What's in a 20-something minimalist's commute bag | 7 items I carry every day
In this article, I, a 20-something minimalist working in sales, will reveal everything inside the bag I carry for my daily commute by car.
"What do minimalists keep in their bags?" "Don't you have trouble having so few things while working in sales?"
To put it simply,there are only 7 items inside. I don't need to add any more, and if I had any less, it would hinder my work. I spent over two years finding that "necessary and sufficient" line.
■ Table of Contents
■ The bag itself: A navy business bag
My commute bag is a navy business bag.
My style is usually to "unify everything with black items," but I choose navy for my bag. The reason is that when visiting clients as a sales professional, an all-black outfit can look too heavy.
For me, since my suits and shirts tend to be dark, the navy bag is the only item that creates a sense of "lightness." It doesn't look out of place in a business setting, but it gives a softer impression than all-black.
Since I commute by car, I don't need to be as concerned about the weight of the bag as someone who commutes by train. However, because there are so few items inside, they don't slide around in the bag. The moment I look inside my bag every morning and think, "It's tidy again today," it sets the mood for my day.
■ [Item 1] abrAsus Small Wallet (Camel)
👉 abrAsus Small Wallet Buttero Leather Edition Camel
This is my absolute favorite item in my bag.
The abrAsus "Small Wallet" is an ultra-compact wallet that is roughly the size of a credit card. It holds 5 cards, 10 bills, and 10 coins. That's it.
You might wonder, "Is that enough?" but in the age of cashless payments, this is more than enough.
What I keep in this wallet are my credit card, driver's license, health insurance card, ATM card, and a minimum amount of cash. I've either moved my loyalty cards and medical registration cards to smartphone apps or left them at home.
The color is camel. I basically keep my items unified in black, but I intentionally chose camel for this wallet. That's because camel is the color where you can best enjoy the aging process of Buttero leather.
The way this leather develops a deep, amber-like character the more you use it is something you can't experience with black. Because it's something I pick up every day, I wanted to choose an item that offers the "joy of nurturing it."
With its patented design that won a Good Design Award, it costs about 18,700 yen. Honestly, it's expensive for a wallet. But spending money on things you use every day is a minimalist's investment standard. I've been using it for over two years, and I actually like it even more than when I first got it.
■ [Item 2] Smartphone
After my wallet, my smartphone is the item I absolutely cannot work without.
Contacting clients, managing my schedule, taking notes, using maps, and making payments. 80% of my work is completed on my smartphone.
I've written an article before about what's on my phone, so if you're curious, please take a look here.
■ [Item 3] Keys (Car/House)
Since I commute by car, my car key and house key are essential.
I keep just these two on a single keyring. I used to use a key case, but I realized that a case is unnecessary when you only have two keys, so I got rid of it.
It's hard to "reduce the number of keys," but you can "reduce the things around your keys." Key cases, keychains, charms—you don't need any of them for a key to function as a key.
■ [Item 4] Thermos Vacuum Insulated Mobile Mug 480ml
👉 Thermos Vacuum Insulated Mobile Mug 480ml Black JOQ-480
Every morning, I brew tea or coffee at home and put it in this bottle to take to work.
The biggest appeal of this Thermos is that the stopper and gasket are integrated, and all parts are dishwasher safe.
Many people stop using water bottles because washing them every day is a hassle. I used to be the same. Taking the gaskets apart, cleaning mold out of the crevices, drying them... I hated that effort, so I started buying plastic bottles at convenience stores more often.
But with this JOQ-480, there are only two parts to wash. Plus, you can just put them straight into the dishwasher. Because the effort is close to zero, I can keep doing it every day.
The color is, of course, black. The 480ml capacity is just right for a morning cup of coffee. The heat retention lasts for over 6 hours, so I can drink warm coffee until the afternoon.
If a vending machine coffee is 150 yen, that's 3,000 yen for 20 days of work a month. Since this bottle costs about 3,000 yen, it pays for itself in one month.
■ [Item 5] Ora2 Breath Fine Mouth Spray
👉 Ora2 Breath Fine Mouth Spray Cool Mint 6ml
For those in sales, breath care is part of personal grooming.
Many people chew mint gum, but I prefer mouth spray. The reason is simple: I can't chew gum at a client's office.
I give it a quick spray right after getting out of the car and just before entering the client's office. It's pocket-sized and doesn't take up space in my bag. At 275 yen per bottle, it lasts for about 130 uses. The cost-performance is also excellent.
