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babetoven's review against another edition
2.0
*Note: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I had a hard time seeing this book as practical advice. The first few chapters focus in on more about decluttering and organizing than living minimally. I mean, the concept of practicing minimalism is there and the steps toward achieving a minimalistic lifestyle were communicated effectively, I just felt like I personally do not live minimally, yet am a (sometimes pretentiously) organized person and these are concepts I have used for myself. When cleaning a space that I know has not been of use in x amount of time and is beginning to become more about storage than practicality, my number one priority is to cut it’s inventory by at least 50%. That is, to literally discard at least 50% of the items that clearly aren’t necessary or needed any longer, or else I’d have been using them.
This book teaches minimalism as if it were simply about decluttering and organizing. I agree with it’s methods because they are sensible, but part of me, and maybe a very uneducated part of me, considers the fact that I have naturally been adhering to these methods for years and am still one of the biggest victims of materialism that I know. Maybe it comes down to me interpreting minimalistic living as a cure for materialism and that in and of itself is the error. That isn’t to say that this isn’t an insightful bit of writing. I, particularly, enjoyed the highlights about how, evolutionarily speaking, we tend to naturally hoard things in a survivalist way. I would have liked to have read more about the scientific-psyche side of why we seem to head for materialism over minimalism, as it seems we’d better tackle the problem and all it’s limbs if we got to its head, first.
Another thing I wanted to add that kind of bugged me was a fantastical sense of “If you didn’t put this away in a safe place, it mustn’t be important, so just get rid of it.” This concept relies on the assumption that every adult is responsible and organized. The example I have to offer is the author’s take on deleting your entire email’s inbox in hopes of feeling more “free” once you’ve cleaned it out. Starting from scratch, for me, does not equate embracing or embarking on minimalism. In fact, if there is an email that was lost, unflagged and then deleted for a sense of feeling liberated, that goes against the ideal that is being taught here by saying “keep the things that are valuable to your happiness”. Maybe it’s just me and my non-minimalistic perspective but I found this to be irresponsible advice and not serving of the purpose of minimalism at all. I agree that neatness and necessity should carry over to the digital world but I do not think that in order for you to jumpstart your feelings of freedom requires you to be reckless.
I appreciated, genuinely, the portions on social media. I have reserved my own Facebook account for serious-friendships only and have had my friend count at a solid 9 individuals for as long as I can remember. These are 9 people I care about and talk to regularly and on intimate, personal levels. I think more people need to do this. The purpose of Facebook is realized and appreciated much more when you’re not feeling pressure to “perform” for old classmates and distant relatives. …Again, I am hugely materialistic and picked up this book in hopes to gain some insight as to why I suffer from it to such a degree in the first place. I’m having trouble understanding how stripping ourselves of clutter (physical, digital, etc.) equates to living minimally. i.e: I have been practicing these same techniques for years on my own and I still want to go out and buy a new diamond ring because I think it will make me happy.
Throughout this book there seemed to be an echo of “Live freely for yourself!”, and I can totally get behind that. But advising people to quit their jobs to pursue their dreams is just not practical and it’s much easier said than done, especially for those who have families and little ones to support. I had hoped this read would unveil something eye-opening and motivating on how to “say no to consumption” but instead I feel like I was told to replace one irresponsibility with another.
Things I agreed with, enjoyed and embraced from this book:
- Stopping the glorification of being busy.
- Feeling as though life and happiness only truly happen 2/7 days a week. (Weekends)
- Finding your own rhythm.
- The 80/20 Rule
- Living with intention.
- Citing of many other great reads that could all be of value to the reading audience.
- Daily affirmations.
- VOIDS!
- (The whole bit on enhancing your emotional well-being in general.)
- The entire finance portion: “Mindful Consumption” !
Overall, I would recommend it as a quick and insightful read, but it wouldn't be my first choice for someone who is desperately hoping to ignite change within themselves. This is much more an "in addition to" rather than a bible to adhere to and follow.
I had a hard time seeing this book as practical advice. The first few chapters focus in on more about decluttering and organizing than living minimally. I mean, the concept of practicing minimalism is there and the steps toward achieving a minimalistic lifestyle were communicated effectively, I just felt like I personally do not live minimally, yet am a (sometimes pretentiously) organized person and these are concepts I have used for myself. When cleaning a space that I know has not been of use in x amount of time and is beginning to become more about storage than practicality, my number one priority is to cut it’s inventory by at least 50%. That is, to literally discard at least 50% of the items that clearly aren’t necessary or needed any longer, or else I’d have been using them.
This book teaches minimalism as if it were simply about decluttering and organizing. I agree with it’s methods because they are sensible, but part of me, and maybe a very uneducated part of me, considers the fact that I have naturally been adhering to these methods for years and am still one of the biggest victims of materialism that I know. Maybe it comes down to me interpreting minimalistic living as a cure for materialism and that in and of itself is the error. That isn’t to say that this isn’t an insightful bit of writing. I, particularly, enjoyed the highlights about how, evolutionarily speaking, we tend to naturally hoard things in a survivalist way. I would have liked to have read more about the scientific-psyche side of why we seem to head for materialism over minimalism, as it seems we’d better tackle the problem and all it’s limbs if we got to its head, first.
