There’s nothing quite like a TED Talk to inspire and motivate you to do better in your life or to challenge the way you think.
So of course, when it comes to creating a more minimalist life, and adding minimalist ideas into your life, TED Talks should be the first place you look!
These TED Talks about minimalism will not only inspire you to live a more simple life, but they’ll also spark your decluttering desire and motivate you to live happier with less.
If you’re at the start of your minimalism transformation, then these talks will give you great strategies to start. If you’ve started your minimalist habits and you’re looking for that next step, there are talks here for you too.
Get ready to be inspired and be sure to save this post and Pin It so you can come back and watch these talks again and again.
What Are TED Talks?
Before we dive into these minimalist inspiring talks, you might be asking yourself ‘uh, what is a TED Talk? And who is TED?’
TED is a nonprofit organization that started in 1984. The aim of TED is to spread great ideas through short, powerful talks (usually 18 minutes or less). These talks cover a vast array of topics from science and technology to business and global issues.
While you may recognize some of the celebrity speakers (such as Al Gore, Monica Lewinsky, Jamie Oliver, and Bono) most of the talks come from people who are sharing their stories and expertise on a certain subject.
Anyone can submit a TED Talk proposal and if it’s accepted, they’re given a platform to share their ideas with the world.
TEDx events are also held all over the world where people can get together to share in person (virtually or otherwise) these great ideas.
Why You Should Watch TED Talks About Minimalism
TED Talks are a great way to learn new things and gain different perspectives on topics you might not have thought about before.
They’re also perfect for when you need some extra motivation or inspiration in your life- which is why I think they’re great for anyone on their minimalism journey.
These talks will help to give you a different perspective on material possessions, what’s important in life, and how to live a happier and more fulfilling life.
They might just be the push you need to declutter your home, let go of unnecessary things, and start living a simpler life that brings you joy.
Plus they’re usually fairly short, can be easily listened to while you’re drinking your morning coffee, and there are just so many amazing presenters to choose from.
So without further ado, here are 9 Minimalist Inspiring TED Talks that will spark your decluttering desire.
1 – The Art of Letting Go – The Minimalists
These guys are so life changing I had to include another one of their talks.
The average American household has over 300,000 items in it.
How much ‘stuff’ do you own?
And how much of that are you holding on to ‘just in case’?
For many of us who have joined the minimalist movement on some level (which I’m assuming is you because you’re here watching these TED Talks), we all have a ‘trigger’ moment.
Perhaps watching this Ted Talk will be your minimalist trigger (be warned, it becomes addictive).
2 – The 100 Things Challenge – Dave Bruno
‘We have more than we can afford on an order of magnitude.’
Dave talks about the model of excess, particularly focusing on consumerist America, and how we have more excess than we could possibly ever need.
We have more stuff and yet we still feel anxious.
Simplicity is action.
Living a simple life we prove that we don’t need all that we aren’t validated by our excessive consumerism and it’s not what we need in order to thrive.
Thinking and understanding this is good, but living and taking action is key.
So Dave took on the ‘100 Thing Challenge’ – where he lived for a year with just 100 or fewer things.
3 – Minimalism For A More Full Life – Grant Blakeman
A super short and amusing TED Talk that lays out just how much we pack into our lives, and how easily we are distracted and the incredibly abundant choice we have.
But when there’s so much choice, we don’t choose – because it’s easier to avoid the choice.
Grant doesn’t relate minimalism as removing things from our lives, but rather curating our lives actively.
Choosing with intention what we allow into our lives.
4 – A Rich Life With Less Stuff – The Minimalists
This talk is from the guys who bought the minimalist movement mainstream.
They flip the idea of ‘rich’ from earning money and having things and wanting and having more, to being intentional and living a simple, happy, enriched life.
“I was spending money faster than I was earning it, attempting to buy happiness.”
This is the way so many people are living, and a way I too was living for a long time.
Because that’s what we think is ‘normal’.
Simplifying your life and getting the clutter out of the way helps you make room for things that are important – and I guarantee those ‘things’ aren’t the cupboards of possessions you have right now.
5 – Getting Rid Of 1000 Things – Liz Wright
Liz talks about an idea she had of getting rid of 1000 things from her very normal and average home.
This really hits home when Liz talks about getting rid of things that have been given to you as a gift – this is something a lot of people struggle with as they feel it will be offensive.
So she gave herself permission to remove these items if she wanted.
There are some great ideas on how to choose what to get rid of in your home and how you can tell if you need or want them anymore. And I love her challenge to everyone at the end.
If you’re keen to start decluttering after this talk, be sure to check out the following articles to help:
30 Benefits Of Decluttering Your Home (Mental Health + Physical)
How To Decide What Clothes To Keep When Decluttering
10 Areas Of Your Home To Quickly Declutter
9 Things To Declutter From Your Kitchen Today
25 Things You Can Throw Out When Decluttering
6 – Less Stuff, More Happiness – Graham Hill
How much stuff are you storing?
This is a truly fascinating talk about how to maximise a small amount of space, edit your life and create a life and living space that is truly designed around what you love.
7 – The Magic Of Not Giving a F*** – Sarah Knight
Any talk that starts with ‘the life giving magic of not giving a f*ck’ is going to get my attention.
This, obviously, comes with a swearing warning, but even if swearing gets under your skin, you’ll still love this talk.
We talk a lot about physical decluttering, throwing out excess in our life, but this talk looks closer at mental decluttering.
Choosing what and who you give you ‘f*cks’ to.
This is huge for those of us who are people pleasers.
If this talk seriously floats your boat, then you can dive deeper into the magic of not giving a f*ck with Sarah’s book. It’s an awesome read.
8 – Get Rid Of The Unnecessary To Get Down To Basics – Colin Wright
A highly entertaining TED Talk from Colin who travels the world and changes the country he lives in every 4 months.
From contemplating renting an apartment just to store his stuff while he travelled, Colin changed his mindset to create an intentional life that doesn’t just focus on the physical possessions in our life, but our relationships and the people we allow in our life, our work and everything that happens in our lives.
9 – From Clutter to Clarity – Kerry Thomas
Clutter is anything that stops you from living the life you want to live. So how much clutter do you have in your life?
My favourite line in this talk is this: ‘Clutter is postponed decisions’.
This is genius and oh so true.
Clutter isn’t just the piles of paper around your home, but it is physical, digital, mental, spiritual, and emotional clutter that stops you from being happy (and adds to your anxiety).
A great talk to get you thinking about the clutter that you can get rid of from your life, and not just the things you can dontate to charity too.
Need some inspiration to help you kick off your decluttering? Grab your copy of our free Decluttering Checklist:
