In this episode of The Aspire Collective podcast we finish our series on minimalism. We discuss how hobbies and collections can still fit into a minimalist lifestyle. We wrap up our conversation with some honest thoughts about experiences vs things.

Positive News Stories: (02:45)

1. Chiefs Player Celebrates Win by Covering Adoption Fees for Shelter Dogs

Also check out: Derrick Nnadi Foundation

2. Boys With a Purpose Club

Main Segment: (08:36)

Thoughts on Hobbies:

• Hobbies bring value but can sometimes take up a decent amount of space.

  • Explore if there are options for taking up less space and not sacrifice the ability to continue the hobby.

• There might be a season where you can’t do the hobby, but plan on returning to it later.

  • Can you store it?

  • Should you get rid of the stuff and buy it again later?

    • Some hobbies are expensive but don’t take up room whereas others are expensive and take up lots of room. If it’s inexpensive, takes up a good chunk of space, AND it’s going to be a while before you use it again, consider getting rid of it.

• What if a hobby turns into a job?

  • Consider how much space you actually need. Are you able to free up more space if needed?

  • Garage or extra bedroom a great place to store stuff you're actively using. 

  • If that doesn’t work, you can explore other locations to store your stuff like a storage unit. If you need it.

  • If you end up getting a storage unit, try to go with a size that fits what you need so you can save some money. 

  • Also if you’re able to: consider buying only what you need, when you need it.

Thoughts on Collections:

• If you have a collection it should — at minimum — bring you joy, right?!

• If your collection is a burden or isn’t being displayed, used or enjoyed, then maybe it’s time to let it go.

• Tips if you have an overwhelming amount of collectibles: 

  • Curate the best items, your favorites. Keep those. If the rest is worth money, try to sell it.

  • If you’re new to selling things or fighting the attachment you may still have to the item, start small/easy to gain momentum. 

• Main takeaway — there’s nothing wrong with having a collection. Just make sure it’s enhancing your life, not distracting you from it.

"I also realized I wasn’t actually a collector, just an acquirer and a keeper, which is a much shallower thing." - Meg from The Minimalist Woman

Questions: (33:27) Experiences vs Things

1. What if gifts are your love language?

Mentioned: The Desire Map by Danielle LaPorte

Recommended resources for the end of this episode. Blogs, Books, Documentaries. 

What we're drinking: (59:30)

Vanessa's drinking a tequila soda made with Casamigos tequila blanco and Topo Choco sparkling mineral water.

• Smooth, simple, and refreshing! Could use a squeeze of lime next time.

Sean's drinking Blind Pig from Russian River Brewing Company.

• Full-bodied, very hoppy, with citrus, pine, fruity notes and a nice dry, bitter finish!

• Also mentioned.. Pliny the Younger! (Pliny the Younger, the man, was Pliny the Elder’s nephew and adopted son. They lived nearly 2,000 years ago! Pliny the Elder is our Double IPA, so we felt it was fitting to name our Triple IPA after his son. It is almost a true Triple IPA with triple the amount of hops as a regular I.P.A. That said, it is extremely difficult, time and space consuming, and very expensive to make. And that is why we don’t make it more often! This beer is very full-bodied with tons of hop character in the nose and throughout. It is also deceptively well-balanced and smooth.) - Russian River Brewing Company

Featured Song/Artist: Juparo by Broke For Free

Let's connect!

Instagram: @theaspirecollective

@seanhunter

@vanessa.bradford

Twitter: @seanhbradford

In this episode of The Aspire Collective podcast we talk about kids clutter! The thorne in the side of any parent listening. If you don’t have kids, feel free to still listen. After all, adults are just like big kids, right? Before that, we talk a little about our trip to Disneyland — what we liked, what we didn’t like. And as always we have a positive news. Today we have a story of how a community helped a homeless man after a woman shames him on Facebook. And we have a story about what the Gary Sinise Foundation did for over 1,000 children of fallen soldiers.

Disney tip: — PhotoPass. If you know pass holders, they can download your digital pictures.

Positive News Stories:

Community Helps Homeless Man After Woman Shames Him on Facebook

Gary Sinise Foundation took 1,000 children of fallen soldiers and their families to Disney World.

Also check out: Gary Sinise Foundation - Snowball Express

Main Segment:

Problems with kids’ clutter:

• It takes a toll on both parents and kids.

• Parents are left with more to clean.

• Kids are left with more to clean.

  • They have shorter attention spans so it can feel overwhelming the more they have to clean.

