Joshua Becker's Blog, page 49

9 Things We Should Never Minimize

Note: This is a guest post from Lisa Avellan of Simple and Soul.

As minimalists, we strive for less stuff to experience more life. We learn how to detach from our possessions, limit technology, set boundaries with our commitments, and manage our finances with more intention.

Our schedules get pared down to the most important appointments, we open our calendars for family time, meeting with a friend, reading, or pursing a passion. Simplicity becomes our goal.

We learn to ask ourselves important questions before adding any item to our life:

“How can this make my life easier?”“Will this cause more freedom or hold me back?”

Simplicity takes more intention than renting a storage unit, so we learn to value the weight of every decision. The value of an item or experience becomes more than a price tag or a great story to tell at a cocktail party. Minimalism is not for the half-hearted.

Minimalism is a journey of heart and soul.

It’s a deep dive into the core of what we believe about who we are, where we find value, our purpose, and our passion. These are incredibly personal and difficult mountains to climb. A compass and hatchet are necessary tools to make the journey.

This matter of the heart requires that we take great care to cut the nonessentials, and cultivate the things we should never minimize. It’s how we maximize the benefits of minimalism.

Here are nine things that should never fall victim to our minimalist pursuit:

1. Relationships

We should never commit so intently to this outlier way of life that we alienate our family, faithful friends, or the potential new positive relationships. There may be a time when minimizing harmful or unhealthy relationships is appropriate, however minimalism isn’t about living a reclusive or withdrawn existence.

We minimize to un-clutter our lives from that which robs our time and energy from investing in the most important people in our lives.

2. Community

Living with less should never mean less community. In fact, living with less opens our lives to more community and opportunity to live alongside others, minimalist or not. Our community, those outside our immediate family but who share in our activities around home, school, work, church, or neighborhood, should benefit from our life of less.

The amount of time we gain, the items that can be reused or repurposed by someone in need, and the hospitality we offer in less crowded homes are practical ways to intentionally live in community.

3. Gratitude

I believe that the greatest expression of gratitude is minimalism. When one is truly grateful for what matters most, no amount of possessions could change that contentment. A room full of gadgets and toys or forgotten impulse purchases steals our gratitude by complicating our lives.

To live a life of gratitude, we recognize that the essentials are enough and we can experience how they enhance our existence. Gratitude isn’t being thankful for what you have; it’s believing what you have is enough.

4. Empathy

We don’t like to admit it, but when we have a strong belief about the way we live, sometimes we minimize our empathy for those who live differently. Becoming minimalist is never a destination; it’s a journey of minimizing the outside influences. But non-minimalists are not outsiders, they are people. They are potential inspiring mentors, faithful leaders, guides, and peacemakers.

The way we treat others who struggle with the burden of stuff will either maximize their value to us or minimize our value to them. Choose wisely.

5. Generosity

Minimalism is not an excuse to not be generous. It is the greatest excuse to be more generous. Ridding our lives of excess offers the obvious opportunity to donate or re-home our possessions that can be useful to someone.

But there are other not so obvious reasons we should never minimize generosity: we create more space to offer our home, time, meals, service, and gifts to others. Our unburdened schedules allow more investments in relationships, more family building, and more financial resources. Our minds are free of stressors so we can create more and share more of our talents. Need less, give more.

6. Education

I spoke with a middle aged woman recently who is, in her words, pursuing a “useless” graduate degree. I felt sad that she perceived her educational pursuit was for nothing. Education in any form, when applied, enriches our lives to greater understanding, empathy, and action.

To minimize our education is to minimize our potential to change the world. For any educational investment, we gain, at the very least, a deepened capacity to think and to relate to the world bustling around us.

7. Dreams

Our passions and dreams often end up on the chopping block when we are overwhelmed with crammed calendars and suffocated by our stuff. Minimalism should never stifle the life-giving joys in our life. When we release our attachment to stuff and busyness, we have more time and energy to pursue and participate in our passions.

If we ever feel the need to minimize the very thing that makes us come alive, we’ve lost sight of who we are. Minimalism creates space for the development of our dreams and passions and we then realize the burden our stuff has over us.

8. Forgiveness

If you’ve ever been in any kind of relationship that has lasted more than a few days, you know that forgiveness is part of life. If we minimize our capacity to forgive, we can never hope to grow or change. Significant relationship demands repentance and forgiveness.

Ruth Bell Graham said, “Marriage is a union of two good forgivers.” I believe that’s true of any relationship. Minimizing the value of forgiveness will kill our capacity for genuine connection.

9. Joy

The absence of joy is often caused by our inaccurate source of value. The more we buy the less happy we are. It may seem depressing to live a life with less, but that’s only because we haven’t freed ourselves from the chains of believing our value comes from what we own.

Less stuff is more joy. To free ourselves from comparisons and the joy-killing value system of a broken world, the answer lies in the freedom of minimalism.

How are you maximizing the benefits of minimalism?

—

Lisa Avellan writes at Simple & Soul, helping you simplify life so you can uncover your soul and live joyfully just as you are. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram for more simple living inspiration.

You Eat Less Variety Than You Think. Embrace It.

The first time I ever heard about it was from the family practice doctor in Wisconsin who delivered my son, Salem. The doctor—old enough to be my father—became a man I grew to love and appreciate and would soon call friend. He once told me that he ate a taco salad every day for lunch.

The next time I encountered the phenomenon, a few years later, was with a friend at his parents’ house. He walked me into their basement pantry loaded with shelves of canned tuna—solid white albacore. He told me that his dad, a professional fisherman, ate a tuna fish sandwich every day for lunch.

