The One Where You Don’t Need to Explain Yourself
Breathe in and out — you own your life. Explanations are not required.
Category Archive: Inspiration
Step Seven: Less is More
“Less is more”, from Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, was one of the slogans on my posters the year I ran for Secretary of Advertising many, many moons ago in highschool. I thought it was to the point and it let my design speak for itself. Unfortunately I don’t think many people agreed — I didn’t get it, BUT! that is not the point. (I later realized it was a slogan for a whitening cream in Hong Kong, so I guess I wasn’t alone in thought!)
I still stand by it; sometimes you just need to cut back and squeeze the juice out of simplicity for sheer enjoyment. Think quality, use and value. It’s like I’d rather have one pair of Louboutin peep toes than a collection of mediocre pumps.
How many times have you opened a drawer and gasped at the sight of an item as though you had only just discovered it, but really it was in there since, well, forever? YEAH. Same goes for purses, or pockets, closets and the scary space under your bed.
In short: you own way more than what you need. Of course there are wants we have lying around the house, but how many of those are just taking up space and interrupting the energy flow in your home?
Declutter your space
Less clothes. If you are like me, you probably have a hard time closing your closet doors and when it comes down to it, you only wear about 30% of what’s in there. So clear it all out: if it’s too old, worn or still has the pricetag on — out it goes. Donate it/throw it out.
Focus on having one of everything first; a good quality item rather than a bunch of half priced clones. Build your wardrobe so that you can mix and match almost everything, with a few key pieces that stand on their own and you’ll be good to go!
Stay away from sales, as they’ll entice you and you’ll only end up with something useless ‘because it was cheap.’
For inspiration: The Uniform Project, A Practical Guide to Owning Fewer Clothing
Less gadgets. One of the reasons I want the iPhone 4 in my life is because it’s like carrying all your gadgets in one. When I have to carry more than three separate techie gadgets — I don’t like it. Think of what you use most. Obviously if photography is your thing, you aren’t going to settle for the iPhone’s built-in camera no matter how powerful it is. The less your life is run my technology the better. So you have a perfectly fine working computer. Do you need an iPad? No. Also remember all these gadgets come with a set of cables/ports/batteries/stands…keep it simple!
“The things you own end up owning you.” — Tyler Durden, Fight Club
Less beauty products. Some of us have developed a tiny makeup obsession, so that walking into any makeup store every product looks like a giant candy waiting to be devoured. And so we buy it, even if the shade is 98.99% the same plum we bought last week (this one is a shimmer so it’s allowwed!) The quickest way to fix this: take part in Project 10 Pan: do not buy a new product until you have used up 10 of the same thing! And just as a general rule, use up everything you buy.
Less *gasp!* books/magazines. Magazines and books take a lot of space and are especially annoying when moving houses. If Kindle types are not for you, simply go through all your books and donate/sell any which you know you will never re-read. There’s no point in keeping those around. Same with magazines!
For more: 101 Physical Things That Can Be Reduced in Your Home
Declutter your mind & heart
Invest energy in the right things. When you’re in highschool you think being Secretary of Advertising is incredibly important, as are all grades so you spend weeks studying for your math final only to just pass by a few percent. Then when you’re out of it you realize how silly it was to put so much of your energy on something that you barely even remember today. When it comes down to it, are you worrying about things that matter? People matter, your health and happiness matter. We need to learn to be selective and to not sweat the little stuff.
Don’t pick up any rocks. When we’re in an argument or we’re insulted, we immediately accept the insult as though it were a bag of rocks with our name on it. Nobody said it was for us to pick up, but we pick it up anyway and lug it around, angry and frustrated. Next time, just don’t. Just because it has your name on it doesn’t mean you have to pick it up. Simply leave it there and move on.
Leave unhealthy relationships of any kind. What do you value in your relationships? Why is your best friend the best? Once you know this, you’ll know who is adding value to your life and who isn’t. Feel free to disconnect from energy vamps, rude and toxic people if they are only detiriorating you and the life you want for yourself. Period!
“Simplicity, clarity, singleness: these are the attributes that give our lives power and vividness and joy.” — Richard Halloway
Enjoy the simple things. A picnic at night, a quick swim in the sea, a walk in the park. Go out and enjoy everything that’s already out there, and drop the mindset that you need to buy this and that in order to be able to do whatever. After all, you’ve been cutting back on so many material things that you’ll have enough money to spare for nice meals out, or travelling!
The less you have, the less you have to worry about; the less time you need to spend maintaining things; the less things you’ll feel like you NEED or even want; the less space you need to keep it all together; the more you can enjoy everything else not attached to a material thing! It’s funny how all this less can equal so much gain.
“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” — Socrates, Way of the Peaceful Warrior
What kind of things will you be eliminating to declutter your life? Any tips for us minimalism beginners?
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
I’m trying to get ahead on my 50 Books Challenge (I’ve been bad!) and so I picked up The Bell Jar last week. I finished it in two days but didn’t write about it sooner because that’s how I am — I like to let a good book sink in. After reading this stunning gem I wanted more, so I thought about it and read up on Sylvia Plath and reread some of her poetry.
