Hello friends, thanks for being here. This is Youheum.
And for those of you who just met me, I am an Extreme Minimalist living in a Furniture-free apartment.
Right now, I am making some dandelion root tea with homemade cashew milk to get started on your questions!
Just to cover the most asked questions before diving into
the detailed questions, a lot of you asked me what my religion was,
what I do for a living, where I live, and
what my origin is. So I am a spiritual Buddhist
practicing through the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh and I attend a Sangha locally in Austin, Texas.
I also go to retreats like
the one in Blue Cliff monastery
in New York. I used to live in New York actually for
6 years before I moved to Austin last year.
I live with my sister who is an Art Therapist.
I was born in South Korea and my parents are both Koreans.
I am currently a freelancer who does design and illustration work.
So I'm a bit of a digital nomad who travels, works at cafes, and work from home.
Some fun things that you might not know about me is that I like hiking, hammocking,
and kayaking. I'm a very outdoorsy person and I love biking and tending to my garden.
I also practice self-help and spiritual practices like yoga and meditation
every day and I also do The Healing Code,
EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), and if you want to know more I can go or deeper on my spiritual practice in
my future videos as well.
So that's just a little bit about myself before getting to the juicy questions that you have asked!
Let's get started right away. The first question is... "Is there anything that you would really like to
buy but can't justify to yourself?" Yes, and there are definitely times when I want to get something, but it's not out of
possessiveness or obsession.
It's more like I'm thinking about the potential that the object has. What is the experience that object can bring me
by me allowing that object into my life?
So for example, I recently thought about getting more plants in my home so that I can experience how beautiful nature is
right in my home and indoors, but at the same time I reminded myself that
whenever I feel the need and the urge to connect with nature and the natural elements,
I can always step outside of this home and
experience the outdoors by going hiking,
forest bathing, and walking barefoot, touching the texture of this Earth.
And really observing deeply and mindfully the beauty of this nature.
So there is always an alternative
offered to me by this world instead of accumulation.
I do have these urges and to be honest
it is very tempting
but I all also know that there is an alternative. There is a way for me to nourish myself
besides buying another plant. I can always go outside and have fun and observe nature,
observe the plants that are outdoors in their natural habitat.
I do get a lot of questions on how I do Zero-waste during my moon cycle.
So the question was "How about periods? What do you use? How do you care for?"
I feel like this question is such a valuable question for many people and I'm so glad that you asked.
I use a period cup and an organic cotton reusable pantyliner.
This way, I don't have to use a single-use tampon or a pad.
I used to use Luna's tampons, which are made of organic cotton
but that was creating a lot of waste.
So I decided to use a menstrual cup about a year ago and I really like how comfortable it is.
I like the brand that I'm using which is from Salt and I will link it in the description
below, as well as the organic cotton pad.
This is so good!!
So the next question is...
"What are your thoughts on the trendiness of Minimalism and the eco-conscious lifestyle and of the eco-conscious
consumerism it's generating?"
Awesome question :)
Especially because it is so spot-on with the current flow of things with Minimalism, decluttering,
simple living, and sustainability. I am genuinely happy that there are lots of people
interested in Minimalism and sustainability. And of course, there's going to be
wrong information and knowledge.
There's going to be somewhat of dilution in the amount of commitment people have for these practices.
But I'm looking at the bigger picture because I feel that we're going to grow together and
it doesn't have to be perfect
and everyone doesn't have to be on the same level of things because what's important is just rising to consciousness and
rising the vibration of people and
making more people aware that this is a possibility and this is actually a way that we can thrive and
be happy. The purpose of that is to make Minimalism,
sustainability, and eco-friendly practices the default for this society.
I'm actually going to do a whole video on this and the question is...
"How do you feed your cat while being Zero-waste?"
So I feel that my cat deserves a little introduction first!
She is currently 9 years old and we adopted her about 4 years ago in New York.
We really love her and she's part of the family now. I'm not 100% Zero-waste.
I guess I would be more Low-waste, but I am going towards Zero-waste and
at the moment
I'm feeding her a limited ingredient rabbit meat diet and I tried feeding her raw meat
but she didn't take to it. We tried quail and rabbit.
