An Exciting Announcement

By
Minimalism is about living consciously and with only the things that add value to your life.  It focuses less on material possessions and more on relationships and experiences.  As blogger and author Joshua Becker has wisely said, "Excess possessions do not increase happiness – they distract us from the things that do!"




How to find joy


As an aspiring minimalist, this doesn't mean you have to give up all of your belongings.  It does mean that you don't put much stock in the idea that what you own will fulfill you.


We all need food, clothing, shelter, education, medical care and other essentials.  We're alive, so we must consume.  But we're constantly bombarded by advertisers who want us to buy more than we need, because buying more is what keeps our culture humming along.  Unfortunately, buying more also keeps us in bondage to busyness, debt, dissatisfaction, waste, and environmental destruction.


But minimalists know that joy doesn't come from things.  We know that joy comes from love, purpose, creativity, and gratitude.





A practical philosophy


I hope you've enjoyed exploring the ABCs of Minimalism over the past two months, and that you've found the posts interesting and useful.


I'm very pleased to announce that I've published a book which contains all of them in one handy volume, plus additional material that I think enhances what I've posted here.  The book outlines a philosophy for living a good life, with tons of practical advice for achieving it.


It's called Minimalism A to Z, and it's available on Amazon as a paperback and an ebook. 





A note to readers


I unpublished the original version of Minimalism A to Z at the end of 2022, and have plans to revise and expand it.  Look for the new Minimalism A to Z in late 2023.


Meanwhile, the original blog posts, A to Z, are still in place.  Start here. 


I am constantly grateful for all of you.  I appreciate the fact that you take time to read what I've written, and I sincerely hope you find it helpful and encouraging.


With all best wishes,


Karen

January 2023

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

20 Things You Probably Own Too Many Of (and what to do with them)

By
Image
Do I really need a dozen towels?  Does my husband need 19 tee shirts?  Does your house need seven clocks, your kitchen eight spatulas, or your tool box three hammers? We need multiples of some things, but at a certain point "a few" becomes "too many."  Things accumulate, and we veer into clutter territory .  Clutter steals our time and attention, and makes our home environment seem out of control.  Check your home for these items, and see how many you can declutter this week. 1.  Sheets Unless you have babies or potty-training children, you probably don't need more than two sets of sheets per bed.  I actually have one high quality set per bed, and save time and space by simply putting them back on after wash day. Donate old sheets to animal shelters, DIY a kids' play tent , sew up some drawstring bags for craft kits or gift bags, or cut the sheets up for cleaning cloths. 2.  Towels It's not necessary to use a new towel after every bath or shower.  When y
Read more

How to Own Less: Choose Your Ultimate Classics

By
Image
Want to make decluttering your home easier?  Imagine your house filled with only the things you use and love, things that bring you comfort and convenience, things that benefit your life instead of making it cluttered, messy, difficult, and stressful.  Choosing your ultimate classics can help you get there. What is an ultimate classic? It's the iconic representation of its class. the little black dress the white Egyptian cotton towel a beautiful copy of your favorite book What if we limited ourselves to ultimate classics?  We'd choose the best we could afford, the most useful and versatile, the Goldilocks just right items , and we'd leave the rest. Thinking about this concept could help you streamline and simplify your life. How it works – the example of the mug My goal is not to be elitist.  My goal is to help you identify for yourself what best meets your needs and to be satisfied with that. My daughter gave me a beautiful mug for Mother's Day several years ago (I'
Read more

10 Important Ways to Stay Minimalist

By
Image
Some of us declutter our homes, our schedules, our e-devices, and more – but we don't stay that way.  We're alive, so we buy and consume.  Opportunities arise, and we say yes.  A new app, streaming service, or online resource beckons, and we subscribe. It's called clutter creep , and that's the perfect name for a reason.  It sneaks in, little by little, and we barely notice at first.  Then one day we wake up and pay attention, and see that we're overloaded again. It's not a sign of failure. And it's not a signal to give up on minimalism!  It's a cue to be more intentional about our actions, and more selective in our choices. I recently took stock of my home and realized I wasn't as minimalist as I want to be.  I've added too much, and my closets, calendar, and computer reflect that.  Like auto maintenance, you neglect it at your peril, and the eventual cost may be more than you want to pay. Here's how to handle clutter creep. 10 essential mai
Read more

It's Time to Keep Those Promises You've Made to Yourself

By
Image
We live in a time when, with the click of a button, we can order whatever catches our fancy and have it delivered to our door by the next day – without even leaving the couch. Unlike our ancient ancestors, gathering things requires almost no effort from us.  We don't have to track, hunt, walk, run, pick, carry, or laboriously prepare anything in order to eat.  We don't need skills of spinning, weaving, or sewing to acquire new clothes.  We don't need to tell our own stories or sing our own songs – we can ask Siri or Alexa to play or stream whatever we like. Here's our problem. Our problem comes with using many of the things we accumulate.  Let me ask you: Do you have any clothes in your closet with the tags still on? Do you have clothes in your closet you haven't worn for a year or more? Do you have china, glassware, or serving pieces you save only for a special occasion? Do you have small appliances or kitchen gadgets gathering dust at the back of a cupboard? Do
Read more

The Problem with Saying Yes when We Should Say No

By
Image
You forgot your only niece's birthday.  You booked a haircut 30 minutes before you have to be at the dentist.  You're running late to a client meeting, and you just realized there's no milk or Cheerios in your house. You're battling busyness, and it's winning .  Now, there are tons of great time management apps and programs out there, but none of them will do you any good if you don't get to the root of your problem. One simple word We all have the same amount of time.  Calm and productive Carol lives on the same planet as pressured and crazy Paul.  Subtract the time you spend sleeping, getting dressed, commuting, and working, and you might be left with 5 or 6 hours every day.  Exercise, cook dinner, do a home chore or two, and spend way too much time on your phone , and suddenly you have much less. So we just have to become more hard-working and laser-focused, right?  Schedule everything (including relationships) down to the minute and put our noses to the grin
Read more