The Aging Magic Of Tidying Up Analysis

Although America has the reputation of being the most extreme consumer country in the world, the past few years have seen the rise of a movement that strives towards a more minimalist lifestyle. Articles written about “simplifying your life” and “living a more minimal lifestyle” are appearing in all sorts of media: this sort of minimalism that specifically focuses on simple living is clearly on people’s minds. Perhaps the most famous book that is related to this subject is Marie Kondo’s The Life-Chaging Magic of Tidying Up. This has been a first acquaintance with a simpler lifestyle for many people, even though her decluttering method actually differs from minimalism – however, these differences are a whole other story, and won’t be discussed

These blogs not only address issues of physical minimalism, but also focus on decluttering your mind, digital areas including social media, friendships, daily habits et cetera. This is not surprising since discarding your possessions will force you to question the relationship you have with your stuff and evaluate what is and is not meaningful to your current life. This way of evaluating your possessions easily extends to non-physical things: if certain friendships, hobbies, social events or even memories do not serve you anymore, it is best to clear this “mental clutter” and get rid of it, minimalists say . As the mental aspects of minimalism are thus inevitably inseparable from the physical aspects, a tentative definition of this simple living brand of minimalism could be: a lifestyle that extends to all areas of your life, rather than just a clean and tidy house. It is not so much about just owning less things, but essentially about living an intentional life and being aware of how you spend your money, time and energy. Minimalism is also not about getting rid of stuff just for the sake of it; you can keep anything that adds real value to your life. It is not a game of who has the least amount of possessions; it is about keeping only the things that truly matter to you, and thereby maintaining just the right amount. According to minimalists, the benefits of simple living are worthwhile: they have less stress and anxiety, less mental clutter in general, less unhealthy relationships, and more time, space, money and energy to focus on the things that matter to them and add value to their