Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life

by Joshua Fields Millburn

happiness is not the point—a meaningful life is. We must stop searching for happiness and instead start looking for meaning.

Paradoxically, it is this way of living—living deliberately—that leads to true happiness.

We are not our stuff. We are more than our possessions. Our memories are within us, not our things. Our stuff weighs on us mentally and emotionally. Old photographs can be scanned. You can take pictures of items you want to remember. Items that are sentimental for us can be useful to others. Letting go is freeing.

your past relationships aren’t necessarily indicative of your future relationships.

You are a brother, a father, a mother, a sister, a lover, a partner, a friend, a creator, a contributor, a human being capable of so much more.

identifying ourselves with more meaningful labels than our corporate-given titles like director or manager.

taking control of your financial life involves much more than adjusting your income upward: it involves making consistently good decisions with the resources you have, changing your financial habits, and living deliberately.

The stricter you are, the sooner you’ll be free.

It feels like a slow climb at first, but once you build enough momentum, you won’t want to stop growing. It’s growth that makes you feel alive.

transforming the positive experiences you dislike into positive experiences you enjoy.

look for ways to make things playful, silly, exciting.

life without contribution is a life without meaning.