Sharing a living space with a loved one, friend or family member can be one of life’s most beautiful, communal and emotionally enriching experiences. The things you uncover about yourself and the other can lead to incredible learning, deepened love, and relationships that endure for a lifetime.

However, if your attitudes about daily life tend to differ, and within that, the amount of cr** (literal, not emotional) all of you bring to the relationship, that’s when things get a bit more challenging. Even if people in most households have their own bedrooms, shared living spaces abound in almost every home, and that’s where the clashes initially occur.

In such cases, it’s important to attempt to create a living system that works for everyone involved without undermining anyone’s needs or boundaries.

HOW TO CO-EXIST WITH A NON-MINIMALIST

Obtain a living space of an appropriate size.

As much as I preach about my borderline obsession with small-space living (you can read about it HERE and HERE) when co-existing with a non-minimalist, it may be essential to break this rule for the sake of the relationship(s).

You don’t have to go overboard, but ensuring there is enough square footage so that people don’t trip over each other’s stuff day in and day out could be a good first step toward maintaining happy and healthy relationships.

Try to educate others about the benefits of living with less.

Over time, it may be possible to coerce those you love into adopting a more minimalistic mindset. I’m not saying you ever have to argue or throw away each other’s things – there’s always gentler ways of getting your point across.

Have one unshared space of your own.

Studies, dens, spare bedrooms, sunrooms, attics—any third space besides bedrooms and living rooms where people can go to be alone or that can serve as additional storage for each of their separate interests can do wonders for everyone’s living experience.

Organize time to regularly de-clutter your space.

This one speaks for itself, so I won’t elaborate too much, but setting aside time at least once a year to organize shared space, even if it’s just your wardrobes, is crucial. Time flies, and before you know it, you have to relocate, and the sheer magnitude of the thought of purging will send you to your dark place.

Provide honest, loving, critical feedback about purchases that will take up space.

Everyone has their own ideas about what defines an essential and worthy purchase for the home or themselves. But, if solicited (and sometimes even if not), it’s wise to question the long-term use of things and where the “thing” will live in the house.

I’ll never forget how my mother’s line of questioning when I was younger and lived at home about how much I paid for something or “don’t I already own something very similar?” positively affected my long-term shopping habits.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this article. I hope what you have read has somehow educated, informed, or inspired you.

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