Simplify to Embrace the Chaos of Life

It may seem like a paradox: embracing a simple life so that you can embrace chaos. Isn’t the point of pursuing a simple life to reduce stress, reduce anxiety, and create spaces in your day and calendar and life to experience calm?

I know many of us are drawn to minimalism for those reasons. And it is true that minimalism can bring these benefits. But, at any given moment, it’s also true that things in your life may feel far from calm.

Mental health crises. Job loss and uncertainty. Political unrest. These issues are not just news headlines. They are being lived out in our homes and in our families. And they can create a sense of chaos. Overwhelm. A sense that you’re being thrown off course. This is when a minimalist mindset and life can help the most.

If you are in a period of chaos, try these five seemingly simple but powerful actions that a minimalist mindset helps to cultivate:

1. Take a deep breath.

Give yourself one moment to close your eyes, plant your feet firmly on the ground, and place your hand over your heart. Take a deep breath in. Exhale out. Feel your body relax from just one simple deep breath. A minimalist life allows you to pause and slow down. At the most fundamental level, taking a deep breath allows you to give yourself and your body at least one moment of calm during the chaos.

2. Acknowledge the chaos you’re experiencing.

Can you name it? Can you identify what exactly is causing such feelings of overwhelm? Get out a piece of paper and pen and write about your worries. A minimalist life allows you to be intentional about your time and life. This intentionality allows you not only to ask big questions about how you want to live but also to stay closely in touch with the realities of your day.

At this moment, your reality is one of overwhelm. It’s important to sit with that truth. Rather than pretend it away or fill your calendar with events to avoid it, acknowledge the chaos. It is also important not to add any judgement to what you’re experiencing. Just acknowledge the experience as it is. As Pema Chodron writes: “it’s a lifetime’s journey to relate honestly to the immediacy of our experience, and to respect ourselves enough not to judge it.”

3. Remind yourself of your resiliency.

It might feel hard to fully embrace a sense of resiliency in this moment. But even if you don’t feel it yet, at the very least, remind yourself that you are resilient. You can do difficult things.

Can you remember another time of chaos in your life that you managed through? What helped you through that storm? Remembering a different but similarly hard moment that you were able to get through can remind yourself of your strength. It will be that same strength and resiliency that will eventually carry you through this current moment.

4. List five things that you are grateful for in this moment.

Even in a season of chaos, there are positives. Your breath. A warm meal. Time with loved ones. A quiet walk. A song that brings joy. A minimalist life allows you to stop comparing your life to others and to enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Especially in moments of chaos, it is easy to compare your life to others and feel disappointment if it looks like their lives are easier or better. Yet you do not know what silent battles others may be fighting.

More importantly, your most important task is to create your own life on your own terms. Let yourself be mindful of all the small moments of beauty and joy that you experience, even during this period of chaos. Feel gratitude for the life you have been able to craft for yourself.

5. Identify one concrete action that you can take next.

There are likely no easy solutions to the chaos that you’re experiencing. But you can still decide to take small steps to increase your sense of being capable of weathering the storm. Maybe it’s reaching out to a friend. Maybe it’s contacting a community organization to ask about ways to get involved. Maybe it’s cooking a nourishing meal. Whatever the action, decide to do one thing. It won’t magically make the chaos disappear. But it will help you remember that you can still make decisions to bring small moments of connection and resiliency into your life.

There is no way to predict what the future will hold. Even once you weather the storm of this particular moment of chaos, more storms will come. But a minimalist life will help you to remember that you do know that you have the capability to give yourself this moment.

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About the Author: Emily Kazyak is a writer and educator based in Nebraska. Along with minimalism, she has a penchant for bike riding, lattes, and photography.