The Slavery of Extreme Minimalism and other Minimalist Musings

By Annie Jean Brewer

This book contains eleven essays on the subject of minimalism written by Annie Jean Brewer, the author of "The Minimalist Cleaning Method" and other books. These essays have previously appeared on her website and have now been assembled into ebook format for easy reference.

"The Slavery of Extreme Minimalism" - A warning about the dangers of taking minimalism too far.

"Five Myths of Minimalism"

"Minimalism: About boundaries, not stuff" - Minimalism is about setting boundaries in your life to unlock your potential.

"Minimalism is a life hack"

"How to be minimalist in one step" - Minimalism described in as few words as possible.

"How minimalism changed my life" - a personal account of how my life has benefited from minimalism.

"Minimalism is perfect for the poor" - an essay countering the accusation that the poor cannot benefit from minimalism.

"The history of simplicity (and why I call myself a minimalist) - the difference between simplicity and minimalism, from a real-world viewpoint.

"The problem with simplicity" - everything has it's problems, including simplicity and minimalism.

"Minimalism and wealth" - how minimalism affects your wealth by changing what you spend on.

"How to apply minimalism to finances" - how low can you go?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Annie Jean Brewer
• Release date: Feb 8, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311733375

Annie Jean Brewer

Annie Brewer learned how to combine minimalism with frugality to live the life of her dreams. A single mother, she is a computer professional who works from home and primarily supports her family through writing. You can follow her adventures at Annienygma.com, discover her articles on the Yahoo Contributor Network and read free samples of her books here. Download one of her free ebooks today!

Book preview

The Slavery of Extreme Minimalism

And

Other Minimalist Musings

BY:

ANNIE JEAN BREWER

ANNIENYGMA.COM

COPYRIGHT 2015 BY ANNIE JEAN BREWER OF ANNIENYGMA.COM

SMASHWORDS EDITION

Smashwords Edition License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

Introduction

The slavery of extreme minimalism

Five myths of minimalism

Minimalism: about boundaries, not stuff

Minimalism is a life hack

How to be minimalist in one step

How minimalism changed my life

Minimalism is perfect for the poor

The history of simplicity (and why I call myself a minimalist)

The problem with simplicity

Minimalism and wealth

How to apply minimalism to finances

Why Minimalism?

About the author

Contact the author

Other Titles

Introduction

What is minimalism and why is it important? Isn’t it just about some subset of the granola tribe who wants to show the world how ecologically responsible they are by living with a ridiculously, impractically small amount of stuff?

In my mind, minimalism means eliminating the nonessential to make more time and space for the essential. This frees up your life, your mind, and your finances so that you can do what you want to do instead of what society says that you should be doing.

If modern society had its way you would spend your time on a giant hamster wheel. You would go to work to buy the toys you believe will compensate you for the time spent in hell working to buy the toys that you really wouldn’t need if you sat down and thought about it. What if, instead of working like a dog on someone’s harness, you spent your time doing what you wanted to do instead of what everyone else tells you that you should be doing? Wouldn’t your life be happier, more fulfilled?

That’s what minimalism can do. It can give you your life back.

However, there is so much extremism floating around about minimalism, it is easy to be intimidated at the thought of living with less. Not everyone wants to go through life with all of their possessions in a backpack--I know I don’t.

In order to help you learn more about minimalism, including the risks of going too extreme, I have compiled several essays I have written on the subject for this volume. Regular readers of my website may recognize them. I have compiled these essays together into a single volume for easy reference. I hope they

Reviews for The Slavery of Extreme Minimalism and other Minimalist Musings

[c honaker · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very interesting and honest book. Down to earth and straight talking. Very refreshing, no pretense or holier than thou.

[Jonni R Luke · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Cute little pamphlet full of home spun wisdom from a privileged, first-world-problem perspective. Nice words with several grammar errors that can be ignored, such as "an anathema," lol. Only people who can afford lots of stuff feel the need to tout their minimalist lifestyle. True minimalism? Give to others rather than giving yourself a hair stylist visit or vacation. Generously give to the "moochers" who may not be minimalist on purpose but are actually struggling for survival due to external circumstances. Otherwise, it is a very adorable little compilation with endearing humorous scenarios of people's minimalist behaviors.

[nahmin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book on simple living, quite a different view then what you usually find in this kind of books.

[Rox · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have read a lot about Minimalism in the last couple of years and have started my journey a while ago.
This was an interesting book, because it was different from the usual’item counting’. It made some excellent points other don’t even mention. I found it insightful and worth the read.