I've hit a minimalizing / decluttering roadblock
In my quest to minimize. I've hit a roadblock.
What's left are my computer and peripherals, art supplies, art books, comics, music equipment and business books.
And the reason why I've held onto these things is because I still see myself as a artist and musician. Which I am, but also, am not, professionally am not that is. Also, I see myself as a business person, who one day will be a successful business person. I just finished watching "The Founder" and the bit about persistence really resonated with me.
It's a quote I remember from my high school football days. It was written on a pregame schedule.
Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
-Calvin Coolidge
These things I'm holding onto are tools, resources to make my dreams come true. So, I need to change my beliefs that I need these things to be that kind of person or I need to remove those dreams and the stuff will follow.
So, I persist in my dreams despite reality. If I persist long enough, will I make it? What is this urge, this desire for minimalism? Am I chasing the thrill of space. I get a real thrill out of having free space, much like I used to get a thrill out of buying stuff.
I just imagine my room, clean and empty of stuff and it's a beautiful, calming vision. I imagine a life free of stuff, free of the obligation to keep making stuff. But it's a habit I have a hard time breaking. I've dedicated so much time to it and value myself so much by it. It's an addiction and a chain around my neck. A job that doesn't really pay, except in satisfaction.
What would I do, if I didn't have these goals: to be rich, to be a great artist, to be a great musician? If, I didn't see myself as an artist or musician or business person?
For me, it's actually not a problem, but I think it's society that has the problem. Society needs me to be something, in order to have value. Me, personally, I could probably do it if I weren't afraid of society. If I weren't afraid of starvation and homelessness. But why be afraid of society. Society already doesn't care about my art or my music or my business... but I still attain great satisfaction from these things, my creations.
But is that enough? Am I shortchanging my life, for stuff, for dreams?
/// some online research:
Your job is to visualize the end result. Leave working out how to get there to your subconscious mind. It knows far more about how to work the universe than you do.
So, next time you run into one of those roadblocks, don’t stop and just keep going. Get straight back into visualizing the end result, journal about it, do whatever you can to get that vibration back to the level you want.
With the minimalist aesthetic having an in vogue moment right now, it can become appealing to want our lives to look like the white, perfectly manicured images that are constantly filling up our Instagram feeds. But, minimalism isn’t a competition. It’s not about being able to say “I only own three pairs of shoes, therefore, I win!”. No one is going to give you a medal for what you do or don’t own. But, the internet certainly makes it seem like there is a minimalist right way to live and a specific number of things to be decluttered when you will finally be happy.When I first started my minimalist journey, I was newly out of a long-term relationship (my decision), and I found that the more stuff I got rid of, the more I noticed what friendships and familial relationships were one-sided or unequal.
I had to say goodbye to some friendships that were more draining than empowering and restructure some family relationships to keep myself in a happy place. That was hard work, in some ways easier and in some ways harder than decluttering my physical stuff. But, it was just as important of a task as the rest of it. In a lot of ways, this kind of simplifying is the entire point of minimalism (in my opinion). You have to get through all the physical stuff first, to help you get to a place where you know who and what you value in your life.
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