Small Living Journal

A few weeks ago, I wrote a guest post for Simpler Living about downsizing and I wanted to share this article with you. Enjoy…

The Honda Fit

A Normal life?

Five years ago, we lived the “normal middle class” suburban lifestyle. We were newlyweds with flashy rings, living in a two-bedroom apartment, driving two cars, commuting long distances to work and living well beyond our means.

At this time, we were living in Davis, Calif., which is notorious for expensive real estate and a negative vacancy rating (more people than rooms). In reflection, we had a life with too much stuff and stress.

Initially, we resisted the idea of moving into a smaller one-bedroom apartment because we were more concerned about appearances and space for guests than for our financial well-being. Realizing the source of our stress was our financial situation, we decided something needed to change. This “change” began by defining our values and prioritizing our needs over those of potential future guests.

After creating many long pro/con lists, the scaling down process began. We sold one car and moved into a one-bedroom apartment near the train station, the grocery store and downtown amenities. Driving everywhere was still a big part of our lives, but with lower rent we began chipping away at our debt. Our lives began to change for the better.

Rethinking Normal…

2007 Tour of the Tortoise Shell Home Nursery

It wasn’t until last year that we stumbled across Dee Williams’s tiny house, the Small House Movement, and the concept of simple living. After doing a lot of research and making many to-do lists, we decided to move from Davis to mid-town Sacramento. We scaled down even further, to a 400-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment within walking distance to my work. Dee inspired me to go small and start thinking big.

Thinking big required setting goals and decluttering. Slowly we began focusing on the quantity and quality of our belongings.

Downsizing can be stressful, but the benefits are tremendous. Moving to a smaller apartment in the city opened up amazing possibilities. Once we sold our one remaining car, life became even better because we saved money and worked less. It sounds like a cliche, but without the car and the TV we had the time, money and energy to prioritize our health, happiness and life goals.

Below are a few tips that worked for us:

1. Going small. Downscaling to a tiny one-bedroom was a slow process that required a lot of work and many trips to the thrift store. Moving into a 400-square-foot apartment forced us to declutter our lives and seriously question why we needed so much stuff.

2. Divorcing our car. After months of talking about the pros and cons of selling our car, we decided to follow in the footsteps of a Wisconsin graduate student and divorce our car.

Weekend biking

3. Becoming debt-free is indescribably liberating. Discovering the concept of simple living helped us become debt free. After giving away the TV and selling our car, we realized how many hidden ownership costs we were paying. We also discovered an amazing book, called “Your Money or Your Life,” that fundamentally changed our relationship with money.

4. Happiness counts. Purging our lives of clutter and debt has not only made us happier, but we have purchased less stuff. Since we started the downsizing process, we feel psychologically “lighter.” Since we eliminated our debt, I know I have options to engage in activities that make me happy. For instance, I’m a lucky person and enjoy my job. But if I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t have to be tied to the position. That is a huge bonus of being debt-free and actually having money in savings.

Downsizing is a process, and it doesn’t happen overnight. I hope our personal story will help you remove clutter from your life, one step at a time.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me or leave a comment.

Good luck in your own simple living quest. Above all, pursue happiness and not more stuff.

Tammy lives in a 400 sq. ft. apartment with her partner, while dreaming of building a tiny home. If you want to learn more about Tammy, read RowdyKittens.

Downsizing is a common discussion point among those seeking a simpler life. Learning to live with less and reducing your impact and dependence on your surroundings can bring you more peace, freedom, and happiness. Many people seem to have chosen lives so complicated and costly that their surroundings actually provide more of a burden than a benefit. For these folks downsizing will be the direction they will travel if they desire a simpler life. Finding the balance between too much and too little is rightsizing.

Downsize Everything

Downsizing can not only be applied to the physical size of a home but to the complexity of life itself. The more you surround yourself with the more complex your life becomes because everything you choose to add requires more of your energy. The most obvious examples are possessions, debt, and your home. But it’s easy to extend this to commitments, hobbies, projects, and even people. I even decided recently to downsize my email by unsubscribing from email newsletters I don’t usually read. The less noise in my life the easier it is to focus on the things that move me forward and bring me the life I want to live.

Adjust Over Time

Rightsizing never ends because our needs constantly change. The trick is to stay mindful of your life’s changing requirements and find the right balance between burden and freedom. Staying focused on achieving the life you want to live is the key. This involves being on the lookout for things that add value to your life, things that take away value, and things that are just taking up space. For example if you can keep your home clean and organized on a regular basis you’ll find it’s easier to feel free and empowered.

Living in a smaller space can help because clutter stands out a lot more, but I don’t think living in a small space is essential for finding happiness and freedom. In fact the first step toward rightsizing isn’t about the size of your home but about lightening your mental burdens.

It’s also important to remember that few people can live comfortably without some stuff. Very few people could go through life with only the shirt on their back and live happily wandering the world alone. Most of us need each other, a safe and comfortable home, and a steady supply of food, and that’s just for starters.

Avoid Debt

When you take this approach anyone can start rightsizing immediately. Begin with your possessions; sell or give away the things you don’t use. If you’re concerned about a monetary loss try to remember that if these things don’t add real value to your life they are a costing you by cluttering up your space and weighing on your mind. Selling these things can actually pay you back in many more ways and the money they bring can go toward reducing debt.

Every dollar we owe also adds to weight on our lives. Taking on some debt may temporarily empower us to overcome hurdles but too much debt for long periods of time enslaves just like too many responsibilities and commitments. Finding ways to eliminate debt and save more money will always lighten your mental load.

In fact when I look around and see so many people firing blame off in all directions for the current state of the economy, I can’t help but think that everyone with a mortgage, car payment, and credit card is just as responsible as the rest. Debt is the enemy. Debt is what filled the bubble that burst. Everyone from kids to corporations to governments operate in a reality where debt is required and normal.

Choose a different reality. If those of us looking for a simpler life simply chose to downsize our own debt we’d instantly become much more self-sufficient and free. The only cost is we’d need to choose to live a lifestyle within our means instead of within our cash-flow.

Home

Eventually you may decide to move into the right size house. Consider thinking of a home’s true value as it is defined by the safety and comfort it provides and not the cost or square footage. In today’s world the idea of a home without a mortgage seems virtually impossible but the truth is that creative and frugal people find ways of getting the most for their money. A small flexible home that serves your needs can often come at a lower cost if you’re willing to spend more time and effort on making it fit your needs. This can be a home you build, renovate, or rent.

We live in a time when downsizing seems to make a lot of sense to a lot of people. When money is tight living more simply is not only easier, it’s required. Adapt and focus on changing the way you think first. Question your values and focus on the real prize, happiness and freedom… or whatever the prize is for you.

I invite you to follow me on Twitter, and visit my blogs, Tiny House Design and do it yourself Freedom.