15 Things I Quit As a Minimalist

1. Buy things JUST because they are on sale.

I used to love a good sale. It feels good to get something for a deal, but that was all it was. I wanted the hit of dopamine that came from getting a good deal often not because I actually needed or the product. This brought clutter into my space and took money from my wallet. Getting something one sale still costs money. Plus, the mental and physical space it took up came at an even greater cost.

2. Turn on on the TV without knowing what I’m going to watch.

This was a habit in my home growing up and was something I carried into early adulthood. I was used to having something on in the background creating noise. It was distracting and left me feeling scattered because I could never truly focus on what I as doing. The other option was that it encouraged me to sit in front of the TV for hours without realizing it which stole precious time from the things I wanted to do. Now our TV lives in our spare bedroom, so it is out of site and out of mind most of the time. When we do have something we want to watch, we will either cozy up together on the bed in our spare bedroom or bring the TV out to our living room. Both options create barriers to just turning it on out of habit.

3. Have extras or duplicates of items.

This has been a big part of my decluttering this year. I had probably 100 pens in multiple locations throughout the house, and didn’t use a single one up in the past year. Now, we have just a few and our pens and pencils can be found in either the desk drawer or in a drawer in our kitchen (because or kitchen is on a different level from the rest of our house). This was also true of kitchen gadgets. I had two Instant Pots, multiple ways to make coffee, and several different kinds of spoons. I have paired all of them down to just one. My kitchen now has extra space in it. I can find exactly what I need very easily which has streamlined cooking and meal preparation.

4. Buy things that I don’t have a specific place or plan for in my home.

This has been a tough habit for me to break. I see a cute basket or decoration, and think I would like that in my home. The same thing would happen in my wardrobe. I would see something in the store that looked cute on someone else and have to have it. What this habit led to was a bunch of random pieces that didn’t go together. When I was in the store, I wasn’t thinking about WHERE I would put the item in my home or WHAT I would wear the article of clothing with. I just thought they were cute. So much unnecessary clutter was brought into my home due to this habit, and it has been one of the best things that I have let go.

5. Sleep with my phone in my bedroom.

The last point was a difficult habit to break but sleeping with my phone in my room was the easiest because I noticed the benefits right away. I was more felt calmer, was more productive, and slept better the minute that I started to keep my phone in another room at night. I want the first thing that I look at in the morning to be my husband, not a screen. I think that’s all that needs to be said for this one.

6. Carry my phone around from room to room with me.

On the topic of the phone, this has been a more recent change for me but one I’ve really been enjoying. My phone now has a home in my house. During the day, this is in my bedroom and at night it is in the living room. This simple step of not taking it room to room with me has given me back some control of my screen time. Now, I go and check it on my timeline rather than seeing it as I pass by and quickly grabbing it to check something leading to a rabbit hole of wasted time. Try it….I think you’ll like it!

7. Go to bed or wake up at a different time than my husband.

This point is all about the intentionality of minimalism. For the first few years of our marriage, my husband and I allowed our differing schedules to dictate the times we got up and went to bed which only shrank the little time we had together. What we discovered in making this change is that the time first thing in the morning and right before we fall asleep are our favorite times of the day. Because we don’t keep our phones in our room (see point #5), this time is dedicated completely to one another and God and we love that!

8. Go out to eat.

This was a pretty easy one for me as well. I’ve never been big about spending a lot of money out to eat, but now it is so much more than that. Since switching to whole foods prepared slowly, restaurant food just doesn’t taste as good as what we cook at home. This doesn’t mean that we never eat out. But when we do, it’s usually for a special occasion or while vacationing. In other words, it is a meaningful experience shared together with friends and family rather than just a way to get a quick meal while rushing to the next thing.

9. Drink coffee when I’m tired or in a hurry.

Speaking of rushing, I no longer drink coffee when I’m in a rush or if I’m tired. If I’m tired, I know I need rest, not a hit of caffeine. However, the main reason for this is honestly that it doesn’t make me feel good. Even though I mostly drink decaf, I still get a stomach-ache or headache when drinking it on the go. Usually it’s something I enjoy on the weekends when my mornings are slower. Whenever, I drink it at this slow pace, I can even drink caffeinated coffee without any side effects.

10. Allow others to tell me what or how much I should be eating (this includes dieticians).

I am all for research into healthy eating and enjoy learning new things in this area. But it has gotten me in trouble when I started thinking that what works for one person will work for another. This was even true when I met with a registered dietician. I followed a plan that was not working for me for far too long because someone with a degree told me to. Let me tell you that there is not a person out there who knows your body better than you do. I have found the best diet is the one in which you listen to your body and what it needs, not what someone else tells you will work because even dieticians are still working with ranges when it comes to nutrition. You are the only one who knows when you are hungry and what foods make you feel your best.

11. Use overhead lighting in the evening.

Overhead lighting signals to our body that it is daytime which prevents the natural production of melatonin and delays the time it takes to get into a deep sleep. The same is true of televisions, phone, computers, and any type of screen; so I avoid them at least two hours before bed. On the rare occasion that we are watching TV at night, I use blue light blocking glasses. Lamps, candles, and low-lighting; on the other hand, signal our bodies that it is time to wind down. They are actually relaxing to our nervous system.

12. Workout before eating.

I did this one for way too long and my body suffered the consequences. My workouts would be lackluster and I suffered from achy muscles and joints day and night because my body was stressed by the undernourishment. Once I started fueling my body properly, not only did my workouts get better, but I felt better and more productive throughout the rest of the day.

13. Force myself to workout when I’m tired.

On the topic of exercising, I have stopped working out when I feel the need to drag myself to do so. Sure, there are days that I’m less motivated and still go workout. But gone are the days when my body is aching and tired and I still go to the gym. This is a sign my body needs to rest, and I honor that, no matter what workout I had planned. If you want to learn more about my minimalist workout routine, you can check it out HERE.

14. Read multiple books at the same time.

It’s just hard to do. I end up not fully absorbing any of the books I’m reading. Instead, I read one at a time and fully enjoy that one. If it’s not interesting enough to hold my attention, then I let it go and move on to something else.

15. Use my phone right away when I get up.

Even though my phone isn’t in my bedroom, I still try not to use it for the first hour or sometimes longer of the day. In terms of my priority list, phone usage is at the very bottom and my days get off to a bad start when they begin with my phone. Instead, I like to fill that time with things that fill my cup such as helping my husband get off to work, eating a nourishing breakfast, getting morning sunlight, and doing a couple of house chores to get the day going.