Focus on the Essentials
January 9th, 2009. Filed under: Finance & Fitness Fridays.This is the second chapter of Leo Babauta’s Thriving on Less. It is his companion ebook to The Power of Less.
Chapter 2 – Focus on the Essentials
“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”
– Hans Hofmann
The first step in simplifying, and living with less, is to identify the essential – that which you want to
keep in your life. Then eliminate as much of the nonessential as possible.
I go into much more detail on this process in The Power of Less (please buy it to read more on all
these topics – see ThePowerofLess.com), but basically you want to create a Short List of 4-5 things
in your life that you value most – people you love or things you’re passionate about, things you want in
your life. These are your essentials.
To give you an idea of what I mean, here’s my Short List: spending time with my family, writing,
reading and running. Those are the things I want to make room for in my life.
Action Step: Make your Short List of 4-5 essential things now. It only takes a few
minutes!
Once you’ve identified the essential, it’s time to start making room for these things, by slowly
eliminating as much of the non-essential as possible. This should be a gradual process, as you can’t
change your life all at once. You didn’t fill it up overnight, and you can’t empty it out overnight
either.
Start by taking a look at your schedule, your commitments, your to-do and project lists, and how
you’re currently spending your time. What things are not in line with the 4-5 things on your Short
List? Can they be eliminated or limited? This might mean disappointing people who want you to
keep commitments, but remember that it’s your life, not theirs.
Once you’ve eliminated a good number of non-essential commitments, tasks, projects and so forth,
it’s important that you use this extra space in your life to focus on the essentials on your Short List.
If you empty out your life only to fill it up with other unimportant things (such as watching more
TV or more shopping), you’ve wasted your time.
Create a life that focuses on the essentials – what you value and love the most, what you’re most
passionate about. Start today!
For more on choosing the essentials, eliminating the non-essentials, and reducing the clutter in
your life, check out my book, The Power of Less (see ThePowerofLess.com for more details).
Thriving on Less : Simplifying in a Tough Economy
January 12th, 2009 at 17:49
This seems like something I need to read:)