Minimalism (USA)
In the land of (over)consumption, we meet a mom who promotes minimalism. She explains how decluttering and buying less leads to more happiness.
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Caution is the name of the game when we cycle through the streets of Boston. The city recently created cycle lanes, but in some places, we still share the street with enormous pickup trucks that almost push us off the road. “Everything is big in this country,” Floris sighs, once more. It’s a phrase we have been repeating many times since setting foot on American soil. Big boats in big marinas, big cars in big parking lots, big shopping malls at big distances from big houses, many of which are filled with big amounts of stuff. Everything seemed bigger than elsewhere in the world. “Bigger is Better seems to be the country’s collective mantra,” Ivar determines. “What’s more, big billboards and omnipresent advertising promote a lifestyle of consumerism. People are made to believe that they need a bigger car, tv, phone, you name it.” At the same time, we have found the USA to be a country of extremes in which the opposite is often also true. Indeed, there is a movement that promotes less consumption and more thoughtful living: minimalism.
The Minimalists
We first learned about minimalism from the documentary Minimalism. It revolves around two American friends, Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, who showcase the benefits of living with less stuff. By consciously downsizing and owning less, they save money and time. This allows them to spend more time on family, friends, and being out in nature, which they find more worthwhile than earning money. They have become known as ‘The Minimalists’. Following the success of their first documentary, they wrote a bestselling book (Love People, Use Things), shot another movie (Less is More), and started a podcast to promote a minimalist lifestyle. Their millions of viewers, listeners, and online followers prove that minimalism is a serious movement. We would have loved to meet them, but they live in California while we are sailing along the East Coast. “The distance is too big,” we determine.
Mama Minimalist
Fortunately, there are other prominent minimalists. We find one of them living in Boston, Stephanie Seferian. The mother of two started a blog called Mama Minimalist and later switched to podcasting (Sustainable Minimalists). She also wrote a book titled Sustainable Minimalism and is very active on Instagram. When we contact her, she replies that she is as excited about meeting us as we are about her. “Of course I want to give an interview. Would you also like to do a podcast with me?” she replies.
We agree to meet at her house, so we can see her minimalist lifestyle in action. As soon as we step inside, we are struck by how tidy her house is. Over tea we fire questions at her, such as why she became a minimalist. Stephanie explains: “I was a typical consumer. Quite mindlessly, I bought things I thought I needed, as long as I could afford them. That only changed when I became a mother for the first time. Baby clothes, toys, and so many other items piled up in our home. We lived in a small apartment in the city, and I spent a lot of time tidying up. I thought, this doesn’t make sense. My daughter doesn’t need any of this. None of these things add anything, yet they cost me money and attention. That’s when I realized I needed to change our habits.”
It Starts with Decluttering
“I started by sorting through the baby items. I gave away most of them, and then moved on to other items around the house,” Stephanie continues. “Is decluttering the first step to a minimalist lifestyle?” we ask. “Many people accumulate stuff and are not used to decluttering,” Stephanie replies. “That is why I warn novice minimalists that decluttering is not always easy. Don’t start with your grandmother’s stuff in the basement, that’s too emotional! Just like in the gym, you don’t start with the heavy weights. Start simple, for example in the linen closet. Reduce the number or towels and bed sheets you have, because you don’t’ really need more than two. Then move to the kitchen, and so on.”
Buying as a Last Option
Stephanie warns that decluttering is just the start of minimalism. “Decluttering only has a temporary effect unless you fundamentally change your relationship to things and consumption. Again, that can be challenging, because in this country, a lifestyle of consumption is prevalent. Buying new things, upgrading your car and your phone, and accumulating material possessions are seen as normal. From an early age, we are surrounded by advertising that promotes consumption. It means that when you become a minimalist, you go against the flow and you have to be comfortable with that,” Stephanie adds.
“What also made it my lifestyle of choice is the realization that all the stuff we buy has to be produced, packaged, transported, and discarded. That costs a lot of raw materials and energy and is usually very polluting. It means that buying fewer things is also more sustainable.” We agree. The question we have for Stephanie is how she broke free from the consumer culture.
