Why I Choose To Be A Minimalist (Lessons From A Full-Time Writer)

I sold everything I owned (car, furniture, 90% of my clothes, and all miscellaneous belongings) in 2017.

Being minimalist means that I’m able to change my environment in correlation with my ever-elevating identity.

When you have a lot of stuff, you’re tied to the identity of yourself that is linked to that stuff.

For example, if you have a funky, fuzzy, purple couch you’re tied to the identity of being a quirky, colorful person.

On the reverse,

If you have a very modern, white Ikea-esque couch you’re tied to the identity of being a clean-cut person.

This means that the day you find enlightenment and realize that you prefer the purple couch over the modern, white couch — you’re tied to the identity that comes with your current couch until you swap it for the fuzzy one.

When you’re a minimalist, this problem doesn’t exist.

I sold everything I owned (car, furniture, 90% of my clothes, and all miscellaneous belongings) in 2017.

I fit everything I could into an 80L backpack and spent the next two years traveling through Central America, Europe, and Asia with four shirts, three pants, and a lot of socks (don’t underestimate the comfort of clean socks).

After my travels, I moved to Los Angeles. When I arrived in Los Angeles, my suitcase was filled with “long term travel” clothes. These are practical clothes that don’t necessarily look the best, but can serve multiple purposes for the climate I was in.

Not surprisingly, this is not the type of clothing that people in one of the trendiest cities in the world wear. Nor was it the type of clothing that fit my new identity.

After being in Los Angeles for three months, I doubled my freelance writing business. I became a contributing writer for one of the largest digital marketing publications in the world and wearing worn out, boho style clothes didn’t suit the person I now was.

I was thrilled with this new change and was more than happy to reflect that.

I went to the mall, bought casual, professional work-from-home attire, and gave all of my old clothes to my roommates.

Done.

Now that I’ve been in LA for six months, my style is changing again. I need to be slightly more professional, as I’m meeting potential clients on a daily basis, and I need to represent my business at the level it is now (2.5x-3.5x what it was at the beginning of this year).

Guess what I’m going to do?

Rinse and repeat.

Being a minimalist means that as I’m able to elevate my identity (through my EQ and IQ), I’m able to reflect that externally, without losing hundreds of dollars because I have to buy a new couch.

I’m able to elevate myself and just as quickly elevate my style, which means that I’m able to express myself and showcase who I am as a business professional (per my decision).

And that’s why I value my minimalistic lifestyle so highly.