Does being an essentialist mean you have to give away as many things as possible? Can you own anything that’s not purely functional? That’s questions that I’m asked frequently and here’s how I think about it – as well as what things I personally invest in.
Video Transcript
Hey, I just wanted to take a moment to say thanks to all of you that take a moment to leave a comment or hit the like button, hit subscribe on YouTube because that really helps me It gives me feedback and that motivates me to continue. And one of the comments that I’ve recently received was a question by someone who’s also a minimalist, and they said: ‘Hey, but how should. I go about this? I know that I want to have less, I want to focus on experiences. For the most part, I’m doing really well.
But in some small instances, I find myself wanting to invest into this great chair or into this, like a beautiful piece of equipment for my work or into this wardrobe. How do you think about it Cédric?’
So here’s my take on it: I don’t personally believe in less is better and the more you get rid of, and the fewer things cost that you have, the better. I personally believe in essentialism, meaning focus on what’s important, get high quality, make sure it lasts forever, it also will help you save a ton of time because you don’t have to repurchase and reorganize yourself all the time and leave everything out completely that you don’t really need. So what does that mean, for me, personally, I invest into my equipment, the stuff that helps me work, I usually get the highest quality iPhone that I can get, whenever I do upgrade my phone, I usually get the maxed out MacBook. Pro when I do upgrade my laptop. And that helps me only upgrade my laptop, for example, every roughly four years. So for four years, I then don’t have to take any time to maintain my laptop or spend a lot of time with it.
Similar for camera and clothing for my clothing. I like this brand Unbound Merino that I buy once a year. Usually, I get new t-shirts once a year, sometimes every six months depending on what I do with them. But usually, they last me for a full year even though I only own four of them. And so I spend a very, very little amount of time shopping throughout the year because my clothing just holds for a very long time. So there you go.
That’s my thinking.
I believe if you do want to invest in high-quality items, go for it. I think if you clearly decide between what’s important in your life and what you can cut out, then you will have that extra cash to invest in high-quality items and it will make you happier, have high-quality stuff that’s durable for a very long time.
And with that, hopefully, you’re having a beautiful day. Stay curious and I’ll talk to you soon.
