There is so much noise out there about managing money that its incredibly easy to get distracted when it comes to managing your own. Websites, blogs, and books can cover more information than you’d ever need. Never ending distractions about interest rates, credit scores, IRA vs Roth IRA, taxes, and credit card offers cause analysis paralysis. Tips to track your spending, use every budget category imaginable, pay yourself first, pay bills on time, and pay credit cards off in full every month feel more like challenges than actual tips or solutions.
Managing your money can have a lot of moving parts, but you don’t have to be the one spinning each little piece. Minimalism eliminates all of the noise, and most importantly puts you and your finances in a better place.
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” – Albert Einstein
Minimal Money Mindset shows you how to turn your finances into a self-sustained, well-oiled machine that runs with minimal input from you, a Ferrari V12 motor if you will. We’re going to focus only on the things that matter most. We’re going to get those things to do their job as painlessly, automatically, and simply as possible. It won’t be a lot of work, but it will take a different mindset, a new way of looking at things. We’ll develop a mindset that values simplicity, laser-like focus, and purpose when it comes to managing money.
To some, the word minimalism brings to mind doing without, having less, and deprivation. To others it simply means that you have exactly what you need and nothing more. And still others will say that its about having the perfect amount of something, and how can you beat perfect? Mindset is crucial here, this book will show how minimalism and your finances go hand in hand.
Minimalism can be embraced in different ways by different people but a great way to think about it is that it emphasizes that which is absolutely critical for something to function well. One focus of minimalism is on having fewer material possessions and getting rid of clutter. If you never use something and only see it during a little spring cleaning, you don’t need it and should get rid of it. At least according to minimalism. If you have a garage full of stuff like that, well… you’ve got a busy weekend ahead of you!
Why is less better? How about no spring cleaning, ever! There’d be no need to regularly set aside a day or two of labor, no mental energy spent in anticipation and planning, and likely no money spent on the little extras you’ll decide you need to get it done. It would also mean no more squeezing around things in the garage, or moving stuff around on a shelf to get at what you really need.
There’s probably a dozen other little things you’re unknowingly used to doing (or not doing) all because of too much stuff. That’s wasted mental energy, wasted effort, and wasted money. And since you probably decided to keep most of it, you’ll do it all again next time. But minimalism isn’t about physical things, its mainly about your behavior and mindset.
Making do with less is not a new idea or fad. The 50+ year old story “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” I think shows off what minimalism is about really well. The first part of the story has everyone in town prepping all kinds of decorations, food, gifts, and stuff. The second part of the story has the Grinch come in and take it all away. He even took their beautifully decorated trees that are such a big part of Christmas. In the end, the people of Whoville didn’t even skip a beat and had a really special holiday anyway.
The minimalist part is that their celebration was just as good as before despite what the Grinch had done. They just held hands and started singing and believing together. Each other’s company and some genuine and symbolic gestures is all they really needed. Also, as the story begins there isn’t any minimalism in sight with all the gifts and feasts and… stuff. And that’s ok too, minimalism isn’t about deprivation. You don’t have to get rid of everything, or not like having things to be minimalist. You just have to remember what something is really about, what’s most critical.
Minimalism goes back even further than the Grinch though. You could go back as far as 2,500 years ago to meet up with the Chinese philosopher Confucius, where he would tell you that “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” Many other leaders, thinkers, and historical figures express similar ideas. But cutting down on the complexity and clutter isn’t just about tidying up or having less to deal with. Its about not letting complexity slow you down and sap your mental energy. Complexity can make you lose focus and forget what you were doing in the first place. Minimalism helps you remember, it emphasizes the important.
So, Minimal Money Mindset isn’t about ripping up your credit cards, or tracking every penny spent, or being mindful of Zen meditations every hour. You can keep doing all of that and more. We are simply about focusing on the absolute must haves for finances that are healthy and effortless to maintain. We’ll zero in on only the most critical tasks and make that the basis for all your future thinking.
FYI, it’s not a lot, since that wouldn’t be very minimalist. Also, some of it will be common knowledge. But most importantly this book is about the intersection of minimalism and personal finance. Many interpretations of minimalism focus on having fewer material goods. That’s true and easy to understand, but unfortunate because it really is such a narrow and superficial focus. Our focus is more on knowing, wholeheartedly, what a given situation is truly about and paring away all the things that aren’t really essential. Focusing and mastering the essential, and getting rid of the extra fluff, that makes things stronger and more robust.
That view of minimalism will drive this entire book. This book isn’t a collection of essays on how to find and feel and live minimally. It is not some high-minded, academic, spiritual transformation that by the end… leaves you wondering what to actually do about your money. It is a practical guide with detailed steps on how to successfully manage money in the most minimal way possible. We’ll cover simple concepts and best practices concerning money, all driven by a pursuit of minimalism.
By the end of this book, you’ll know how to make your finances as simple as possible, but not simpler, because that’s what works best.
– Adapted from “Minimal Money Mindset” by Damian Cardoso, 2019
