Goodbye, Things. The New Japanese Minimalism by Fumio Sasaki (2016)

Cover photo of Goodbye, Things. The New Japanese Minimalism

Praise for minimalism. Allows you to live a calmer, more mindful life, focusing on what is most important, including relationships. We keep many things just for appearances or for unreasonable purposes, and thinking about them causes mental stress and guilt. By getting rid of unnecessary things, we can gain freedom and a clear mind, be more grateful for what we have, and thus achieve happiness.

Highlights

  1. A minimalist knows what he really needs and what he keeps just for appearances, and is not afraid to get rid of anything that falls into the latter category.
  2. Our brains haven't changed in 50,000 years, and now they have to process not a lot more information than they used to.
  3. Aristotle (after W. Durant): We are what we do repeatedly. Excellence is not an act but a habit.
  4. We regret more that we didn't do something good (didn't try it) than that we did something but it didn't work out.
  5. Things speak to us. They are an unwritten list of things to do. For example, the French textbook we once bought tells us: "why don't you try studying again".
  6. Minimalism does not automatically make us stop wanting things, but it makes us realise that the fact that we want them is not enough to buy them.

Thoughts

  1. A minimalist knows what he really needs and what he keeps just for appearances, and is not afraid to get rid of anything that falls into the latter category.
  2. Why do we always want new things, regardless of whether we are rich or not? Because we get used to things. We wait a long time to buy something, but after a few days we get used to it. It is the same with the job we have and the so-called achievements in life, we should be aware of this and be more satisfied with what we already have, what job we have and what we have already achieved, remembering how much we once wanted it.
  3. We usually enjoy a victory for a very short time (about 3 hours), while a defeat is experienced for a very long time.
  4. One should consider whether we own things because they are tools or because we want to show others our value (e.g. a library full of unread books to show others how smart we are). Things should be chosen as tools, just as they were in the Stone Age.
  5. Each of us has a pre-installed loneliness detection app that cannot be uninstalled. Evolutionary perspective on avoiding loneliness: We don't have natural weapons like claws, so primitive man had to form groups to get food (e.g., hunt mammoths).
  6. Throwing things away is an art we learn in the process.
  7. If we can't throw something away, it's worth asking ourselves why. It can say a lot about us, e.g. fear or shame that we didn't use it and it was expensive.
  8. Spinoza: when people say something is impossible, they have already decided that they do not want to do it.
  9. Our brains haven't changed in 50,000 years, and now they have to process not a lot more information than they used to.
  10. Throwing away should start with getting rid of the obvious junk. Then get rid of the things we have a few items of. Then what we have not used for the last four seasons.
  11. We gain real wisdom from the things we use often, not the things we keep for the sake of appearances to present ourselves to society.
  12. Separate what we want from what we need
  13. Taking pictures of the things you want to throw away eases the pain. Deleting these photos means focusing on the present.
  14. Many things (albums, photos, children's artwork) can be thrown away, and before throwing them away, photograph them and store them on a physical drive or in the cloud - you can go back to them whenever you want.
  15. Various boxes and containers should be thrown out first, as we have a natural tendency to fill empty containers.
  16. Unmanaged space should be left empty. The open space we leave empty calms our minds, gives a sense of freedom, and opens the mind to what is important in life.
  17. We should reject the idea that we should keep something because it might come in handy some day (e.g. for our children). If we don't need something today, we probably won't ever need it.
  18. Keeping various things from childhood and youth (e.g. school books) interferes with being here and now.
  19. Sometimes it's hard to throw something away because we paid a lot for it. We don't use it anyway, and the cost is never returned. But that thing still occupies a place in our mind and reminds us of our mistake, which creates cost and psychological hardship. To get rid of this hardship, just get rid of the thing.
  20. You should give up making supplies (such as toiletries).
  21. To have something is to know that it belongs to us and to be aware of this dependence. Therefore, we feel more satisfied owning less stuff because we know what we own.
  22. You can walk around in the same outfit all the time - it's your own unique uniform, just like Steve Jobs.
  23. It is not things that make us unique, but our experiences. When we reject everything that distracts us, we discover our uniqueness.
  24. The real waste is the damage to the psyche caused by keeping unnecessary things in the house. Keeping them every day can destroy your mood.
  25. Have one or the right amount of a given thing and buy a new thing when you get rid of the old one (one thing more, one thing less).
  26. Get rid of things that create visual clutter, such as knick-knacks and flashy packaging
  27. If you are unsure whether to throw something away, hide it for a while and see if you need it again
  28. Get rid of collections (their place is in the museum)
  29. Borrow as much as you can
  30. Buying one thing often creates a chain reaction, e.g. we buy a computer and a case, a mouse, a keyboard, etc.
  31. The city can replace the living room e.g. you don't need a couch, big crockery etc. because you can go to the city with friends
  32. Leave only the things we are able to passionately talk about
  33. If you can't remember how many gifts you've given to others in your life, don't worry about getting rid of the ones you've received.
  34. Minimalism is a beginning - after you say goodbye to unnecessary things, you can write your own story.
  35. A minimalist can fall into the mistakes of a maximalist. Saying "you still have so much" is similar to saying "you still don't have it".
  36. Things are not us. Nothing happens to us after we discard them.
  37. Some areas of our brain are only activated when we are dreaming or letting our minds wander.
  38. There is no such thing as innate laziness.
  39. Aristotle (after W. Durant): We are what we do repeatedly. Excellence is not an act but a habit.
  40. We regret more that we didn't do something good (didn't try it) than that we did something but it didn't work out.
  41. Experiences > things (experiences cannot be lost)
  42. Things speak to us. They are an unwritten list of things to do. For example, the French textbook we once bought tells us: "why don't you try studying again".
  43. Minimalism does not automatically make us stop wanting things, but it makes us realise that the fact that we want them is not enough to buy them.
  44. Happiness is gratitude
  45. We feel more gratitude when we have fewer things