We wanted to also try chicken
but she's allergic to chicken or at least low-quality chicken.
So we were looking for some organic options which were not available.
I'll also do a video on natural cat care including the litter,
what toys I make for her, and what kind of bedding she uses.
So please subscribe to my channel if you want to get updates on that new video. The next question is...
"How did you live before or how did you get to this lifestyle?"
I am very happy that you asked this question and I'm very appreciative of the amount of support and
curiosity that you have for me.
I started Minimalism 5 ago and at that time I was living in New York. I was studying
Illustration at a private art school and I was also in the fashion industry
drenched in a high-end fashion and a
lot of things to do with just purely aesthetics.
It was nothing that really
touched my heart and nothing that made me challenge myself. I was tired of
faking myself and making myself presentable and perfectly presentable for others and I was at a level
where my anxiety was getting in my way.
I didn't explore my emotions and I wasn't available for myself emotionally and
at some point I got really tired of
trying to hide myself and feeling so shameful and fearful that my vulnerabilities and my
imperfect side would be exposed to the world and
people would be disappointed about who I really am. So at that point
I really needed some guidance and I needed teachers to
allow me to be more confident about who I am and not so afraid of expressing myself,
expressing how unique I am to other people. And not worry about fitting in and
not worrying about being presentable for others. So the resources that I started with were
written by Debbie Ford
it's called the Dark Side of The Light Chasers.
I also read Abraham Hicks who teaches Law of attraction and deliberate creation.
I also read Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg
who is such a great teacher who talks about compassion and how to express compassion and
unconditional love for people and for myself.
I had some awesome teachers like them and I also
learned from Thich Nhat Hanh.
I read his books and watched his videos and I was really interested in
joining a Sangha at that moment. I also joined a retreat program where I connected with people
through my genuine self. From then on,
I wanted better control over my life, including my health, wellness and
self-improvement part. So I read the Diet for a New America and
transition to a
Pescetarian diet and into a Vegetarian diet and finally into a Vegan diet. I also read Goodbyes Things by
Fumio Sasaki, who allowed me to
really shed by fear about
losing material abundance and
he allowed me to think that abundance is outside of physical things and that
abundance is not something that can be contained. It is universal and that really allowed me to
get into the physical aspects of life and
get rid of the things that no longer nourish ed me and
get rid of the things that distract me from living a focused lifestyle. So I had all these amazing,
confident, and smart teachers teaching me throughout my journey, and they really helped me find
what I really need to do in my life to feel happy.
Which is to be genuine and to be down to earth and to express
unconditionally and to cultivate joy and happiness through love. Next question is...
"Why do you only wear and decorate with muted colors?
Does it have anything to do with the dyes or dyeing process is it just personal style?"
I do like to decorate with muted colors and same goes for my sister. We've always been attracted to
natural materials like wood.
We also like a pop green or rust and
colors that are aligned with the natural world.
Of course, in nature, there are also vibrant colors.
But I feel that artificially created vibrant colors are very stimulating for me.
I always prefer to go for natural colors like cream,
camel color, burnt umber, and raw sienna.
I do also like a little bit of coral and forest green.
And for the second part of the question,
I do feel like it's
important for me to avoid chemicals as much as possible like chemical dyes and toxins used in
creating these colors and fabrics, but of course
I can't avoid it 100%. So I just try to do my best by buying undyed
hemp, linen, and try not to get bleached cotton or jute.
Natural fabrics are the ones I go for.
And the next question is...
"Do you see yourself maintaining, decreasing, increasing,
or ceasing this practice in the future? It this a temporary phase in your life
where you are pushing towards a limit for the experience?
What are your goals in this?"
Such a great question and it applies to many people because it's something that a lot of people struggle with which is consistency and
how to maintain that consistency and if that consistency is going to last for the rest of my life.
I feel like I'm a very flexible person and I'm forgiving so I don't try to
live a life that is set to stone and everything is constantly flowing and everything is changing. So I'm willing to
do whatever it takes for me to be happy.
It's not really about finding the ultimate happiness at the end of this journey.
It's finding happiness on the way and
appreciating what is presented to me on the way in this present moment. And the next question is...
