Do Less (16 page)

After reading all the ways you can use minimalism for a more organized and happier life, you may wonder, what will be left for me to do if I don't have all this clutter and these obligations in my life? It's true, if you don't have all that cleaning to do, all that stuff to pay for, all those extra bills, and all that extra work, you'll have a lot more time and money on your hands. Now:

• You have space in your home.
  
• You can see the back of your closets and getting dressed in the morning will be a cinch.
  
• You'll sit down to a home-cooked meal in the evening without any sense of panic about what has to get done before going to bed that night.
  
• A new sense of calm enters your life and you'll easily be able to decipher true emergencies from inconveniences.
  

No more piles of things you will deal with later or harried mornings searching for important papers that have been lost in home office clutter. Those things and people you always wished you had more time for? You now have the time. There will be time to sleep in, time for fitness, time to spend an afternoon reading your favorite magazine while soaking in the tub, time to start a new business, or time to just spend more hours on your porch watching the sunset and waving to your neighbors. There is now room in your life for these choices, so enjoy them!

One thought you might have after minimizing and clearing the clutter: why didn't I do this long ago? The concepts and benefits of living with less are so simple, and you don't need any equipment or special planners to make it happen. Have less and you will have less to do. Just a few hours, some common sense, and a vision of a clear and happy home and schedule can change your life.

As you use the minimalist path to reshape your home and days, remember that you can tailor the degree and areas to which you apply the Do Less concepts however you need them. In certain seasons of your life, a very streamlined home will be your top priority as you go through a particularly busy period with work, activities, or family obligations. At other times, you may want to rein in your social or work commitments for a slower pace of life. The beauty of using minimalism for an organized and happy life is that there is a formula for each person to achieve his or her goals. No one path will be the same as another. The only universal that's true for everyone: we can all enjoy a life of less stuff, obligation, and stress.

RACHEL JONAT
sharpened her simple-living skills while training and racing internationally as a rower. After multiple cross-country moves, and many trans-Atlantic flights with bags below the weight limit, she retired from the sport after winning a World Championship bronze medal. Rachel used the opportunity of a maternity leave from her post-rowing marketing job to pursue her other childhood dream: writing. She hasn't dressed for the office or attended a Friday department meeting since 2009. Although writing doesn't burn nearly as many calories as rowing, she greatly enjoys all the perks of her nonathlete life, like fewer showers and sipping a cup of coffee while working.

Rachel currently lives in the Isle of Man, a small windswept island in the middle of the Irish Sea, with her husband and two sons. You can read more about her downsizing and minimalist journey at
www.theminimalistmom.com
.