Name: Alexander Sandberg's review of Goodbye, Things by Fumio Sasaki
Item: Goodbye, Things
Rating: 5
Author: Alexander Sandberg

Fumio Sasaki

'Meet the new king of decluttering' - The Times 'Take your spring cleaning to the next level with Goodbye, Things by Fumio Sasaki' - Parade 'There's happiness in having less. If you are anything like how I used to be - miserable, constantly comparing yourself with others, or just believing your life sucks - I think you should try saying goodbye to some of your things' Fumio Sasaki is a writer in his thirties who lives in a tiny studio in Tokyo with three shirts, four pairs of trousers, four pairs of socks and not much else. A few years ago, he realised that owning so much stuff was weighing him down - so he started to get rid of it. In this hit Japanese bestseller, Sasaki explores the philosophy behind minimalism and offers a set of straightforward rules - discard it if you haven't used it in a year; be a borrower; find your uniform; keep photos of the things you love - that can help all of us lead simpler, happier, more fulfilled lives.

On Minimalist Living

Goodbye, Things

'There's happiness in having less. If you are anything like how I used to be - miserable, constantly comparing yourself with others, or just believing your life sucks - I think you should try saying goodbye to some of your things' Fumio Sasaki is a writer in his thirties who lives in a tiny studio in Tokyo with three shirts, four pairs of trousers, four pairs of socks and not much else. A few years ago, he realised that owning so much stuff was weighing him down - so he started to get rid of it. In this hit Japanese bestseller, Sasaki explores the philosophy behind minimalism and offers a set of straightforward rules - discard it if you haven't used it in a year; be a borrower; find your uniform; keep photos of the things you love - that can help all of us lead simpler, happier, more fulfilled lives.

Dhrumil Patel

The best-selling phenomenon from Japan that shows us a minimalist life is a happy life. Fumio Sasaki is not an enlightened minimalism expert or organizing guru like Marie Kondo—he’s just a regular guy who was stressed out and constantly comparing himself to others, until one day he decided to change his life by saying goodbye to everything he didn’t absolutely need. The effects were remarkable: Sasaki gained true freedom, new focus, and a real sense of gratitude for everything around him. In Goodbye, Things Sasaki modestly shares his personal minimalist experience, offering specific tips on the minimizing process and revealing how the new minimalist movement can not only transform your space but truly enrich your life. The benefits of a minimalist life can be realized by anyone, and Sasaki’s humble vision of true happiness will open your eyes to minimalism’s potential.

Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism

Claudine

Alexander Sandberg

I was looking for an inspiring and practical pep talk to help me get rid of things during our move. It wasn’t really groundbreaking or incredible writing and format, but it was nice to get a different perspective nonetheless. I’m not sure how persuasive or effective it was yet—we’re still in the moving process. 

Kat Albanese

rumbledethumps

This book read like a compilation of blog posts, complete with listicles like “55 Things To Help You...” or “12 Reasons....”

Not particularly useful or helpful. Spends much of the time talking about the benefits of minimalism, and it feels like listening to your friend go on and on about how much better he feels since he went gluten free.

The best-selling phenomenon from Japan, with irresistible appeal to fans of Marie Kondo, that argues there is happiness in a minimalist life.

The New Japanese Minimalism

Ofelia

Mi aspettavo qualche cosa di differente da questo libro, tipo un manuale per diventare minimalisti (se mai mi venisse questa folle voglia) cosa che questo libro assolutamente non è. In pratica è solo un girare attorno alla vita dell'autore che ci tiene a spiegarci in più di 100 pagine come sia felice ora che in casa non ha più niente.
Peccato che questo libro non ti incoraggi particolarmente a diventare minimalista, anche se molto probabilmente l'autore invece era proprio quello che voleva fare solo che con me proprio non è riuscito. A voler riassumere in libro è solamente lui che non fa altro che dire come la sua vita sia perfetta da quando in casa ha solo un vaso di fiori però dall'altro lato solo un cieco non capirebbe che il problema della sua infelicità di prima non era di sicuro l'avere troppe cose. Prima di fare ordine nella sua casa per sua stessa ammissione era alcolizzato, vuoi magari dire che il tuo problema era l'alcool e non il fatto che avevi tre paia di forbici? No, ovviamente. Erano 'le cose' che gli impedivano di essere una persona differente.
L'autore poi chiaramente prima non era minimalista, infatti era l'esatto contrario. 
Ora io ovviamente capisco tenere le cose significative ma chi diavolo tiene OGNI post-it che ci lasciano i colleghi? saremmo sommersi di cose del tutto inutili se lo facessimo! ovviamente la sua casa era un macello, come avrebbe potuto non esserlo? questo teneva pure gli scontrini del supermercato secondo me, non buttava proprio niente di niente. 
Sempre per sua ammissione comprava vestiti che non voleva e di cui non aveva bisogno solo perché comprare lo rendeva felice, anche se sapeva che quel capo di abbigliamento non lo avrebbe messo mai. Ovviamente ad un certo punto è arrivato a decidere che era meglio sbarazzarsi di tutto piuttosto che provare a fare ordine in maniera umana, è come quando hai i capelli troppo lunghi e rovinati perché non li hai curati e piuttosto che badarci preferisci un bel taglio cortissimo.
Poi da uno che dice di aver buttato libri per il valore di 8mila (!!) euro ed averci fatto 160 euro al massimo io non mi posso proprio fidare.

