Yesterday morning, I took off the pants.

And no, this isn’t the beginning of a story about fashion disasters!

Let me explain.

On Friday, I had the privilege of attending a Customer Experience Summit that my company sent me to. I had planned my outfit in advance: a pair of wide-leg trousers I had purchased some months ago.

They were beautiful. I had been looking forward to wearing them, and I could already picture how good the outfit would look.

There was just one little problem.

The trousers had not fitted quite right when I purchased them, and when I put them on yesterday morning, they were still a little too tight around the waist.

But they looked SO GOOD!

I stood there admiring the outfit, trying to convince myself that I could manage. After all, the discomfort wasn’t unbearable. And I really wanted to wear those pants.

My daughter looked at me and said, “Mommy, don’t wear it. You’re going to be uncomfortable.”

Naturally, I had an explanation. They looked good!

I eventually left the house wearing them, got into my car and drove out of the yard.

And then I stopped.

I thought about the day ahead. The summit was scheduled to run from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. That meant hours of sitting, listening, interacting and participating in discussions.

Did I really want to spend the entire day adjusting my waistband and being uncomfortable just because I liked how the trousers looked?

I turned around, went back inside and changed my pants.

I chose a pair I had owned for much longer. Nothing new. Nothing I had been particularly excited about wearing. Just a familiar pair of trousers that fitted me comfortably.

And do you know what?

I was comfortable ALL DAY.

No adjusting. No wishing I had worn something else. No spending the day thinking about my clothes.

I was able to focus on the summit and enjoy the experience.

Sometimes, the best choice isn’t the most exciting one. It’s the one that actually serves you.

When “almost right” takes up space

As I reflected on this experience, I thought about something I had been reading while preparing for our LBI workshop on minimalism.

I came across the idea of the 90% rule when making purchases: being intentional about buying things that meet most of your needs and criteria, rather than settling for items that are only a partial fit.

The exact percentage isn’t a magic formula. The principle is what matters.

How often do we buy things that are almost right?

Clothes that almost fit. Shoes that look lovely but aren’t comfortable. Kitchen gadgets we imagine using but rarely touch. Items we purchase for a life we think we might have someday, rather than the life we are living today.

We convince ourselves that we’ll wear the clothes when we lose a few pounds. We’ll use the equipment when we start that new hobby. We’ll find a use for that item eventually.

And so we keep accumulating.

Our cupboards fill up. Our wardrobes become crowded. Our homes become storage spaces for possibilities we may never pursue.

Meanwhile, we continue to overlook what we already have.

I am not suggesting that everything we own must be perfect or that we should never purchase something that requires an adjustment. Sometimes a good tailor can make a garment fit beautifully. Sometimes we buy something for a specific future occasion or purpose, and that is perfectly reasonable.

But there is a difference between making a thoughtful purchase and repeatedly accumulating things that don’t quite work for us.

There is a difference between buying something with a clear plan and buying something because we are attached to the possibility of what it might become.

And there is a difference between keeping something because it genuinely serves us and keeping it because we cannot bring ourselves to admit that it doesn’t.

Are you dressing for the life you have?

The lesson I took from Friday morning wasn’t simply about choosing comfortable clothes.

It was about paying attention to reality rather than being attached to an idea.

I had imagined wearing those trousers to the summit. I liked the way they looked, and I wanted the outfit I had planned.

But the reality was that they were uncomfortable, and I had a long day ahead of me.

Once I acknowledged that, the decision became much easier.

I wonder how often we do the opposite in other areas of our lives.

We hold on to things because of what they once meant to us. We keep items for a future version of ourselves. We accumulate possessions because we might need them someday.

Sometimes, we even hold on to expectations about who we should be, what we should be doing and what our lives should look like.

But what if we paid more attention to the season we are actually living in?

What if we made decisions based on our present needs, our present capacity and our present priorities, while remaining open to change as life unfolds?

That doesn’t mean we stop dreaming about the future. It means we don’t allow an imagined future to crowd out the life we are living now.

We can appreciate what something could be without insisting that it must belong in our lives.

And sometimes, letting go of what doesn’t fit creates room for what does.

Less is more — when we choose intentionally

This is one of the reasons I am so drawn to minimalism.

Minimalism isn’t necessarily about owning the fewest possessions or living in a home with empty shelves and bare walls.

For me, it is about being intentional about what I allow into my space and what I choose to keep.

Does this item serve a purpose? Does it add value to my life? Does it fit my needs? Am I keeping it because I genuinely want it, or because I feel guilty letting it go?

And when I am considering a purchase, am I buying something that works for me now, or am I buying into the idea of what I hope it will become?

These questions can help us become more mindful consumers.

Instead of buying clothes that almost fit, we can look for clothes that fit our bodies as they are today.

Instead of buying more storage containers to accommodate things we don’t use, we can consider whether some of those things need to remain in our homes.

Instead of accumulating more, we can learn to appreciate what we already have.

And instead of waiting for the perfect circumstances to enjoy our lives, we can make thoughtful choices that support us in the circumstances we have today.

My daughter was right yesterday morning. She saw what I was trying to talk myself out of acknowledging.

The pants looked good, but they weren’t right for the day ahead.

So I took them off.

And in doing so, I was reminded that self-care sometimes looks like listening to our own discomfort, letting go of what we wanted, and choosing what we actually need.

No drama. No grand gesture. Just one intentional decision.

Scripture Reminds Us

In Ecclesiastes 3:6 KJV:

“A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.”

Sometimes, intentional living is not about acquiring something new. It is about having the wisdom to recognise when something no longer fits our needs, our circumstances or our season of life.

And sometimes, making room for what matters begins with being willing to let go of what doesn’t.

Because the goal isn’t simply to have less. It’s to make room for more of what matters.

Reflection

As you go through your wardrobe, your home or even your shopping habits this week, consider these questions:

• What am I holding on to because of what it might become, rather than how it serves me now?
• Do I purchase things that are almost right and convince myself that they will eventually work?
• Am I making room for the life I am living, or storing things for a life I imagine I might have?
• What do I already own that meets my needs and deserves to be appreciated?
• What is one thing I can release, or one purchasing habit I can change, to make more room for what truly matters?

You don’t have to clear out your entire wardrobe this weekend. Start with one item. Ask yourself whether it fits, whether you use it, and whether it serves the life you are living.

And remember: this is not about criticising yourself for what you have accumulated. It is about making more intentional choices from this point forward.

Until next Saturday!

Love, Talisha ❤️