As we started valuing things based on their utility, but not by our ability to own them, life became more rewarding. Everything we own now is used almost daily. There is nothing that is occupying our space and mind unnecessarily.
We have overcome the consumerism mindset. Our decisions to buy are not directed by others or by advertisements, but solely by need.
We are free from the mania of comparison. As long as we were influenced by others, we were fiercely comparing everything. We don't see any possibility of comparison between any two individuals on any aspect of life.
Minimalism has ensured simplicity. Simplicity has made our daily lives consistent, dependable and reliable.
Minimalism has given us a chance to develop individuality. All the four members of my family have developed their own individual mindsets. As we focused on what we need, we started understanding ourselves better. Each individual has some unique needs. We have realized that this uniqueness should be valued if we need to keep the relationship.
Minimalism freed us from the time and energy we were wasting on unnecessary things and activities. We all have so many free hours everyday.
Now, we own less, but whatever we own is absolutely necessary. We own things solely for its utility. Nothing else can make us own more materials anymore.
Chasing and owning goods, just because it's possible, was a meaningless pursuit. As we become more purposeful in owning, our life has become less meaningless.
Our efficiency has improved in whatever we do. Simplicity has minimized distractions. Distractions minimize efficiency. We have gained a lot of efficiency with simplicity.
As we have gained efficiency and free time, changes have become easier to make. We make changes in our diet or lifestyle easily now.
Our relationships have flourished. Our relationships with ourselves were totally non-existent before. With minimalism, my body and mind have formed a deeper connection. We avoid eating, doing or relating with anything that can harm our body.
We are able to live in the moment. We have lots of time for our hobbies. The time and energy freed up through simplicity has been tremendously beneficial for all of us. I have been able to focus on reversing all types of diseases. Savitri developed various ways to slow cooking & stitching clothes. Adhya and Anju are self-directed and learn through so many ways. And together, we have created a self-sustaining garden where we get tomatoes, chillies, potatoes, okra, brinjal, ridge gourd, cucumber, pumpkin, snake gourd, capsicum, mulberry, papaya, bananas, fig, lemon, orange, guava, pomegranate, apple, amla, strawberry, ginger, turmeric, roses, shankhpushpi, bakery cherry, mangoes, and so on.
We are free from baggage. Nothing is there in our home and farm, which is just lying there, occupying space. This has relieved a lot of stress.
We have adopted a simple trick to minimalism. We removed one unnecessary item daily. This way, four unnecessary items were permanently removed from our home. Within a year, all of our clutter was eliminated. I learnt that taking one step at a time is the only way to implement a change. This has been a core principle in helping people in reversing diseases.
We have become much more creative now. Simplicity freed us from physical work and mental stress of owning unnecessary goods, goals and relationships. As stress is reduced, creativity has improved.
As clutter has reduced, organizing our home and life has become much simpler.
One very important benefit of simplicity is, we lose many fears. Fear is nothing but a thought of losing something we own or a thought of not getting something that we want. Now, we own little and we desire less. So, the fears have disappeared.
Our life has become very comfortable. Minimalism helped us in moving to a farm, where we are able to live with very less effort.
I have never worked so little and earned so much money. I have been earning more money than I did in my previous job or business. Minimalism increases your earnings by increasing productivity and reducing unnecessary spending.
We have become very much self reliant with simplicity. I am able to do many physical tasks myself. Savitri is no more dependent on machines to do daily chores. Children build their own toys and crafts. We hardly depend on others for our tasks.
Our physical, mental, emotional and psychological health has tremendously improved.
Minimalism is not poverty, deprived or miserly living. I have money, but I choose what needs to be done with this money. We now prefer to keep money unused in the account instead of spending it on unnecessary things. We own less, but our things are more valuable to us than before.
We sleep when tired, eat when hungry, drink when thirsty. We don't have bosses. We haven't had any debt/loan for years.
Minimalism saves a lot of money. Saving money is the only way to have peace of mind. Because the mind is money. Earlier, I earned more, but spent even more. So, I was always needy of money. Now, I earn more, but have no reasons to spend more. I feel peaceful on seeing saved money! Without money, I cannot think of the future. With money, I don't need to think about the future. Money takes care of the future.
Quality of our life has improved in all aspects. As we reduced our focus on quantity, our focus automatically shifted to quality. Quality of relationships, work, food, clothing and everything has improved tremendously.
Car is a liability. Everything that is purchased with a loan is a liability. Dysfunctional relationship is a liability. Desire for more, success , achievement, to be a good person are all liabilities. Liabilities destroy the future. We don't have any liabilities now.
We no longer have panic, anxiety or depression. We are healthier, prosperous, free, self-reliant, and have clarity.
We enjoy being so close to nature now. I have seen that everyone has a deep desire to be closer to nature. Minimalism is nature. Once we minimized artificial things and activities, a space was created by this, that's automatically filled by nature.
I personally feel liberated, enlightened and free due to the simplicity of my life. If there is anything called enlightenment, it's the ability to live a simple life, wherever we are, whoever we are and with whatever we do.
Are we happy? Yes, much more than ever. Does minimalism create happiness? No. Minimalism removes things, goals and relationships that cause unhappiness. Absence of unhappiness is happiness.
Minimalism has enriched our lives tremendously and also given us time to share experiences with others through writing and discussions.
Minimalism is not a goal. Minimalism is a lifestyle.
Take Care