Materialism has many meanings, which can be described as a personality trait, mainly manifested in unwillingness to share, jealousy of other people's property and strong possessiveness. Materialism is a value tendency. People regard the acquisition of material property as the core goal of life, and think that possession is the key to happiness. A person's success depends on the material wealth he has and the quality and price of the goods he can buy.
Researchers have found that more and more people pay more attention to money, image and reputation than in the past. In a survey on the learning purpose of college students, from 1970 to 1990, the number of students aiming at cultivating meaningful philosophy of life decreased from 80% to 40%, while the number of college students aiming at acquiring material wealth increased from 40% to 75%.
Materialism stimulates people's inner possessiveness. When people have a lot of things, they are eager to get more, and it is even more difficult to satisfy their own lives. Possession of material things distracts people, and they can't allocate their energy to what is really worthwhile, which affects the maintenance of intimate relationships. Materialism also aggravates people's anxiety and easily leads to depression.
The opposite of materialism is minimalism. Minimalism is not the complete opposite of materialism, nor is it a simple boycott of consumption. The problem at present is that people give too much meaning to their own possession, and put material needs in a high position, while ignoring other important aspects, such as relationship, enthusiasm, mental health and so on. Minimalism is a thinking tool, which advocates people to shift their attention from what people want to what they have, to themselves and the people around them.
More important than material simplification is the simplification of spiritual life.
Minimalists have their way of life, and the material world of minimalists is probably as follows:
1. Throw away or donate extra items.
In the choice of items, we can refer to a standard: whether an item has been used within 18 months. If not, it's probably because we don't need it at all.
If there are more than two things, you can keep one for use first, put the others in a box and take them out when necessary. Things in the box that haven't been touched for a month can be considered to be thrown away or donated.
2. Take photos of some special items and keep them.
The most difficult thing to choose is emotional items, which may witness an important life memory. But we can't be replaced by things. Our memories are in the body, not in those things, and our obsession with those things will imprison us.
You can take pictures of these items, scan old photos and donate them later. An object that only feels for us may be more practical for others.
3. Start by opening up a clean area.
It is not easy to completely change the crowded and messy state. First of all, open up a clean area, such as dining table, bedside table or frequently used drawers, and use these uncluttered areas to stimulate the feeling of minimalist life. If you really enjoy such a clean environment, then expand it bit by bit, from a bedside table to a dresser to the whole room, and the process of gradual simplification will be easy to get started.
4. Carry out a general cleaning every quarter.
When the seasons change, we should carry out thorough cleaning four times a year, remove indoor dust, arrange wardrobes and drawers, discard accumulated redundant items and simplify living space.
5. Consume reasonably and make clear your needs before buying.
Do I really need it?
First, make sure you have something to buy and make full use of it. From a practical point of view, don't follow the trend. When you want to buy a new item, write down the specific reasons and imagine the scene when you use it.
B.is there a more reasonable choice?
Some things may be just temporary needs, such as some tools. If your friends or neighbors have them, you can borrow them when necessary. Take buying books as an example. A book that can be read repeatedly is worth buying. If it is a book for browsing only, a more reasonable choice is to borrow it from the library.
Simplifying material life will make you feel more relaxed. When you realize that you didn't need so many things, your stress and anxiety will be reduced: a happy life doesn't need so many things, and you will have more confidence in the possibility of having a full meal.
However, the simplification of material life alone cannot really liberate our hearts. Many times, what makes us feel tired is the complicated interpersonal relationship. The fear of lack of intimacy and the desire for potential social resources are consuming our energy, which makes us spend a lot of time and energy to maintain the possibility of being with others. An easier life requires a minimalist spiritual world, such as:
1. Really open a new relationship
Some people are eager to start an intimate relationship in order to escape loneliness, while others will maintain multiple relationships at the same time. Behind these behaviors lies the thinking of materialized emotions.
Take emotions seriously. Intimacy is not to escape loneliness, but a solemn choice to join the world of two people. It is an important principle of emotional minimalism not to lust after empty intimate relationships.
2. Dare to reject harmful relationships
Some people are trapped in a bad relationship, obviously hurt, but afraid or unwilling to leave, sometimes afraid of being hurt more, sometimes afraid of not being needed after leaving. Believe that you can control your life and leave those who hurt you bravely. A bad relationship will complicate your life, your emotions and get you into it.
After a bad relationship, you can move to a new place to live, throw away or pack things related to it, and start a new life with a new look.
3. clearly express your personal boundaries
One of the reasons why life becomes complicated is that we are too "kind" and always allow others to invade our personal boundaries and unnecessarily entangle our lives with others' lives. When others cross our personal boundaries, express them sincerely and let others know your true feelings and thoughts, and life will be much easier.
4. Hug family and real friends.
Interpersonal relationship is often regarded as a social resource. People are afraid of falling behind in the competition, so they take part in various social activities and make more friends. This kind of communication is often futile, making us forget our family and real friends around us.
Family and friends may not fully understand our decisions and ideas, but they will still encourage and support us. They criticized us out of concern, not to suppress or attack. Spend less time on superficial social activities and spend more time with family and friends.
5. Spend some time with yourself.
It is not easy for many people to get along with themselves. People are more accustomed to forgetting themselves in interpersonal relationships, rich information and entertainment. Set aside some time alone for yourself, not long, 15 minutes to 30 minutes every night, or quietly review the recent situation and think about your needs and desires while taking a shower.
From the above specific behaviors, we can generally see that the practice process of minimalism is more like a process of self-knowledge, self-control and shifting the focus of life to its surroundings.
1. Higher happiness.
The wrong understanding of the relationship between money and happiness makes many people make money desperately, expecting higher money to bring more life satisfaction. However, such a struggle is at the expense of current happiness. Some studies show that life experiences can bring more lasting happiness than what we have. Shopping cannot provide long-term happiness. When people get used to new things, the fun of shopping disappears.
2. Higher self-esteem
There is a special relationship between inferiority and materialism, which first appeared in adolescence. People who feel bad about themselves are more likely to fall into materialism and are eager to improve their evaluation by acquiring money, wealth and material things. But many times, such efforts will fail, because people with more material things are still the same as before. Only when you feel good about yourself will the materialistic tendency gradually decline. People who know how to gain a sense of value from themselves have stronger self-esteem and are less influenced by materialism.
3. Less stress
No matter the living environment or the inner state, minimalism makes life more organized and orderly, and reduces the sources of stress. In the process of practicing minimalism, people have a higher sense of control over themselves and their satisfaction with life has also improved.
4. Harmonious intimacy
Materialism has something to do with unhappy marriage. The researchers conducted a questionnaire survey on 1700 couples. The results show that couples with high materialistic scores are more dissatisfied with their marriage and feel less connected than those with low scores. Minimalists shift their energy from material pursuit to themselves, paying more attention to their own relationship and maintaining it, so the relationship is more harmonious.