3275: Confidence and Minimalism (Find the Courage to Chase Your Dreams) by Jennifer of SimplyFiercely on Simplicity

[00:00:00] 時間 für 強e Leistung mit der neuen Galaxy Watch Ultra. ganz egal ob du Gelegenheitssportler, Trainingsjunkie, Freizeitatlet oder eine richtige Sportskanone bist. und auch ganz egal ob du eine Runde joggen, einen Trailmarathon laufen, die Nacht durchtanzen oder die Tour de France nachfahren willst.

[00:00:19] Hold das Beste aus dir raus mit der neuen Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra mit Galaxy AI. Let's go! It's a minimalist Monday edition of Optimal Living Daily Episode 3275. Confidence plus Minimalism. Find the Courage to Chase Your Dreams by Jennifer of SimplyFiercely.com and I'm Justin Malik.

[00:00:40] Happy Monday and welcome to the old podcast, the OLD Podcast, Optimal Living Daily, where I read to you like a big ongoing audiobook but from many different authors. Today's post being from Jennifer of Simply Fiercely. For now, let's get right to it and start optimizing your life.

[00:01:01] Confidence plus Minimalism. Find the Courage to Chase Your Dreams by Jennifer of SimplyFiercely.com. I'll be 35 in a few months and I'm unemployed and homeless. Last year I gave up my full-time job and my apartment to travel the world.

[00:01:19] And when I returned to Australia later this year, I have no intention of pursuing a career or permanent address. Instead, I plan to buy a van, do odd jobs and travel around Australia.

[00:01:31] This is my dream and I'm thrilled with my choice but a few years ago I would have struggled to admit this to anyone. Why? Because it goes against the status quo. At my age I should be buying a house, getting promoted or having a baby.

[00:01:47] Or I should at least want to. Admitting that I don't, at least for now, is scary because I know a lot of people will judge me. I've been called indulgent, privileged and irresponsible.

[00:01:59] I'll admit that I am privileged in the big scheme of the world but I don't think there's anything indulgent about doing what makes you happy. More people should try it. And irresponsible? Well let's just say you never know what goes on behind the scenes and I'll wager

[00:02:13] that I'm more prepared for the future than many other people my age. But I digress, I'm sharing my dreams with you today because I now have the confidence to own who I am. Confidence or lack of it is what keeps so many people from chasing their dreams.

[00:02:30] It's the missing link, the final piece of the puzzle that we all need to finally take that leap and do what our hearts are urging us to do. And I found a giant dose of confidence in a surprising place, my minimalist lifestyle. Consumerism is a mask.

[00:02:47] Every time you make a purchase you're making a statement about who you are whether it's intentional or not. If you buy an expensive handbag you're telling the world that you're wealthy and successful. If you buy a popular brand of yoga pants you're telling the world that you're healthy

[00:03:02] and a yogi. If you buy souvenirs overseas you're telling the world you're well-traveled. Obviously the statement you make is subjective but you get the idea. Because of this we often turn to shopping when we feel insecure.

[00:03:16] When I used to feel bad about my weight or my body I would always buy stilettos because the towering heels made me feel sexy. Or when I didn't feel successful enough at work I'd buy something expensive just to show I could afford it.

[00:03:29] Often I wasn't even worried about what other people were thinking, instead I was trying to prove something to myself. But really all I was doing was hiding. My purchases were a mask that kept me from facing my body issues and self-doubt.

[00:03:44] When I embraced minimalism I no longer had a place to hide and had no choice but to face my insecurities head on which led to self-acceptance and confidence. Decluttering is accepting who you really are. If consumerism is a mask then decluttering is accepting who you really are.

[00:04:03] When I downsized my life I recall being really surprised by the powerful emotions I felt when saying goodbye to my stuff. I've spent hours agonizing over donating a single dress. Why all the drama? Why was it so difficult to toss and move on?

[00:04:19] Because saying goodbye to my mini dresses meant acknowledging I don't go to nightclubs anymore. Selling my blender meant accepting I was not the smoothie drinking green goddess I wanted to be. And donating my sewing machine meant I was never going to design my own wardrobe much

[00:04:33] less finished the blouse that I've been working on for years. You get the picture. When you let go of things, you're saying goodbye to the person you want to be and accepting who you really are. You also let go of a lot of negative feelings about yourself.

[00:04:48] I felt a lot of guilt and shame because I wasn't living up to the lifestyle my stuff was promising. My unworn party dresses would taunt me for my closet when I stayed home on a Saturday night. And my sewing machine? Well, she was nasty.

[00:05:02] So when I said goodbye it was liberating. I started to see all the good things about myself instead of focusing on my perceived failures. Another big check in the self confidence box. Becoming a minimalist is a challenge. Finally, becoming a minimalist gave me confidence because it's not easy.

[00:05:22] Unlearning a lifetime of habits going against what is normal and saying goodbye to your stuff is a challenge and it takes strength and commitment. It's an accomplishment like running a marathon or writing a novel and something to be proud of.

[00:05:35] When I look back on how far I've come when I remember my overflowing closet I had over 100 pairs of shoes and my maxed out credit cards and then I look at my life now and I'm blown away.

[00:05:46] A few years ago I never ever would have thought this was possible. But here I am and the pride I feel at having come so far has given me a confidence boost like I never imagined.

[00:05:58] Becoming a minimalist is one of the most important things I've ever done and it has 100% hands down enabled me to chase my dreams and build a life I truly love. If you're considering minimalism I strongly encourage you to take the plunge.

[00:06:13] It might just be the missing link you need to start chasing your dreams. You just listened to the post titled Confidence plus Minimalism. Find the Courage to Chase Your Dreams by Jennifer of SimplyFiercely.com and I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:06:31] If they get Jennifer another unique perspective, kind of reminds me of this idea that we all see things through our lenses and when she talked about the status quo and how

[00:06:41] many of us feel like we have to do certain things at a certain age and in a specific order that's all through another lens of tradition or culture or all that fun stuff. But it doesn't make it some kind of necessity or fact of life.

[00:06:54] The truth is you can be unemployed and homeless and live in a van and then find happiness. That's one person's perspective. And obviously with this podcast you hear lots of perspectives. A different author usually every day of the month.

[00:07:08] We have so many authors now that you can really hear from a wide variety of people who all believe they can truly share something that might affect your life in a positive way. Some of them might disagree on the specifics but there are definitely common themes and

[00:07:22] experiences, minimalism being one of them no matter how far you take it. I think it's always great to hear from different perspectives and I love hearing from you so feel free to reach out anytime through oldpodcast.com.

[00:07:34] Thank you for listening every day and optimizing your life with me. Have a great start to your week and I'll see you tomorrow. Where your optimal life awaits.