Harvesting Simplicity - Experimenting with Minimalism in our homes
- Melissa Cotton
- Jun 16
- 4 min read
Melissa Cotton is the creator of this series of posts, published monthly, entitled Harvesting Simplicity and in July of 2025 she will be moderating a book club exploring Things That Matter by Joshua Becker. (click here to join her!)
In his book, The Minimalist Home, Joshua Becker talks about developing your own expression of minimalism by conducting experiments. The idea is simple:
This method offers a valuable opportunity to evaluate what you truly need, often revealing that we need far less than we imagine. Experimenting is especially useful when people are first pursuing minimizing their spaces. Living without things for a set period of time helps them make up their minds and push through the difficult phases of minimizing. (1) Experimenting is also a skill that we can use for the rest of our lives. It’s through experimentation that we discover what contentment really looks like and what the other possibilities for our lives really are. (1)
The parameters of experimentation are simple:
I will live without ___________ (possessions) for _____ (days, weeks, or months). (1)
At the end of the time frame you determined, decide either to declutter the item(s) or integrate the possessions back into your life. Either way you are now confident and comfortable with your choice.
My family has conducted many experiments in an effort to minimize the number of possessions in our home. We have stored away things like furniture, cookware, and clothing each time testing out a new limit. Would we miss the extra dishes? The end table? The sweatshirt or sweater? Over time, we began to feel lighter. Fewer things meant fewer decisions. We found ourselves using the same favorite items over and over.
Now, our home feels calmer. Cleaning is simple. Surfaces stay clear. Our teenage son is able to easily keep his room clean and organized. We still have what we need — just not the excess we once thought was essential.
Minimalism isn’t about having nothing. It’s about making room for what matters. What began as a simple experiment, turned into something deeper: a shift in how we live, and how we see the world. We’ve learned that enough is often much less than we imagined.
If you're feeling weighed down by too much stuff, begin with a simple experiment. Pack away a few pieces of clothing you don’t wear often, and leave them out of sight for a few weeks. If you don’t think about them or miss them, it might be time to let them go.
Often, that first small step is enough to feel a shift. And over time, those small changes can help you reconnect with what matters most: your time, your focus, and the people around you.
Sources
1 Becker, J. (2017). The more of less: Finding the life you want under everything you own. WaterBrook.
Melissa is a first grade teacher with a double major in Elementary Education and Early Childhood. She also has a Master’s Degree in Education Administration. After reading T. Colin Campbell’s book, The China Study, she stopped eating the Standard American Diet (SAD) and has been eating a nutrient-rich, plant-based diet. In December 2023, she earned Dr Joel Fuhrman’s Nutritarian Coaching Certificate. Melissa is an active member of the National Health Association (NHA).
Melissa is also the writer/creator of our 2024 blog series Exploring GBOMBS. Her love for teaching and learning will support others on their journey for optimal health and wellness. You will find all her blog posts on her bio page (click on her name in green above).
Discover practical steps you can take today to live a life focused on things that matter. Disruptions are the enemies of a life well lived—both the new distractions of our generation and timeless ones that have existed for centuries. But that can change today.
Things That Matter is a book about living well. It’s about overcoming the chatter of a world focused on all the wrong things. It’s about rethinking the common assumptions of today to find satisfaction and fulfillment tomorrow.
How do we get to the end of our lives with minimal regrets? We set aside lesser pursuits to seek lasting meaning. And we discover the joy of doing it every day. In Things That Matter, Joshua Becker uses practical exercises, questions, insights from a nationwide survey, and success stories to give you the motivation you need to
• identify the pursuits that matter most to you
• align your dreams with your daily priorities
• recognize how money and possessions keep you from happiness
• become aware of how others’ opinions of you influence your choices
• embrace what you’re truly passionate about instead of planning that next escape
• figure out what to do with all those emails, notifications, and pings
• let go of past mistakes and debilitating habits
Be well
Stop.Breathe.Focus.Move.Flow.
Comments