The Minimalist HomeSýnishorn

The Purposeful and the Practical

Just as you should have purposes in mind for your home as a whole, so you should have purposes in mind for each room in your home. As you’re minimizing in a methodical way, you should bear in mind these room purposes so you can decide whether the possessions within them belong there or not. Whenever something in a room doesn’t further your goals for it, then it is a candidate for removal. The purposeful leads right into the practical. 

For example, maybe you will decide that your living room is too formal. It’s not a comfortable place and rarely gets used. So maybe you will start minimizing by getting rid of items that make it feel too stuffy. 

Maybe you have a recliner where you love to sit in the family room. Park yourself there and look around, asking yourself which objects enhance the peacefulness of that setting for you and which do not. 

Maybe you need to eliminate a bunch of toys your kids have outgrown so they have room to play with the ones they still like. 

Maybe you don’t like how much time you and your family members are spending on electronic devices. In that case it could be time to get rid of a television set or game console. 

Since these rooms are places used by the whole household, of course you should also ask the members of your family what they would like to keep or get rid of in these rooms. Talk out your minimizing strategies in these rooms together. Do the work of removing items together. Enjoy the benefits together. This is the perfect way to establish your minimalism home makeover as a family project, with buy-in and celebration all around. 

If you live alone, you might want to ask a close friend to come over and give you some advice about what to hold on to or eliminate, from the perspective of someone who frequents your home as a guest. She’ll be glad to give her opinion. And besides, you might need help moving furniture! 

Starting small in minimizing your home is actually a big thing, as long as you’re focused on methodically making each room in your house purposeful so that you can fulfill the purposes God has for you.

What is a first step you will take to minimizing one room of your house today?