5 Simple Ways to Embrace a Minimalist Student Lifestyle

As a college student, there are many reasons why you may wish to downsize and simplify your life.

For one, at the best of times, college dorm room areas aren't the roomiest. And the little space you do have will most likely be taken over by textbooks, charging cables, and the possessions of your roommate.

On the other hand, student life is doesn't exactly leave you with a ton of money in the bank. Most of your time is spent in lecture halls and libraries, not exactly the kind of thing that's going to line your wallet with riches.

With that said, being a student really does present you with the best opportunity to dive into becoming more minimalist. So why no take this opportunity for change and start curating a minimalist lifestyle while also establishing lifelong minimalist habitats.

Here's how.

How to Become a Minimalist Student

There are many ways to practice minimalism why attending college. Here's how to shift your mindset, shed your excess stuff, and do away with consumerism.

1. Cook With Your Roommates or Friends

Rather than constantly buying takeout or a whole set of cooking utensils, why not collaborate with your fellow college students or friends and cook up a storm, minimalist style. In doing so, you won't only save money on every meal you make but you will also share the cooking and washing up duties. Win-win.

2. Change Your Notetaking Habits

We all learn differently (so maybe this won't work for everybody), but if your brain allows it, why not start using your laptop for note-taking rather than writing everything down in a notebook. That way, you'll not only reduce the amount of stuff you have but you'll also have less to carry to class and also save the need to cut down more trees for paper.

3. When Studying, Avoid Distractions

Minimalism isn't just about decluttering your life, it's also about simplifying it too. And a great way to do this is by removing unneeded distractions from your life, kinda like those pesky phone notifications that keep breaking your attention.

To do this, while studying (or even while enjoying some downtime) try switching off your notifications and focusing your full attention on the task at hand. In doing so, your not only embracing the minimalist life but also, hopefully, getting better grades.

4. Clear Out Your Social Media

Talking about distractions, social media can be a massive source of distraction and procrastination. One way to reduce the amount of time you spend on your social media accounts is to go through and clear out everything that you don't really need to pay attention to any longer.

Whether that be unfollowing groups you no longer have an interest in, deleting apps you no longer use, or unfriending or unfollowing people you no longer talk to (or ever remember friending in the first place). By doing this, you'll not only have more brainpower for your studies but you'll also feel less mentally cluttered as well.

5. Clean Out Your Wardrobe

It's kind of crazy how clothes can accumulate so quickly. If you've ever had to move your entire wardrobe, you'll know exactly what I mean. Plus, that small dorm room closet of yours is probably already bursting at the seams. To remove some of the clutter, try employing the coat hanger trick. It works like this, hang all your clothes on hangers and face their fronts in the same direction.

As you wear something, put it back in your closet and face it in the opposite direction. After one or two months, donate those clothes you didn't wear to a charity. That way you'll keep only the basics and, while doing so, help somebody out that's less fortunate than yourself.

6. Keep Your Digital Documents Organized

With new classes every quarter or semester, it’s easy to rack of gigabytes of data in un-used, disorganized digital documents. Do yourself a favor and create a digital filling system for all of your documents at the beginning of the school year that includes a system for digitizing important paper documents as well. Re-visit your filing system yearly to make updates and declutter your digital space.

The Benefits of Practicing Minimalism as a Student

There are a ton of benefits to practicing a minimalist lifestyle as a college student, here are the most beneficial:

• You'll spend less time making decisions. Fewer clothes in your closet and fewer things in your dorm room will allow more mental space for study and more time to enjoy your free time.

• You'll spend less time cleaning. Less furniture in your dorm room, fewer pillows on your bed, and less clutter in general life mean you'll spend less time cleaning up your crap and more time hanging out with your college friends.

• More cash in the bank. When you aren't concerned with the latest smartphone release and owning the latest clothes from popular designer labels will leave you more money in the bank. This means you can work less, save more, and spend extra time getting ready for your upcoming exams.

• More freedom. If you ever dreamt of studying abroad, owning less clutter and feeling like you're not rooted in one place by your material possessions is incredibly liberating. Adopting a minimalist lifestyle makes moving anywhere in the world just so much easier.

Final Thoughts

If you are considering becoming more minimalist then why wait? There really is no better time to establish a minimalist lifestyle than while you are a student. Life is probably not going to be this simple anytime into the future, so why not take advantage of your college years and make them as nonmaterialistic as you possibly can.