Two men, both well respected in the community, ate the same lunch every single day. I didn’t give the idea much thought after that, other than occasionally being jealous that my doctor friend got to eat a taco salad every day for lunch. Mmm.

Life continued, ten years passed, and I picked up a copy of Tim Ferris’s book The 4-Hour Body.

In his chapter on “Rapid Fat Loss,” he offered a passing sentence when asked about boredom with the limited food options in his prescribed diet: “Most people vastly overestimate the variety of their meals.”

My mind immediately raced back to my role models in Wisconsin from so many years ago, both of whom had chosen to eat the same meal every day for lunch. They had discovered a routine that worked well for them.

Rather than fighting against routine in their diet, they had embraced the practice. Few could argue with the results—both were healthy and successful.

It got me thinking…

What if there is nothing wrong with eating the same meal over and over again?

In fact, what if repetition is a good thing? Why not embrace it?

You Could Already Be There

As a blogger and overall promoter of the benefits of minimalism, I have seen countless times how people overestimate the number of material possessions they need. So when I read the sentence in Tim’s book that “most people vastly overestimate the variety of their meals,” I almost instinctively knew it was true.

I have seen “overestimating variety” to be true in clothing, entertainment, books, linens, and any number of other examples. Why not food?

The Pareto principle is proven true over and over again—roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. We wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. We use 20% of our kitchen gadgets 80% of the time. We watch 20% of the same channels 80% of the time. And, generally speaking, we eat 20% of the same food 80% of the time.

Just think about what you have had to eat for breakfast over the past week. Most likely, you’ve eaten the same couple meals. Or how about lunch?

My breakfast these days, when I eat it, is two eggs and four strips of turkey bacon. My lunch consists of rotisserie chicken (with Frank’s buffalo sauce) or a salad (with chicken).

And I know I’m far from alone in these kinds of habits. According to one study conducted in Great Britain by Whole Foods Market, almost 33% of us eat the same lunch every day.

Here’s the reality: We tend to eat many of the same foods over and over again, but for some reason, we want to deny this truth. We contend that variety is the spice of life. Or we remember our mom telling us, “But you just ate pizza yesterday. You can’t eat it again today.”

We think it reflects poorly on our cultured-self or creativity or palette or commitment to health to eat the same foods over and over again. So we quickly convince ourselves that we need to think up something new every day for breakfast or lunch or to feed our family in the evening.

But as I’ve thought more about it, I’ve realized there really is much benefit to be found in leaning in to the reality that we crave stability in our meal patterns.

We eat less variety than we think—and there are good reasons to realize that and accept it.

Why You Should Say Yes to Meal Routine

Speaking at a conference several years ago, I was asked by a mother of three for advice on how to keep down food waste and costs in her home.

By this time I was a convert to meal repetition. I answered, “Accept the fact that you eat less variety of foods than you think. Don’t fight against it. Don’t believe society’s pressure that you need to be dreaming up something new for every meal. Find your family’s favorite meals and serve them often. You’ll lower your monthly food costs, waste, and time spent in preparation.”

Consider the benefits to us (and our families) of establishing a regular meal rotation:

1. Money savings. When you begin to establish a weekly routine of your family’s favorite meals, you save money by wasting less, learning the correct portion size, recognizing sales and good prices, and knowing which spices or condiments to purchase.

2. Time savings. Not only does a weekly routine of meals save time hunting for recipes or new ideas, but we become more and more efficient at preparing each of the meals that we do enjoy.

This “time saved” may be more precious during specific seasons of life (when you have young children at home, for example), but extra time in the day can be appreciated by everyone.

3. Better health. A thought-out and intentional routine of meals offers greater opportunity to align our diets with nutritional recommendations.

4. Less food waste. About 150,000 tons of food is tossed out in US households each day, equivalent to about a third of the daily calories that each American consumes. Not only does this waste take a toll on our household budget (as mentioned above), but there is also an environmental toll from that much waste.

5. Weight control. Many people who eat the same lunch every day attest that the practice is helpful in weight control, contending they eat less because of it. It’s called “school cafeteria syndrome,” and according to researchers, it really works in reducing the amount of food we eat.

6. Fewer failed recipes. As I will mention in a moment, there is still room for trying new foods and recipes, and I recommend it with young kids at home. But establishing a stable routine of meals each week and experimenting with fewer new recipes means fewer failed meals.

As I can attest, there are few things in life more disheartening than spending hours preparing a meal, only to have it flop at the dinner table.

7. Benefits for kids. The more children see specific foods in front of them, the more likely they are to learn to enjoy them. Creating a routine certainly doesn’t eliminate all “eat your vegetables” negotiations at the dinner table, but they do make them easier, as the expectations have already been established.

8. Greater simplicity. Embracing a meal routine (whether daily or weekly) promotes simplicity in our home and life. It reduces stress and anxiety, removes decision fatigue, and frees us to pursue more important things than answering “What’s for dinner?”

How to Implement a Meal Rotation

How do we go about this in our own unique families? Here are some thoughts to get you started:

1. Meals on your own are a great place to start. 

If you eat lunch every day at the office, it’s easy to choose your one or two favorite meals and repeat them each day. The same is true for breakfast if you eat it alone. As mentioned above, breakfast and lunch are where I embrace the most routine.

2. Determine your family’s favorite meals. 

Take each person into account. Are there specific meals that everybody likes? If so, those are obvious places to start establishing a routine. I’d recommend identifying five or six family favorites.

