There are many benefits of embracing a simple lifestyle.
In today’s post, I want to share 7 key ways simplifying not only helps reduce stress in your life. But also, how it can increase feelings of joy, contentment and happiness as well!
Reminding yourself of the benefits of a simpler lifestyle is a great way to give yourself a boost of motivation and encouragement to continue simplifying and creating a home you love.
A home that looks, feels and functions in a way that works for you. And in a way that supports you, your goals, your priorities and the way you want to live.
“Stuff” isn’t passive
The stuff you own isn’t passive. It actively takes up your time, space and energy throughout the day. It adds stress to your life by increasing your workload, mental load and adding visual clutter to your home. And it can even block you from enjoying your home and the time you spend there.
But the good news is that simplifying your home and reducing the amount of stuff in your home can positively impact so many aspects of your life.
Not only reducing your workload and helping you have a tidier, easier to manage home. (Although that’s a great benefit too!) But also benefiting you in many other ways as well.
It’s easy to see the connection between simplifying and some of the benefits it adds to your life. But some of the other benefits might surprise you because they’re not always so obvious!
7 ways a simple lifestyle can help reduce stress & increase joy
1. A simple lifestyle frees up time
This is one of the more obvious benefits of simplifying. Less “stuff” in your home means you can spend less time and energy managing and taking care of your home and the stuff in it.
This includes things like cleaning your stuff, cleaning around it, looking for stuff, organizing stuff, re-organizing stuff, picking stuff up, etc.
It’s easy to see that the more stuff you own, the more time and energy you spend taking care of and managing it all.
Everything you own requires some kind of maintenance and management from you. Some things you need to manage daily. Other things might need less daily management, but still require time and energy from you at times.
But everything you choose to own is something you are responsible for managing and taking care of.
The less you own, the less time and energy you spend managing stuff. And the more time and energy you have for the things, people and activities that matter most to you!
And to me, the time a simpler lifestyle frees up is one of the most significant and impactful ways simplifying can improve your life.
2. A simple lifestyle helps you create a sanctuary
A simpler home is a place that can become your sanctuary.
A place where you can rest, recharge and enjoy the time you spend there. Rather than another source of stress in your life simply because of how much time and energy it takes to manage your home. Or how overwhelming it can feel when you have too much stuff to comfortably manage and your home feels out of control.
Letting go of the excess, and instead only keeping the things you use, need and love, and an amount of stuff you can comfortably manage helps your home become a place you love. A place that feels like your sanctuary from the stress of life and the outside world. Rather than another thing adding stress to your life and draining your time and energy.
Take some time to think about what a sanctuary would look and feel like for you. Really getting clear about how your home as a sanctuary would look, feel and function.
Then use that vision to guide your decisions as you simplify your home and life. Keeping the goal in mind of creating a home you love, whatever that looks like for you.
3. Simplifying creates time and space for what you love
When you always feel busy just trying to keep up, you often don’t have much extra time or capacity for the extra things. The activities, hobbies or work you love, feel passionate about or truly enjoy.
But when you look at what’s currently taking up your time, ask yourself if it’s all necessary.
If you simplify your home, could you spend less time picking up stuff and have more time for a hobby you love?
Would you rather spend your weekends picking up, cleaning and cleaning around a bunch of stuff you don’t even really use, need or love? Or have a home that’s easier to manage and maintain so you could get your housework done in less time and have more time to volunteer for a cause you’re passionate about? Or spend the extra time doing an activity you love or pursuing a goal you’ve always been too busy to go after?
Choosing a simpler home and life creates more time and space for you to do the things you love and that are important to you. Rather than managing “stuff”.
4. A simple lifestyle creates opportunities for deeper relationships
Not only does a simpler lifestyle give you more time and space for activities you love and are passionate about. It also gives you more time, space and energy for relationships with the people you love.
Any time you have more time, energy and attention to devote to your important relationships, the more opportunities you’ll have to deepen those relationships.
Relationships flourish when you have more time, energy and attention for them. Whether it’s your relationships with your kids, your partner, your friends, or your family.
And when you can spend less of your time and energy managing stuff you don’t use, need or love, you have more time and energy for what matters most to you. Including the people you love and who are important to you.
5. Simplifying reduces your workload at home
When your home feels overwhelming, and like you can never keep up or stay on top of things at home, it’s not a good feeling. It can feel like you’re failing because even though you’re trying so hard, you just can’t seem to keep up with your home and the stuff you own.
Rather than feeling like you’re failing, and assuming you’re the problem, consider if the problem lies in the amount of stuff you own. Maybe you simply own more stuff than you can reasonably and comfortably manage!
