Goodbye, Things: On Minimalist Living

by Fumio Sasaki

Variances or changes are necessary for people to recognize stimuli. This is why we often find ourselves unhappy after we’ve owned something for a while. Although we initially had a desire for it, our brain recognizes a lack of this variance once we get used to having it. The novelty of the new stimulus wears off, and the item becomes a part of our lives that we now take for granted. Without that variance, we eventually get sick and tired of it.

We’re desperate to convey our own worth, our own value to others. We use objects to tell people just how valuable we are.

As social animals, we feel the need to have value to society.

We’re unable to live without feeling that there’s some meaning to our existence through the recognition or acknowledgment of others.

Discarding something takes skill. In the same way that you won’t wake up one morning and discover that you’ve suddenly become fluent in French if you’ve never even studied it, you can’t become a master at danshari, or de-cluttering and parting, overnight. I’ve thrown away a lot, but it’s taken me more than five years to do this. (It is possible to do it more quickly.) The act of discarding

When you discard something, you gain more than you lose.

Take a minute to really focus on each item you can’t part with and ask yourself why. Is it because it was expensive? Is it because you feel guilty about throwing it away? Are you ashamed that you were never able to make good use of it? Do you feel bad for the person who gave it to you? Does it feel like you’re throwing away a fond memory that is attached to it? Is your vanity preventing you from parting with something? Or is it just easier to leave it where it is?

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. But if you’re wondering whether you might need that ten-year-old jacket that’s been sitting in the back of your closet forever, or those sea shells you picked up on the beach when you were a toddler, go ahead and tell yourself that there’s probably not a single item that you’ll regret throwing away.

10: Minimize anything you have in multiples.

to reduce the multiples of anything you have to one. 11: Get rid of it if you haven’t used it in a year.

Discard it if you have it for the sake of appearance.

So you might ask yourself if you have some of your items because you’re really fond of them, or if it’s possibly because you’re using them to reflect qualities of yourself that you want to highlight.

long as you still have the images, you’ll be able to recall your experiences.

organizing is not minimizing.

18: Tackle the nest (storage) before the pest (clutter).

open areas are incredibly useful. They bring us a sense of freedom and keep our minds open to the more important things in life.

Let go of the idea of “someday.”

Let go of “someday.” Things we don’t need now will probably never be needed.

Say goodbye to who you used to be.

The textbooks you used in school, the books that opened up your eyes to the world when you were a child, that favorite outfit that once made you shine—memories are wonderful, but you won’t have room to develop if your attachment to the past is too strong. It’s better to cut some of those ties so you can focus on what’s important today. Holding on to things from the past is the same as clinging to an image of yourself in the past. If you’re the least bit interested in changing anything about yourself, I suggest you be brave and start letting things go. Leave only the items that you need moving forward from this very moment.

Don’t get creative when you’re trying to discard things.

Let go of the idea of getting your money’s worth.

Whether or not you have any interest in the stock market, you would probably agree that it’s wiser to get rid of stocks if they continue to fall with no prospects of a rebound. The same can be said for the bulk of our possessions. We should let go of the concept of getting our money’s worth, and cut our losses sooner rather than later. It’s easier on your wallet in the long run, not to mention easier for maintaining peace of mind.

There’s no need to stock up.

To throw things away, it’s necessary to ask, “Does this object spark joy or not?” This is an effective way to become more aware of our senses. As we minimize, and our focus strengthens, we may even be able to go beyond this question about sparking joy. We’ll return to this idea in the next section.

Auction services are a quick way to part with your possessions.

Use a pickup service to get rid of your possessions. Packing and shipping your stuff after auctions can be a hassle. There’s an easier way: Consider a pickup service that comes to your door to collect your things. Though they don’t pay as much as what you might get through an auction sale, these kinds of services are very convenient. Their people come to your home to buy your

minimizing the effort it takes to minimize is often the key to success.

Let’s forget the generous estimates when it comes to our possessions. That will make it easier to part with them.

Discard any possessions that you can’t discuss with passion.

I think our lives are better when our belongings stir our passions. As long as we stick to owning things that we really love, we aren’t likely to want more.

“If I were to somehow lose this, would I want to buy it again at full price?”

you can’t remember how many presents you’ve given, don’t worry about the gifts you’ve gotten.

Discarding memorabilia is not the same as discarding memories.

Be social; be a borrower.

Social media can boost your minimizing motivation.

Discard anything that creates visual noise.

Be quick to admit mistakes. They help you grow.

isn’t healthy to spend any more time with an item that signals “failure” to you. Instead, let’s try to recognize and learn from our mistakes as soon as we can, so we can make a smarter choice the next time around. 49: Think of buying as renting.

If it’s not a “hell, yes!” it’s a “no.”

“If it’s not a ‘hell, no!’ it’s a ‘yes.’ ”

The things we really need will always find their way back to us.

think it’s much more beautiful to focus on your gratitude toward that person as you say a final goodbye to what they gave you.

Discarding things can be wasteful. But the guilt that keeps you from minimizing is the true waste.

The real waste, though, is the psychological damage that you accrue from hanging on to things you don’t use or need.

In truth, sometimes the act of saying goodbye is what actually ensures that those memories will remain with us forever.

Reducing the number of items that we own does not reduce our satisfaction.

there’s a stylishness to wearing the same clothes that are perfect for us and using them as a kind of personal uniform.

When you think about it, it’s experience that builds our unique characteristics, not material objects. So maybe it’s natural that we find our own originality when we strip away all the things that distract us.