advice for practicing minimalism | reasonable minimalism and feeling empowered, not burdened

"“Why is this so hard” becomes “How can I make this easier?”" - Tonya Leigh.

1: you don't need to get rid of everything. minimalism is subjective. it is a philosophy, a principle, a practice. it is something that you practice over time. you can practice minimalism to whatever extent may be reasonable for you. you're the one who gets to decide what you resonate with as it relates to this subjective philosophy. I personally like both minimalism and maximalism. I like collecting things and decorating, and it needs to be very organized, -- things need places to be organized into, it helps to have things organized on the walls, with shelves/bookcases, toy hammocks, in drawers, on or in a desk/dresser/table, etc. also, as someone who deals with hoarding, it's important to me to be able to get rid of some things sometimes, which can feel empowering. minimalism should feel empowering, not like a burden. intend to feel empowered and practice minimalism in a way that is reasonable for you.

2: "little by little, bit by bit." you don't need to get rid of things all at once or all the time. it's a practice and a process. try to regularly de-clutter unnecessary junk so that it's not being hoarded and/or piling up. you don't have to feel like you need to go through the whole house and garage or whatever all at once or all in one day/week/month, etc. plan for long-term progress (that doesn't mean that you need to plan it all out, just intend to practice it long-term). minimalism isn't a one-size box that you need to rigidly fit your life into, plan for minimalism to fit into your life. you can take small steps and make some more progress over time. ask yourself how you can make things easier.

3: prevent. find ways to prevent unnecessary clutter. unsubscribe from spam (digital or snail mail, etc.), cancel shopping subscriptions that you don't need or want, really think about how much you want something before you buy it. re-use or re-purpose stuff. try one or a few things at once instead of a lot (renting less books from the library, buying less variations of things that you want to try until another time, etc.). save old paper or newspaper for the fireplace.