If you can’t get that much agreement in your family, be sure to think about those with pickier palettes and what accommodations can be made.

3. Write out a weekly schedule that can be repeated each week. 

Take into account your weekly commitments. Does someone have volleyball practice on Tuesday night? Youth group on Wednesday? Or a business meeting on Monday? Factor in both the time you have to prepare and the time to sit down and eat.

My family loves tacos on Tuesdays. And we serve pizza on Sunday evenings because my son typically works late and my wife and I take my daughter to church that night.

4. Don’t sacrifice health. 

Eating foods you enjoy doesn’t mean sacrificing healthy nutrition habits along the way. If you’re serving pizza or pasta, pick a vegetable to go with it. Or look for healthy options of pizza.

I actually find it easier to eat healthy when a routine has been established, because we are intentional about including fruits and vegetables every evening.

5. Don’t think you need to sacrifice all variety for this to work. 

Rare is the family for whom a week’s schedule doesn’t vary from time to time, so some variety in meals is almost inevitable. But it can also be scheduled. You can decide that every Monday is new-recipe day, or you can choose variety when you eat out.

Establishing a meal routine five nights of the week still leaves room for plenty of variety.

6. Proceed with trial, error, and adjustments. 

If you discover that one meal takes longer to prepare than you want, change it. If one meal is no longer enjoyed by your family, pick a new one. Or if you discover that a routine works well for one month and then you want to make a new one, go for it!

The goal is to find something that works for your family and saves you time and money.

Eat. Repeat.

One of the greatest things I have discovered about minimalism is that removing unneeded things from my life means I am left with only my favorites. Another benefit is that removing distraction brings money, time, energy, and peace into my life.

I have found the same benefits by leaning in to the reality that we eat less variety of foods than we think. We all have our favorite foods to eat. Accept it and embrace the idea of eating the same foods over and over again. You’ll be excited every time you sit down to eat…and you’ll save money and time along the way.

Spring Decluttering is Better than Spring Cleaning

‘Tis the season for spring cleaning.

No doubt, all over the internet and in countless magazines, there are going to be numerous articles published in the next month about how to spring clean your home. And I get it, I lived in that world for many years.

I lived through plenty of winters growing up and can fully appreciate the arrival of spring and the feeling of life and newness that accompanies it. And I know the beauty of being able to open the windows and doors after being cooped up in the house all winter.

Spring is a natural time of year to deep clean your home. And I’m all for it. I think you should do it and do it well.

However, before you jump into your spring cleaning, and every time you stumble upon an article about spring cleaning, I want you to remember one phrase:

Spring decluttering is better than Spring cleaning.

In fact, the best spring cleaning begins with spring decluttering. Because the less you own, the easier it is to clean.

Plus, the benefits of decluttering extend far beyond the springtime. Spring decluttering results in a home that is easier to clean every week of every season. And owning less results in a home that is more calm and more peaceful every day.

Consider just three rooms as an example:

Living Room.

One of the first rooms we decluttered on our minimizing journey was the living room—including the decorations. We had shelves and shelves of them. I remember vividly removing the decorations that were no longer important to us, leaving just a few that told our story.

When I was finished, I decided to dust the shelves and immediately noticed how much easier it was to dust the shelves with fewer items on them. Go figure. I don’t know why this had never occurred to me. Fewer things to move, meant the room was easier to clean.

Toy Room.

Another great example is the toy room. Our kids were five and two. We eventually decluttered many of the toys they didn’t need, had stopped using, or had broken along the way. Everything that remained fit comfortably against one wall.

The following evening when we went to clean up their toys, the entire project took less than a few minutes. Fewer toys meant the entire room was easier to clean, daily.

Closets.

A third example is the closet. While we didn’t begin our decluttering journey in the closet, I eventually removed 75% of the clothes from my side of the closet. My closet immediately became stream-lined, spacious, and easier to keep organized.

But more than that, the positive affects spilled over into other rooms as well. Returning clothes at the end of the day became easier so there were fewer clothes left out in the bedroom. Putting clothes away after the laundry cycle became less burdensome. As was returning accessories: shoes, belts, jewelry, even coats and gloves.  

The less we owned, the easier it was to clean.

Spring cleaning should always begin with spring decluttering. Because spring decluttering makes spring cleaning infinitely easier.

Here are a few quick tips to get you started:

1. Start in your easiest spaces.

Don’t try to declutter your attic, home office, or sentimental collections first. Start with easier wins like the living room, bedroom, or car.

2. Begin in your lived-in areas.

Again, avoid the attic and the basement when getting started. You can spend hours decluttering, shut the door, and never see the room again for weeks.

But if you declutter your living room, you’ll notice the calm every time you sit to watch television. If you declutter your kitchen, you’ll notice it immediately the next time you prepare a meal and cleaning the kitchen every evening will be noticeably easier.

3. Physically touch every item in your home.

When you hold an item in your hand, you are forced to make a decision about it. Every item you touch can either be relocated, removed, or returned. Put as many things as you can in the remove pile.

4. Ask three questions.

Ask yourself three questions for every item you touch:

Do I need it?Why do I have it?What would I use if I didn’t own it?

5. Donate, donate, donate.

As you begin removing clutter from your home, donate as much as you can. Trying to sell all your clutter only adds stress and burden to an already difficult process. Expensive items (or if you desperately need the money) are the only exceptions.

For the most part, find a local charity that you believe in and donate your things there.

