The Benefits Of Minimalism

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For my entire life, I have been collecting clutter. My life resulted being more for taking care of my stuff than it was for living. It took a while to realize that the amount of junk I had was a factor into my unhappiness and stress. I came across this blog that explained this concept called minimalism: a lifestyle devoted to having less. I was intrigued by this lifestyle, so I began purging my clutter that night. I decluttered by asking myself if each item I owned was useful to me or made me happy; it took about six months, but my bedroom finally was clutter free. Today, I do not own a limited number of items, like other minimalists; that was never my goal. What I hoped to achieve from minimalism was to purge the clutter and take control over …show more content…
A research group from the Department of Psychology of the University of New Mexico, Roster et al., have recently found that clutter is beneficial to individuals since it helps develop a sense of self (Roster et al. 7). Psychologist writer for LifeHacker, Mikael Cho, offers details of another research that has found that certain people need a certain degree of mess to get things done (Cho). Stress columnist writer for Lifestyle Magazine, Cheryl Patterson, also agrees that having clutter is normal, noting that not all people can have pristine homes (Patterson 2). Finally, consulting organizer from Japan inspired by living with less, Marie Kondo, agrees that happiness for each person can result in a collection of certain objects (Kondo 592). But when does the perfect amount of clutter become a problem? Kondo states that the perfect amount of stuff is when people own only the things they love (Kondo 46). In Patterson’s interview with a personal organizer, she advises that “if you cannot find something in 20 seconds or less, you are considered disorganized” (Patterson 2). Cho suggests that if you believe that your clutter is significantly impairing your life, you have too much (Cho). As well, the group of research psychologist say that when clutter becomes too excessive, it can cause distress on the well-being of …show more content…
When I finally decluttered my bedroom, I felt at peace and was able to relax in my own space, which helped reduce my stress levels. Patterson explains that you can reduce stress through decluttering since an individual feels free from the previous distractions of clutter (Patterson 3). Both Cho and Kondo agree decluttering can increase performance and reduce stress (Cho, and Kondo 190) by mentally freeing people and boosting creativity since the clutter is no longer distracting and competing for attention (Cho) and that tidying can clear the mind (Kondo 92), create happiness and bliss (Kondo 163), and boost confidence (Kondo

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