“Make It Simple, But Significant”

I’ve been thinking about the benefits of streamlining and downsizing a lot lately, not only at work, but in life. Today I’m Northern Virginia to Northwest D.C. and I couldn’t be more excited to have a new neighborhood to explore and a have new place to call home. Having grown up in the D.C. metro area my whole life (with a hiatus in New York City), I’m thrilled to be moving into D.C. proper, however,  I think I’m secretly more excited about the packing process, and more specifically being able to throw stuff out. I’m generally a tidy person, who finds simplicity far more appealing than the elaborate  and truly believes that less is more, but I’m human and inevitably from living my life I’ve acquired things I don’t necessarily need. Needless to say, packing for this move has been a sort of catharsis for me and it’s been a generally pleasant journey since my boyfriend is also more than happy to comply in getting rid of a lot of his belongings and clutter as well.

In perfect timing with my move & the topic of downsizing, I recently came across an Atlantic article about a Texas professor who has downsized to the extreme.  He sold all of his belongings and only kept what was vital to his survival and will be living in a glorified dumpster as an experiment in happiness and sustainability. He doesn’t suggest that this is a lifestyle everyone should adopt, but I think that we can learn a thing or two from his experiment.

I plan on keeping this experiment in mind when moving to our new apartment.  I only want what we need and I’ll include a few pieces, whether they be furniture, decorations or art, that make a statement and add to the space. When it comes to your personal brand or your company’s brand less should be more the same mentality should be adopted. I believe a refined aesthetic and clear and simple messaging are vital when it comes to standing out among competition. Giving consumers what they want, when they want it, in a clear and easily digestible way is the key to keeping loyal customers.

So de-clutter your brand aesthetic and messaging and like Don Draper said, “Make it simple, but significant.”