6. Find inspiration to keep going.

Find as much motivation and inspiration as you need. The reality is this process is going to take more than one day, or even one weekend. So, find your places of encouragement. You can watch my YouTube channel, check out the Archives page of this blog, download the Clutterfree App, or find another blogger that you resonate with.

Either way, the more you are reminded that owning less is better, the easier it will be to declutter your stuff. And like I said before, the less you own, the easier it is to clean. And that’s why:

Spring decluttering is always better than spring cleaning.

12 Rules for Navigating the Internet Intentionally

Is the Internet a net positive or a net negative for society?

This was our topic of conversation at a recent dinner party.

As somebody who has made their living on the Internet for the last eight years, and has seen its power to reach so many people with the life-giving benefits of owning less, there was little debate in my mind to the question above. But there were some who disagreed and a fascinating conversation ensued.

In the end, we decided it comes down to how an individual chooses to use the Internet—and what the future of the Internet might turn out to be.

But the conversation got me thinking that it might be helpful to share some of the lessons I have learned over the last 12 years of writing for the Internet on how to use it in a helpful way.

12 Rules for Navigating the Internet Intentionally

1. Social Media is a Stream. Use it Accordingly.

There’s a reason we call it a social media stream—the information never stops. To use social media effectively and to keep it from becoming a distraction, think of it as a river. You don’t jump in a river and try to experience all the water that has already passed. You’d never catch up with all of it. Instead, jump in, partake in the conversation, and then jump out.  

2. Choose creation over consumption.

The Internet can be used as a powerful tool for good. It can also be a terrible waste of time. The biggest difference between those two outcomes is whether you are using the Internet to create or consume. Notice the difference and choose the former.

Watching endless cat videos or pranks on YouTube is consuming. While writing a blog, creating a video, sharing your opinion on Facebook, or encouraging a friend on Instagram are all examples of using the Internet to create a better world.

3. Realize that everybody is writing fiction about themselves.

The Internet has sped up the pace of comparison considerably. We compare the size of our homes, the model of our car, the beauty of our family, the vacations we take… even the food we eat nowadays.

When you see somebody’s picture on Instagram of their picture-perfect life, remind yourself again that nobody is living a perfect life. And social media is only a highlight reel of a person’s experience.

In many ways, the caricature we post online about ourselves is fiction—it’s only the story we want the world to see. Nobody is posting photos of themselves exhausted, sitting on a couch eating potato chips, but everybody does it.

4. Prefer substance over clickbait.

It’s helpful to remember that many websites make their income based solely on how many pageviews they receive. Advertisers pay the site owner an agreed-upon dollar amount per one thousand impressions (or CPM). Similar is a PPC ad (pay-per-click).

In both scenarios, the sole business plan of the site owner is to get as many people clicking onto (and within) their website as possible because each click results in income. They could care less if they are providing value as long as they are generating clicks.

To navigate the Internet effectively, prefer websites and articles that offer real substance, rather than clickbait headlines and stories.

5. Just because you can find the information online doesn’t mean you should.

One of the most beautiful aspects of the Internet is also the most dangerous. Literally any piece of information can be located online day or night, 24 hours/day.

Want to know the weather in Barcelona? You can find it in a few seconds. Who does your favorite sports team play next weekend? Easy. What’s your ex-girlfriend up to these days? Who starred in that one movie? What’s the price of tea in China?

Anything and everything can be known whenever you want. And this reality too often pulls us away from the conversations and people right in front of us. Just because you can find that piece of information anytime you want, doesn’t mean you need to (or even should). Sometimes it’s better to stay present in the moment—or let the debate die.

6. Find voices you trust.

There are many incredible minds posting content on the Internet in every available form: words, videos, photos, tweets, audio, plus others.

When you find a content creator that is helpful to you and challenges you in positive ways, remember their name and the website. Write it down or subscribe to their emails.

Some of my favorites are Leo Babauta, Ryan Holiday, Ann Voskamp, Seth Godin, and Brian Baumgartner. Find voices that you trust and enjoy, and then return to their work routinely—the fact that such amazing content can be found for free online truly is amazing.

7. Don’t be someone you’re not.

We let our kids open limited social media accounts when they turned 13. Many of their peers started on social media much earlier. But my explanation to them was always the same, “The minimum age to open an account on social media is 13. Sure, you can just lie about your age or click accept on the terms even if you aren’t 13 in real-life. But your first action on social media is not going to be a lie.”

Like I mentioned before, everyone is spinning fiction on social media. But it’s important to remain true to yourself and who you are both online and offline. A lie online is still a lie. Don’t be someone you’re not.

8.  Remember that information won’t always soothe your anxiety.

I think information is great and almost always positive. But information still has its limitations. And information alone won’t always soothe your anxiety.

It’s certainly not wrong to research that one disease while you’re waiting to hear back from your doctor’s office about the test results. But just know that reading more about it probably isn’t going to soothe your anxiety—it might even make it worse.

9. Don’t argue politics with strangers.

If you want to increase your enjoyment of the Internet and life in general, stop debating politics with strangers. Talk with your friends, sure—and that can even happen online.

But once you start debating people that you don’t know in real life, it becomes far too easy to make negative assumptions about the other person and their character or motivation. Talk politics with people you know and love and trust… and you’ll be less likely to make negative assumptions about their motives or character.

10. Know that not every statement you disagree with is a personal attack on you.

Sometimes that social media post or news report had nothing to do with you—even if you disagree with it. Not every negative statement about your diet, your industry, your religion, your way of life, or your political party is a personal attack on you. And most of the time it’s just better to let it go and move on with your life.