• Can cause more anxiety in kids when they have a room full of clutter.

• Can hinder creativity in children

• Kids might not appreciate their stuff as much. 

  • Our son broke something and wasn’t worried because he said we could buy him another one. “Excuse me?!” - Sean

Article/studies mentioned: Too many toys are bad for children, study suggests.

Book: ClutterFree with Kids - Joshua Becker

Potential obstacles standing in you way:

• Other people constantly buying your kids gifts. 

  • This is a blessing and sometimes a curse. People mean well but can burden you. 

  • Christmas — people feel obligated to buy gifts. 

  • Pet peeve = no gift receipt!

    • Have difficult conversations with loved ones about your goal of living with less.

    • Suggest that people buy experiences rather than objects. 

    • Create wishlists on Pinterest, Amazon, or something else you can share with people so they know what you need/want. 

• Having a difficult time saying “no" to your kids. 

  • For some parents out there, it's incredibly difficult to say “no" to your kids. You would give them the world if you could, so the idea of taking things away or withholding something is difficult.

    • Remember the benefits of doing this. And ask yourself, will there be more value for my kid by having or not having this thing.

• Your kids’ stuff is sentimental to you.

  • Maybe your children’s things are very sentimental to you, ESPECIALLY the things they had as babies or young children. They remind you of some of your favorite years with them.

    • Save the most important items. The best of the best.

    • We have a little box with a couple favorite onesies, small first toys, and blankets. 

• Just plain busy — No energy to manage your children’s stuff.

  • Most of us can relate to this. Possibly set aside time once a month or a few times a year to go through their stuff. Even if you only do it around birthdays and Christmas. 

    • Young kids can be easier because you can do it when they’re gone. Or..

    • You can go through stuff together and have them practice weighing each item's importance.

Tips for kids and clutter:

1. Getting rid of stuff can be a teaching opportunity.

   • Use it as a way teach your kids about children who have less.

   • We like to grab things that the kids don’t play with much or at all, and eliminate those items or ask them if it’s ok to get rid of. 

   • It’s a chance for them to learn about whats really valuable to them. 

2. Better methods of organizing - Toy chest, bins, etc. A place for everything and everything in it’s place.

3. Rotating toys if you have some extra space to store toys not being used.

4. No new toys unless we can get rid of some of the ones we currently have.

5. Boundaries for toys! Hard boundaries for us are no toys in the kitchen or bathroom (except bath toys). 

   • We have some soft boundaries too (our bedroom). They can bring toys in but not leave them there.

6. Allow them to make a mess but clean it when they’re done. Because well, they’re kids! You’ll drive yourself insane if you try to control the chaos 100% of the time and you’ll probably even stress your kids out. 

7. Quality, rather than quantity. Meaning — buy less toys, but higher quality. 

8. Christmas and birthdays are a great time to declutter.

9. Time each night to clean, or pick up a few items. This is a little less overwhelming if the room isn’t completely destroyed. Just take 10 minutes — it makes a difference.

10. Accept that you’re not really able to live minimally with kids. You can do a lot of the things we mentioned and it's definitely going to help, but ultimately, kids are kids. Some of you out there (and I am speaking to myself) need to be reminded to enjoy this stage of life with them. Don’t let yourself get so hung up on having an orderly house that it robs you of that.

Questions:

1. Kristina — How do you get family to give your kid less gifts without sounding rude or ungrateful? Lyndsey — How do you handle gifts from family? I feel like right now we are still so cluttered with random stuff from Christmas that they won’t touch, but I feel bad tossing it.

2. Katie — How or when do you get rid of things that you find sentimental (first toy, favorite blanket, etc.)?

3. Joree — Can you give some tips for rotating toys? I’d love to know the logistics of this — do you keep all similar toys separate and bring out one type of toy at a time, or does each toy rotation have a sapling of different types of toys?

4. Megan — How can you store stuffed animals and still have a minimalist looking room? My kids surprisingly play with all of them. I hate ceiling nets and stuffing them in bean bags is tedious to put away. 

5. Ginny — What are some ideas for puzzle storage?

6. Jamie — How do you get your kids involved in minimizing their stuff? I have to throw things away behind my son’s back and I feel bad doing that, but it’s too much stuff!

What we're drinking:

Vanessa's drinking a mimosa made with Ménage à Trois Prosecco and Evolution Fresh, cold-pressed orange juice.

• Prosecco with a floral fragrance, citrus and bright green apple flavors — mixed with 3 drops of orange juice for color ;)

Sean's drinking a Belgian-style golden ale aged in bourbon barrels. It’s called Curieux (curious) and it’s by Allagash Brewing Company.

