Joshua Fields Millburn's Blog, page 39
October 15, 2020
What Is Clutter?
Our clutter isn’t relegated only to material things.
We clutter our lives with destructive relationships,
careers, obligations, rituals, busyness, minutiae.
We clutter our attention with glowing screens.
We clutter our creativity with distractions.
We clutter our free time with trivialities.
We clutter our desires with attachments.
Our lives are brimming with existential clutter,
emotional clutter, mental clutter, spiritual clutter.
So much so that it’s hard to distinguish
what is clutter—and what is not.
We are stressed out, overwhelmed, and anxious
because we’ve filled our lives with disorder, chaos.
Though there is a solution.
Look at an object, a commitment, a habit.
Does it bring tranquility or increase your well-being?
If not, let it go!
Not an easy fix,
but a simple one.
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October 13, 2020
Podcast 256 | Social Dilemma
In this episode of The Minimalists Podcast, Joshua and Ryan talk about how The Minimalists apply minimalism to social media, how they’ve changed their opinion about social media over the years, and they review the new Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma with social media specialist Jess Williams, and they answer the following questions:
Is social media the original social distancing?
How do we do a better job of using social media as a tool?
What are the problems with social media?
Has the smartphone become more of a distraction than the TV?
Do we unfairly judge others in assuming that they’re simply wasting time on their smartphones rather than being productive?
Has the ubiquitousness of social media contributed to creating an overly judgmental society?
How do we set appropriate boundaries for social media?
How do I address the desire to explain my behavior to others?
Why do disagreements escalate so quickly on social media?
How do I balance staying informed with being in the moment?
Video Stream
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Minimal Maxims
Joshua & Ryan’s pithy, shareable, less-than-140-character responses. Find more quotes from The Minimalists at MinimalMaxims.com.
“Used absentmindedly, a smartphone becomes an Amazon Echo constantly reminding us we’re not good enough.” —Jess Williams
“When everything’s important, nothing’s important.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“There is no secret algorithm for discipline.” —Ryan Nicodemus
Mentioned in This Episode
Added Value: Tickets to My Downfall
Book: As a Decade Fades
Book: Digital Minimalism
Book: How to Be Here
Book: Minimalist Rulebook
Book: Ten Arguments for Deleting Social Media
Essay: Seagulls
Facebook: Jess Williams
Instagram: Jordan Moore
Instagram: Podcast Shawn
Instagram: Jess Williams
Listen: “Cathedral”
Patreon: The Minimalists
Podcast: Cal Newport
Resources: The Minimalists
Subscribe: The Minimalists
Text: 937-202-4654
Tour: The Minimalists
Twitter: Jess Williams
Watch: Biggest Failures
Watch: Minimalism Documentary
Watch: The Social Dilemma
Website: Tristan Harris
Website: Jess Williams
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October 10, 2020
Love People Use Things
We are grateful to announce that our new book, Love People Use Things, will be published by Celadon/Macmillan on July 13, 2021. It’s available for pre-order now. Much more news in the days ahead.
To publicly celebrate this announcement, The Minimalists will be on Good Morning America next Tuesday, October 13, 2020. Tweet your questions about minimalism and relationships, and we’ll do our best to answer them on the show.
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October 6, 2020
Podcast 255 | Relationship Rescue
In this episode of The Minimalists Podcast, Joshua and Ryan talk about repairing and strengthening relationships during difficult times with comedian Josh Wolf, and they answer the following questions:
Is it possible that the global pandemic actually helped save some relationships?
What are some good habits to adopt to save a relationship?
What is ‘Object A’?
How much is enough?
What does it feel like to be satisfied?
What is the difference between pleasure and joy?
What is the ‘price of admission’?
Has social media given us a false sense of self-importance?
What is the difference between a recipe and a template?
Is restricting a partner’s choices a reasonable solution to their staunch resistance to change?
What is the value of stretching our comfort zone?
How will I know when I’ve found ‘the one’?
Do we set unrealistic expectations regarding relationships?
Why do we often start relationships in an attempt to fix ourselves?
Video Stream
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Apple Podcasts · Spotify · Google Podcasts · Soundcloud · MP3
Minimal Maxims
Joshua & Ryan’s pithy, shareable, less-than-140-character responses. Find more quotes from The Minimalists at MinimalMaxims.com.
