How Adopting a Minimalist Lifestyle Has Impacted Our Debt Free Journey

Hey friends! Today, I am so excited to bring you a guest post by Lydia Boudreau. You can find Lydia on Instagram @mscontentment. She and her family have been on their debt free journey for a year now, and she’s shedding some insight on how minimalism has impacted their journey. If you’ve been around this blog for a while, you know I always joke around that if your debt free journey hasn’t led you to minimalism, you just aren’t doing it right! I’m going to turn things over to Lydia now, so Lydia, take it away!

How Adopting a Minimalist Lifestyle Has Impacted Our Debt Free Journey

Thanks for having me on the blog today, Kate. I’m excited to share a little bit about our journey! We have been on our debt free journey since September 2018. Over the past 12 months, we have made big lifestyle changes to assist us with our debt free goals. Some examples of these changes include: not going out for dinner, taking part in free family activities when possible, and using up what we have on hand instead of buying something new. The biggest lifestyle change we’ve made is adapting a minimalist approach to living. This, in itself, is a journey of its own kind, but what I’ll share in this article is how this journey has complimented our goals to become debt free.

What Takes Up Your Space, Takes Up Your Time

We decided that if we were going to pay off debt, we would put as much extra money toward it as possible, and find ways to make money beyond our regular pay. We’ve been living together as a couple for over 10 years. During these 10 years we moved from an apartment to a bigger house which had more storage and allowed us to accumulate A LOT of stuff.

A few months into our debt free journey, I was listening to a podcast, and the quote that has always stuck with me from it is “what takes up your space takes up your time”. 

At this stage in our life we did not have spare time. My husband worked rotating shifts which meant he would be gone anywhere from 10 – 12 hour a day. Add to that an almost hour-long commute both ways and occasional weekend work and you’ve got very little time for much of anything else. We had two kids. I had just come off work after having our baby, but my mental state was still very much in work mode. I worked full-time, and I often opted to continue working once the kids were in bed. So perhaps you can see why this quote resonated with me so much. It kick-started my journey toward minimalism and gave me the push I needed to take back our life.

What happened next is what brings our minimalist and debt free journeys together – we started to sell all of our stuff.

Getting Rid of All The Things

It all began with posting a few items on Facebook Marketplace that I knew would sell – nearly new Tupperware, a new wireless keyboard, kids clothing. These items got picked up within a week and I was honestly quite surprised at how fast they were gone, and that I had cash in hand for things I didn’t use! It was exciting and eye-opening at the same time – and even a bit addicting!

I realized how much stuff we had that we bought over time and used once or never used at all, but still just held onto. It was surprising what items sold quickly—things like a motion sensor solar light, coffee and sugar canisters, Rubbermaid storage bins (which we no longer needed because I had sold everything in them!), office supplies and small appliances. At one point I actually took a photo of two prints on our dining room wall that I really didn’t like, but they had been given to us years ago, and someone picked them up the next day right off our wall for $45.00. I’ve since redecorated a bit more intentionally and don’t plan on selling the décor because it brings me happiness every time I see it!

Turning Clutter Back In To Cash

Over the course of about five months we had made over $500 by selling things from around our home that literally did not spark any joy. We had a much less cluttered home and cash to put toward our debt free goals. As of August 2019, we are completely credit card debt free and only have my student loan to tackle!

I would encourage anyone who is drowning in both stuff and debt to consider simplifying their life and start with removing things from their home that do not bring happiness. While the society we live in tells us we always need more – my advice would be to see how you start feeling when you take away what you thought you needed or wanted, and approach life differently. If you have things in your home that don’t serve a purpose or make you truly happy—take a picture, set a price and sell it! Put the money toward your financial goals and you will be surprised.

Get Started on Your Minimalism Journey Today!

Kate here! Thanks, Lydia for sharing all about how minimalism has impacted your debt freedom journey.

I can relate wholeheartedly to everything Lydia shared. My own personal debt free journey has really caused me to evaluate the way I spend every penny and make me pause before making a purchase. Spending intentionally, then, of course, has caused me to evaluate the things I already own. And, as I regularly hunted my home for things to sell to get out of debt faster, I began to realize that there really is very little I need to make me happy.

For more information on minimalism and to complete the Minimalism/Personal Finance challenge I designed for all my readers as part of my 2019 Personal Finance Challenge, check out this post.

And below are some of my all time favorite books on Minimalism:

The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own

Goodbye Things: The New Japanese Minimalism

The Joy of Less: A Minimalist Guide to Declutter, Organize, and Simplify

Have you found that your debt free journey has led to minimalism? If so, I’d love to hear all about it. Reach out to me on Instagram or leave a comment below!

Want to Guest Post on the Blog?

I’m always open to new contributors here on the blog to share their story and/or contribute meaningful and helpful articles about debt freedom, budgeting, financial independence, saving money, side hustling, investing, minimalism, and living a simple and intentional life. If you’d like to guest post, just send me a direct message on Instagram or email me with your idea!