Another thing I wanted to add that kind of bugged me was a fantastical sense of “If you didn’t put this away in a safe place, it mustn’t be important, so just get rid of it.” This concept relies on the assumption that every adult is responsible and organized. The example I have to offer is the author’s take on deleting your entire email’s inbox in hopes of feeling more “free” once you’ve cleaned it out. Starting from scratch, for me, does not equate embracing or embarking on minimalism. In fact, if there is an email that was lost, unflagged and then deleted for a sense of feeling liberated, that goes against the ideal that is being taught here by saying “keep the things that are valuable to your happiness”. Maybe it’s just me and my non-minimalistic perspective but I found this to be irresponsible advice and not serving of the purpose of minimalism at all. I agree that neatness and necessity should carry over to the digital world but I do not think that in order for you to jumpstart your feelings of freedom requires you to be reckless.
I appreciated, genuinely, the portions on social media. I have reserved my own Facebook account for serious-friendships only and have had my friend count at a solid 9 individuals for as long as I can remember. These are 9 people I care about and talk to regularly and on intimate, personal levels. I think more people need to do this. The purpose of Facebook is realized and appreciated much more when you’re not feeling pressure to “perform” for old classmates and distant relatives. …Again, I am hugely materialistic and picked up this book in hopes to gain some insight as to why I suffer from it to such a degree in the first place. I’m having trouble understanding how stripping ourselves of clutter (physical, digital, etc.) equates to living minimally. i.e: I have been practicing these same techniques for years on my own and I still want to go out and buy a new diamond ring because I think it will make me happy.
Throughout this book there seemed to be an echo of “Live freely for yourself!”, and I can totally get behind that. But advising people to quit their jobs to pursue their dreams is just not practical and it’s much easier said than done, especially for those who have families and little ones to support. I had hoped this read would unveil something eye-opening and motivating on how to “say no to consumption” but instead I feel like I was told to replace one irresponsibility with another.
Things I agreed with, enjoyed and embraced from this book:
- Stopping the glorification of being busy.
- Feeling as though life and happiness only truly happen 2/7 days a week. (Weekends)
- Finding your own rhythm.
- The 80/20 Rule
- Living with intention.
- Citing of many other great reads that could all be of value to the reading audience.
- Daily affirmations.
- VOIDS!
- (The whole bit on enhancing your emotional well-being in general.)
- The entire finance portion: “Mindful Consumption” !
Overall, I would recommend it as a quick and insightful read, but it wouldn't be my first choice for someone who is desperately hoping to ignite change within themselves. This is much more an "in addition to" rather than a bible to adhere to and follow.
bibirod's review against another edition
4.0
I think this is an excellent book for someone that is looking into becoming a minimalist or even just wanting to live a more mindful life.
**I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.**
**I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.**
hannahjoyeux's review against another edition
2.0
I “read” this book in about an hour...it was far too repetitive of Marie Kondo (whom I love, but still, the decluttering section was way too similar). Some good ideas and quotes, but nothing brand new.
laffingkat's review against another edition
2.0
This is a short read with both practical and inspirational tips on living a minimalist lifestyle. Much of the focus is on making the necessary mindset shifts to live more intentionally, to have just enough of just the right things (and relationships and activities, etc.) to maximize happiness.
I liked how Ms. Wong explained the concept of minimalism, and I liked some of the quotes she included. Many of her practical tips were things I had already read about before, but the minimalist budget was new to me and seemed like a helpful way to think about how to allocate resources.
Other than the minimalist budget, most of the original content here consists of the author discussing her own experiences as a relatively wealthy Londoner transitioning from corporate life and consumerist culture to minimalism. I suspect those portions of the book will appeal to some readers and be off-putting for others. Personally, I had difficulty relating to the author and had a very mixed reaction to these sections. I was hoping to read less about her and more material directly applicable to me.
If you’re not familiar with intentional living and the minimalist movement, this book could be a good introduction. It will probably be most appealing to the financially well off who are tired of the constant push to do more/be more/have more and are looking to simplify.
I was provided an ARC through NetGalley that I volunteered to review. Because I have not seen the final published version, I cannot comment on the final editing and formatting. The ARC was neatly formatted and had very few proofreading errors, although there were some inconsistent statistics that I hope an editor corrected.
I liked how Ms. Wong explained the concept of minimalism, and I liked some of the quotes she included. Many of her practical tips were things I had already read about before, but the minimalist budget was new to me and seemed like a helpful way to think about how to allocate resources.
Other than the minimalist budget, most of the original content here consists of the author discussing her own experiences as a relatively wealthy Londoner transitioning from corporate life and consumerist culture to minimalism. I suspect those portions of the book will appeal to some readers and be off-putting for others. Personally, I had difficulty relating to the author and had a very mixed reaction to these sections. I was hoping to read less about her and more material directly applicable to me.
If you’re not familiar with intentional living and the minimalist movement, this book could be a good introduction. It will probably be most appealing to the financially well off who are tired of the constant push to do more/be more/have more and are looking to simplify.
I was provided an ARC through NetGalley that I volunteered to review. Because I have not seen the final published version, I cannot comment on the final editing and formatting. The ARC was neatly formatted and had very few proofreading errors, although there were some inconsistent statistics that I hope an editor corrected.
lenabrary's review against another edition
2.0
Pretty good book but most definitely aimed at middle and upper-middle class people, what with being peppered with "quit your job and do what you love" and "taking a few months off work to figure myself out" and "go open that cafe you want to open".
The person who read it had a very pleasant voice.
The person who read it had a very pleasant voice.
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