11. You can’t believe everything you see on the Internet.

Websites can be faked, reviews can be faked, identities can be faked, news can be faked, photos can be faked, even videos can be faked these days. With the Internet available to everyone, almost everything on the Internet can be a fake—sometimes for fun, but sometimes by people with really, really bad motives. Verify, verify, verify.

12. Know when to take a break.

As Anne Lamott once said, “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” The last rule for navigating the Internet effectively is to take time away and do more things that make you forget to check your phone. The Internet is not life—and that’s coming from somebody who makes their living on it.

Those are my 12 rules for navigating the Internet intentionally. I think you will find them increase your enjoyment of the Internet considerably.

What would you add?

12 Rules for Navigating the Internet Effectively

Is the Internet a net positive or a net negative for society?

This was our topic of conversation at a recent dinner party.

As somebody who has made their living on the Internet for the last eight years, and has seen its power to reach so many people with the life-giving benefits of owning less, there was little debate in my mind to the question above. But there were some who disagreed and a fascinating conversation ensued.

In the end, we decided it comes down to how an individual chooses to use the Internet—and what the future of the Internet might turn out to be.

But the conversation got me thinking that it might be helpful to share some of the lessons I have learned over the last 12 years of writing for the Internet on how to use it in a helpful way.

12 Rules for Navigating the Internet Effectively

1. Social Media is a Stream. Use it Accordingly.

There’s a reason we call it a social media stream—the information never stops. To use social media effectively and to keep it from becoming a distraction, think of it as a river. You don’t jump in a river and try to experience all the water that has already passed. You’d never catch up with all of it. Instead, jump in, partake in the conversation, and then jump out.  

2. Choose creation over consumption.

The Internet can be used as a powerful tool for good. It can also be a terrible waste of time. The biggest difference between those two outcomes is whether you are using the Internet to create or consume. Notice the difference and choose the former.

Watching endless cat videos or pranks on YouTube is consuming. While writing a blog, creating a video, sharing your opinion on Facebook, or encouraging a friend on Instagram are all examples of using the Internet to create a better world.

3. Realize that everybody is writing fiction about themselves.

The Internet has sped up the pace of comparison considerably. We compare the size of our homes, the model of our car, the beauty of our family, the vacations we take… even the food we eat nowadays.

When you see somebody’s picture on Instagram of their picture-perfect life, remind yourself again that nobody is living a perfect life. And social media is only a highlight reel of a person’s experience.

In many ways, the caricature we post online about ourselves is fiction—it’s only the story we want the world to see. Nobody is posting photos of themselves exhausted, sitting on a couch eating potato chips, but everybody does it.

4. Prefer substance over clickbait.

It’s helpful to remember that many websites make their income based solely on how many pageviews they receive. Advertisers pay the site owner an agreed-upon dollar amount per one thousand impressions (or CPM). Similar is a PPC ad (pay-per-click).

In both scenarios, the sole business plan of the site owner is to get as many people clicking onto (and within) their website as possible because each click results in income. They could care less if they are providing value as long as they are generating clicks.

To navigate the Internet effectively, prefer websites and articles that offer real substance, rather than clickbait headlines and stories.

5. Just because you can find the information online doesn’t mean you should.

One of the most beautiful aspects of the Internet is also the most dangerous. Literally any piece of information can be located online day or night, 24 hours/day.

Want to know the weather in Barcelona? You can find it in a few seconds. Who does your favorite sports team play next weekend? Easy. What’s your ex-girlfriend up to these days? Who starred in that one movie? What’s the price of tea in China?

Anything and everything can be known whenever you want. And this reality too often pulls us away from the conversations and people right in front of us. Just because you can find that piece of information anytime you want, doesn’t mean you need to (or even should). Sometimes it’s better to stay present in the moment—or let the debate die.

6. Find voices you trust.

There are many incredible minds posting content on the Internet in every available form: words, videos, photos, tweets, audio, plus others.

When you find a content creator that is helpful to you and challenges you in positive ways, remember their name and the website. Write it down or subscribe to their emails.

Some of my favorites are Leo Babauta, Ryan Holiday, Ann Voskamp, Seth Godin, and Brian Baumgartner. Find voices that you trust and enjoy, and then return to their work routinely—the fact that such amazing content can be found for free online truly is amazing.

7. Don’t be someone you’re not.

We let our kids open limited social media accounts when they turned 13. Many of their peers started on social media much earlier. But my explanation to them was always the same, “The minimum age to open an account on social media is 13. Sure, you can just lie about your age or click accept on the terms even if you aren’t 13 in real-life. But you’re first action on social media is not going to be a lie.”

Like I mentioned before, everyone is spinning fiction on social media. But it’s important to remain true to yourself and who you are both online and offline. A lie online is still a lie. Don’t be someone you’re not.

8.  Remember that information won’t always soothe your anxiety.

I think information is great and almost always positive. But information still has its limitations. And information alone won’t always soothe your anxiety.

It’s certainly not wrong to research that one disease while you’re waiting to hear back from your doctor’s office about the test results. But just know that reading more about it probably isn’t going to soothe your anxiety—it might even make it worse.

9. Don’t argue politics with strangers.

If you want to increase your enjoyment of the Internet and life in general, stop debating politics with strangers. Talk with your friends, sure—and that can even happen online.

But once you start debating people that you don’t know in real life, it becomes far too easy to make negative assumptions about the other person and their character or motivation. Talk politics with people you know and love and trust… and you’ll be less likely to make negative assumptions about their motives or character.

10. Know that not every statement you disagree with is a personal attack on you.

Sometimes that social media post or news report had nothing to do with you—even if you disagree with it. Not every negative statement about your diet, your industry, your religion, your way of life, or your political party is a personal attack on you. And most of the time it’s just better to let it go and move on with your life.

11. You can’t believe everything you see on the Internet.

Websites can be faked, reviews can be faked, identities can be faked, news can be faked, photos can be faked, even videos can be faked these days. With the Internet available to everyone, almost everything on the Internet can be a fake—sometimes for fun, but sometimes by people with really, really bad motives. Verify, verify, verify.

12. Know when to take a break.

As Anne Lamott once said, “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” The last rule for navigating the Internet effectively is to take time away and do more things that make you forget to check your phone. The Internet is not life—and that’s coming from somebody who makes their living on it.

Those are my 12 rules for navigating the Internet effectively. I think you will find them increase your enjoyment of the Internet considerably.

What would you add?

9 Modern Decluttering Strategies To Create a Home With Less Stuff

Even if you are not a regular reader of this blog, you are probably motivated to declutter your home.

After all, we’ve all been spending more time at home this past year, Spring cleaning is right around the corner, and more and more media outlets are covering the rise of minimalism. Younger generations are going to extremes by putting all they own into a van, while Baby Boomers are retiring, downsizing, and choosing to save money, time, and energy.

No matter where you fall on the spectrum, decluttering is a great idea! It will help you feel emotionally lighter and allow you to focus on what really matters. It’ll save time, money, and energy. You’ll love it.

Of course, there are different ways and strategies for decluttering your home. If you’re just getting started, or looking for an approach to help you reach the next level, here are 9 modern voices in the decluttering movement.

Find one that works best for you.

9 Decluttering Strategies To Create a Home With Less Stuff

1. Marie Kondo: What Sparks Joy

Professional organizer Marie Kondo, introduced her Spark Joy strategy to the world with her best-selling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. And she followed that up with a popular Netflix series.

Marie’s strategy focuses on decluttering by category (rather than room-by-room). These 5 categories include clothes, books, papers, miscellaneous items, and sentimental items. Her strategy encourages you to bring all your items from a category (clothes, for example) into one room and begin sorting.

When decluttering, Marie focuses on getting rid of items that no longer have value to you. She asks you to physically hold a possession and ask yourself if it “sparks joy,” and discard it if it doesn’t (after thanking it for its service).

Her KonMari method will bring you a clutter-free home that will spark more joy in your life.

2. The Becoming Minimalist (Joshua Becker) Method: Room-By-Room Decluttering

My decluttering method focuses on room-by-room decluttering, starting with the easiest, most lived-in areas first. When you begin this way, you’ll immediately notice the benefits of your decluttered spaces, which will motivate you to work on more difficult areas.

It is the strategy that forms the basis for my book, The Minimalist Home, the Clutterfree App, and my Uncluttered Course.

I have found the Becoming Minimalist strategy to be the most effective for the most amount of people. Needless to say, I’d recommend you start here.

There are 5 main steps to my method, which is heavily goal-oriented and makes sure to include your entire family:

Set and define goals for your home and specific rooms so you know what you’re working towards.Work to include your family in the process and let them know why you’re decluttering. Getting everyone on board is important.Start with the easiest, high-traffic room, and then continue to work room-by-room until complete. Starting with the removal of duplicates, handle each item to determine if it can be removed or relocated in the home.Take notice of the benefits of owning less as they arise. Decluttering is life-giving and will affect you in a positive way!Finally, revisit and revise your goals; looking for greater impact with your home and life. The process is ongoing and evolving.

3. Peter Walsh Method: Declutter Any Room in 5 Easy Steps

There are just 5 easy steps you need to take to declutter any room with the Peter Walsh Method. The main difference here? Remove every single thing from the room you’re working on. When doing so, make sure to arrange similar items together so it will be easier to sort through them later.

Empty the space. Remove everything from the room! Next, declare your intention for the room and create a vision. Ask yourself, “What do I want from this room?” This will help you decide what to keep and what to get rid of. Next, take the items you’re decluttering and donate or trash them immediately. Last, return the items to your room to complete your vision. Peter Walsh uses these simple steps in every episode of his show, Enough Already! to help families get rid of overwhelming clutter.

For the past 20 years, Peter Walsh has been working internationally helping families declutter and organize their homes and their lives. He is the star of the new Australian series: Space Invaders.

4. Fly Lady: Do a Little Every Day

With the Fly Lady method, you declutter in short bursts and use a 15-minute timer. The goal is to avoid burning yourself out, since decluttering can be a mind-boggling task. 

Sort your items into three categories: “Give Away,” “Throw Away,” and “Put Away.” When considering individual items, ask yourself if you love the item, and if you’ve used it recently. Remove duplicate items and keep the better one. Also, think about whether an item has sentimental value, or if it gives you guilt and causes sadness when you see it.

Fly Lady recommends moving fast when you’re in a decluttering sprint. By doing a little every day, your whole house will be decluttered in just a couple of months.

5. Colleen Madsen: Remove 1 Item a Day

Colleen Madsen’s site, 365 Less Things, debuted when she made the decision to remove one item from her home every single day. She committed to giving away, selling, or throwing away one thing each day for one solid year as a promise to herself via a New Year’s resolution. This journey continued for Colleen for four years!

Colleen urges you to start a little purging of your own. Whether you choose one item per day with her philosophy, or more than one to increase the speed of your decluttering, the goal is to declutter every single day—don’t overwhelm yourself.