"Can you talk about your Fruitarian diet? I have read different things about it and I'm curious as to how you get protein and other
nutrients fruit doesn't have?"
I admit that a Fruitarian diet is not for everyone and I'm very happy and grateful that you're curious and
Open-minded about exploring and you're concerned about my health. So I feel that
fruits and vegetable have all the nutrients and
values that I need for me to be healthy and happy and I can say this because
when I eat fruits vegetables,
I feel so good physically and emotionally. I have a clear mind and I don't feel bloated and sluggish.
When I don't eat these food and eat processed food, too much cooked food, or
food with a lot of processed oil in it, I don't feel good. My body doesn't feel good.
And to answer your question directly,
I get protein from broccoli, spinach, and other green veggies.
And of course, I can get more protein if I eat meat but at the cost of what?
That's something that I was debating for a long time when I was
Pescetarian and when I was transitioning to a Vegetarian and
the answer for me is that it's not worth it. But it's different for everybody and
it's okay to eat whatever you want. Whatever you're comfortable with and
for me, my values are just different. My needs are different. My belief is different and
it's okay to have contrast. It's okay to think differently.
So I feel like I just have to give up on trying to stretch with this cat on my lap... haha
Next question!
"Can you tell us what your family members in general think of your lifestyle?"
I'm very grateful for your kind words and thanks for enjoying my video.
My family members are very curious and they're concerned at the same time.
They don't really bother with me to the point where
they would be like... don't live like that or they would criticize me or have negative reactions. They are just curious and
they're just amazed that I live like this.
I feel that my family is very nourishing, open-minded and they care for me and
they will not resist my choices or resist who I am
by setting up conditions for love like for example
they don't say I will not love you or care for you or support you just because you don't live with
furniture or just because you're Vegan.
If that's something that you're struggling with and if you need help with it,
I can always do a video on how to deal with negative reactions or negative people
against certain lifestyle choices. I feel like this is something people
might be interested in. Especially
if you're starting out on Minimalism
or if you're trying to be an Extreme Minimalist and
let go of furniture and if you're a Vegan or Raw Vegan.
There's a lot of resistance and I feel like a lot of people need help with that.
When they're not able to really maintain their boundaries.
I will definitely do a video on that if you want and please let me know in the comments below if
that's something you're struggling with and if that's something you need help with because I'm here to support you.
I'm here to be insightful and helpful for you. And this is the last question and it is... "What do you do with money?
What's a budget if you change to Minimalism compared to regular expenses? What are you saving for?"
I save money and use my money for
sustaining my life and for entertainment and experiences.
So the basic things like rent, utilities, and bills are covered and after that, I use it on
traveling and exploring like paying for the membership for my community garden and
going to retreats.
Also for travel expenses like food, rental places, and rental cars.
I consider myself a frugal Minimalist and I don't really buy a lot of products to sustain my life.
Because a lot of products that I have are reusable and it lasts for a long time.
I also want to add something because a lot of people ask me how I make money.
I have multiple sources of income which include my illustration and design work and I also get support on my Patreon page.
So if you're interested, I will put the link in the descriptions.
I also get collaboration deals, sponsorship, and that's how I
maintain my website and how I purchase the gears that I need to film this video and other videos.
So to be honest
there are months where I make less and months I make more. So there's an instability in the
financial flow that's coming in
but that's okay because whenever I can, I save up and I live frugally so my monthly expenses
usually stay the same throughout the whole year
besides the travel fees which is in a different account so that I can
separate my necessities and my entertainment. This is something that's very important to me in order to sustain this
a somewhat unpredictable lifestyle.
And if you want to know more about freelancing and how you can work from home and how you can be financially independent
I will do a video in the future on how to
grow your own business and how you can do a freelance job instead of a 9 to 5. If that's something you're interested in.
Thanks for all the valuable and thoughtful questions that you asked me and I would love to continue our conversation
and do another Q&A in the future!
Please drop any of the questions that you have in the comments below. If you like this video
give it a thumbs up and please
subscribe to my channel if you have not done so yet and I hope to see you again soon. Thanks for joining me.
