“Purity and simplicity are the two wings with which man soars above the earth and all temporary nature.” —Thomas à Kempis
Simplifying your life will bring balance, freedom, and joy. When we begin to live simply and experience these benefits, we begin to ask the next question, “Where else in my life can I remove distraction and simplify life to focus on the essentials?”
Once we’re able to answer that, we will understand what is important in our own lives.
How to Simplify Your Life
Based on our personal journey, our conversations, and our observations, here is a list of the 10 most important things to simplify in your life today to begin living a more balanced, joyful lifestyle:
1. Your Possessions – Too many material possessions complicate our lives to a greater degree than we ever give them credit. They drain our bank account, our energy, and our attention. They keep us from the ones we love and from living a life based on our values.
If you will invest the time to declutter the non-essential possessions from your life, you will never regret it. For more inspiration, consider Simplify: 7 Guiding Principles to Help Anyone Declutter Their Home and Life.
2. Your Time Commitments – Most of us have filled our days full from beginning to end with time commitments: work, home, kid’s activities, community events, religious endeavors, hobbies… the list goes on. When possible, release yourself from the time commitments that are not in line with your greatest values.
3. Your Goals – Reduce the number of goals you are striving for in your life to one or two. By reducing the number of goals that you are striving to accomplish, you will improve your focus and your success rate.
Make a list of the things that you want to accomplish in your life and choose the three most important. Focus there.
4. Your Negative Thoughts – Most negative emotions are completely useless. Resentment, bitterness, hate, and jealousy have never improved the quality of life for a single human being. Take responsibility for your mind. Forgive past hurts and replace negative thoughts with positive ones.
5. Your Debt – If
Find the help that you need and learn how to get out of debt. Sacrifice luxury today to enjoy freedom tomorrow.
6. Your Words – Use fewer words. Keep your speech plain and honest. Mean what you say. Avoid gossip.
7. Your Artificial Ingredients – Avoid trans fats, refined grain (white bread), high-fructose corn syrup, and too much sodium. Minimizing these ingredients will improve your energy level in the short-term and your health in the long-term.
Also, as much as possible, reduce your consumption of over-the-counter medicine – allow your body to heal itself naturally as opposed to building a dependency on substances.
8. Your Screen Time – Focusing your attention on television, movies, video games, and technology addiction affects your life more than you think. Media rearranges your values. It begins to dominate your life. And it has a profound impact on your attitude and outlook.
Unfortunately, when you live in that world on a consistent basis, you don’t even notice how it is impacting you. The only way to fully appreciate its influence in your life is to turn them off.
9. Your Connections to the World – Relationships with others are good, but constant streams of distraction are bad. Learn when to power off the phone, log off social media, or not read a text. Focus on the important, not the urgent.
A steady flow of distractions from other people may make us feel important, needed, or wanted, but feeling important and accomplishing importance are completely different things.
10. Your Multi-Tasking – Research indicates that multi-tasking increases stress and lowers productivity. While single-tasking is becoming a lost art, learn it. Handle one task at a time. Do it well. And when it is complete, move to the next.
Simplifying your life is a core aspect of minimalism. To learn more about this lifestyle, visit this primer on minimalism.
carolyn says
Liked your list
also cook from scratch, as part of #7,,, (putting the tip in a positive context rather than what to avoid)
easy to remember the less/fewer – if you can count individually or not whatever it is you are talking/writing about…. ex. fewer things on the desk makes less clutter! LOL!
Dallas says
How can I convince my wife to see the benefit of this…I am sold on the idea, however we are uneven as a couple at the moment; I am trying to simplify where she is still in the old habits. Perhaps i’ll keep politely emailing links to these posts without any comments. She will pick them up on email via her blackberry no doubt, or at work or the PDA.
di says
I do the same, but it hasn’t changed others.
Janelle Alexander says
I think your insight on the impact of constantly being exposed to media is very subtle and makes a ton of sense. This is a very inspiring list. Thank you.
Holland Saltsman says
What a great post! It’s help me put into perspective an otherwise chaotic week. Thanks.
fay Afsharfard says
Thanks for this, it was great to read.
I also like how you have kept your text/font minimalistic by not using upper case letters!
:)
Melanie says
Great list! I wish I could get my whole family to agree with it!
We have the debt licked (never had any) and have reduced our goals recently with an end date in mind. thanx for bringing up the others – will be printing it and posting it by my desk.
Rachel says
This article put into words for me several thoughts that had been floating around my mind regarding life and faith and the complexity of everything. I hope to be further down this road before my little one makes it through the toddler phase.
aggie says
thanks for the post. keeps me going. :)
Francesca says
Fantastic post. I’ve simplified my life quite a lot over the last few months but I’ve felt it becoming more cluttered again gradually, this has definately helped kick me back into action.
Coop says
Great reminder.