I tend to think you can make faster progress in your home than just one item per day, but there are many people who have found the slower pace helpful and doable (just be sure you’re not bringing more than one item into your home each day).

A similar decluttering strategy is the Minimalism Game where you remove a number of items coinciding with the day of the month. On the 1st day of the month, you remove 1 item… on the 5th day, you remove 5 items… all through the entire month.

6. The Minimalists Packing Party

If “Party” is in the name, it must be fun, right? Why not make your decluttering journey enjoyable? With this decluttering philosophy created by The Minimalists, the packing party invites you to put all of your possessions into boxes as if you were moving. Invite friends over to help and order pizza.

After the party, remove items from your boxes only as you actually need them. These are the things that add value to your life. 

After 3 weeks, you’ll find most of your belongings are still packed away in boxes. At this point, you can donate, sell, or trash these items, and because they’re already packed, you’ll find it much easier to part with it!

7. Leo Babauta: A Comprehensive Guide for a Minimalist Home

Leo Babauta, longtime writer at Zen Habits and one of my earliest inspirations into minimalism, offers a comprehensive guide to creating a minimalist home. There are 3 compelling benefits Leo mentions about having a more minimalist home: it’s less stressful and more calming, it’s more appealing, and it’s easier to clean.

A minimalist home will have only essential furniture, clear surfaces, will prioritize quality over quantity, and will still have personal touches with accent decorations. Leo invites you to change your philosophy on possessions and aim for the ideals of a minimalist home. In his guide, he provides 16 simple tips to declutter, some of which include plain visuals, having a place for everything, and focusing on displaying only the essentials.

Leo’s approach may sound too extreme for some. But it’s your home, you apply the principles how you want to apply them.

8. 40 Bags in 40 Days

In 2011, Ann Marie introduced a simple idea: A forty-day period (coinciding with the 40 days of Lent) where you go through your home and declutter one area a day.

The idea immediately struck a chord with many volunteering to do the challenge alongside her. Annually, it results in one of the largest decluttering movements of the year, including a Facebook group with over 80,000 participants.

This year’s 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge started on Wednesday, February 17th. But if the idea resonates with you, I’d encourage you to get started right away.

The strategy is helpful as you choose the 40 areas that you most want to declutter over the 40 days. And the idea of “filling a bag” encourages more decluttering than just 1 item/day, without becoming overwhelming.

9. Hire Some Decluttering (NAPO or NASMM)

Don’t want to declutter by yourself? Enlist the help of NAPO: the National Association of Productivity & Organizing Professionals. The organization has over 3,500 members worldwide who are dedicated to help individuals and organizations bring order and efficiency to their lives.

Or, if you are moving, you may consider enlisting the help of NASMM: the National Association of Senior & Specialty Move Managers.

Both organizations would help guide you on how to hire the right professional for your needs, whether you need decluttering help, a professional organizer, a professional mover, or any combination. As you might expect, fees depend on the professional’s experience, your location, and the services you request.

— —

Without overthinking the options, which strategy resonates the most with you? Pick one, and jump in.

No matter which approach you take, you’ll quickly discover the benefits of decluttering your home. You’ll love owning less.

Encouraging Simplicity. Weekend Reads.

Never underestimate the importance of removing stuff you don’t need.

Encouragement provides us with motivation to persevere. It invites us to dream dreams of significance for our lives. And it begs us to work diligently with optimism and promise.

Overcoming the pull of consumerism is a difficult challenge regardless of our stage in life. Simplicity requires encouragement. To that end, I hope you will find motivation in these articles below.

Each post was intentionally chosen to inspire simplicity in your life. For maximum effect, find a quiet moment this weekend and enjoy them with a fresh cup of coffee or tea.

I thought buying things would make me feel better. It didn’t. | The Guardian by Sirin Kale. Many of us are living for the buzz of the doorbell – spending billions we can’t afford on stuff we don’t need. Here is how to recognize the problem and regain control.

10 Problems Solved By Owning Less Stuff | Ronald Banks. It’s crucial to understand that when we hold on to things, we’re creating unnecessary hurdles in our lives that we can easily avoid if we let go of the excess.

11 Easy Ways to Uncomplicate Your Life | Marc and Angel Hack Life by Angel Chernoff. Truth be told, the average day is actually pretty simple, but we insist on making it complicated.

5 Must-Know Pieces of Advice Before You Start Minimalism | The Fun Sized Life by Renee Benes. Depending on where you’re at in life and how much stuff you have with you, it can be tough to know how to start minimalism. Where do you begin?

100 (Short) Rules for a Better Life | Ryan Holiday. So many people have struggled in the dark before us and their experiences create light.

The Pictures We Hang On Our Walls | Joshua Becker on YouTube

“Make Your Bed” and 20 Other One-Minute Habits for a Clutterfree Home

Clutterfree is more than a project, it is also a process.

It is one thing to declutter your home one time. But keeping it clutterfree requires healthy habits going forward.

One of the most simple and effective rules for getting your life under control and keeping your home clutterfree is the “one-minute rule” introduced by Gretchen Rubin.

Complete any task that can be finished in one minute immediately.

Followed consistently, this rule will make an amazing difference in your home and life. It has for me. Here’s a list of places where you can begin implementing this rule right away—I call them one-minute clutterfree habits.

21 One-Minute Clutterfree Habits

These micro-habits will definitely help keep your home clutterfree.

1. Make Your Bed

First thing, right away, as soon as you get up.

