Mistakes I Made As A Beginner Minimalist

This video is sponsored by Skillshare.

Today I'm talking about all the mistakes I made as a beginner minimalist. I often dive into new interests headfirst, which also can mean you fall flat on your face every once in a while. These are some of the things I wish I knew about minimalism before I started decluttering, and before I decided to embrace minimalism as a lifestyle.

#mistakesimade #minimalism #minimalist

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ABOUT ME:🌿
I'm Christina, friendly neighbourhood human on the internet slash pharmacist, hence the "apothecary" theme in my name. I'm living in Toronto, Canada and on my channel you'll find me on my journey towards minimalism, being content with less, recovery from a shopping addiction, and my journey towards financial freedom from over $120,000 in student loan debt. Thank you SO much for watching and taking the time out of your day to support my channel. A little thumb always helps support me! Love xx, Christina.

FTC: this video is sponsored by Skillshare. Items marked * are gifted. Some links are affiliate.

[Christinamychas]

Last video of 2020! Taking a short little upload/social media break until 2021. Wishing everyone a happy and safe new year! Xo thank you for being with me along the way this year ❤️

[DaintyMercury]

After decluttering for almost 2 years now ! I realized it could get so addicting !

[ashleyanastasia]

I've been a minimalist for 4.5 years. Here are my biggest mistakes that I can think of...
1.) Decluttering my fantasy self: I decluttered my "field biologist" blouse only to be asked to do some field biology shortly after that. It's okay to store hobby stuff for when you have a chance to do it, and you don't have to get rid of every single weird/cool/unique thing you own to be a minimalist.
2.) You still have to budget. If you don't tell your money to go into savings or debt repayment, your partner will buy more stuff for your house, your mom will pressure you into a vacation, you'll never realize that you're way overpaying for your car insurance, you'll get charged bogus fees,
and you'll have nothing to show for your no buy year.
3.) Not buying any skincare items. Skincare is healthcare for me, and it's unreasonable to not take care of your health because of a minimalist ideal.

[ChristysChannelYall]

So, I’ve learned that if I make it hard on myself to get rid of things that I am decluttering I am more aware of what I bring in. What I mean is, if for example, I try to sell an item instead of just taking it to the local Goodwill or throwing it in the trash, that takes effort, which makes me more thoughtful of what I am thinking of bringing in because if I decide that I don’t like the new item then I have to try to sell that item too.

[adrianavaca]

i've been working on my eco-minimalism journey for a few years now and one of the ways i make mistakes is not speaking up and saying "no." this includes getting freebies randomly handed to you or when i get some useless object after donating blood as my "reward." then i'm the one that needs to find a way to responsibly dispose of the item i didn't even want :( something i'm planning to stand my ground on going forward!

[carlijnterpstra]

Less stuff makes me happy, but in my declutter-rage... I threw stuff away that I actually used. So I declutter now like you mention in the video, and it works great!

[robynwells]

I grew up with parents who were just post depression era. My dad, who was also a career military person questioned the whole declutter concept. My dad felt this was an entitled way of being. He used what he had and when it was unusable he then repaired it or replaced it. I fell off that track, but I’m now back on it. I use things/wear things until they wear out, even things I don’t like. This concept alone has stopped my shopping habit. I know if I buy it I’m stuck with it.

[milami]

I like minimalism as a tool to make my life easier, but I am not a minimalist. I don’t like the label because if you state to be something people always come and say that you’re not.. so I am not trying, I still like the concept though and I live by its standards (most of the time) 🙂 this is what I learned since I started in 2018 🤗

[myhauntingromance]

I really love this list. I want to balance my line of loving stuff (like my books and geekery merch) and wanting to have a more minimal approach. I guess I just want the cliche of having every single item in my possession either be useful or bring me genuine joy

[josseemacinnis]

There’s no way to truly and deeply understand something until you’ve made a few mistakes :) I’ve done many of the things you described in this video, and I am grateful for these lessons because there has been a fundamental shift in my thinking and value system that allows me to make better decisions going forward! Thanks for your content!

[kathleenbarron]

I agree, intentionality is my my current life philosophy. I’m continually tweaking my stuff, but that’s me. I started about 9 mos before you, Christine. Cost: it makes no sense to get rid of a solid wood heirloom piece of furniture for a sexy, minimalist IKEA piece. Even thought I love Ikea. Regarding the black/gray T-shirt look—I’ve been married 36 yrs, and when my husband wears the same thing year after year, I get so bored looking at him, even if I chose that perfect fitting button down oxford cloth shirt! Those guys have great content, but boring clothes!

[einatepstain]

I learned that there are stuff (Like notebooks and nice boxes ) I love to have and make me happy even if I dont use them..its ok to keep them..other stuff I declotter without thinking about it. I also learned that there is always an option to give the things I dont want to friends. They are happy and it makes me happy too

[kt]

Great video, as someone who started the journey of minimalism this past summer, I can relate to a lot of things in these videos. Only now am I starting to calm down and focus less on the "stuff" and more on the "time". I have stopped doing obsessive, day-long decluttering that I used to do every weekend. I agree that minimalism is a process and a habit, decluttering takes time and you don't have to do it all at once.

[ariadnerunnalls]

You are right, these assumptions are bs. I love wearing colour and yes I have more than 40 items in my closet, but I cherish them.

[lindacaffalette]

I totally agree with you about the slow method of a closet declutter. As a collector of fashion I currently filled 3+ closets over a long period of time ( many years), however I do eliminate items, but not in large quantities. A big portion of my wardrobe has originated from my position as a fragrance sales associate at a popular department store where black was my daily uniform. As a result I have a huge collection of black items & feel that some day when our lifestyle gets back to normal I will wear them! Will that be a reality or just my personal fantasy??? Thanks for sharing! 💟💜💟💜💟

[marylaidig]

Wow! I totally relate to this video. I spent so much time decluttering in the beginning. Then I went overboard with thifting, only to declutter a sizable amount of what I thifted! Crazy, right? After a year, I think I’ve found a balance. Living mindfully is a journey. Thanks for helping me along the way. Have a great 2021.

[peste]

I looove this video. One of the lessons I learned may not be a popular one, but it has worked for me. And is to not declutter everything just for the sake of decluttering, especially stuff that you for sure know you will use later, sometimes it's just wasteful. I have been almost three years without buying certain useful items just because I had a lot of them.

[ChapterandConverse]

I appreciate that you said that decluttering takes time...to go slow...and that you can still have things (I can keep all my books!) and have a minimalist mindset. Agree there's a lot of pressure out there with the small wardrobe and the whole "getting rid of all the stuff" and it's overwhelming at times. Love your channel and your perspective! Wishing you a fabulous holiday ⭐️

[lubnan]

A big purge in the beginning can be helpful then ongoing intentionality into what comes in and out of your life needs time.

[lisaanderson]

Started watching you close to a year ago and you really have inspired me - in many ways. One way was with debt- I really got focused on paying off my debt. A year ago I felt I was at the point of no return and needed to so do something! I saw one of your videos and right then and there I decided I was going to get intentional with my debt repayment. Since then I have my husband and I have paid off my credit card, his credit card, my car, his car, our camper (small- not expensive) and now we are working on paying off our HELOC. Thank you so much for bringing us your experiences being an “influencer”! Happy Holidays!!