Self-Resource Mobilisation through Minimalism.

How to donate for sustainable ventures (If you feel it as the need of the time) with the existing earning?

Once we follow the Sustainable Culture, we have a lot of scope to save from monthly expenditures that have become redundant now.

1. One of the main areas of savings is from the adoption of Let GO the false EGO concept of ours. You analyse what we are doing, purchasing and spending on ego based satisfaction and ego based value creation to understand this. Purchases have become a fashion with the purpose of mere comparison and the business of consumerism is thriving on it. Once you see it as wasteful expense, all those can contribute to a substantial saving.

2. Follow Minimalism. Whenever we are in financial constraints, (it has become a part of the our times as we are experiencing) we find it difficult to maintain the big houses, cars, machines and gadget etcs. If we follow the principles of Minimalism, we have a house which the members themselves can clean and maintain, minimum gadgets and machineries so that maintenance is not overburdening and also we have savings. Minimalism also helps to be free from the clutches of debt and interest, hence freedom from EMIs and troubles from banks and financial institutions.

3. If we follow the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) of sustainability, we can avoid lot of ego based purchases. Eg. Vehicles, Gadgets, home appliances, Machines etc. The mainstream media must be continuously pushing you to buy the latest model. The companies follow the planned obsolescence program, where thy discontinue the existing model just to push sale of new model and then they stop services and spare parts of the earlier models. But if you get a good mechanic, he can make it serviceable. Now this has been further developed to 7 Rs – Rethink (the necessity and the method), Refuse (those that can be avoided), Reduce (minimalism), Reuse (to maximum extent), Repair (wherever possible), Re-gift (give to some one who needs it), Recycle (redesign to use it again).

4. Most of the wastages happen in clothing, shoes etc. Many of us have much more clothes than required just because of fashion trend. There is a concerted effort of changing the fashion every season. The cultural fad is created in such a way that if you do not change your clothes and shoes every season, you are a noncompliant mainstream person and people are made to look you down. This is a dangerous trend. The young generation is addicted to this trend and they become debt ridden in the early years of their career as planned in the Debt economy of the credit cards. They will be tempted to the use the debt culture for each and everything and when a cyclical economic depression (Economic breakdown has to happen periodically as per the hidden agenda) happens, they are in despair at it can take away their job or finish all their savings. Imagine the scope of savings here.

5. All those going through sustainability lessons and effect of toxic products in our daily life, must have realized by now the adverse effects of cosmetics and hence are to be avoided. If you consider the amount, we spent on every month on cosmetics, you can just realize the possibility.

6. Follow the Eco-friendly ways of cleaning at home and to avoid the detergents in kitchen, laundry, home and toilets. If you adopt these, you will be saving the cost of different soaps, detergents etc bought for each purpose and you get a healthy home because eco-friendly cleaners which are very cheap in comparison.

7. Another major possibility is the food. As you must have realized by now that our food habits are not correct and once we simplify the food habits, lot of wasteful expenses and expenses on consequent diseases can be avoided. Follow Michael Pollan’s advice not to purchase anything advertised and not from a supermarket shelf. They are all dead and toxic food. Go for the real food from your own locality and as those provided by the nature in each season. Instead of going to a supermarket or hypermarket, find the nearest farm market by the local producers, go there and get the fresh and organic produce. You can feel the nature there and it will be rejuvenating.

8. Restaurant culture is another cultural fad. Eating out has become a fashion and trend as the media is programming you. If you analyse the spending, you can really see the saving. You just Let GO the False EGO.

9. Minimalism in Festivities. We tend to spend a lot in celebrations. Marriage, Birthdays, Anniversaries etc. and the seasonal and religions festivities. All celebrations are important. But if you think in the minimalism principle, we can reduce a lot of EGO based spending without spoiling the spirit of the occasion. Only to change perceptions. Take it as a pride to be an advocate of Minimalism and Sustainability.

If you think like this, there are lot of ego based and habit based unwanted expenses which are really harmful/wasteful/ unwanted for us and if you can do away with these, you get the double benefits of saving on the products and savings on medical expenses.

So you have your own answer how to raise funds to serve for sustainable future. Olympuss Vision is unique, aims at transforming human into peaceful beings with beautiful minds that can serve as a better solution to the problems we see now in the world. Support it by saving in sustainable ways and contributing to the cause.

Varghese Mathew