Stroll down the aisle of any home store and you’ll certainly find great stuff! Bring your favorite accessories home and you’ll probably feel happy in that moment. If you’re a Pinterest fan, you can find millions of projects you could do for practically no cost, perhaps simply using just a can of spray paint and a roll of duct tape from the garage. Stuff doesn’t even have to cost a lot to make us happy!
But does having more stuff make us happier?
When we cross the line into having a lot of stuff, our happiness won’t necessarily change for the better. In fact, once our homes become overly crowded and we own more than we need or have room for, paring down to less is what can actually make us happier.
Here are three ways having less can bring more happiness!
Less frustration = more peace.
How many times have you found yourself frustrated by the amount of stuff you have to dig through just to find what you’re looking for? Does the thought of organizing and paring down the garage stress you out because you dread sorting through everything in there? Can you barely open your dresser drawers because they’re stuffed full of too many clothes? Is it stressful to think of hosting guests because of the amount of things you feel you’d have to organize and tidy first to feel hospitable?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, it might help to know that having less stuff in your home can dramatically reduce the frustration you experience on a daily basis. Strive for keeping less, so your sense of calm and peace can increase!
Less to maintain = more time and money for what you want to do.
Is your schedule hard to manage? In what ways might the excess you have actually be contributing to your packed schedule? Having less to maintain means you’ll have more time for what you really want to do.
- Having a smaller yard will mean less yard work.
- Downsizing to a smaller space will mean you’ll have less to maintain and take care of.
- Having less stuff will allow you to spend your time doing what you really enjoy rather than organizing belongings and constantly clearing stuff from floors and surfaces.
- Keeping less means you’ll spend less money and time on organizational systems for your home.
- Downsizing what you own will allow you to be more productive in other ways, because you’ll have less stuff competing for your time and attention.
Less stuff = more joy.
When we bring less into our homes, we begin to rely less on stuff to bring contentment and fulfillment. We will find joy in living, rather than owning. If we buy less, we will feel less pressure to work more to keep up with our purchases and their maintenance. When we accumulate less, we become more grateful for intangible experiences and for what we already have. When we have less cluttering our homes, we can focus on enjoying what we really need. As we remove clutter, we remove distractions, and we can experience more gratitude for what really matters.
How might accumulating and keeping less bring more happiness in your home this year?