• First brewed back in 2004, Curieux was our first foray into barrel aging. To make Curieux, we take our Tripel and let it age in bourbon barrels for seven weeks. Once that time is up, we take the beer out of our cold cellars and blend it back with a portion of fresh Tripel. The resulting rich, golden ale features smooth notes of coconut, vanilla, and a hint of bourbon

Featured Song/Artist: Quicksand by Wildlight

Let's connect!

Instagram: @theaspirecollective

@seanhunter

@vanessa.bradford

Twitter: @seanhbradford

In this episode of The Aspire Collective podcast we continue our series on minimalism! We have a conversation about sentimental items - in my opinion, the most difficult category of items to deal with when you’re trying to pair down. But before that, we have more positive news stories!

Positive News Stories: (6:47)

Man Comforts 96-Year-Old Woman on Plane Who is Afraid to Fly

Hundreds of Farmers Stay Silent at Auction so Family Can Buy Back Their Family Farm

Main Segment:

Sentimental items are difficult to get rid of because they can remind us of people in our lives or places we’ve been. In general, they can ignite a lot of powerful feelings. 

When you lose a loved one, this can become even more difficult. In that case, every one of their possessions can immediately become sentimental. In a way, you feel like if you get rid of something, you’re actually giving away a piece of them.

Understand why something is sentimental. Is it because you already own it? Does it actually hold significant value? Is it a family heirloom, a gift, or was it expensive?

If so, what’s it worth to keep? Is it worth the time, energy, and physical space to keep? Maybe it is OR maybe it is for right now, but not in the future. It’s something you’ll have to decide.

Thoughts and tips for approaching sentimental items.

• First and foremost — the memories are still in you even if the item is gone. The items acts as a trigger, it doesn’t actually own the memory. You do. 

• Getting rid of sentimental items doesn’t mean you’re  "throwing away pieces of your life"

  • If the items are from other people, you are NOT rejecting them by getting rid of the item.

• Sentimental items remind you of the past — which isn’t always a good thing. Don’t let them hold you prisoner to bad memories.

• Try to make a list of your most valuable items from memory. If you come across an item not on the list, it might not be as valuable as you think.

• Before minimizing sentimental items, get momentum from getting rid of easier, less important items.

• Take pictures of things you want to remember but not keep.

• Have a designated space for sentimental items that are neither useful, or on display i.e. a box or container. That way you’re not storing everything — only what fits. 

Just know it’s a process. It’s physically and mentally draining. You might need to remind yourself of why you’re doing it. If you want to keep something…KEEP IT! Until you’re ready (if ever) to get rid of it. It’s entirely up to you. Remember, the purpose of all of this is so you can better focus on what truly has value in your life!

Questions: (46:00)

1. How do I emotionally declutter?

What we're drinking: (59:30)

Vanessa's drinking a Cabernet from Layer Cake Wines

• This Cabernet Sauvignon truly expresses the depth and complexity of the grape. Perfumed with violets and wild berries, it shows strong varietal characters and rich, ripe plum fruit. Seamless and elegant, this wine shows big black fruit on the palette, fine grain soft tannins and a long coffee chocolate finish.

Sean's drinking Casi Cielo from Starbucks

• Casi cielo is Spanish for "almost heaven," a fitting name for a beloved coffee known for its smooth body, notes of lemon and velvety cocoa finish. The distinctive flavor complexity of Guatemala Antigua Casi Cielo® is due to the area’s rich volcanic soil, high altitude, warm days and cool nights, culminating in a truly exquisite coffee that reaches its peak freshness this time of year.

Featured Song/Artist: To the Rhythm of the Funk by Cullah

Let's connect!

Instagram: @theaspirecollective | @seanhunter | @vanessa.bradford

Twitter: @seanhbradford

In this episode of The Aspire Collective podcast we kick off our series on minimalism! We talk about what we’ve learned throughout our years of decluttering, and the benefits we've experienced so far as a result. But before that, we have some positive news stories.

Positive News Stories:

Fans Hold Up Woman in a Wheelchair During Concert

University of Tennessee Gives Scholarship to Bullied Student

Main Segment:"At its core, minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of everything that distracts us from it" - Joshua Becker from Becoming Minimalist

What Sean and his brother spent over the years in storage fees:
Storage unit for 7 years. Over $4,000 each.  $52.50/mo!

The storage industry is a $38 billion dollar industry.

Some stuff is worth more gone than trying to deal with it.

