Be More with Less

simplicity is love

3 Ways to Streamline for Simpler Days

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Streamline for Simpler Days

The real beauty of simplicity is found in an ordinary day. When you get rid of the clutter, the obligations, the notifications, and all of the pressure, you are free to make choices based on how you want to feel and who you want to be. Finally, you don’t have to live the way you are expected to live, or the way you think people want you to live. Simplicity makes room for you to be you.

If you had told me 5 years ago that I would have time to meditate, workout, read or be creative in my work everyday, I wouldn’t have believed it. By decluttering, editing, and streamlining, I made time and space that I didn’t know existed, and it’s in that time and space that I am most grateful for living simply.

Last night my husband and I went out for a bike ride and a huge thunderstorm rolled into the city. We took cover until the storm passed, and had a really nice evening. Just having that time to take a bike ride on a week night without worrying about all of the other stuff I used to worry about is why I’m so crazy for a simple life.

It is those moments that inspire me to continue to live simply and look for other ways to streamline. Things have a way of quietly getting complicated and stealing time, but if we are paying attention to what’s most important, we can continue to experience the joy of simplicity.

3 ways to streamline for simpler days

1. Eliminate

Instead of trying to make everything fit, or constantly organizing your stuff, the real key to streamlining is letting go. Get rid of it. Delete it. Dump it. Say goodbye.

2. Put it away

Where do your things belong? Where does your work belong? Where do your ideas belong? Those are questions I’ve been asking lately especially for my work. This is what I did to streamline my business:

  • I used to sell my books everywhere, but now they are only available here. The Kindle app is available for free on almost any device, so it seemed silly to be selling through multiple channels. It was just more to manage.
  • I started a new simple affiliate program for my microcourses. It’s simpler for people who want to recommend my work, simpler for me, and makes the process better for everyone, especially people purchasing the courses.
  • I’m moderating comments. Until recently, anyone could leave a comment on this site and that came with a daily dose of comments that I had to delete. I’ve considered closing comments all together, but like to make room for conversation. For now, all comments will be moderated so I can review them on my time and not worry that you’ll have to read spammy stuff until I have time to manage them. I know this can slow down a conversation, but we are all about slow and simple here.
  • I started using Evernote for creative planning, business brainstorming and blog writing. I use Evernote on my phone and computer so everything is connected. If I get a crazy idea when I’m out and about, I can easily document it in Evernote, and then develop it further when I have more time. P.S. The crazy ideas are always the best … don’t dismiss them.

Putting physical, digital and mental stuff where it belongs gives you the freedom to consider new ideas and projects, and gives you room to breathe and enjoy. If you can’t find a place for your stuff, maybe you don’t really need it.

3. Reassess

Who do you want to be and how do you want to live? If the stuff/work/people surrounding you doesn’t support that, change it. You don’t owe your past a thing and creating something new often requires a new environment. If you are stuck, tired, fearful, sick or sad, it’s time to reassess.

Once you start the process, you realize that while it may start with a closet or a junk drawer, simplicity is so much more. Simplicity is a bike ride in the rain. Simplicity is time. Simplicity is space. Simplicity is love.

 

Comments

  1. Meditation: You mention time for daily meditation. Can you suggest a resource to guide me on how to start a meditation practice? A book, website, app , video or a post by you would be greatly appreciated. I have never meditated before but believe I need to start.

      • If you are interested in mindfulness meditation this website has a free 10 days introduction: headspace.com

    • There is a great book on the basics of meditation, along with a variety of ways to approach it: “The Power of Meditation” by Edward Viljoen. I think it came out toward the end of last year.

    • I do not currently meditate and am very interested in making it a daily habit. I am reading “Mindfulness in Plain English” to guide me and would highly recommend it.

  2. As always, love your words of wisdom, Courtney!

    I started moderating comments about a year ago after some particularly vulger spam was brought to my attention by a brand new reader.

    What a welcome, huh?

    Commenters now get to read, ‘Your kindhearted musings come straight to my inbox and then I post them’ … and they know it won’t be long til they’re up for all the community to read and interact with.

    This has worked exceptionally well, and if anything, comments have only increased!

