Simplify Your Life

Power in the Present (and the Presence) Advice for Graduating Seniors

June 6th, 2007 by Nneka -- Bookmark on del.icio.us

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I recently moved from a 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath house in the suburbs to a 1 bedroom 1 bath carraige house in the city. I took with me my mattress, box spring, bed frame, a cubby desk, book shelves, tons of books, 1/4 of my clothes, and my computer. I left behind a dresser, night tables, lamps, 2 office desk sets, a cubby desk, a living room set complete with sofa, love seat, and tables, a kitchen table, inventory from a failed business, 3 computers, dishes, and 3/4 of my wardrobe. I cut back to minimums.

I said some time ago that I feel like I am carrying around another person. Physically, I have an extra 125 lbs on my body (down from 145, yay!), but emotionally, it feels as though my True Self is encapsulated in this persona I created. The move was cathartic as it helped me to shed the belongings of that other person. It helped strip me to the bare necessities. It emptied my cup.

I’m not suggesting that we all need to move and leave behind 80% of our belongings, but I am suggesting that you take pause and simplify your lives. Here are some ways you can do that.

No After School Activity

Do you find that you are constantly shuffling children from school, to ballet, to gymnastics, to hockey, to soccer, to piano lessons, to pottery class? Take a breather!

Try a month with no after school activities. Your kids will thank you for it. Maybe it’s scary to think about what you would have to do with the kids if they weren’t engaged in some activity. Or maybe you’ll be faced with doing something for yourself. Gasp!

Instead of sending your children off to another activity, you could make dinner with them, not just for them. You could take a bike ride around the neighborhood with them. You could have game night with old fashioned board games. You could get to know your children in the short time that they live with you out of their entire life.

Go on a Media Fast

Books, television, radio, and yes, the Internet. I recently tried a reading fast for a week and was shocked at just how much of my time is filled being online. I didn’t know what to do with myself. What would I do for fun without my entertainment? I was panic striken. Then I realized that there’s a world out there. There are trees, and people, and aromatic scents, and clanging noises.

I’m a self-proclaimed information junkie, but I realized that the symphony of life is playing. You have a ticket. Go to the show!

Downsize Your Job

One day, I was humming along, minding my own business at work, when a thought surfaced. I’d been trying to figure out how to squeeze more time to do the things I love. Then it occured to me that I could cut my hours at work back to 25-30 a week. Amazingly, instead of relief and excitement at finding a solution, I felt disturbed. And, no, it wasn’t about the money.

I felt disturbed about being unconventional. I didn’t want to be different. Who said that you have to work a 40 hour week, or a 60 hour week to get ahead? And where are you trying to go? Consider simplifying your life by cutting back on your work week or eliminating it all together. Replace it with your passion.

Drop a Committee

In service to your favorite charity, let go of a committee or two. It’s seems contradictory to everything else I write here. However, you can’t give what you don’t have. When you feel spent, you are not doing anyone any good, by stretching yourself to do more. If you feel like service is now a chore, give it up! Spend some time caring for and serving yourself so that you can serve others.

Give Away 80%!

It’s not necessary. It seems drastic. But it sure does feel good. If you follow Pareto’s principle, you’ll be left with the 20% that makes your life anyway:-)

In Spirit,
Nneka

Entry Filed under: Personal Development

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14 Comments Add your own

1. Steve Olson | June 6th, 2007 at 11:39 am

Nneka,

great post.

Simplifying is a great way to improve your life. I once ran my own dot com business and it was killing me and my wife, I ended up with all kinds of problems… mostly health related… I finally decided to simplify… and we sold the business… I had to give something up to get something in return. The trade off was worth it.

Stay conscious…
2. mervyn | June 6th, 2007 at 7:33 pm

congratulations,
dad
3. Carolyn Manning | June 6th, 2007 at 9:20 pm

A few months ago, I made a similar move, Nneka. Mine wasn’t quite so drastic as 80%, but I wound up giving away plenty. Actually, I’m not realizing the total effects of the simplification yet, since I’m living with one of my sisters for a few months. It’ll be nice to unpack boxes that aren’t filled with stuff.

On the other hand, life being what it is, let’s meet back here this time next year to see if we’re still keeping things pared down
4. Nneka | June 6th, 2007 at 9:31 pm

@Steve, sometimes you just have to let go. Seth Godin is onto something big with the dip. I’m just so conditioned to go one more step into the ditch. All against my better judgement. Hopefully, I’m reversing that trend.

Hi daddy (waving)

@Carolyn, who are you telling! I’m eyeing a sofa and coffee table. Thankfully, my place just can’t handle the stuff and I really don’t want it. For about a year I want experiences: concerts, travel, parties. I want to live, not get. I feel refreshed, but I’ll check with you in a year
5. Phil Gerbyshak | June 7th, 2007 at 11:43 pm

Yay Nneka! Great for you that you were able to downsize life. I did this a few years ago, and it felt great. I missed a lot, for a while, and now I’m back to the bigness of a house, but I highly recommend moving to a smaller place for anyone who feels too full for their own good.
6. Nneka | June 8th, 2007 at 10:24 am

Hi Phil, you know, I do get pangs. Along with all of this I don’t have a television and I now walk to work so I don’t hear the radio. I feel like I’m finally hearing my voice. The chatter is quieting down.

Good to hear from you,
Nneka
7. Life Insurance Lowdown &r&hellip | June 11th, 2007 at 2:15 am

[…] Nneka presents Simplify Your Life posted at Spirituality Applied to Life. Do you find that you are constantly shuffling children from school, to ballet, to gymnastics, to hockey, to soccer, to piano lessons, to pottery class? Take a breather! […]
8. Sheppard Salter | June 11th, 2007 at 10:26 am

We’re on the same wave length Ma’am. There is indeed something mysterious about giving away ’stuff’. The tebdency of the masses to collect masses of stuff is a sign of something bad in our lives. The desire to hold on to it while other peope do with out is really a displeasure to God. Voluntary simplicity (not forced by communism) is a Godly endeavor.

I’ll put you on my blog roll. I’ll trackback too!

S.
9. salterblog.com » Gr&hellip | June 13th, 2007 at 4:30 pm

[…] Nneka has a very good post on simplifying your life. She actually divested herself of 80% of her ’stuff’ and moved to a smaller apartment. It is well worth the read. Anyone that puts action to their desires has my vote. Way to go girl! Keep it up! […]
10. Carnival of Powerful Livi&hellip | June 15th, 2007 at 2:48 pm

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11. Bryan C. Fleming » &hellip | June 19th, 2007 at 9:23 am

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12. Daniel | July 1st, 2007 at 10:04 am

I agree that life can be too fast paced and I’m glad that you’ve found a way to slow down. Be careful not too take the after school stuff away from the kids for too long as they may have trouble getting back into beneficial programs (especially music).

Good luck.
13. A Tale of Surrender - Spi&hellip | August 20th, 2007 at 1:07 pm

[…] If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!When my husband and I separated, I left behind 80% of the things in the house. My plan was to have the house empty the weekend after we moved out so that I could prep it for sale. I requested that he remove all the things from the house and I would take care of getting the house ready. The request was not honored. He left behind a house filled with trash and unwanted items. […]
14. Awantoh Lawrence Numfor | October 25th, 2007 at 10:27 am

i love these articles. send more to my box to help me improve on my spiritual life.