Tracie McMurray

Great information and relatively short. I just wish the author hadn't repeated himself so much. But, it's a good reminder that it's easier than we think to let go of our possessions.

Melanie Richards

The examples of minimalism in this book are hardcore, far past my goals (but sort of thrilling to think about!). Despite the author’s personal rigor though, he’s really generous in his attitude of minimalism being all about what’s right for you, and I think that’s right on the mark. We all will have different definitions of “I only have what I need” and growth requires a push but not excess force.

Amélie Vaugarny

for a book about minimalism, it sure drags on and keeps repeating itself a lot... if you’re interest in minimalism, i highly recommend watching the documentary ‘minimalism’ by matt d’avella over reading this

Nadine 

Every single possible thing that could be minimised is described in excruciating detail. If I’d read it I’d have given it 2 stars but the audiobook is worth 3 as it is great for insomnia.

daisy

my first and favorite book about minimalism lifestyle. picking this book on a bookstore while i was strolling around and decided to buy it in just seconds. this lifestyle has got my interest since 2016 and i always come to this book whenever i feel like getting some kick ass motivation to get rid of unnecessary stuffs

Chris Aldrich

Relatively clear and concise. I expected a lot more of Marie Kondo's philosophy, but this was completely and refreshingly different.

Omar Fernandez

Excellent book on minimalism. I consider myself someone who is already good at not accumulating too many things, yet I found this very practical book inspiring to find ways to further declutter. The book is filled with gems that truly resonated with me. 

There's also a lot of scientific research on happiness distilled in this book. I've taken courses about happiness and well-being, the most recent through Coursera taught by Yale, and this book makes a strong case for reducing the stuff you own to be happier based on many of the scientific findings. 

Overall, very inspiring.

Amy L Hamilton

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was easy to read and understand and the pictures in the beginning were great. He was obsessed with Steve Jobs and Apple which was annoying after a while.

Casper Lourens

What stuck to me is the open-minded view of the writer (who is a hardcore minimalist) about how minimalism comes in many shapes. It feels like an open invitation instead of a rulebook. And it works: I threw out 3 boxes of stuff in the past week already, and I don't even identify as a minimalist.

The book itself is like a minimalism field guide. It describes the concepts and benefits minimalism can provide, while also containing an entire section dedicated to tangible advice on how you can start reducing clutter at home.

Ngl, I judged this book prior to reading it. I seriously thought this would focus on strategies in getting rid of stuff, but it went pretty deep into existential territory. I guess it was this route or just the practical decluterring direction. I probably would’ve dropped the book early on if it were of the latter.

Also, props to Eriko Sugita who did the translation work. Made this truly an easy read; felt like I was just casually being walked through someone’s thought process.

My issue with this focus on 2 things: structure and bias, if that makes any sense. Structure, because the flow felt a bit jumpy to me. I didn’t know how the themes were threaded. Second is bias, mainly because the author is single and living alone at the time of writing. His suggestions on being untethered and focused on the present (he expanded on this in the book) may be a bit difficult to apply to someone who has people relying on them, like parents or breadwinners. I wish this was also covered somehow.

Overall, though, another surprisingly eye-opening read. Definitely helpful on the daily.

Oh, and another issue: not sure if the subtitle ‘the new Japanese minimalism’ is necessary at all (sorry, publisher). Nothing in the book particularly focused on his practice of minimalism being strictly Japanese. Maybe except the infrequent mentions of disaster risk reduction? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Luca Conti

Another book about minimalism. Good if You don't know where to start from.

Fionn Gray

I really enjoyed this one, it certainly made me look at my lifestyle and surroundings in a different way. All while giving some handy strategies and advice.

