Every time I’ve moved Home, I’ve downsized and as stressful as it has been at the moment, I am reaping the benefits now. Downsizing taught me how little I actually needed to live a well and meaningful life. Over the past 3 years, I have parted ways with at least 70% of my overall belongings. Now I only own what I love, however, I don’t use all of them so I am currently in a process where I parting ways with things I don’t use even if I love them. My intention is to only keep things that tick all of the below:
- I love it and is my favourite
- I use it regularly
- It adds value to my life
Are there legitimate reasons to downsize your life? Will downsizing really simplify your life? The simple answer to those questions is a resounding YES!
“Every Increased Possession Adds Increased Anxiety Onto Our Lives.”
~ Randy Alcorn
Every single day there is far more to do than we can actually do. We have to learn to let go of the unimportant and prioritise what matters.
But the question is how do you do that when you’re constantly working on the urgent? This is where downsizing comes in. When you downsize and simplify your life it releases you from the chains of the urgent. It frees you to focus on what truly matters most to you!
However, the truth is that downsizing, while exciting for the prospects it brings, is not easy. It’s hard to let go of stuff and simplify.
The good news is that by focusing on the right mindset it’s so much easier to let go of all that stuff that’s weighing you down. Really, all you have to do is to remember your ‘WHY’ – the reason behind why you started thinking about downsizing.
Focus on the amazing benefits you have waiting for you when you downsize and simplify your life:
- More free time for experiences and time with your loved ones
- Less stress and more opportunities to live your best life
Below I share five amazing benefits of downsizing and simplifying – they should be all the motivation you need.
Downsizing allows you to remove the excess
What keeps us weighed down is the excess in our life. Removing that excess enables us to reevaluate what’s truly important. And of course, knowing what matters most in our life is the only way to be intentional in pursuing it!
When you seek to downsize and simplify your life it requires you to take action and be purposeful in removing the excess from your life.
It improves mental health
The effects of clutter on our mental health are not always readily apparent but believe me, they’re there. Our ability to think clearly, stay focused, or just sit and relax are all affected by excess in our life.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed or carrying extra stress the solution is to downsize and simplify your life.
Downsizing reduces cleaning time
There’s no getting around it, the bigger house you have and the more stuff you have the more time you spend cleaning. When you begin to downsize and simplify your life you eliminate the excess and spend so much less time cleaning.
Improves your finances
It’s just a simple truth: having a life filled with excess negatively impacts your finances. A life of excess often leads to poor money management and excess debt. Downsizing is a great temptation reducer. If you’re at all tempted to overspend downsize and simplify your life to reduce those urges.
Changes your perspective
We live in a time where most of us suffer from overabundance. There’s just too much in our lives, too much stuff, too much information, too much in our calendars.
Downsizing your life is as much about clearing out mental space as it is about clearing our physical space. This is because when you let go of the clutter in your physical space, you naturally let go of the clutter in your mind.
As this changes your perspective, you begin to look at things in a new way. Life begins to feel lighter and that feeling that you need to have new things goes away. Your perspective on what you need changes and you release the burden that excess carries.
Downsizing Simplifies Your Whole Life
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