This post is part 2 of The Ultimate Guide To Minimalism.
If you haven’t already read the previous post, check that out here.
Minimalism Rules
The following rules are general guidelines to help with your minimalist practice. Creating rules of your own will encourage you to stick with your minimalist practice. It will also make minimalism feel more unique and ‘you’.
One In One Out
The first rule is ‘one in one out’. If you want to buy something new, you have to first get rid of something. It’s best to get rid of something before you buy the desired item.
Once you have the thing you want, you may feel inclined to keep the item you intended to let go of.
When getting rid of an item, ensure that both items are in a similar category in your life. If you want to get a new cooking wok, it wouldn’t make sense to get rid of a pencil holder.
The two items serve different purposes, so you wouldn’t be replacing the old item, as is the aim of this rule. Rather, getting rid of a frying pan makes more sense.
This isn’t a rule you have to follow with all items and all purchases. It’s a general guideline to ensure you don’t fall back into old hoarding ways. Use this rule to be more conscious of what you buy.
If an item to buy can replace an item, such as new shoes replacing old shoes, then use one in one out. If the item in question is useful in its own right, you could get away with not getting rid of anything.
I find the easiest place to start with this rule is clothing. First, go through all your clothes and get rid of anything that you never wear, don’t like, doesn’t fit, or was a one-off. Give these away to a friend or charity shop, or sell them if they are worth something.
It might help to sort into three piles: Yes, Maybe, and No. Once you’ve gone through them all, sort the Maybe pile into Yes and No.
Counting how much you now have in your Yes pile will give you a general idea of how much to keep at any point. Now, whenever you want to buy a new piece of clothing, you first have to get rid of something, maintaining your count.
This rule encourages you to step away from our hard-ingrained consumer culture. By stepping away, you’ll find happiness and freedom.
The 90/90 Rule
This rule is particularly useful for deciding whether to let go of an item. The 90/90 rule consists of asking yourself two questions:
- Have I used this item in the past 90 days? If yes, keep it. If no, ask:
- Will I use this item in the next 90 days? If yes, keep it. If no, consider getting rid of it.
This rule is particularly useful for getting rid of ‘just in case’ items. These are things that you keep ‘just in case’ you need them.
Consider stationery, random utilities, and old accessories. If you haven’t used these items and are not going to use them soon, what’s the point in having them?
Of course, there are exceptions here. Some items will prove useful one day, such as a suitcase or toolkit. Some items you should keep for safety reasons, such as a fire extinguisher. The 90/90 rule is a guideline.
One of the perks of this rule is that it’s super easy to tweak to your exact circumstances. Your preferred time variation or time limit can change to whatever you like. You might prefer using 30 days as a guideline, or 10, or even 180. Whichever time length you prefer, the rule can help.
The 90/90 rule is particularly useful if you’re ever in doubt about keeping an item. You don’t have to use this rule with every item you have. It’s more of a tool that you can use when unsure of whether to let go of an item, or to hold on to it for a bit longer.
The 20/20 Rule
Sick of numbers yet? These rules are much easier to remember when using numbers; don’t hate the player, hate the game.
The 20/20 rule is another useful tool for deciding whether to keep an item or not. If you can replace the item in question for less than £20 within 20 minutes from your current location, it’s safe to let go of.
In essence, if there is a cheap store nearby which stocks your chosen item, you have no need to keep it.
Again, this rule is flexible. You can go 10/10, 40/40 or 60/60; whatever variation you want. But, when choosing a different variation, understand why you’re choosing that variation.
An item that costs £60 and is more than 60 minutes away is quite the investment of both time and money. It might be worth holding onto that item for now.
The 30/30 Rule
The 30/30 rule states that if an item costs more than £30, wait 30 hours before you buy it. Or, don’t make impulsive purchases. You can apply this concept generally to any purchases with an above-average price.
The idea is to spend some time to consider whether the item or investment will be of value. Then, reconsider buying it when the waiting time is over.
At the very least, sleep on your decision and wait for the following day. This is something I do with any major purchase. The morning is a great time to provide clarity and insight. Waiting until the next day can really shed some light.
For example, a while back I invested in a Macbook Pro, and somewhat recently an online course. Both were costly, and I waited an amount of time between wanting to buy and actually buying. This helped me to decide why I wanted those particular items, and to clarify what value they would be to me.
You can shorten this time or lengthen it depending on the item in question. A £1000 item would be best to wait longer for, as the investment is larger and potentially riskier.
The same goes for shortening; a £10 plant pot is less risky, but is it necessary? Taking time between first wanting to buy and deciding to buy will help figure out if it is necessary.
This also applies to the type of item. It will be worth waiting longer if the item is physical, such as a laptop. Digital items don’t take up physical space, so you can organise them with greater ease.
The price of £30 is a baseline figure to help remember the rule. ‘The 24/24 Rule’ sounds less catchy when compared to 30/30. But, whatever variation you choose, ensure it at least covers one night’s sleep.
This rule helps with intention and purpose. After waiting some time to buy an item, you can introduce it into your life with purpose and intention.
3 helpful questions to ask when buying an item:
- Will it add value to my life?
- Will it bring joy into my life?
- Is there a better use for the money?
Letting Go – Using Rules As A Process
You can follow a process to help aid your decision using the above rules. Here’s a flow chart to help you go through the process.
If you’re too lazy to scroll up and check the rules again, here they are in summary:
- One In One Out – Whenever you want to bring a new item into your life, you must first get rid of another item. Ideally, this should be in a similar life ‘category’.
- The 90/90 Rule – Have you used an item in the last 90 days? If yes, keep it. If no, ask will you use it in the next 90 days? If yes, keep it. If no, consider getting rid of it.
- The 20/20 Rule – If an item costs less than £20 and you can buy it within 20 minutes of your current location, you can safely get rid of it.
- The 30/30 Rule – For every purchase that you want to make over £30, wait 30 hours before buying.
How To Become A Minimalist
If you’ve read this far, chances are you’re interested in becoming a minimalist. You know the rules, you know the habits, you understand what minimalism means. But where do you begin?
Like I said earlier, it’s not where but when.
Just get started.
Sort through your clothes and belongings. Use relevant rules and the above flow chart to help decide what to keep. Begin to use consciousness and mindfulness whenever buying something new.
It’s not hard to become a minimalist. Or, at least, I didn’t find it hard. How strict you are is up to you. What you keep, what provides you value, and what you get rid of, isup to you. Only you can decide. Remember: less is more.
Congratulations, you’ve now reached the end of this ultimate guide. You now have all the information you need to begin your minimalist journey!
Thanks for reading.
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