4 Ways to Simplify Your Life
Simplicity allows you to move through life more easily, more quickly and with much greater enjoyment. I learned this through thousands of miles of hiking.
In long distance hiking, the goal is clear – walk from here to there. Your ability to achieve that goal with ease, comfort and safety is dramatically affected by the load you choose to carry.
Many hikers carry gear that is seldom used, contributes little value and mostly just adds weight to their packs. Over time I learned to reduce my pack weight so that everything I need to be safe and comfortable (including food and water) for 5 days weighs about 30 pounds. If I replace some old equipment, I can easily reduce that to 20-25 pounds. I know hikers who actually hike with 15 pounds of gear.
As a result hiking is much easier and more pleasant. I can travel farther and faster, while actually expending less energy. I am less prone to injury, because my body is not as stressed out. To reduce my load, I simply had to get over my fear, and learn the skills necessary to be safe and efficient with minimal gear.
If you could achieve the same kind of results in your life, in your business, your finances, your family, what would be the result? You can do this if you choose to simplify.
4 Tips to Simplify Your Life
- Be clear about where you are going.
When your destination is clear, and all you have to do is get from here to there, it makes other decision easier. Examine your life to see what parts of it will help you and which parts will just weigh you down. Here are three places to start looking to simplify. - Look at your time commitments.
Are you spending too much time on unimportant activities? Consider saying no to some of these commitments. Stop doing trivial things and start devoting your time only to things that will move you closer to your goals. - Look at your house.
Do you have so much stuff that you have trouble finding what you need? Do you spend too much time maintaining your possessions? Is too much money going to pay for things that aren’t really improving your life? Identify the excess baggage and sell it, cancel it, give it away, or toss it out. - Look at your friends.
There are people who make your life better, and there are people who cause problems wherever they go. Simplify your life by spending more time with the people who improve your lot and less time with people who complicate things.
I’m fully aware that most of us live lives that are complicated. There are certain things you cannot do without – the hikers’ equivalent of food, water and shelter. But much of what we think we need we don’t. We are simply attached to it by our habits.
Be brave enough to release things you don’t need. The decisions may not be easy. It may require developing some new skills. And it probably won’t happen overnight, but you can begin to reclaim your life and dramatically increase your freedom by reducing your baggage and going lighter and faster over the trails of your life.
Be Free!
This article was written by David Denis owner of http://www.rocksolidwriting.com
David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copy-writing service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
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Fantastic article Dave! You are definately one of those people that help make your life
better and I am proud to have you as my friend. Keep writing! Thanks, Sherri
Comment by Sherri Locke — July 9, 2009 @ 8:00 am
Great article. In our fast-paced society, it is very difficult to not live reactively, getting caught up in the rat race even though it’s not taking us where we want to go. Articles like this help us to become aware of and to focus upon what’s truly life-enhancing rather than draining. And that often means letting go of behaviors, activities, possessions, and relationships that we think we can’t live without. Thank you.
Comment by Diana Schramer — July 9, 2009 @ 9:15 am
Short, sweet, and to the point. Thanks, Dave
Comment by Laura Rusiecki — July 9, 2009 @ 9:38 am
Being clear about where you want to go is huge. It also creates a lot of excitement.
Comment by David — July 9, 2009 @ 10:22 am
The lean and simple focus of this article supports the message you convey in words. It makes it more believeable and attainable. Nice harmony, great suggestions, well done.
Comment by BUDKA! — July 9, 2009 @ 10:26 am
Thanks…very good..I attended 2 of your workshops, and thought you were a great speaker/teacher/motivator…i have an idea for a course that i would like to discuss with you by phone…would that be possible?
Comment by Barbara Hermey — July 9, 2009 @ 10:55 am
Point number 3 – You wrote this just for me, right?! While begining to pack, I find myself struggling over random items that I “feel” like I need, but I know I really don’t. It’s hard for me to let go, but so far each bag of trash that made it to the curb has felt like an acheivment, and after reading your article, I am even more motivated to reduce my baggage. Thanks Dave!
Comment by Nickole — July 9, 2009 @ 12:58 pm
Great article, spot on as it is a direct hit on what I am trying to accomplish right now in my life! Thanks!
Comment by Jeff McElroy — July 10, 2009 @ 9:57 am
This blog “4 Ways to Simplify Your Life” has had my brain engine running all day. I believe that it is a greatly composed blog about how important it is to simplify one’s life. We are all either caught up in the rat race of our american economy to gain more things or to reduce unnecessary people and things in our lives through simplification. The application of the idea “packing only what you need” for hiking into our journey toward self-achievement is brilliant. Hiking, along with any other sort of physically demanding achievement, promotes an ability to balance experiences toward a well-lived life.
There are too many distractions that people can fall into day to day that are trivial in the pursuit of rewarding goals. Social networks, television programs, and games are among the most time consuming wastes of time for our generation. The simple steps in this blog provide a comprehensive guide to acknowledge and reflect on what is valuable and who can contribute by directly affecting a person’s achievements in life. Letting go of unrewarding weight can land anyone into the simple direction of where one wants to be.
Thanks for the great post!
Comment by UWFJCRR — July 13, 2009 @ 6:06 pm
Great article. The key to finding more time is found in the second last paragraph. “Much of what we think we need, we don’t. We are simply attached to it by our habits.” To find more time, follow the simple advice given here and then break some of those old habits. As we learned in class, change is not easy and breaking habits takes 21 days but then we will have more time to form new and more productive habits.
Comment by JFMasiko — July 15, 2009 @ 9:50 am
Having suffered from “pack rat” syndrome my whole life, I realized my life was getting too bogged down with “stuff” and therefore started searching for ways in which to simplify my life. This article was right on and very motivating. Can’t wait to get home and start tossing!
Comment by B Bennett — July 17, 2009 @ 10:18 am
Great site! Really liked your stuff on time management. Leadership development is so important in business and other areas today!.
Comment by Nauka Shah — July 22, 2009 @ 10:26 pm