“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
- Albert Einstein
I have been practicing minimalism for several years. It all started in 2016 when I sold my house to start a business and ended up living on the company's sofa. There was no place to store my old stuff, so I kept some at my then-boyfriend’s house or sent them back to my hometown. Moreover, all my personal funds were invested in the company, and I didn't pay myself a high salary, so I had no spare money to buy new items.
However, as time went by, I increasingly enjoyed this minimalist lifestyle. I would often check around my living space for things that hadn’t been used for a long time or clothes that hadn’t been worn, and either throw them away or send them back to my hometown. The fewer things I had, the simpler my life became: only one bed remained as furniture; only one cup as tableware; only a few frequently worn clothes; and only one bag that I regularly carried. The rest were consumables.
After starting my business, it became difficult to find joy in material possessions because the excitement, sense of achievement, and self-growth from entrepreneurship seemed to surpass what any material item could offer. Reducing material desires truly made me feel freer. Aside from a bit of trouble during the pandemic quarantine in early 2020 when I couldn't even find a pair of chopsticks to eat takeout with, it has always been more beneficial than harmful.
In the early days of entrepreneurship, right after returning from Japan, I had lipsticks in various shades and textures (lipstick, lip gloss, lip lacquer, lip balm) to match different seasons, climates, outfits, and moods. After embracing minimalism, I only kept a versatile red shade and found that it still looked great.
Minimalism is not just about saving money. It doesn't affect the quality of life. Instead, since there isn't a need for too many varieties of things, the remaining essential items require less consideration regarding price, thus reducing the mental energy spent on decision-making.
So right now, I don't own any property, cars, or savings under my name. Apart from the company's shares, I don't have any tangible assets in a true sense, which is what some people refer to as carrying fixed assets with me at all times. But I don't feel insecure because I know I already possess the ability and social resources to live well. These intangible assets allow me to live more easily.
The practice of decluttering material possessions is still being refined, and my next challenge will be practicing mental decluttering.
Every morning, I meditate with Headspace and found an interesting point: when the guide says to focus on my breathing and count each inhale, my thoughts always unconsciously pop up; when the guide starts saying that now I can let my thoughts wander freely, I begin to regret why I couldn't enter the state of being present just now, and instead there are no new thoughts (of course, the emotion of self-blame is still there).
At this moment, I give myself a realization: are these thoughts, whether regrets about the past or worries about the future, really that important? Can these thoughts be discarded?
Having awareness doesn't mean I can control these thoughts, nor does it mean I can control my emotions. I still involuntarily live in the past and the future.
However, I hope that one day, I can also experience the state of flow; experience living in the moment.
Perhaps, when you truly let go of something, you truly own it.