"Making It Work" is brought
to you by CreditRepair.com.
Start rebuilding
your credit today.
Like many others, I jumped
on the minimalist bandwagon
when it blew up.
I've enjoyed embracing
my capsule wardrobe,
whittling down my grocery list
to the absolute essentials,
and surviving on a few
extra loads of laundry
a month to keep my space clean.
But in quarantine, I've
grown tired of looking
at the same bed sheets, wearing
the same rotation of clothes,
and simply having fewer choices.
I embraced a minimalist
lifestyle in part
to cut down on decision making.
But during quarantine, I
found myself stuck inside
with more time on my
hands, which somehow
made minimalism less appealing.
Like many others,
I'm experiencing
quarantine fatigue.
And my minimalist
lifestyle only seemed
to be contributing to that.
Quarantine forcing me
to slow down a bit,
think about how I spend
my time more mindfully,
and appreciate
some of the habits
that I threw out during
my minimalist makeover.
I've also discovered more
joy in cooking and so many
other things now than
I ever did before.
For example I used to be a
huge fan of meal prepping.
It allowed me to save money,
save time, and eat healthy.
But this was all
during a period when
I was trying to maximize
the amount of time I had.
Now cooking has been
a welcome distraction.
As such, I've taken
to experimenting
with new recipes at
least every other day
and taking my time
with cooking, instead
of meal prepping my breakfast
as my batch lunch cooked
on the stove.
While this has meant that my
grocery bill has increased,
it's been largely offset
by the lack of dining out
during quarantine,
and allowed me
to introduce something
new, exciting,
and challenging into
my daily routine.
I'm not a particularly
good cook.
But I've enjoyed experimenting
with new spices, foods,
and recipes and having
the time to devote
to more complex dishes too.
Moreover, I've grown to
appreciate the warmth
and comfort of a warm meal.
I typically batch prep
overnight oats for my breakfast,
simply heating them up at
my office when I need to.
But I've wound up
really cherishing
the short amount of time
it takes for me to make
my oatmeal every morning.
It sets the tone for
my day when I take time
to cook myself a
nourishing meal.
And it allows me to
reset to when I do
the same for lunch and dinner.
Prior to quarantine,
I constantly
start cooking as
exhausting, frustrating,
and taking up too
much of my time.
In embracing a more
maximalist lifestyle,
though, I've discovered more
joy in cooking and so many
other things than
I ever did before.
And then there's my closet.
I enjoy my minimalist wardrobe,
especially for the office.
But I've grown tired of wearing
the same items of clothing day
in and day out.
Usually, my minimalist
wardrobe allows
me to look polished
and stylish in minutes.
Now however, I've
grown exhausted
of the infinite ways in
which I am able to pair
my clothes together.
During a time when nothing
is new or different,
my wardrobe stagnancy is an
added layer of frustration.
As such, I took
advantage of Memorial Day
and quarantine deals to pick up
a few new items, particularly
colorful ones.
Usually minimalist
capsule wardrobe
stay away from too much color
as neutrals are the easiest
to pair together.
But I'm not looking
for easy right now.
I'm looking for outfits
that can boost my mood
or allow me to spend a few extra
minutes trying out new pairings
and styles.
Of course, this may not be
the best for your budget.
And it's tough
honestly a privilege
to be able to save money
and time during quarantine.
For me, there's simply
a guaranteed mood boost
from retail therapy.
And sometimes when quarantine
fatigue is really setting in,
it can be nice to just embrace
a quick jolt of energy.
Finally, quarantine has made me
aware of my minimalist mindset
when it came to my
own neighborhood.
I love the area of
the city I live in.
But I especially adore
frequenting my grocery stores,
restaurants, and bars.
This has especially helped
me save both time and money
in our pre-COVID world since
I knew exactly when to grab
the best happy hour deals at
my favorite rooftop restaurant,
or I knew exactly what time to
shop at my go to grocery store
to avoid the crowds.
But with half the
stores and restaurants
I used to visit
closed temporarily,
I've begun to re-explain
the neighborhood I live in.
I shop at different
grocery stores every week
and try new takeout restaurants
that I'd previously never
had the time to stop in.
My minimalist lifestyle has
bled into a minimalist mindset,
which I loved, especially
because it offered me
comfort and didn't force me to
spend too much time thinking
or researching a
new spot to visit.
But with nothing but
time during quarantine,
I've enjoyed pushing myself
out of my comfort zone
and trying out new businesses,
foods, and grocery patterns
than ever before.
Minimalism is about
intentionality.
It's about letting go
of the idea or concept
that you need more in
life to keep you happy.
It's about feeling freedom
through a more simplistic
lifestyle, whether that
be a shorter grocery
list or a smaller wardrobe.
Right now though, our
lives already feel simple.
There's a distinct
lack of everything,
from the hustle
and bustle we used
to curse to the in-person
relationships that made up such
a big part of our happiness.
As such, I found myself
turning away from minimalism
and embracing more, more
groceries, more recipes,
more clothes, and more
time consuming tasks.
I'm still doing this in
an intentional manner.
But I'm intentionally opening
up more than I did before.
If you're one of the
millions of Americans
with an inaccurate or
unfair credit score,
think about working
with Credit Repair.com.
As their name suggests,
CreditRepair.com
helps people work to
repair their credit.
And they've been crushing it
for the better part of a decade.
CreditRepair.com's
advisors will help
you analyze your
credit report identify
any questionable negative items
and work to get them removed.
If you have questions about
the credit repair process
or what the Credit Repair.com
team can do to help you,
give them a call, or visit
the link in our description
to learn more.