Simplifying not only reduces the workload of managing and taking care of your home. But it also helps reduce stress, frustration and even resentment stemming from the amount of work required to care for and maintain your home.
What is a manageable amount of stuff will be different for different people. What you’re comfortably able to manage might be too much for one person, while another person could easily manage more.
Start noticing your clutter threshold, or the amount of stuff you can comfortably manage in your home. Rather than beating yourself up for “failing” or not being able to keep up with the amount of stuff you feel like you should be able to keep up with.
It might take a few rounds of simplifying and decluttering to find the amount of stuff that you’re able to comfortably manage.
You’ll know you’re there when the work required to maintain your home and the stuff in it feels manageable. Not overly stressful or overwhelming. And spoiler alert: it’s probably a lot less stuff than you think!
6. A simpler lifestyle helps create financial freedom
A simpler lifestyle can help give you more financial freedom in two ways.
First, when you embrace a simpler lifestyle, all the simplifying and decluttering you’re doing often inspires you to buy less. Not only do you want to keep your home simpler and clutter-free. But you have also seen firsthand all the stuff you bought that you didn’t end up using, needing or loving. And ultimately got rid of.
Second, when you buy less “stuff”, you have the opportunity to be more intentional about where your money is going. Giving you the freedom to use your money in a way that better aligns with your values, goals and priorities.
In some cases, you might even spend so much less that you are able to work less. Freeing up even more time in your life to focus on what matters to you.
7. A simple lifestyle creates space for joy
And finally, another wonderful benefit of a simpler lifestyle is the way it creates more space for joy. And a bunch of other great feelings too!
Joy
First, when your life feels less stressful, overwhelming and like you are always frantically trying to keep up, there’s not a lot of space for moments of joy to find their way in.
I didn’t even realize how stressful clutter was until I got rid of it!
When your days no longer feel like a struggle just to keep up and you can maintain your home more easily, you might notice you start enjoying your days more too.
It’s easier to live at a slower, less stressful, more enjoyable pace when you’re not rushing around trying to keep up.
And clearing the clutter creates space – in your home, in your mind, and in your heart – for so much more joy and happiness. Giving you the opportunity to slow down, notice and appreciate the moments of joy happening all around you. You just have to slow down and clear the distractions enough to be able to see them!
Gratitude and contentment
Learning to embrace a simpler lifestyle is a great practice in gratitude and contentment.
Learning to embrace the value of a simpler life with less “stuff” helps you start shifting away from always wanting more, newer, better, etc. And instead helps you start noticing and appreciating what already fills your life.
Noticing and appreciating how little you need to have a home that looks, feels and functions how you want. And realizing that more isn’t always better. And in fact, more can often make life more difficult, stressful and frustrating!
A simpler life helps you find your place of “enough”. Rather than always chasing the next thing to feel satisfied and like you have enough.
Finding what “enough” feels like is a wonderful feeling. Releasing you from the never-ending pursuit of “more”. And encouraging you to feel content with and grateful for what you already have.
Ease
Embracing a simpler life also helps you find more ease in your days.
If your days feel like a constant struggle of never enough time and chaos, simplifying might be a great way to find some relief.
Start noticing what feels stressful, chaotic, frustrating or overwhelming in your days right now. Is there a way you could simplify that pain point?
Would having fewer options in that category of stuff make life easier? Would having fewer commitments to rush to help slow down your days and reduce some of the stress?
It might not always be quick or easy to start simplifying the pain points you notice in your days. But small steps to simplify add up and can make a difference over time!
Imagine how it would feel to move through your days with more ease rather than just trying to “get through” each day?
Confidence
Simplifying your life helps clear the clutter and distractions from your life. Making it easier to gain clarity about who you are, what matters most to you and what your values, goals and priorities are.
The more you know who you are and what matters most to you, the more you can start living in alignment with yourself. And the more you live in alignment with yourself, the more confidence you gain in who you are and the choices you’re making.
Not only that, but if you feel like a failure not being able to keep up with your home, you start to see the problem isn’t you. The problem is that you had too much stuff. Again, increasing confidence in yourself and the choices you’re making.
Presence
Clutter is distracting. Sucking up your time, energy and attention. Adding stress to your day and distracting you from the present moment. Pulling your attention to what you could be doing or should be doing. Instead of focusing on what you’re doing in the present moment.
A simpler home means less distracting you and pulling at your time and attention. And more opportunities to slow down and stay present during your day instead.
Benefits of a simple lifestyle
These are just a few of the benefits of a simpler lifestyle. But these are all really important benefits. Benefits that can have a dramatic impact on your life and your days.
If you’re looking for some encouragement to continue pursuing and embracing a simple lifestyle, I hope today’s post has helped!
