruple the time to clean the house; once, we spent Saturdays exploring the city on foot. Now, I spent the entirety of my weekends scrubbing toilets. Vacuuming. Mowing the oversized backyard, then the front.

Worse, I found myself constantly stressed about maintaining our new possessions. We had splurged on a pair of leather chairs, for instance, and I worried they’d get ruined by my daughter’s little hands, or by a marker, or the cat’s claws. The mental weight of that responsibility – of keeping these expensive chairs pristine, of keeping them like-new – created a haunting, slow-simmering anxiety in my chest.

Soon after moving, my husband and I had a real talk. We made a conscious decision to live minimally: to buy less, to reduce our collective environmental footprint, to minimize work and maximize joy. Some benefits were immediate – a bigger total in our bank account, for instance – but other benefits became manifest over time. Here’s what you, too, can gain when you choose to live with less:

1. More time and energy for things that matter

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You’re no longer spending nights and weekends cleaning because, simply, you have less stuff to maintain. There’s less to keep track of, less work to complete. When something gets ruined (and it will get ruined!), you don’t let it stress you. Because you’re no longer excited by physical “stuff”; instead, you’re energized by the people you love and the joy you receive from your personal interests, whatever they may be.

Mama’s Tip: Instead of cleaning, doing laundry, mowing the lawn, or completing some other mundane household chore, leave the house with your family for an entire Saturday and do something you love. Remind yourself how good it feels to be untethered by the constraints of home ownership.

2. More freedom

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Instead of buying yourself that designer handbag, you put that money aside. Rather than purchase that gendered or violent toy your child doesn’t need, you put that money aside as well. Soon you realize there’s enough in that bank account to take a family vacation, which leads to …

3. Greater appreciation for experiences

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Life is for living, and every moment counts. When all the “stuff” is out of the way, there’s more time (and more money) for novel experiences.

Mama’s Tip: Start saving now for that dream vacation. Begin putting money aside by asking yourself, “Do I really need that?” before making a purchase. If the answer, truly, is yes, go ahead and buy it. But I’m betting the answer is no. So put the cost of the would-be item into the Vacation Jar and watch that dream vacation become reality.

4. Deeper Relationships and Richer Memories

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When you make a conscious decision to unplug, you find yourself truly present with those you love. When you’re no longer distracted by the smart phone or the television or the tablet, your family and friends get the best of you. In turn, you receive the best of them.

Mama’s Tip: Absolutely no cell phones at the dinner table, ever. Make it a household rule.

5. Greater peace of mind

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You realize that “stuff” doesn’t bring lasting happiness and so you no longer expect it to. Further, the boxes you’ve been hanging on to in your basement – particularly ones that hold sentimental value – aren’t adding anything to your life; instead, they’re holding you down. Memories can be heavy, but letting go is freeing.

Mama’s Tip: Head to that corner of the basement you’ve been dreading for years. Pull out the closest box, and peer inside. What emotion overcomes you when you look inside? Is it joy? Nostalgia? Sadness? Anger? If it’s a negative emotion, consider letting both the box and its contents go.