I can’t become a minimalist, I’m a mom. Rarely a day goes by without hearing those words. Read on to find out how to get your family involved in decluttering and making raising a child less stressful.
It’s extremely expensive to raise a child even without adding in all the extra junk parents supposedly need. Minimalism stops the mind games from telling you happiness is over there, with more accumulation.
Instead, becoming a minimalist family allows you to focus on what is truly important to you. Unfortunately, the concept of caring more about your family’s desires is a lot less popular than being avid consumers.
You Can Declutter With a Family
Society has convinced moms that more is better. More toys, more gear, and more overwhelm is not the ideal way to raise a child. Stressed out parents raise stressed out kids and every parent wants to be the one to break that cycle. You can be the one.
Minimalism can be a transformative lifestyle. Involve your entire family in the decluttering process to help them grasp the benefits. Whether you’re looking to simplify your finances, downsize your living space, or become full-time nomads, the journey to minimalism can be a rewarding and life-changing experience for the whole family.
Now do you realize you can declutter with a family?
Why You Should Declutter
Engage your family in decluttering to help them understand the advantages of minimalism and transition to a simpler lifestyle together.
However, making the transition to minimalism can be challenging, especially when you’re trying to get your entire family on board. It’s important to remember that decluttering and downsizing is not just about getting rid of physical possessions, but also about letting go of negative attitudes and habits that are holding you back.
Regret over a lifetime stems from the misalignment between what we ought to do and what we desire to do. Minimalism made me realize I never really desired a house with a white picket fence, an electric car, or private school for my kids. After finding minimalism I realized all I really wanted was for my kids to be safe and loved and happy. I thought those things and environments would do that for my kids, but I was wrong.
Now do you see that you should declutter with a family?
How You Can Declutter
Now that you’ve decided you will declutter your life, let’s dig into how.
Communication is Key
Before you start decluttering, it’s important to have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve. Get together and set your family goals for the future together. Knowing where you are going will make the minimalist journey even easier.
- Do you want to downsize your living space?
- Are you trying to build generational wealth?
- Is the goal to become full-time nomads?
- Will less stuff just make daily routines less stressful?
- Can reducing items allow a loved one to move in with you?
Once you have a clear picture of your goals, make sure you communicate them clearly with your family, so everyone is on the same page. Be sure to read my blog about setting family goals if you’re feeling stuck on this step.
Setting Family Goals
December 2019
Adults aren’t the only people involved in setting family goals, kids voices matter too. Learn how to include children in yearly goal planning
Step by Step
Decluttering can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re trying to get rid of years’ worth of accumulated possessions. To make the process more manageable, start with small, achievable steps.
For example, you could focus on decluttering one room at a time, or on getting rid of one type of item (such as clothes) before moving on to another.
Make it FUN
Involve your family in decluttering to make them feel invested in the result. Set experience based rewards when you complete certain steps. A family trip to the zoo or singing the night away at a concert are perfect minimalist rewards.
Assign each family member a task, such as sorting through their own belongings, or helping to donate items to charity. During decluttering sessions you can blast music or create friendly competitions. First one to find 20 pieces of garbage gets to pick the pizza topping.
Embrace the Freedom
It’s important to remember that decluttering and downsizing is just the first step on the journey to minimalism. Once you’ve freed yourself from the physical clutter, it’s time to focus on the mental and emotional aspects of minimalism.
Embrace the freedom that comes with living with less, and use it to explore new opportunities and experiences as a family. Cleaning the kitchen no longer needs to stress a parent out to the point of snapping. You won’t open your kids bedroom only to find a toynado is assaulting your eyes.
Instead of cleaning or organizing, you can sit down and enjoy playing a game together. Minimalism dissipates the negative emotions too much clutter creates in homes.
Linger a little longer with your coffee in the morning because you aren’t frantically looking or your keys. Let your kids help you prepare dinner because there’s more space for an accidental spill. Just being in those moments is a freedom that stress prevents.
Family Decluttering Pitfalls
No matter what you do there doesn’t seem to be any progress. Your minimalist journey only partially has to do with purging what you already own. The flip side of eliminating stuff is to not accumulate more stuff.
You’ve been conditioned to accumulate so learning the skill of living with less will take work. Everyone I’ve ever seen who quit trying minimalism has said some version of they couldn’t handle the judgement. I’ve never heard of anyone who stopped their minimizing because it wasn’t making them happier.
You can make decluttering a fun and enjoyable process for your family. The process can be fun and the end results will create a lifetime of happiness.
