Gentle Guide to Minimalism
The Digital + Mental Detox
Digital detox… lets go!
Clear out your texts
Remove apps you don't use from your phone
Detox your social media! Remove fake accounts, accounts that steal your peace, clear those inboxes as well
Clean out your email inbox
Unsubscribe from the junk
Time to delete some of those photos out of your phone for storage sake
Clean up that iPad or computer too
Set an alarm for your ideal wake time
Time for some mental decluttering.
Get a pen and some paper or open notes on your phone or whichever digital form you use. Let’s start with HEALTH, leaving space between these to write, list the following : mental, physical and spiritual. Under these I want you to ask yourself what can I do for my mental health, physical health, spiritual health. For my mental health I wrote: find a life coach. Under ‘physical’ I wrote, schedule a time to go walk each day and for ‘spiritual’ , my goal was to do a devotional every morning and start my morning slowly. I like to wake before the kids, have coffee, read and relax a bit. It really helps set the tone for the day.
Next big subjects are EDUCATION, LIFESTYLE, FINANCE and CAREER. Under these I jotted down every goal and vision from short term to long term. Some of you may wonder why we are doing this? In regards to the digital detox, too many people have become addicted to responding to their digital lives. Subconsciously we keep tabs to check, to respond, to send this or that. Before we dig deeper into decluttering the physical we are going to declutter anything that can be taking up mental energy so that we can move into the next phase with a sense of zen.
It also helps tremendously to have your goals and visions on paper. We are more likely to achieve our goals if we have them written in front of us. Personally I like to categorize these things because then we can add these to our calendar later, creating real timelines for ourselves to make those dreams reality.
Our final brain dump… If you have a calendar, physical or digital ( I recommend you do get one or set one up if you don’t already) write any deadlines, birthdays, anniversaries, gatherings in your calendar that you may have from now until the end of may. Planning for the month as best you can will save you from last minute stress. This may seem like quite a bit for some of us and that’s okay. If this seems like a list you have to think about more and divide then give yourself the whole week. Perhaps take 30 minutes each day and break it down.
Day 1 Digital
Day 2 Mental, physical + spiritual health
Day 3 Education + Career goals, thoughts + dreams
Day 4 Lifestyle changes + Finance
Day 5 Planning your next month in advance
I’m so excited to do this alongside you! And yes, the minimalist herself has to do a head check every once and a while too. With five people and eight pets in our home, I have to take time once or twice a year to remove what is taking up space ( mental and physical ). This helps me make sure that we as a family stay aligned with our lifestyle choices and mantras. The point is to empty the mind and get it on paper so that we can walk into the physical with a clear head. Walking into change feeling sound and equipped sets us up for success when it's time to let things go.