Over the last several years, the concept of minimalism has edged its way to the front of american culture. While the practice is common place in eastern cultures, the stereotypical "American dream" has been less than accommodating to the less-is-more mentality.
Lately, however, more and more people have made a shift from owning more toward a more minimalistic lifestyle. This may be in partial to my previous article about subscription services, and the rise in digital content (downloading movies, music, and games rather than buying DVD's, CD's, and Physical copies), both of which require individuals to own less physically while still owning the same amount in terms of content.
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While the trend is gaining popularity, the concept's definition is blurred. Browsing forums and sites such as Reddit.com/r/minimalism reveals many who claim to live the minimalistic lifestyle, simply prefer to keep their personal space clean. While this "spatial efficiency," as I've come to call it, is a part of minimalism, it stands as its own concept as well and a much more realistic lifestyle.
So, what is the difference then between the two? One can look at minimalism in several ways:
First, there's the spiritual mindset: The separation from one's desire to possess extraneous objects. In other words, owning possessions rather than letting possessions own you, to throw a cliche out there. This definition involves one really considering what they own, why they own and how they use it.
The second view focuses on the "minimal" aspect of the lifestyle: Only owning what one really needs. In this sense, one can see those individuals spending months traveling across Europe with nothing but a small bag, or those living in a large city with nothing but what can fit in their car. This form of the lifestyle is the most extreme and, in my experience, the less common.
Finally, the third view on the lifestyle is the minimalist presentation of one's life. Those who follow closest to this form of minimalism are those who keep empty desks and tidy living spaces. They may own a fair amount of things and "stuff," but they choose to keep it organized and out of the way.
Many people I know who claim to be "minimalist" live by the third practice. While I commend them for being cleaner than most of my close friends, they don't embrace what minimalism truly is. Rather, they live with the idea of spatial efficiency, in that they use the available space to the best of their abilities and don't allow clutter or a lack of organization to clog their personal space.
So, what's bad about living spatially efficiently? Absolutely nothing. I'm currently trying to get to that point by keeping my area clean and clear. Spatial efficiency is more reasonable than a minimalistic lifestyle and tends to work better with the consumerism that many people (myself included) are used to.
While I respect anyone who can live spatially efficient, and even more respect to those that can live a truly minimalist lifestyle, it's important to know and understand the difference. Of course the minor differences between the two concepts can be argued, and I'm sure they vary between person to person, but truly embracing the minimalist lifestyle is a much larger task than many assume it to be, while being spatially efficient is a tad more realistic and, for me, a lot less stressful of a transition.
