Catch up on some Joshua and Ryan podcasts in 2020. This newly released documentary is more of a distillation of the podcast content, not too much new, but also inspired some thinking. The following are the contents and ideas that I find inspiring.
1.
Ryan said at the beginning: We often confuse "easy" and "easy", but the two are actually complete opposites. Living a simple life takes a lot of effort. Living consciously takes a lot of effort, and it’s easy to go with the flow.
Minimalism is essentially the conscious use of the resources you already have.
To be minimalist, you must first understand yourself enough, including understanding your desires, the psychological mechanism behind it, and what you really want to pursue, and then gradually clear obstacles on the road of minimalism, and finally focus your time, money, and energy to be worthwhile. people and things. Many people's first impression and understanding of minimalism always stay at the point of "few things", so it is easy to enter the cycle of throwing things - buying things - throwing things again. I think the time and energy spent in this process are actually the same as The original intention of minimalism goes against the grain. Therefore, at the beginning of minimalism, my requirement for myself is to not buy indiscriminately , make good use of existing things, fully understand my preferences and needs, and then move on to the next step of streamlining items.
2.
Advertisers often use 'deficit advertising' strategies for marketing. This advertising strategy delivers ad content to audiences that unconsciously feel that they are not good enough if they don’t own a particular item. Because of the gradual loss of other sources of satisfaction, such as community, purpose, and identity outside of the brand, people mistakenly shift the desire for belonging and satisfaction to owning more items.
In response to the above situation, I would like to make two efforts: (1) separate brands and items, and describe the items they own by "de-branding" (brands are of course a reference indicator to help consumers judge the quality of products, but now more and more A lot of high-premium products have begun to bundle brands with specific images, and sometimes even become a soothing agent for psychological anxiety, leading to a lot of irrational consumption that puts the cart before the horse); (2) Discover more products that can be happy without consumption. Channels such as reading, outdoor sports, spending time with family, new hobbies.
3.
The reasons that lead to hoarding in the personal statement: impulsive consumption, using shopping as mental/emotional support, unable to resist the temptation and psychological satisfaction of discounts, the sense of urgency that can no longer be bought, unconscious purchase of similar small items, imaginary Pay for yourself and your life, and shop to reward yourself.
When we’re in a difficult situation, it’s easy to fall into the “buy stuff to solve it” trap.
Looking back on my previous shopping experience, I found that I need to shop when I am anxious, when I am happy, when I am in difficulty, and when I reward myself. Many times, the purchase of the item itself is not important at all, but the shopping that matters. Instant psychological relief. As a result, happiness peaks at the moment of purchase, while owning and using the item itself becomes a burden. More or less of the above reasons have led to my impulse shopping, but the one that strikes me the most is the "urgency to never buy again" - I used to spend a lot of time trying to find every item I love at the same time. I am afraid that I will never find it again after it is worn out. In the new year, keep reminding yourself that no item is irreplaceable . For those items with emotional value, the value is in people's hearts, not attached to this thing.
4.
We need to learn to control our so-called "needs" (which are often created by businesses), create a "buffer" for our lives, have enough savings to achieve the necessary, and have the confidence to say "don't do this job" freedom of.
When you buy something that doesn't really add value to our lives, you're actually exchanging that freedom and independence for something useless.
Too often, we are spending money we haven’t earned, buying things we don’t need, to please people we don’t like.
When I saw this passage, my first reaction was what Liu Yuling said in the picture above. To do this, you don't have to spend money in addition to working hard .
5.
What is really important in my life? Why am I not satisfied? What kind of person do I want to be? How do I define the "success" I seek?
These questions and answers are hard, but answering them has proven to be more important than simply throwing away the excess. If we don't answer them seriously and rigorously, a freshly emptied closet can quickly become flooded with new purchases.
The goal of minimalism is to save time, space, and money for the people and things that really matter in life.
View more about The Minimalists: Less Is Now reviews