The way she so eloquently put what her life had been into such beautiful prose, and the way I couldn’t help but identify with so many questions and doubts that inevitably pop up as one grows up and is supposed to make way in the world made this book so easy to get lost in. I think especially now that I’m having my own doubts as to what it is I really want to do, whether I can succeed doing what I love and whether I’m just adequate in general (though hopefully I’m not alone in all that, how scary!)
“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked….I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.”
It was heartbreaking and funny and tragic all at the same time.
What are you currently reading? And for those of you who have read The Bell Jar, what are your thoughts?
Sometimes the Smallest Things Take Up the Most Room in Our Hearts
In less than half a week I abandoned lazy summer days in the sun for a job that now takes up most of my time. It was what I’d wanted then, but as the weeks keep pushing by I’m starting to treasure little things that perhaps I barely paid any attention to before.
Things like a nap after mom’s amazing cooking, or walking Chimbo (even if he IS 15 and takes forever to walk around a corner); having a ‘me’ night, where I give myself a little at home spa treatment, sitting around the TV with my mom laughing at the sillyness of the world or going out for dinner together and talking about big dreams.
I’ve missed lunch dates with friends and silly photos. Two weeks ago I was convinced to go out and watch Eclipse, and I can’t even remember the last time I’d gone to the movies! (OK I lie — I’m pretty sure the last time was for Avatar).
Talking to Tom every day forever isn’t possible anymore, which is heartbreaking, especially considering we are True Blood junkies and I can’t watch an episode if he isn’t around. I’d feel like I cheated.
Now that I have to stretch every bit of time that I have to myself, I seem to be getting a lot more done. I’ve picked up my love for reading again thanks to the long commute to work — currently reading The Time Traveller’s Wife because this is one book I want to read every word of before I see the movie. I’d just hate myself if I didn’t!
What little things have you learned to treasure?
Step Six: Biorhythm
It’s all over the internet and plastered in every self-help book out there: ‘take charge of your life — become an early riser’. However, the key isn’t to just wake up at 5 a.m. fresh faced ready to take on the world, because some of us work better in the morning and others at night. Society has been structured around certain pattern, but that doesn’t mean that it suits everyone! The key my dears, is to figure out a pattern that works for you; one that you can work around society and that will help you be as efficient as you can be.
I’m going to be 100% honest here — I’m not an early riser. Anyone that sees me up before 9 a.m. has only seen me make a quick trip to the washroom or for some water. I’m not talking about waking up at lunch time either, but I know that if I were to wake up at 6 every morning, I’d probably not get much done because my mind is hardly awake by then. This is why heading for an 8 o’clock class can be so incredibly exhausting for some of us, not to mention the amount of information that my brain fails to retain is somewhere near monumental at those times.
So I have to work around that. I do go to all of my classes (not without some coffee in me), and I listen and take notes, not bothering trying to make sense of anything, especially when it involves the early philosophies and beginnings of psychology. I know that I’m at my best in the afternoon, so I go over those notes with an open mind and actually sit down to understand them.
Some people can’t seem to get anything done unless it’s midnight, and others would not know what to do with themselves in bed past 7 a.m. AND THAT IS FINE! We need to step away from the strict early riser mindset, because it isn’t for everyone. It’s one thing to become an early riser if you believe it will provide you more energy for the rest of the day, or it’s part of your exercise routine. But waking up earlier for the sole purpose of doing doesn’t mean you’ll be any more productive; it can be quite the opposite if you aren’t at your best in the morning and end up wasting all that time just trying to function, and then you’ll just be frustrated and feel uninspired. Why not start things when you know you’ll be able to do it best?
In this step, find out when during the day you are at your best to take on different challenges. At the beginning of the year, for psychobiology, we determined our biorhythm by measuring a few things. Some people don’t believe in it, but it couldn’t hurt to try it out right? To find out, just do the following for the next five days:
- Pick a time interval that will allow you to repeat each step 4 times each day (E.g. every 4 hours.)
- Temperature: take your temperature at the time and record it. When you look at your results, a change in 0,5 might seem insignificant but it is not!
- Heart rate: record your heart rate at the time as well.
- Time: put a timer and without looking at it, estimate when you think a minute has gone by. Stop the timer and record the time it was running (it doesn’t matter how close you are/aren’t to the exact minute!)
- Record how you are feeling at that moment (E.g. exhausted, excited, apathetic…)
So if I chose a time interval of 4 hours and I started at 8 a.m., at 8 a.m. I would measure my temperature and heart rate; I would then estimate a minute in time and write down how I’m feeling. Take a look at your results. Generally, body temperature and heart rate will be highest at your most alert times. Regarding time, your estimates should fall below the actual minute when you are most activated (higher heart rate and temperature), and the opposite should happen when you are less so. Don’t forget to take into account how you were feeling at the time as well!
This is a rough guide but it will help you define when more or less you are most alert during the day! Once you’ve figured it out, try working on your projects at that time and see if it works for you.
