Minimalism and Mental Clarity
By: Yaroslav Bedriy
Tags: Minimalism, Lessons In Life, Happiness, Philosophy Of Life, Mental Clarity

I was wandering through the internet and was exploring what people think about minimalism. I came across Joshua Becker’s blog, “Becoming Minimalist.” He is one of the evangelists of minimalism, like Courtney Carver, Joshua Fields Millburn, or Ryan Nicodemus. I read a few articles, and one of them had the best explanation of minimalism I have ever seen. It is the article “Minimalism is Maximalism.” If you do not feel like reading the whole piece, here is the brief summary:

By minimizing my possessions, I maximize my life. Through minimalism, you can maximize all the things that matter most. — Joshua Becker

In 2020, a group of British psychologists conducted the research. The research was on the relation between minimalism and well-being. The results showed that people who identified themselves as minimalists felt more well-being benefits. All the participants stated that they feel more autonomy, less anxiety, more mindfulness, and joy.

There is plenty of information about how minimalism maximizes productivity, wealth, happiness. Much fewer articles and videos are about the relation of minimalism to mental clarity. They have fewer views, as you may see below. I think people do not watch it because of the term “mental clarity.” It is not as catchy as “productivity” or “happiness.” In my opinion, all the positive benefits of minimalism are results of mental clarity, not minimalism itself. Still, I would say that minimalism may be a great tool to beat mental fog.

Screenshots by the author

What Is Mental Clarity?

Vague and complex topics need definitions before we start talking about them. Everyone defines minimalism or mental clarity in their own words. Authors give the definitions at the beginning to avoid miscommunication between writer and reader. I have already shared with you what minimalism is for me, but what is mental clarity? For me, it is an absence of mental clutter that allows you to think clearly.

Why Is Mental Clarity Important?

Not thinking clearly may lead to overthinking and anxiety. If you are not thinking clearly, then you can not focus on one thing. As a consequence, you are distracted and can not manage the simplest tasks. This even may lead to chronic stress.

T his (chronic) stress also leads to decreased concentration and memory, confusion, loss of sense of humor, anger, irritability, and fear — Kelly Miller, Positive Psychology Coach.

You never have enough time, and the guilt of procrastination does not let to rest. It is like driving a car at high rpm — you will kill an engine very soon. A lack of mental clarity may have dreadful consequences.

Disclaimer: Hey, before you proceed with reading, I want to warn you that I am not psychiatric. I am not saying that this is 100% going to work for you. There are no simple solutions to complex problems. My medium is about sharing my personal experience with something that helped me. It may help you too. If you tried it and it worked — great, I delivered a little bit of value to someone’s life. It also may not help. If it did not help — it’s okay. We all are different. You should not stop exploring and searching for the answers.

The Most Important Question.

How minimalism may increase mental clarity? Usually, a journey to minimalism starts with physical decluttering. After letting go of material stuff, you realize that you also have a lot of non-material things. And you should get rid of them too — toxic relationships, social media that take you time, work that you only do for a paycheck.

I can say, from my experience and experience of fellow-minimalists, who I follow, like the Minimalists or Joshua Becker, that letting go of mental or social clutter is much harder than letting go of something materialistic. Nonetheless, it is worth it. It feels like taking out the log out of your own eye.

Photo by K8 from Unsplash

No Hurry and No Feeling Behind.

A year ago, I had many ambitious goals. I wanted to study like 3 languages, read a book a week, be the best student in the country, meditate for an hour, drink green smoothies every single day, and sleep for 9 hours. I wanted to achieve it in a year because I felt so much behind everyone. I needed to catch up, and it required me to work for 15 hours a day. I tried to get closer to my goals every day, and I failed after two or three days. I did nothing out of what I wanted. It demotivated me to do anything about my life.

As I discovered minimalism, I realized that I can not be behind because no one is beyond you. It is an imagined category to make someone look better. Social media make us feel like you are not enough. “Influencers” keep writing how they made their millions in a few days, how they learned a language in a week. They say that they share it to inspire you, but you end up comparing yourself to them. You compare your inside to their outside. This is wrong on so many levels. I do not say it is explicitly bad to compare yourself to others — in some way, it can be inspiring. Still, it brings more harm than meaning or joy.

Pursuing What Is Meaningful and Maximizing Experiences.

Everything I wanted to achieve was not what I wanted or needed. I know it sounds silly, but I was pressured to chase something I did not even want. It took me a few days to realize that I have always loved writing. I always wanted to write something that brings value to people. I have known it but ignored this goal because, at first, I need to learn Japanese and run a marathon to have some foundation for my further achievements. I feel embarrassed for thinking that way right now.

I am not late for my life anymore, and I stopped pursuing something I do not need. I can follow what I love at a comfortable pace. I still have goals, and I set deadlines, but I love the process more than the result. I have no expectations anymore — I just write. I love the process of writing an article or short story. I wake up, and sometimes my first thought is something like: yeah, I am awake, and finally can write.

I do less than I did before. Despite that, everything I do is way better than before. I have full 8–9 hours of sleep every day. All my meals are not in a hurry. That allows me to cook deliciously. I have more time to write. Meetings with my friends are way better. I dive more into conversations and experiences.

Fewer Choices Mean Less Anxiety.

Everyone who tries to achieve something has anxiety attacks. I used to have them too. I still have anxiety sometimes, but much less. Most of my anxiety attacks were caused by the number of wrong choices I could make during a day. Indeed, having many options is much better than having no choice at all. But it is anxiety-provoking. Considering the number of choices we make every day, I am impressed that most people are still sane. Or at least not tipping their hands.

Minimalism helps to lower the number of choices. So, it reduces the possibility of anxiety to erupt — for example, your wardrobe. When you have plenty of clothes — the choice stresses you out. You are afraid that you can wear something uncomfortable or that your shoes do not fit your t-shirt.

When you have fewer clothes, but you love each one piece, and it is comfortable — you will not make a wrong choice. It is impossible. Minimalism may prevent your mind from superfluous thoughts. It may apply to each aspect of your life — your social relationships, your social media usage, your time, money spending. The quality is always better than quantity.

Conclusions.

Minimalism may lower your anxiety. It may help to realize your values and make you pursue what is meaningful. It also may lower your expectations and may help to take control of your life. It also may not. There are no simple answers to complicated questions. Despite that, I am sure that minimalism clears the way for mental clarity. When your mind is not cluttered — it is possible to see what is meaningful to you.

Mental clarity, as well as minimalism, is something unachievable. It is like the horizon. I do not think that any person can become indestructible, always focus on one thing, and never have anxiety. It is built into us. A journey to mental clarity is not about the end goal. It is more about mindset and lifestyle. It is the mountain that you are climbing, but the summit is impossible to reach. Still, the higher you get — the better are landscapes. And the landscapes are worth the effort.