Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism

by Fumio Sasaki

My feeling is that minimalists are people who know what’s truly necessary for them versus what they may want for the sake of appearance, and they’re not afraid to cut down on everything in the second category.

Reducing the number of possessions that you have is not a goal unto itself. I think minimalism is a method for individuals to find the things that are genuinely important to them.

The glory of acquisition starts to dim with use, eventually changing to boredom as the item no longer elicits even a bit of excitement.

Our neural networks are what allow us to detect variances in different forms of stimulation.

Tal Ben-Shahar, a popular Harvard lecturer in positive psychology, became Israeli national squash champion at the age of sixteen. His five years of six-hour daily practices paid off. But once he got home after the victory ceremony, he realized that the joy had worn off and he was left with a feeling of emptiness. He told people that the happiness lasted for only three hours.

This pack mentality is still with us today. It’s like we’re preinstalled with an app that recognizes loneliness, and causes us to feel lonely when we’re separated from our pack. This app is like an alert device that tells us to go back and join the others when we’re all alone. And unfortunately, we can’t remove this app; it’s installed by default and cannot be deleted.

Our self-worth drives our behavior

I’m a fan of Apple products. I think their functionality is excellent. Once I get hold of a new iPhone on its launch day, I want to flaunt it to my friends. I might want to casually open up my MacBook Air at Starbucks. There’s definitely a part of me that wants to show off my worth as someone who chooses Apple products and can appreciate their great designs and usability. I think this type of urge is natural and there’s nothing wrong with it, in and of itself.

I’ve read a lot of books to date. As anyone who looks at

my bookshelves can see, my interests are diverse, and I’m very inquisitive. I know all about these different topics, if only in name. Though I haven’t read all the books yet, I’m definitely interested in these areas—of course I am, that’s why the books are sitting there on my bookshelf. I may not understand everything that’s discussed in these books, but I’ve read huge volumes of works including an array of publications on complex issues. I’m not very talkative and I may look like a plain, ordinary guy, but inside I’m filled with all this incredible knowledge. Perhaps I can be described as an intellectual with depth.

I was trying to show my worth through the sheer volume of the books I owned.

2: Discarding something takes skill.

It seems to me that this fear of regret is what prevents us from saying goodbye. It’s certainly understandable; we all have these types of fears.

20: Let go of the idea of “someday.”

An item chosen with passion represents perfection to us.

There’s a phrase I like that goes, “If it’s not a ‘hell, yes!’ it’s a ‘no.’ ” When we ask ourselves, “Should I get rid of this?” we can turn that around: “If it’s not a ‘hell, no!’ it’s a ‘yes.’ ” It’ll help us discard everything except the things we absolutely can’t part with. And we’ll be able to manage just fine.

I have more time. Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. —STEVE JOBS

There’s a famous study called the Jam Study. In short, more people purchased jam when six varieties were displayed than when twenty-four varieties were available. When given too many choices, people tend to worry that there’s something better out there than what they decided on. If they buy one of the varieties, their satisfaction level will actually decrease because of this feeling of regret. It gets complicated when there are too many choices available.

Minimalism naturally narrows down your choices so you can arrive at quick decisions.

Psychologist Tim Kasser stresses that the enrichment of time will lead directly to happiness, while the enrichment of material objects will not.

The importance of daydreaming

Recent studies in neuroscience have revealed that there are certain areas in our brain that are active only when we’re daydreaming or when our minds are wandering.

I enjoy life more. My life itself was become my amusement and never ceased to be novel. It was a drama of many scenes and without an end. —HENRY DAVID THOREAU

I stopped worrying about how others see me. You’re the only one who’s worried about your face. —ICHIRO KISHIMI AND FUMITAKE KOGA, KIRAWARERU YUKI (COURAGE TO BE DISLIKED)

I can focus better. I can concentrate on being me. I’m as proud of what we don’t do as I am of what we do. —STEVE JOBS

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi studied a state of happiness, triggered by concentration, that he called flow. When people are completely involved in something, they’re not only able to forget their problems, they actually lose track of the passing of time. With further concentration, even the notion of ego or self can disappear. They begin to feel a sense of contentment and the joy of living.

The key to flow is the sense of contentment with the passing of time.

Flow isn’t something that everyone can discover.

Tomohiko Yoneda’s Digital detox no susume (Digital Detox Recommendations) offers interesting examples of ways to disconnect.

My interpersonal relationships are deeper. The value of a man should be seen in what he gives and not in what he is able to receive. —ALBERT EINSTEIN

“Happiness [is] only real when shared.”

The mere act of seeing people helping one another out prompts endorphins—neurotransmitters that bring us joy—to be released in the brain.

I won’t be comparing myself with others anymore, and I won’t be preparing for far-off futures either. Rich or poor, sad or happy, I’ll face it then. All I need to do is experience the now.

50 percent of our happiness is genetically determined, 10 percent by life circumstances and situations, and the remaining 40 percent by our daily actions.

Happiness depends on how you interpret it. Happiness isn’t something outside you; it’s within you. Happiness is always in your heart.

But I will now close my mouth, hoping that

you will open yours.