Just eliminating the stress of "worrying about my breath and not being able to focus on the conversation" changes the quality of my sales work. It's small, but for me, it's one of my work tools.
■ [Item 6] King Jim Sand It Document Holder
👉 King Jim Sand It Document Holder A4 Horizontal
I use this document holder to organize the papers and clear files I take to client meetings.
The amazing thing about the Sand It is its simple structure that just holds documents with a rubber band.
Whether I have one document or twenty, the elasticity of the band keeps it at the perfect thickness. Because of this, my documents never get scattered in my bag, and my clear files never get bent.
Since it comes with two indexes, you can roughly categorize documents into things like "for submission" and "for your records."
As a salesperson, I often carry documents around, but there is no need to carry multiple files. With this one Sand It file, you can fit all the documents you need for the day. The fact that you can buy it for about 700 yen is also a nice point, as it makes it easy to try out.
■ [Contents 7] Moleskine Notebook Pocket Size
👉 Moleskine Classic Notebook Hard Cover Plain Pocket Size Black
There was a time when I thought, "I should just take notes on my smartphone."
However, taking out a smartphone to type notes in front of a client is a gray area in terms of sales etiquette. The act of taking handwritten notes gives the other person the impression that you are truly listening.
The Moleskine pocket size (9cm wide x 14cm high) is small enough to fit into the inner pocket of a suit jacket. Because it has a hard cover, you can write on it in the palm of your hand even without a table. I choose the plain version because I want to take notes freely without being bound by ruled lines.
You can draw diagrams, connect things with arrows, and record fragments of your thoughts exactly as they are. I believe this "freedom" that digital tools lack is the greatest value of a handwritten notebook.
■ Extra Edition: CliniLab Hepario Moist Barrier (Hand Cream)
👉 CliniLab Hepario Moist Barrier 50g (Taisho Pharmaceutical)
Since it sometimes makes it into my bag depending on the season and sometimes doesn't, I'm including it as an extra.
In sales, there are many opportunities for people to look at your hands when exchanging business cards or handing over documents. If your hands are dry and rough, there's a risk that people might just think, "Is this person okay?"
Taisho Pharmaceutical's CliniLab is a medicated hand cream containing heparinoid. It's not sticky, yet it moisturizes thoroughly. Being able to touch documents immediately after applying it is something I'm really grateful for as a salesperson.
Especially in winter, it has become a routine of mine to quickly apply it before visiting a client.
■ The reason I was able to narrow down the contents of my bag to "7 items"
The reason I was able to reduce the contents of my bag this much is because I have a simple rule: "If I won't die without it, I don't carry it."
My bag used to contain three ballpoint pens I never used, and I always kept a mobile battery just in case. A folding umbrella, a business card holder, tissues, wet wipes...
But looking back calmly, 90% of the things I carried "just in case" were never actually used.
The anxiety of 'what if I need it?' is actually an illusion. If you really need something, you can just buy it at a convenience store. But that 'what if' almost never happens.
Since the day my bag contents became seven items,the morning 'did I pack that?' panic has dropped to zero. I no longer waste time searching, I don't worry about forgetting things, and it feels great every time I open my bag.
Reducing what you carryis also about eliminating the small stresses of every morning.
■ Conclusion
Seven. That is everything inside my commute bag.
You might think, 'Isn't that too little?' But,when you only carry what you need, you develop an attachment to each item.
I look forward to how my AbrAsus wallet deepens in color the more I use it, and my Thermos bottle supports my morning coffee time. In my Moleskine notebook, I jot down not just work insights, but also ideas for my side-hustle Note.
When you have few belongings,everything becomes a 'first-string' item. There are no backups or substitutes. Everyone is a starter.
If your bag is stuffed right now and you're searching for things every morning, try leaving just one 'thing you won't die without' behind starting tomorrow.
I'm sure both your bag and your mood will feel just a little bit lighter.
📖 Recommended Articles
📎 5 things a minimalist 'spends money on.' Why those who cut back invest here
📎 Showing all my minimalist clothes | How a 20-something salesman gets through the year with 20 items
📖 I have also published a Kindle book titled 'The 70% Minimalist Way of Life.' Based on my note articles, I have compiled the life of a 70% minimalist into one book.
👉 Read 'The 70% Minimalist Way of Life'
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