The Introduction

About The Everyday Minimalist

I’m a 20-something year old minimalist, not an extremist.

I don’t live out of a backpack or a suitcase with 50 items or less any longer, nor do I wish to.

I enjoy managing my money, eating anything my BF cooks and making the appropriate happy noises, organizing and going through my closet, reading and practicing rebel yoga.

I am a consultant, and I love my career which is something I know is rare for anyone at any age.

As for my name, The Everyday Minimalist, it’s because I really do apply the principles of minimalism to everything I own or think about. I like to simplify, organize and not be stressed about having things too detailed or complicated.

How I managed to live out of a suitcase:

See, as an consultant I was always traveling for business. One day, I realized that I was going to be traveling all the time, and not enjoying my newly decorated apartment.

So in late 2006, I decided to save some money and I gave up my apartment.

I sold every stick of furniture, packed a single suitcase, put everything into storage and requested to stay in the cities I was being sent to for projects instead of flying back every week. And thus, a minimalist was born.

How I became a minimalist:

It wasn’t overnight, but a gradual change. After my little stint, I realized that if I could live out of a suitcase for an extended period of time, I sure as hell didn’t need a lot of the stuff I had in my old apartment!!

In fact, it was weighing me down mentally, and rooting me to a physical spot with the sheer amount of items I owned.

I wasn’t as mobile as I had previously imagined, and I wanted to be free of all of my unnecessary possessions rather than imprisoned by them.

I gave up the life out of necessity, hauled my stuff out of storage and started selling everything in my wardrobe I didn’t wear any longer.

I am now left with 3 suitcases and 2 carry-ons worth of stuff, in addition to 1 table, 2 chairs and a futon. (Read: Where to buy a Japanese Futon)

How the web sees Everyday Minimalist

How you can be a minimalist (a.k.a. Why I started this blog):

I want everyone to know you don’t have to get rid of everything to become a minimalist!

That is not necessary, whatsoever because being a minimalist is a loose definition in my opinion.

Someone with a lot of possessions can still be a minimalist, if they apply those principles and make conscious choices in other areas of their life.

And minimalism as a philosophy can be applied to anything, because it’s essentially simplifying, prioritizing and organizing.

There are also many benefits to being a minimalist such as reducing your impact on the environment by buying less, using less and being more efficient with your energy usage.

I hope you will enjoy my posts and come to see that being a minimalist is not about extremes or specific “you must do this” demands to be able to call yourself a minimalist”.

It’s really all about what you do and choose to do on a daily basis.

A Minimalist’s Train of Thought

Less money spent means more money saved

More money saved means the longer you can live in financial peace and security

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