It’s little wonder why minimalism is a growing trend.

It’s becoming more and more necessary to be a minimalist these days.

The convenience of our mobile and intelligent personal assistant devices is only fueling the momentum. With a simple thumb press, swipe or voice command, we can buy and do just about everything. There are more moments than ever for us to be influenced by marketing, peer and societal pressures with the constant presence of these powerful devices.

Minimalism principles are inherently at work when you represent what you believe in instead of what others value. When you choose to pursue what’s truly meaningful to you, it often requires letting go of aspects of your life that aren’t benefiting you anymore. Living your life through minimalistic lens is even more crucial if you want continue learning and growing throughout your life.

As the adage goes, it’s impossible to do everything well.

At some point, you have to let go of the outdated to effectively make room for the new. Because it’s all too easy to be overloaded with things in our world of excess and increasing technological convenience: from the physical to digital, mental to emotional, and activities to the multiple roles we play in our lives.

And while it’s important to acknowledge the privilege that comes with choosing minimalism, it’s also your responsibility to consume and live mindfully.

Feeling overburdened with a myriad of outdated things is a stifling experience. It often expands under the radar, at a gradual creep that many of us don’t even notice. We usually don’t notice until there’s barely any space left for growth; until the combined clutter sinks us into stagnancy.

This is why minimalism is key to personal growth and intentional living.

It’s why I embrace the practice of minimalism—of regularly checking everything in my life is contributing a positive impact. I first realized how minimalism helps you change your life when I began making big changes in my life for the better several years ago.

The concepts of minimalism are integral to a lifelong cycle of personal growth in a process I call REEBO. It’s a cyclical process that includes reassessing and erasing in order to make room for exploring and building up new skills and experiences.

Minimalism is how we can make space to embrace future potential, growth and experiences.

The reason why minimalism is key to personal growth is because we only have a certain amount of energy each day. If you’re intentional about what you expend energy on, you spend more time on the things that matter. The things that matter can be a cause that you care a lot about, a job that you’re interested in, or time spent with someone you love.

Growth requires even more energy and effort. If you’re expending energy on things that aren’t really necessary or that you don’t even enjoy, there’s usually limited energy left over for what really matters—much less areas of future growth.

Without minimizing, we don’t have space for anything new.

Many of you have probably experienced what it feels like to cram your brain so full that it can no longer process any new information. When you have an overfilled drawer or cabinet, it’s hard to know what’s even in there. We’ve all experienced in some way how an excess of things is harder to organize, keep track of and process through.

Each thing—physical or not—in your life is a responsibility that takes up some element of time and attention.

White space is important.

The act of reassessing and erasing is key to minimalism. The erasing is what creates the white space. The white space is our canvas to continue adding to our lives without feeling overburdened.

After erasing, it’s time to explore. This is also where minimalism has a role. When you’re intentional while exploring, you ensure that what’s added to your life is truly beneficial.

While minimalism is a key part of the process, it’s not the point or the end goal.

It’s simply part of the process to continue growing, learning and experiencing life at your utmost potential. At the same time, minimalism is never complete. Throughout your life, you will continue to evolve, to outgrow certain experiences and grow into new things.

For me, life is a constant change of the seasons with minimalism playing a crucial part in the process. What about you? How does minimalism play a role in your life?