How Minimalism Changed How I Think About Money

Minimalism can have many positive impacts on your life. The one I was most surprised about was how much it impacted my finances. By committing to minimalism, not only did it create less of a desire to shop but it forced me to be more vigilant with what I brought into my home and resourceful with the items I already had. 

Like many breakthroughs in life, it does not always come easy. The decluttering process is hard. Taking an inventory of every item you’ve ever brought into your home and being forced to answer to it... Sometimes, it’s an easy answer. But most times, it’s not. Specifically approaching this from a financial lens, you ask yourself, “How can I get rid of this? I spent my hard-earned money on it.” 

There are a few harsh realities that I needed to accept while decluttering. The first was, the money is already gone. I spent it at the time of the transaction. So whether I keep the item or choose to donate it, my bank account does not change in any way. Unless of course, I choose to sell it and get some money back. Knowing that there was no immediate financial impact on me made the decision to let go somewhat easier.

Next was accepting that the purchase was a mistake or an impulse when I initially bought it. I can't tell you how many times I bought something only because it was "so cheap" that it didn't really matter if it worked out or not. This skirt isn't my usual style and it's a liiiittle big, but it's only $13! And this happens over and over again, month after month, year after year. That's a dangerous game to play. We always purchase items with the best intentions—it will make my life easier, it will make me happier, it will make me look better, and so on...and again, sometimes it does. But sometimes it does the opposite. 

Take that special tool you got to chop vegetables at the speed of light. This is the same tool that you have to use your entire body weight to get the vegetable to go through the chopper, yet somehow only ¾ of it got chopped. The same tool that is a huge pain in the you-know-what to clean. By the time you’re done with it, you’ve spent about double the amount of time had you just used your trusty knife and cutting board. (Speaking from experience, if you can’t tell!). Who could forget the miracle skincare product that will solve all of your face’s problems, when in actuality it dries you out and makes your situation worse. Or the fancy face steamer device that you used twice until it started smelling like mold. Never mind the handful of clothing items that still have the tags on them from years back. You still like them, you know there will be a day coming up that you’ll finally wear them, or you know someday soon they will finally fit you. Right? It’s hard. 

All of these things stick around in our homes because we can’t look past the promise it gave us when we initially bought it—I’ll make you cook at home more, I’ll take your skin troubles away, I’ll make you feel confident—when in actuality, now they’re just taking up space, reminding you that they didn’t live up to your expectations. It is hard for us as humans to admit that we may have made a mistake. And that is only part of it. We must identify it, and how we can change and avoid it in the future. That is how we grow. 

“Look around. All that clutter used to be money. All that money used to be time.” 

When you’re confronted with all of these items that have been sitting around unused and forgotten for years and how much money it cost you over time—in addition to how much time you just spent agonizing over it—you really start to reassess things. You take on a new attitude to try and protect yourself from going through this experience again. Because remember, it’s hard. 

Once you start getting into the decluttering process, you have an awareness of the items that you have in your home and where they’re located, so you no longer have to re-buy misplaced items. Cha-ching! When you come across something that you need, your first instinct isn’t to shop, but to look around the house to see if there’s something you can use instead. Cha-ching! Not only that, but impulse purchases start to lose their luster and sales don’t entice you like they used to. Double cha-ching! You become extremely protective of the peace in your home—and your wallet.