The Advantages and Disadvantages of Minimalism

by Raymund Tamayo

Possessions are always going to be a part of life. 

Everybody owns stuff, including you and I. 

Even extreme minimalists own a few things, albeit they are really quite minimal. 

The relationship of people and stuff is so complex that it can be ironic at times. 

Sometimes, the poorer a person is, the more stuff he appears to have. 

Why? Because the less income or money a person has, the more "just in case" feelings he caters.

How about you?

Examine yourself right now. 

Think about the quantity of your possessions versus its quality. 

Can you count it? 

Are you aware of everything you own? 

Do you have stuff that you don’t use but still cater in your life?

How Minimalism Affects Life

Minimalism affects life in a way that it eliminates everything that is unnecessary to make way for the necessary. 

It makes everything a favorite because a minimalist only keeps what is important and beautiful to him or her.

When all our stuff is our favorite, we live with more peace of mind, less stress and pressure, and with more confidence even with our appearance. 

We don’t have to worry about unused stuff at home, or hundreds of unworn clothing stored in closets and dozens of shoes left decaying in footlockers.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Minimalism

To summarize here are the advantages of minimalism:

• More freedom
• Less stress
• More contentment
• Less worries
• Ability to recover lost time
• Opportunity to live a life of purpose
• Chance to focus on health and relationships
• Opportunity to pursue passions and personal growth
• Ability to contribute to the life of others …and many more as you begin to adapt to your own minimalistic tendencies. 

There are also disadvantages to minimalism, such as:

• It is not easy to apply in life
• It takes discipline and a strong mental health
• You may spend your sudden surplus of time unwisely
• You may become fixated with keeping your possessions to only a set limit rather than pursuing your passions and life purpose
• You can become conceited because of your unique lifestyle
• People may consider you as weird
• You might miss the real meaning of minimalism and go out of control in paring down leaving you dissatisfied with life and feeling deprived

A Sense of Balance

The key to becoming a minimalist is to do it gradually and find the right balance that is uniquely fit to your preference and situation.

If you feel that you are overwhelmed, or feel like trapped in this endless cycle of busyness and consumerism, trapped in the rat race of living paycheck to paycheck and of working just to maintain and take care material possessions instead of living out your life’s passions, then minimalism may finally be the liberation that you have been looking for all this time.