Benefits of minimalism in my life:Reduced clutter. Less time cleaning. More mental clarity. More quality time with my family. Live more intentionally. More time spent on things that add value for my life. Buying quality vs quantity. Less waste. No more buying things to pacify or slavery to ads. Moving was so much easier. Benefits kids and the way they interact with their stuff.

7 tips when starting to declutter:

1. Set aside small chunks of time (10 min timer) to work on it.

2. If a lot to declutter: Pick a spot and focus on that. Section of the garage or one room at a time. 

3. Start easier/small. Go for easy wins. Trash, items with less sentimental value. 

   • Creates momentum

   • Save more sentimental/difficult items for last  

4. Create box for goodwill and add to it, little by little. So you’re not having to go a lot.

5. Have a yard sale. Might be easier to get rid of some things it you know you’d get money for it.

6. Write down how you might personally benefit from less stuff and be specific. Then post it somewhere you’ll see it often to encourage yourself. 

7. Watch or listen to podcasts and movies about minimalism while decluttering.

Questions:

1. How do you deal with kitchen counter clutter?

2. Where's the best place to start when beginning a journey towards minimalism?

What we're drinking:Vanessa's drinking Rosé in a can by Wine Cube

• "Rosé all day"?

Sean's drinking 'Twisted Monk' from Dust Bowl Brewery

• This Belgian-style Abbey Ale has a smooth malt backbone with hints of clove and spice from the Belgian yeast.  Big aromas and flavors of cherry pie are this brew’s signature character due to the large amount of sweet and tart cherry added during production.

"Unofficial" sponsor mentioned who loves Twisted Monk: Dan from ATP Builders!

Featured Song/Artist: Neurosis of the Liver by Cullah

Let's connect!

Instagram: @theaspirecollective | @seanhunter | @vanessa.bradford

Twitter: @seanhbradford

Hey everyone, welcome to the Aspire Collective podcast. Episode 0! I’m your host, Sean Bradford and I wanted to talk a little bit about what’s going to be on the show, and give you some background.

Some years back I was in a really dark place due to several life circumstances. I had just gotten a new job which actually ended up being an unhealthy work environment. And one of my parents unexpectedly passed away. At that time I didn’t have a lot of direction in my life. Overall I felt confused and depressed. The only thing I could focus on was finding ways to improve myself. Anything that could help me get out of this dark place.

For example — I knew working out gave me clarity, and I physically felt better when I did.  So I would spend time in the gym. Another example — I knew clearing clutter improved my mental state because typically if my surroundings are cluttered or disorganized, my mind feels the same way. So I spent time getting rid of the stuff I had acquired after the death in my family. I would listen to podcasts, read about emotional wellness and anything else I believed could make me a better person. One of the most important things I did was to connect people who had similar goals.

In the midst of this, the idea for this show came to be. "A community/podcast that strives for holistic health." Something that can benefit anyone regardless of who you are, or what your career is, or what your goals are. Because when you’re healthy, you live happier more productive lives. The purpose of this podcast is not only to discuss things that can lead to that, but to provide a place for people to feel encouraged and supported as well.

Here, we’ll cover things like health, emotional wellness, meaningful relationships – and everything in between. One other thing I want to mention and I can’t stress enough...we’re not pretending we’re experts. We’re just regular people like you just trying to make our lives better one day at a time. This podcast is centered around that journey.

With that said — we invite you to join along!

If you’re interested in knowing more about my story and what inspired this podcast – I’ve added a recording right after this intro. Friendly warning: it’s a little lengthy, because I was processing through a lot stuff while we were recording. Also at times it might be a little heavy, but at the end there’s some good Q+A that's pretty funny. Otherwise check out the next episode where we start our series on minimalism.

Time Stamps

(0:02:36) Sean’s interview/story.

(1:02:39) Random Q&A’s for Sean 

• Favorite memories with my dad?

• Favorite memories with my mom?

• Favorite movie as a kid?

• Favorite music to listen to in junior high?

• Favorite TV show to watch after school?

• What’s a trendy thing you wore back in the day that makes you cringe now?

• When you walk into a classroom what area would you sit? Front, back?

• Most embarrassing moment?

• What are some of your most memorable Christmas presents as a kid?

• Best thing your mom cooked?

• Best thing your dad cooked?

• Secret question...

• What sort of advice do you have for listeners who might be going through challenging times?

Let's connect!

Instagram: @theaspirecollective | @seanhunter | @vanessa.bradford

Twitter: @seanhbradford