“You are complete in an empty room.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“If we’re not content where we are, we won’t be content where we end up.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“Happiness should always be a byproduct, not a goal.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“We can dislike aspects of someone, yet still love the whole person.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“Love from someone else is not a substitute for love from yourself.” —Ryan Nicodemus
“People don’t hate change—they hate being changed.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
Mentioned in This Episode
Added Value: “Video Game”
Book: Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life
Essay: Play the 30-Day Minimalism Game
Facebook: Josh Wolf
Instagram: Jordan Moore
Instagram: Podcast Shawn
Instagram: Jessica Williams
Instagram: Josh Wolf
Patreon: The Minimalists
Podcast: Dr. Christopher Ryan
Resources: The Minimalists
Subscribe: The Minimalists
Text: 937-202-4654
Tour: The Minimalists
Twitter: Josh Wolf
Watch: Father of the Year
Website: Josh Wolf
YouTube: Josh Wolf
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September 8, 2020
Compassion for Hypocrites
The man who protests capitalism using a megaphone he purchased from Walmart. The woman who tweets about income inequality on a device made by underpaid workers. The environmentalist who flies to their next save-the-planet rally. The political pundit who pontificates about censorship on a media platform that reaches millions. The vegan who sprays insecticide on her garden. The minimalist who owns six jackets (me).
We are all hypocrites. And we are all suffering on some level. So, instead of pointing fingers, let’s find compassion for the people who disagree with us, the people who anger us, the people on the “wrong” side of the issue.
Compassion is composed of the Latin preposition com (with) and the verb passus (to suffer). Meaning, to have compassion, we must simply be with someone who’s suffering. We needn’t feel their suffering (that’s empathy), nor must we remove their grief or provide countless solutions; we need only bear witness.
I can hug you, even if I don’t agree with you.
I can listen to you, even if I don’t want to hear you.
I can love you, even if I don’t like every piece of you.
If we can do this—if we can temper our interactions with compassion—then we have a chance to ease our collective suffering.
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September 2, 2020
Minimalist Rulebook (Audiobook)
Earlier this year, The Minimalists created 16 rules to help you get organized—No Junk Rule, Seasonality Rule, Just-in-Case Rule, Minimalist Gift-Giving Rule, and 12 others—and we collected them in a beautifully designed ebook, the Minimalist Rulebook, which you can download for free on our resources page.
If you prefer to listen, we recorded an expanded audiobook version of the Minimalist Rulebook, which is now available for purchase.
In this new audiobook, Joshua reads each of The Minimalists’ “16 Rules for Living with Less,” and then he and Ryan discuss how each rule applies to their own lives—like a short podcast episode to accompany every rule. We also invent some new rules along the way. (Runtime: 2.5 hours.)
Enjoy!
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August 12, 2020
Our New YouTube Channel
Big news! In an effort to better spread our minimalism message, we’re splitting our YouTube channel in two.
Main. Going forward, The Minimalists’ main channel will be reserved for shorter videos about minimalism. Subscribe to this channel for Quickies, Livingroom Conversations, Unpacking Minimalism, new series, and other short-form videos.
Podcast. Our new channel will contain full episodes of The Minimalists Podcast. Subscribe to this channel if you’re a podcast fan.
We’re making this change because YouTube has encouraged us to separate our longer videos from the shorter ones (their site favors consistency). This change will help our message reach more eyes and ears. Don’t worry, both channels are still 100% advertisement-free!
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July 15, 2020
How to Let Go of Possessions
Our possessions possess us.
This is how we let go.
If a thing stops adding value, sell it.
If it doesn’t sell in a week, lower the price.
If it doesn’t sell in 30 days, donate it.
If a donation place doesn’t accept, recycle it.
If it can’t be recycled, trash it (as a last resort).
Once we let go, we’re able to move on.
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July 3, 2020
Too Many Screens
You may have looked perplexed if, 20 years ago, someone would have told you that we’d spend most of our days glued to glowing screens, that we’d blur the lines between work and home, that our connectedness would disconnect us from what matters.
It would have sounded dystopian. Yet we agreed to it. Not all at once, but gradually. One supposed improvement at a time.
A screen on your wall.
A screen at your desk.
A screen in your pocket.
A screen on your lap.
A screen in your hand.
A screen on your wrist.
“Every night in America is like a competition to see how many screens we can get between our face and the wall,” Ronny Chieng observed in his recent Netflix comedy special. While we may have won this competition, we’ve lost something important.
If our innovations get in the way of a life worth living, are they actually degenerations? What happens when the colors on our screens are more vivid but our lives are increasingly grayscale? When we upgrade our tech but downgrade everything meaningful? When the ceaseless glow brightens but our joy and purpose dim?
At what point do we turn it off?
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June 25, 2020
Biggest Failures
In the first episode of The Minimalists’ new video series, Biggest Failures, Anthony ONeal discusses his biggest failure and the lessons he learned from it. You can also check out the series trailer, featuring Ryan Nicodemus and a cast of other "failures," on YouTube.
Watch new episodes of Biggest Failures each week on Patreon. The videos themselves are free if you’re a regular Patreon supporter.
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