“What works well for me is consciously taking a break,” Stephanie responds. “Whenever I think I need something, I pause instead of ordering it immediately. I wait for 24 hours and then ask myself if I really need it. Often, the answer is no. I was doing fine without it, so I will be fine if I don’t buy it. If the answer is that I do need it, then I try to come up with an alternative for buying. For example, if my daughter wants to try soccer, I might borrow a soccer ball first. Or I try to buy it second hand. I only buy something new as a very last option,” Stephanie explains.
Benefits in Three Layers
Stephanie is used to talking about minimalism. She chooses her words carefully and gives us an interesting perspective when we ask about the benefits of a minimalist lifestyle. “I like to divide the benefits into three layers. The first layer contains the direct and daily benefits. Owning less stuff means wasting less money and having less clean-up and maintenance stress.”
“The second layer contains the indirect benefits. As we have money left at the end of the month, we can use it to do something valuable. We can take a family trip to a national park, or set it aside to go on holidays. There are also benefits for the planet, such as less pollution and less waste.”
“Finally, there is a third layer: inner peace. I used to worry about whether I looked presentable in my clothes and how the brand of car I drove reflected on me. I’m much less concerned with that now. I notice that I act more based on my own values.” Indeed, in one of her Instagram posts, she proclaims that “An ‘unesthetic’ life is still a happy one”, as her 16-year-old jacket still keeps her warm, a hand-me-down coffee grinder still grinds fresh coffee, and her daughters look cute in thrifted clothes.
“Minimalism is really about enjoying the simple things, like having time for your family and yourself, being out in nature, being less stressed, and having memorable experiences instead of more stuff”, Stephanie summarizes.
Challenges
What challenges does Stephanie face, we want to know. “Birthday parties can be difficult, because everyone thinks it’s normal to give stuff. It causes stress for the buyer and is sometimes not even appreciated by the birthday child, let alone needed. Instead of things, I gift an experience. A visit to a delicious ice cream shop, for example, or a ticket to a museum or a movie.”
“What is more difficult is that many new items are not made to last. They are made to be cheap, so they break quickly. In other words, the rapid breakdown of stuff is ingrained in our system of capitalist consumption. I think a collective effort is needed to change this. For example, we need to have a right to repair. That might force producers to focus on quality again,” Stephanie says.
Recognition
We recognize much of ourselves in Stephanie’s story, we tell her when it’s her turn to interview us. By moving to the boat, selling our cars, and consciously choosing to own less, we were able to save money for our sailing trip around the world. While traveling, minimalism became second nature. After all, our budget and space on board are limited. Partly thanks to our minimalist lifestyle, we have been able to survive financially for eight years. We have exchanged possessions for experiences, which has taught us that less really means more.
Listen here to Stephanie’s podcast episode in which she interviews us:
Followers Wanted
Thanks to influencers like Stephanie, the Minimalists, and others, the shift in focus from accumulating possessions to experiencing life is gaining traction. Online communities of minimalists are sharing tips on how to get rid of things or how to deal with the temptation of buying something on sale. Influencers, meanwhile, repeat their mantra that less stuff can lead to more time for making memories, socialize with friends, or simply relaxing. Less consumption equals more happiness, they proclaim.
We think that consuming less is also desperately needed for our planet’s health, and indirectly, our own physical health. After all – as Stephanie pointed out – each item that is bought, used, or consumed, needs to be produced, packaged, transported, and, at some point, discarded. Each item, therefore, depletes the earth’s resources, causes emissions, and pollution. Minerals are mined, oil is drilled, exhaust fumes are emitted into the air, microplastics are released from truck tyres, garbage is dumped in landfills or in nature; all for items somebody didn’t really need or used for only a few minutes. Much of the pollution caused by consumption is invisible because it is far away, but it has huge impacts on the overall state of the earth. And if the earth is not healthy, humankind cannot be healthy either. After all, we need clean air to breath, clean water to drink, clean rivers and oceans for fish to thrive, and intact forests for birds and insects to survive and CO2 to be captured.
There is particular need for consumers in wealthy countries to change their habits, given that 20% of earth’s inhabitants consume over 80% of the world’s resources. They thus cause most of the pollution. If we want all eight billion people on this plane to enjoy a certain minimum level of comfort, the current over-consumers will have to reduce their footprint. How else can we expect a sustainable future for the next generations? We therefore hope that many people will follow the minimalist trend and reduce their consumption to discover that less actually is more.
