Is it possible to be a minimalist and still fully prepared for many of life’s unexpected situations? Those of us concerned with being ready and able to adapt to any scenario (be it a natural disaster, financial difficulty or traumatic personal event) have much in common with minimalist and frugal-conscious mindsets, but there are important differences, too. Differences that seem to get in the way.
Let’s take a look at each of these life-mindsets.
Minimalism: Less is More (Freedom)
The minimalist lifestyle is easy to understand. Who doesn’t want to get rid of clutter once they see it as such? Clutter holds you back. It takes up space and it takes up your time. You have to clean it, organize it, and hold onto it.
If you could get rid of everything you don’t really need you’d be free, like Ryan Bingham’s empty backpack in Up in the Air (George Clooney, 2009). With nothing to tie you down, you’d be completely flexible and more able to adapt to changes of plan and spontaneous opportunities.
What’s great is that the minimalist attitude, because it is concerned about having LESS, is especially suited to living frugally.
Frugal Living is Living Smart
Frugal living isn’t just about saving money, although that is certainly a reasonable and honorable goal. When you live within your means and don’t overspend, you tend not to waste and you tend to know your priorities better than your more profligate peers, for whom spending may not be tied to as much awareness.
When you’re more aware of your money, you’re also more aware of what you’re spending it on. For this reason, the frugal mindset helps support sustainable and DIY (do-it-yourself) initiatives and awareness. Why buy a jug of Mr. Clean when you can make a cheaper, better, more earth-friendly version yourself?
Being able to identify priorities and essentials is also a key component of the survivalist mindset. In an emergency situation, you need to know what matters most and how you can be the most effective.
The Survivalist Mindset
When some people hear the word “survivalist” they think of people running away into the cabin-in-the-woods with a truck full of guns. I think that’s an unfortunate exaggeration of what is otherwise a very smart, effective attitude towards preparedness in general.
Survivalism and minimalism share common roots insofar as they’re both conducive to flexibility and adaptation. In an emergency situation, you need to be able to adapt quickly. And having less “stuff” to deal with (in your home as well as in your head) helps.
But so much of preparedness is often about stockpiling goods and food – in addition to the extra equipment and gear so often needed for being able to live outdoors. How do we reconcile being prepared with living minimally?
Integrating Preparedness with Minimalism
Living minimally isn’t always the most frugal option, either. Let’s say you get rid of most of your clothes, books, furniture and other items to free up space – only to find out you need to buy xyz again a couple years later. Now you’re paying for it twice. That’s neither very frugal nor sustainable – it’s the same as if you had bought two of the same item originally.
The ideal would be to live freely, lightly and open to change. This is really at the root of each of these mindsets. If you need to evacuate the house, you want to be ready and able to do it. With less clutter and “stuff” you’re attached to, the easier it will be to let it all go.
There are at least six additional, alternate methods for being prepared than merely stockpiling food rations and the latest shiny gear. Try focusing on these rather than merely adding more cans to your pantry or acquiring the latest survival widget:
- Having the right contingency plans. Write down all your plans and give copies to each member of the household as well as a relative who lives elsewhere.
- Focus on keeping survival gear to a minimum – what are your priorities, what is the least you can get by on? If you already have two emergency radios, you probably can do without buying a third.
- Instead of spending money on products, invest more money into various emergency funds. Keep an account at at least two different backs, have a cash fund in the house and/or another in a different location. Store your wealth virtually rather than cluttering up your home. Keep your money for when you really need it.
- Focus on gardening and growing your own, fresh vegetables rather than storing cans.
- Become vegetarian and not need to deal with drying, freezing and storing meat.
- Boil your food needs down to the mere essentials. Three types of jam? Not necessary.
Authentic survival is already minimalist in its own way. If it’s just you and your backpack, you will want to keep your items as lightweight and as few as possible. It’s a great metaphor and test for living in our day-to-day lives, too.
In sum, at first it seems as though preparedness is at odds with living sustainably and minimally, until you look at the common needs and assumptions of each lifestyle. Stockpiling foods is a symptom of the consumerist lifestyle of excess most of us are used to living. Authentic survival skills allow you to live closer to the land – it’s really not a cliche – and in so doing, you’ll be more green and minimalist than you probably expected.
I’m not saying you won’t want to keep a few goods on hand – but I’m saying there are probably some radical ways around the traditional approach to emergency planning that can transform it into a more eco-friendly and minimalist lifestyle.
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I enjoyed your article and perspective. My parents raised me vegetarian and now I’m raising my children the same way. I’ve never found meat appealing or had a desire to try it. However, I’ve also spent much of the last 20 years hiking, backpacking, enjoying survival trips, as well as writing about and teaching survival and primitive living skills. In my experience, I’ve found it is considerably harder for vegetarians in survival situations as their sources for food are cut in half. In addition, edible vegetation differs widely by region. This requires vegetarians to properly identify at least one hundred edible plants and similar poisonous mimics. Once a person has adjusted to the vegetarian diet, they usually become very sick the next time they eat meat because their stomach doesn’t keep the enzymes needed to digest it. The diarrhea and vomiting that follows could mean the difference between life and death for even the experienced survivalist in the wilderness. However, I appreciate your perspective and only differed on that particular detail.