Everything That Remains: A Memoir by The Minimalists

by Joshua Fields Millburn

I’m not ready to bear the weight of whatever she’s about to reveal.

What am I going to do with all this stuff? I mean, I don’t want to co-mingle Mom’s stuff with my stuff, so that’s out of the question.

Our memories are not in our things. Our memories are in us.

Someone once told me that our bodies’ cells regenerate every seven years, making us completely new people at seven-year intervals. I’m twenty-eight now. Maybe this is my fourth regeneration, my chance at a new start, an opportunity to be kinder to what I’ve been given, for that’s all there is, and the meter is running.

And now that I think about it I’m going to want my apartment to be “my style,” you know: my own motif, so I need certain decoratives to spruce up the decor, but wait, what is my style exactly, and do these stainless-steel picture frames embody that particular style? Does this replica Matisse sketch accurately capture my edgy-but-professional vibe? Exactly how “edgy” am I?

We are human beings, mixed bags of thoughts and emotions and actions, righteous liars and honest cheats, sinners and saints, walking contradictions, both the darkness and the light.

Much like the rest of my life, this apartment looks good, but it feels empty.

discontent is the greatest seed of change in our lives.

Progress requires practice and dedication and, to a certain extent, a healthy obsession. Hence, passion is a mixture of love and obsession.

True passion, however, arises after you’ve put in the long hours necessary to become a skilled craftsman, a skillset you can then leverage to have an impact, to gain autonomy and respect, to shape and control your destiny. Thus, passion isn’t followed, it’s cultivated.

Truthfully, though, most organizing is nothing more than well-planned hoarding.

“When I think about self-publishing, I think of poor quality, weak writing, someone who’s not good enough to get picked by the Big Six. But when I think of independent publishing, I think indie. And when I think indie, I think artisanal and cool and raw and subversive—like indie music or indie films.

So we decided to have a Packing Party.

the 20/20 Theory: basically, anything I jettison can be replaced for less than twenty dollars, in less than twenty minutes from my current location—if I discover I truly need to replace it.

“Propinquity. Being close to someone or something.”

“Different is great. Sometimes. You see, differences fuel chemistry, and that chemistry makes a relationship exciting; it adds variety. But long term, it’s hard to grow with someone if you’re both growing in opposite directions, which you will inevitably do if you don’t have similar values or beliefs. So you need both: the right balance of differences to keep the relationship from becoming boring, and enough in common that you have a firm foundation.”

we routinely keep people around because … well, simply because they’re already around.”

You too must add value to the relationship. Not by buying gifts or commoditizing your love, but by showing up every day and showing how much you care, demonstrating your love through consistent actions, continually going out of your way to help the other person grow. Both people must do their part to grow the relationship. Only then will both people be satisfied with the relationship they’ve built.”

I no longer own things that don’t consistently add value to my life. I wear all my clothes, use all my dishes, enjoy all my possessions because I’ve intentionally retained only that which continues to add value.

These days, life is different; I no longer have goals. Instead of an arbitrary target, I prefer to have a direction in which I travel. If you’re searching for a sunrise, it’s important to head east. For a sunset, head west.

In the past, we all wanted to be liked; now we just want to be “Liked.”

Habitually, before every tweet, every status update, every essay I write, I ask myself, Am I Adding Value?

My usage will be more intentional than it was before; my phone will be a tool, not an appendage.

It feels wonderful to be together, alive together, alive, together.

For the first time in my life I feel uxorious.

For the relationship to work, both people must contribute to—and get something from—that Us Box.

People with blue eyes are better able to see in the dark. Blue eyes are actually an evolutionary mutation. Before the mutation occurred, all humans had brown eyes.

A person who is six-two is taller than ninety-four percent of the world’s population.

When I left the corporate world, I swore off the word altogether. Noun, verb, adjective—I avoided all of work’s iterations. I no longer ‘went to work,’ so that was easy to remove from my vocabulary. In fact, I no longer ‘worked’ at all; instead I replaced the word with a more specific verb: I would ‘write’ or ‘teach’ or ‘speak’ or ‘volunteer,’

I’m driving slowly, careful to avoid speeding through life—my life—no longer wasting my summers waiting for snow, my winters waiting for sun, taking each season as it comes, appreciating the warmth of the sun, the cleansing of the snow.

I believe that no author must worship at the altar of the old guard, that writers needn’t “submit” to anyone. Anyone can now successfully publish on their own, soup to nuts, controlling every morsel of the process. The present day is the most exciting time in history to be an author. No longer are we beholden to the gatekeepers; no longer must we compromise our craft. For the first time in publishing history, we are in control.

There are many ways to learn. Many methods and techniques, many ways to acquire new skills, many teachers and mentors from whom we can gain knowledge.

A home is a home for one reason: we call it home. The stuff doesn’t make it your home—you do.