    ;-}

    • That’s great Linda! It was just one of those things that really bothered me and distracted me during the day. Even though most of those comments are filtered out, some were still getting through and I felt like they were demanding my attention. I wanted to make it a better experience for me and for people who read comments.

  3. As always, I enjoyed this post and I applaud your decision to moderate comments. I read your blog and similar blogs because I find them inspiring and often thought provoking. Spammy comments are a distracting and unnecessary annoyance.

  4. This is very inspiring post, written with a lot of enthusiasm for simplicity. Thanks, Courtney! Your continuous support is a bonfire for those who got lost in this materialistic world.

    • Thanks Thomas. I’ve been lost there myself. It’s so much better on the other side.

  5. Hi Courtney,

    Great post as uusual I would be interested in your views and a post on letting go of negative people or obligations for friends in a post.

    Most people seem to comment on the difficulties of when to let go of ssentimental items. That doesn’t bother me. I have difficulty knowing when to let people go and when to take only the positivity they bring and ignore the rest. How to determine when I want to do something or when I feel obligated etc.

    I would appreciate your experience and pperspective

    Thank you..
    Em

    • Hi Em, Of course, it’s much harder to let go of people, but it’s necessary in some situations. So much of other people’s attitudes, actions and energy influence our lives, so we have to take responsibility for surrounding ourselves with people who lift us up and really limit or eliminate time with people who don’t.

  6. PS I support and appreciate your decision to moderate comments. It will make my experience of your blog more enjoyable too.

    Thanks 🙂

  8. Hello Courtney, another great post. I love all three points you made. As far as making things fit, I realized a long time ago that my calendar was like a closet. Each hour was a shoe box, and I could only fit 24 pairs of shoes in those boxes. That’s when I realized I had 30 or 40 or who knows how many pairs of “shoes/activities” to cram into those calendar boxes. You can’t organize what just won’t fit. That said, I still do not have pristine surfaces everywhere in my home and life. It’s a contant effort, which is why I love your blog. You always bring me back to home base, especially with lines like this: “Who do I want to be and how do I want to live?” Thanks so much.

  10. You are such am inspiration to me. M.S. has been my constant companion since 1986; therefore with a few other challenges that have entered my life after that time, my home now looks like it is one Burger King wrapper away from being on A&E’s show Hoarders. Thanks for opening your life and sharing as you do.

  11. Dear Courtney, I discovered your blog recently on my way to a more minimalist life, and it’s always a pleasure to read your posts. One may thing it is repetitive, but, and it is very inspiring. It is exactly what I need, so please keep going 🙂 actually this is not really a comment but more a question: why have you chosen amazon as a unique channel to sell your books? On my way to minimalism (and light travelling) I have bought an ereader, but i made a point not to buy a kindle. I believe in open source and widely compatible format, the contrary of Amazon. In Europe we also have a very evil image of Amazon (although very successful here as well) and this might be different in the USA. This leads me to another question: does minimalism also mean doing/having less, but doing/having “better” ?

  12. Please read “one may think it is repetitive, but it is exactly what I need, so please keep going. And it is ver inspiring” in my previous message. Many thanks!

  14. Please do not remove the ability for people to leave comments on your blog. You were one of the first blogs i ever came across and inspired me enough to write my own and i actually do not get the point of blogs that don’t have space for comments – isn’t that a webpage? Although i do understand the need to moderate as i have had to remove some comments from my blog too. I try to be fairly open to what people have to say, but some are just abusive.

    I did try Evernote but couldn’t get the hang of it – maybe i’ll try it again.

  16. Thanks for the great words of wisdom! I have been on the minimalism path since January 2014. The amount of “stuff” I have gotten rid of is crazy but it very freeing to me! Your site allows me to continually re-commit to this way of life. Thanks!!

  17. I am interested in further discussion about how to get ones work life in alignment with a simple life. I like the type of work my job requires but I do not enjoy the dysfunction that I am forced to work under. My area is a mix of people some of whom are more down-to-earth and family oriented. The others are overly worried about “success” and sacrifice time with their families regularly. Their priorities create stress and chaos that I’m tired of dealing with.

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