“Are minimalists misers?”- Are you thinking about becoming a minimalist but worried about people who may call you a miser? Well, being minimalist is not about being a miser.
Many people have a myth that minimalists are misers. Even when I started to adapt to frugality, many of my friends were teasing me as if I’m a miser. In reality, frugal people or minimalists are not misers.
Some people replace the word “minimalist” with “miser”, but when you understand the deep meaning of minimal lifestyle you get the essence of minimal living.
Are Minimalists Misers?
No, minimalists are not misers. In fact, minimalists are good at handling their money. They spend money only on such things which add value to their life.
If you observe a lot of successful and wealthy people and try to understand their lifestyle, you will find that almost all of them believe in minimal living.
Minimalists VS Misers – Differences between Minimalists and Misers
There are a lot of differences between being a minimalist and being a miser.
| Minimalists | Misers |
| Focus on their needs | Compromise on needs |
| Do care for others | Do not care for others |
| Ethical people | Chances are high of being unethical |
| Focus on the quality | Compromise on quality |
| Money is not everything | Money is everything |
| Make use of money wisely | Do not make use of money even in necessary times |
| For minimalists, money is just a tool | For misers, money is everything in life |
| Offer financial help | Never offer financial help |
| Do not look for free things | Always look for free things |
| Have good purposes in life | Live only for money |
| Create a positive impact | Create a negative impact |
13 Reasons Why Minimalists are Not Misers
Let me bring your attention to some aspects where you can get the clarity that minimalists are not misers.
1. Minimalists do NOT HOARD the things
Minimalists do not buy a lot of gold and jewelry to hoard them. They believe in simple living with minimum things. They do not like to clutter their house and also mind. Minimalists collect the things which are necessary to them.
Whereas, misers usually collect more money and wealth like gold, silver and much more. They hoard things. They always want to fill their treasure with wealth but don’t want to spend that wealth. Misers always think of getting more wealth in their treasure.
2. Minimalists are NOT obsessed with MONEY
Minimalists do not have an obsession with money and wealth. This does not mean that they don’t work and earn money. Definitely, they work a lot and also earn money. But they don’t live only for ‘more money’. They value other important things also in life.
Misers have an obsession with money and wealth. Misers usually can’t able to think about anything beyond money. Misers life seems like they live to collect ‘more money’. They don’t feel and value other important things in life which are priceless.
3. Rather than quantity MINIMALISTS believe in QUALITY
Surely minimalists save more money, no doubt in this. But just to save money they do not compromise on the quality of the product or service. They spend money on the right things which are worthy.
When it comes to misers, they do not focus on quality. They always want to save money. With this mindset, they compromise on quality. Even though if they can afford to buy a costly product that adds value to their life then also they compromise on this.
4. Minimalists are ready to PAY MORE for the things that actually add value to life
Imagine you are a minimalist and your profession requires 2 high-quality laptops for work, also you are able to afford them. In such a situation as a minimalist, you will pay and buy laptops because you know that these things add value to your professional life.
If you find any miser in the same situation, miser will not be ready to buy laptops even though those will increase productivity and add value. They just don’t want to spend money. This is how miser’s mindset works.
5. Minimal lifestyle is about having more EXPERIENCES
If a person is adapting to a minimal lifestyle they avoid overindulging in buying more things. Minimalists want to explore and experience more things rather than collecting things. Let me give an example here, minimalists choose ‘traveling’ over ‘buying gold’.
A person who is a miser will choose to buy gold if there are two options like ‘traveling to a new place’ and ‘buying gold’. Misers do not want to experience other things like traveling and exploring. They only want to build wealth.
6. MONEY is not Everything for Minimalists
Many times misers are ready to engage in unethical work just to have more money or to avoid spending money. For misers, building wealth is their priority rather than work ethics, honesty and trust.
When it comes to money, minimalists also know the value of money. But they also believe in core values of life like honesty, good work ethics etc. They do not engage in unethical work just to make more money.
7. Minimalists believe in Love, Kindness and Stressfree Life
Spending quality time with loved ones is a part of minimalists. They do not only think about money for 24 hours. They believe in making connections with people by pouring love and kindness rather than loving and collecting things.
If you see a miser, they think about money and collecting wealth for 24 hours. They hardly spend quality time with loved ones. The one who ignores other valuable things and only chases money can’t lead a stress-free life.
8. Minimalists are ready to offer FINANCIAL HELP to needy people
Usually, you can’t expect any financial help from misers. Misers do not feel comfortable helping financially even to their family members or friends who are in need. They do not offer any monetary help as they love to have more money with them.
