7 Normal Things That Now Seem Weird as a Minimalist

Today I am sharing 7 normal things that now seem weird as a minimalist. 

I wasn’t always a minimalist.  Thinking about some normal things that I used to do all the time, now seems weird as a minimalist.  As we have become more and more minimal our habits have changed, in a good way!  I can easily think of many ways our lives have changed, but here are 7 normal things that now seem weird to a minimalist.

 

Everything About TV

A TV in every room of your home is completely normal where I grew up.  Paying for cable television is also totally normal until I became a minimalist.

We decided to ditch cable TV because it felt like a waste of time and money.  After we adjusted to not having cable a few surprising things happened.  I didn’t miss TV.

I really thought I would miss all the TV programs that I was dedicated to watching.  We did save money!  Do some long-term math on your own cable bill.

We paid about $60 a month which comes to a grand savings of $2160 in the last three years.  That is a lot of money!

The other lightbulb moment was realizing how much time was being used watching Television. 

TV can be very distracting and if you have a TV in every room of your home and they are always on, it takes twice as long to get things done.

I hear more and more people saying they are cutting the cable and I think it’s a great idea.  Why pay to watch commercials?  With so many excellent streaming services, we can pay way less and we don’t have to watch commercials, or record things and fast forward through commercials.

 

RELATED ARTICLE: HOW TO SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE

 

Minimal Seasonal Decor

New-season new decor!  Before I became a minimalist it seemed completely normal to go shopping every season for seasonal decor.  Valentines Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Summer, and 4th of July the stores sell home decor for every single event.

Do I decorate for holidays as a minimalist?  Yes, but I don’t go out and buy new decor for every season. 

I have a few seasonal things that I bring out for Christmas and those items get used year after year.

After researching minimalism and why a lot of people become minimalist; they want to escape that feeling of constantly needing to shop for the new best thing.

It now seems really weird to go out and get decor for a certain holiday.  I have my home decorated how I like it and I don’t really want to add a bunch of clutter for a few days during each season.

 

New Clothing Trends

Yes, we all need new clothes once in a while.  Our old things get worn out or we decide that they no longer suit us. 

That is all very normal, but buying the latest clothing trends seems very weird to me now.

Since becoming a minimalist I only buy clothes that look good on my body and that I truly love. 

I use to think it was normal to go shopping every time there was a new season and anytime there was a new trend.

I saw that “overalls” trend and I let it pass me by this time!  Back in middle school overalls were the rage and luckily I have photos to remind me of how terrible that looked (ON ME).

My point is, that being minimalist made me realize trends come and go and my money is better spent on classic items that will stand the test of time.

 

Sales are not Minimalist

Do not fall for sales!  Before minimalism, I felt it was normal to head out shopping if there was a sale.  DO NOT DO THIS!  Every time, I would end up with a bunch of things I didn’t really need but were at a great price.

Now I only go shopping when I really NEED something.  Of course, if there happens to be a sale on that item, then great!  If there isn’t a sale I just get what I need.

I save way more money NOT shopping sales and only going shopping when I actually need an item.

 

Stocking Up As a Minimalist

Stocking up is very normal, but not anymore.  I use to really stock up, buying triple packs of things.  We have had the same cleaning supplies for about 5 years because I am trying to use them up.

In some cases buying a larger pack of something will save you money.  If I know I will go through something quickly then I have no problem buying a large amount. 

The drawback to stocking up is what happens when you get sick of that certain type of something.

Also when stocking up I have to store all these things for future use.  It is really easy to run out to the store once a month and get the items I need rather than store a year’s worth of items in my closet.

I also stopped shopping for the future.  For instance, my children will grow out of their clothes, and now I wait until that happens before I shop for new clothes.  Again I don’t want to store all these “future” items only to find out we forgot we had them.

 

Minimalist Thought on Keeping Things

Before minimalism, I kept things because I had them.  3 kitchen strainers, why not?  What if one breaks?

I stopped keeping things just because they are already in my home.  When it comes to duplicates I keep the one I like the most and I donate the rest. 

I am not extreme when it comes to minimalism, but I don’t keep things I never use.

We used to have a ton of blankets, towels, and sheets, but we only used a select few.  By narrowing down what we have I am no longer storing a bunch of stuff for no reason.

This helps to keep us organized and know where everything is.

 

With Minimalism Money = Time

If you start to think of money as time spent, it changes how you spend your money.  For instance, we go to work and make money and use that money to live.  If I use all the money I make on pointless junk I don’t really need, then I am actually wasting time too.

I realized this way before I became minimalist, but it really sunk in after decluttering and becoming more minimal.

When I got my first job as a front desk person at the DoubleTree hotel I made about $6. an hour!  That is not a lot of money LOL. 

I would then go shopping on the weekends with my money. 

While shopping in Khol’s and holding up a $20 shirt it hit me! I would have to work around 3 hours to pay for that shirt.

For every purchase I made I started to calculate how much time that meant I had to work at that job.  The fact that I didn’t like the job made this money equals time situation crystal clear.

Now I am always calculating how much we can save to possibly pay our house down early or retire early.

 

Conclusion: 7 Normal Things That Now Seem Weird as a Minimalist

There are a lot of normal things that I used to do, that now seem weird as a minimalist.  These are just the first 7 that come to mind. 

I think most of us do these things because we are on autopilot and we have always done them. 

We also see advertisements that make shopping for every season seem normal. 

Since changing these 7 habits I feel what I do now is completely normal and what I used to do seems very weird.

 

Let me HELP you Declutter!  SOMETIMES ORGANIZING JUST ISN’T ENOUGH.  I WANT TO HELP YOU GAIN SOME TIME TOO!

If you are spending a ton of time continually organizing the same area, check out The Declutter Your Home Minicourse.  I created this course for anyone who is sick of all the time wasted tidying their home.  This course is easy to follow and helps you figure out a decluttering schedule so you can declutter your entire home.

This is the perfect course for you if:

• You worry about your home before having people over (aka shoving things in closets).
• Things are always “missing” in your home.
• You wonder why your home doesn’t ever look clean or tidy, no matter how much cleaning you do.

If you need direction on how and where to start on your decluttering journey check out The Declutter Your Home Minicourse!

 

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