Joséphine

Initial thoughts: What I like about Goodbye, Things is the focus on mindset on top of the physical reduction of possessions. Sasaki talks a lot about the impact minimalism has had on his life and how things have changed for him over time, presenting a sort of before and after to the reader. Some parts are quite repetitive, though. Three times he explains that after becoming a minimalist, it only took him half-an-hour to pack up and move to a new home:
"This spring, I moved into a new apartment. I didn’t do any packing beforehand and yet it only took thirty minutes to take everything out of my home, including the time it took to remove the light fixtures and unplug the washing machine." (p.162)

"After going minimalist, I moved for the first time in a decade. It was from Nakameguro to an area called Fudomae, not too far away, and the packing (without a single cardboard box, mind you), the move itself, and unpacking all took but an hour and a half. I kid you not." (p.176)

"Finally moved for the first time in a decade (it took thirty minutes but it shouldn’t take more than twenty minutes next time)" (p.194) On several other occasions, he repeats how he downsized to a smaller apartment, and how simple it was. He also dwells a lot on the simplicity of Apple products. So yeah, Goodbye, Things could've been two-thirds as long.

Nonetheless, the inclusion of practical steps towards minimalism, makes Goodbye, Things a more than worthwhile read. I also enjoyed the discussions on how we we attach our self-worth to possessions and look to objects to shape our identities. Plus, I liked how Sasaki made it clear that he values experiences, and why, which is sure to lead any reader to healthy introspection.

Hugo Ahlberg

This book would have greatly benefited from being edited down quite a bit, probably half the length would be enough. And many of the ideas are explored better in Essentialism by Greg McKeown https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Pedro Giménez

El libro no está mal como introducción al minimalismo. Es un poco difícil encontrar libros realmente buenos sobre esta temática.

La serie de fotografías al comienzo del libro es muy interesante y quizá es lo más ilustrativo del libro. Los capítulos más importantes del libro —en mi opinión— son el primero, el segundo y el cuarto:

- ¿qué es el minimalismo?
- ¿por qué acumulamos tantas cosas?
- cómo el minimalismo ha cambiado al autor.

El resto del libro son listas interminables de tips que no son más que sentido común: tira primero las cosas que son basura, después, las cosas que no uses, etc.

En cualquier caso, el libro tiene un par de conceptos y lecciones interesantes:

- Lo que el autor denomina estado minimalista frente al estado maximalista:

Piensa en un viaje de ida. Llegas al hotel y la habitación está limpia y ordenada. No estás rodeado de todas las cosas que te suelen distraer, no sientes la carga de las responsabilidades —la pila de platos por fregar. Es por eso por lo que nos sentimos tan bien cuando viajamos, tan sólo tenemos que dejar las maletas y somos libres para irnos a dar una vuelta por el vecindario. Te sientes ligero. Estado minimalista.

Ahora piensa en un viaje de vuelta. Todas las cosas están mal metidas en la maleta. Las cosas que has comprado apenas caben. Llevas los bolsillos llenos de tickets de los sitios que has visitado. Estás en el aeropuerto y no encuentras el boarding pass entre tanto papel. La sensación de estrés causada por tener más objetos de los que puedes manejar. Estado maximalista.

- La definición de minimalista:

En resumidas cuentas, todo aquel que sabe lo que es esencial para él y evita el signaling —quizá esto es lo más interesante del libro. El autor toca el tema del signaling en varias ocasiones.

- ¿Por qué no nos sentimos felices a pesar de tener tantas cosas?

Porque nos acostumbramos.

- ¿Por qué seguimos comprando cosas si sabemos que lo que nos ilusiona ahora nos cansará dentro de unos meses?

Porque basamos los sentimientos futuros en los presentes. Predecimos mal.

- ¿Por qué acumulamos tanto?

Porque somos animales sociales y sentimos la necesidad de que otras personales nos valoren. Ante la dificultad de transmitir nuestros valores y principios, empleamos nuestras posesiones como proxy.

- El concepto de la "silent to-do list":

Nuestras posesiones nos mandan señales a diario que acaban generándonos estrés. Por ejemplo, la pila de platos que sabes que tienes que limpiar, la lavadora que sabes que tienes que poner, toda esa montaña de ropa que sabes que tienes que planchar. Es una lista de cosas por hacer que no está escrita en ningún sitio pero nos crea una pesada carga cognitiva.

En definitiva, es un tema interesante y sobre el que quiero reflexionar. Quiero intentar llevar una vida más minimalista, aunque a diferencia del autor, conservaré dos cosas que para mí siguen siendo imprescindibles: un buen armario y una buena colección de libros físicos.

Thomas Karstens 

I would recommend this book for its inspirational value. While the highly annectodal evidence of the positive impact of minimalism bothered me at times (there is literally a section called "minimalist are slim"), I can't deny the positive impact it has had on my life. I especially enjoyed reading on the seemingly intertwined relationship of minimalism and mindfulness.

One of my favorite books. A wonderful read for anyone who's feeling weighed down by their material possessions.

Pete Andrel

AnjB

Henri Bredt

Phil K

Same! One of few books that I've read more than once, and one of very few books that I've read more than twice. :)

James Bedford

Also one of my favourites :) I find myself revisiting it often.

Alexander Sandberg &
Goodbye, Things by Fumio Sasaki

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