You can expect financial help from minimalists. If they have money and if they find anyone in their friend circle or family members who are in trouble then they offer financial help. For minimalists, people matter rather than money.
9. Minimalists’ MINDSET is different from the misers’ mindset
Everyone has money goals and wish to build wealth in life including minimalists. But minimalists also prioritize other things like health, happiness, and time. Minimalists’ ultimate goal in life is not becoming rich. Instead, satisfaction, happiness and peaceful living are an important part of their lifestyle.
In misers’ case, their intimate goal in life is only money and wealth. They think that money if they have more money then they are living a good life and they don’t want to spend that money anywhere.
10. Minimalists Live in the Moment
I’ve seen that the minimalists own less materialistic things and they enjoy every little moment by being mindful. They do not think about money or wealth at every point in time. They practice mindfulness and be in the moment to experience life.
In misers’ life, they mostly think about future financial gains or past financial losses. They are not able to think and imagine anything without connecting it with the monetary benefit. Misers are money-minded because of this they can not practice mindfulness.
11. Minimalists have a CLUTTER-FREE mind and house
A clutter-free mind and clutter-free environment at home is the part of minimalists’ life. As they don’t have impulsive buying behavior their house looks organized with a few things. And the same thing with the kind also. They do not have financial stress.
You can’t say that misers are living a clutter-free life because they always hoard wealthy things at home. They also have a lot of tensions related to money. Their mind is not as peaceful as minimalists.
12. Minimalists SAVE MONEY without Spending on Unnecessary Things
Spending on unwanted and unnecessary things is a waste of money. When it comes to saving money, minimalists save money by not spending on unworthy things. But they always buy those things which enhance the quality of their life.
In the case of misers, they don’t even spend money on good things even though they afford it. They only want cash inflow. They do not like cash outflow. In reality, they do not know how to utilize the money properly to make their life better.
13. Minimalists know how to ‘Let Go’
If there are any things which are there at minimalists’ home then they sell them out if they are not using them. Even if there are any gold jewellery or expensive things which they are not using then they are ready to sell them. Also, minimalists do not think about losses that occurred in the pats.
Misers never want to sell out any expensive things or gold even if they are not using them. Also many times they think about the monetary losses that occurred in the past. They just can’t let go.
Minimalists life is Meaningful and Happy
To create a meaningful life one should have a good purpose in life. Minimalists lead a meaningful life because they have a purpose to contribute to society by leading a positive lifestyle. Minimalists impact society in a good and positive way.
Minimalism is a powerful lifestyle and minimalists set an example for others to lead a satisfying life by owning a few things. Even they inspire the young generation to adapt to minimalism. This creates a positive chain in society.
Misers life is meaningless as they do not think beyond money. They do not have any strong purpose in life. The behaviour of misers will impact in a negative way for society.
The Objective Behind Spending Carefully is Clear to Minimalists
Minimalism is a lifestyle that people choose purposely. Minimalists have clarity in mind why they are saving money and are being careful with spending. They have a strategy in life. They know how and why minimalism is important to them.
They know that they should balance between spending, saving and earning. They do not overindulge is saving by compromising the actual needs.
Misers do not have the objective to hoard money and wealth
There is no strong motive behind hoarding when it comes to misers. They don’t have any purpose to store more wealth and money. They just love money so they hoard. Other than this they don’t even think to utilize the money properly.
They just want their treasures should always be filled with a lot of wealth. Without any purpose misers’ life does not look meaningful.
Be a Minimalist but not a Miser
Misers are not able to live their life to the fullest. Their day starts with money and ends with money. They do not think out of the money box. This results in very narrow thinking and they miss many great opportunities in life to explore life in a better way.
Minimalists live their life to the fullest. They explore many amazing things in life. They grow every day not only financially but also overall growth in life. They give importance to different and important aspects of life to make life experiences wonderful.
One should adapt to a minimal lifestyle to explore life to the fullest. But make sure you be a minimalist but not a miser. There are a lot of differences between being a miser and being a minimalist.
Minimalism Makes Your Life Better Every Day
When you start to walk on the path of minimalism you learn a very important skill that is money management. You start to understand and analyze how overspending money will have a negative effect on life. Also, you will come to know that there is no need to only focus on saving. You learn to balance.
Miser’s life is a trap. Well, miser may have a lot of money and wealth. But it’s exactly like a ship that is standing on the seashore. If one does not know to use money as a tool to make one’s life better then even if a person is having a lot of wealth it does not make sense.
So if you ever get a thought like are minimalists misers, then analyze these differences deeply. Minimalists are way better than misers. In fact, minimalism should be everyone’s lifestyle.