There is a direct link between minimalism and financial health. One of the main reasons so many people are in debt is the instant gratification culture we live in. People think they can purchase happiness, but this is far from the truth.
When I started my financial journey, I changed my life drastically. One of these changes was my perspective on consumerism. I spent thousands of dollars on make-up and clothes despite hardly going anywhere. I often found that many of the items I purchased went unused and eventually expired, including some clothes that never made it out of my closet. It was a waste of my resources.
Coming across the minimalist concept made me change my mindset on many things. It made me look deeper into my life and pushed me to take definite actions that led me to be debt free and in a much more peaceful state of mind.
What Is Minimalism?
A minimalist lifestyle is intentionally living with fewer possessions — focusing only on the ones that bring you joy. Living with less can help you feel less overwhelmed with clutter, cut back on spending, and get rid of debt.
Benefits of Financial Minimalism
Eliminate your debt
A minimalist approach to your finance can help you reduce or eliminate unnecessary spending from your budget. You can then use the money to pay off debt more quickly.
Debt results from reckless spending habits with money we don’t have. Social media and other means of communication have made us believe that we must spend our way to the approval of others. As a result, we constantly swipe our credit cards to impress people we don’t care about. Debts not only hurt us financially but physically too. Research suggests that debt can lead to an increasing number of medical complications. Such as chronic fatigue, alcohol, and drug abuse, mental disorder, and depression. Guys, Being sick is very costly in America!
On the other hand, minimalism leads you to focus on meaningful experiences and connections with others rather than material possessions. It guides you to be wiser with your resources.
Make extra money
Once you have decided to live clutter free, you can sell everything that doesn’t bring you joy. I have made extra money selling stuff in the FaceBook marketplace and Letgo. These apps are simple and help you eliminate clutter while making money. You can also do a garage sale if you have the space.
Save and Invest
A better way of using your money is by investing it. Investing your money can lead to the benefits of compounding and long-term growth, ultimately resulting in a substantial increase in its value over time. You can invest in many assets, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options, precious metals, real estate, or small businesses. These investments can generate future income, increase value and equity, and build wealth.
Investing has been a crucial part of my financial freedom journey. Before learning about investing, I saved my money in the back and let it sit there, earning no interest. However, I soon as I learned that my money could work for me and build me wealth, I started learning how to invest. Now, I have a few investment portfolios where I invest every month.
Lifestyle changes to help you improve your finances
- Buy more of what you need and less of what you want.
- Sell any material possession that doesn’t bring joy into your life.
- Make a budget every single month and stick to it.
- Only buy things you can afford.
- Try to avoid consumer debt as much as possible.
- Be thrifty when possible.
- Choose quality vs quantity.
These are the lifestyle changes I have adopted, which have saved me thousands of dollars. Also, I now live clutter free just with the items that bring me joy. I have no distractions in my apartment, so that I can work more efficiently. I encourage you to learn about minimalism and, if possible, incorporate it into your life. The quality of your life may improve significantly. My two recommendations for learning more about this topic are Becoming Minimalist and The Minimalists.