2. Put away your coat and shoes.

Also scarves and gloves and hats. In the coat closet where they belong.

3. Recycle the junk mail.

In fact, I throw it into the recycle bin in the garage and don’t even let it enter my home.

4. Put clean dishes away.

Don’t leave them out—on the counter, in the sink, or the dishwasher.

5. Don’t leave clothes on the floor or furniture.

Dirty clothes in the laundry pile. Clean clothes back in the closet/drawer.

6. Put away your keys and change.

Wherever your drop-zone is (ours is a drawer), use it always. Bonus: You’ll always know where your keys are. :)

7. Don’t leave out your bathroom toiletries.

In the morning after getting ready and at night before going to bed. Twice/day. Keep your bathroom counter clear.

8. Put kids’ school items away.

Teach/Show your kids where their backpacks belong and get them trained early.

9. Empty the car entirely when you arrive home.

Whatever you brought into the car that day, take out when you return home. You’ll love driving a clutterfree vehicle!

10. Wash your snack dishes/cups immediately.

Pots and pans can take longer than one minute. But the bowl you used for ice cream won’t. Wash snack dishes quickly with a dishwand.

11. Store those kitchen appliances.

Toaster, coffee pot, blender… store them all out of sight (even if you use them every day). Trust me, you’ll love it.

12. Pick up toys.

There is no age too early to teach your children how to clean up after themselves.

13. Tear down cardboard boxes.

Even if you’re going to keep them, flatten and free up space.

14. Put away the remote controls.

Don’t leave remote controls scattered all over the living room. Put them back where they belong after each use.

15. Return chargers and cords to drawers.

Especially if you charge electronics in shared spaces.

16. Fold your blanket after use.

Wadded up on the couch or folded nicely? Choose folded every time.

17. Empty full trash cans/bins.

Someone has to take out the trash. If the bin is full, remember the “one-minute” rule and get it done.

18. Return reading materials to their designated home.

Magazines, newspapers, books, Sudoku, whatever.

19. Throw out any expired leftovers/food.

Clear up the space in your fridge or pantry.

20. Put away your tools.

You know who you are…

21. File those papers.

Few things clutter a room quicker than piles of paper.

Followed consistently, these micro-habits will make an amazing difference in your home. And who doesn’t love a clutterfree home?

How Four Words Helped This Young Man Walk Again

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from Chris Norton.

Can you think of a moment when someone’s words drastically impacted your life? Maybe this moment came from a parent, a teacher, or mentor.  Maybe it came from a doctor, a coach, or a friend. For better or worse, words can have a huge impact on the way we live our lives.

They can make or break someone’s day. Our words have so much power and influence, much more than we often give them credit for. How you choose to use this super-power can make the biggest difference in someone else’s world. I’ve learned this first hand.

This lesson came to me on the 4th night of my unexpected ICU stay. Four days earlier, I was just a normal, athletic, 18 year old freshman college football player until I made a tackle that left me paralyzed from the neck down. 

After emergency surgery, I was given a mere 3% chance of ever moving below my neck. Let me clarify, not a 3% chance to walk but a 3% chance just to move. My life had changed forever.

Sleep was nearly impossible. It was so quiet I couldn’t hide from my thoughts and fears. Most nights, I cried myself to sleep.

At 2:00 AM on the fourth night, I lied in the gurney wide awake.

It wasn’t just worry that kept me up, every two hours a doctor or a nurse entered my room to make sure my vitals were in check. Typically their interaction with me was always routine and clinical. But on this night, a physician entered the room and did something different.

She knelt down next to my bed and said, “Chris, look me in the eyes.” Thinking back on it now, I remember she was kind of mean about it! 

Her voice was direct and commanding, she sounded more like a character from an old time western movie than the slender woman in her 60’s with short red hair and glasses, that knelt beside me. 

Our eyes locked and she said, “My name is Georgia. I’m from Wyoming. Do you know anyone from Wyoming?”

I told her no, and I think, “Where is this going?” She continued, “Well, people from Wyoming don’t tell lies. I’m here to tell you—

you will beat this. You will beat this.” 

She delivered these words with so much conviction, I couldn’t help but start to cry. Up to this point I questioned whether all the time and effort I put toward my recovery would ever pay off. 

Doctor Georgia didn’t say, “You CAN beat this,” she told me, “You WILL beat this.” Every part of my being believed Doctor Georgia in that moment, and instantly my faith was restored. A day later, when I started physical therapy, I heard her words echo in my head, “Chris, you will beat this!”

Day by day, I grew stronger and stronger. Doctor Georgia helped me discover just how much impact one person’s words can have.

Fast forward 5 weeks. Though my stay in the hospital was far from over, at this point my resolve was unshakeable. I would lie in bed dreaming about one day moving my legs and walking again. I put these dreams into action by working as hard as I could in every physical and occupational therapy session.

I decided I needed to do more, so I asked my physical and occupational therapists to write down workouts for me to do outside of my scheduled therapy time. I kept reminding myself, “Your future will take care of itself when you take care of today.” A few days later, on Thanksgiving Day of all days, with my family by my side. A miracle happened…

I wiggled my left big toe.

Just one week earlier a doctor said I would never move my legs again. But there in that moment, I had proved him wrong. And the big left toe was just the start. Over the next several years, I slowly gained strength throughout my legs. Eventually I was able to walk across my graduation stage. A couple years later I had enough strength to walk my bride, Emily down the aisle.

Because of those four little words — “You will beat this”— I never gave up. And 5 weeks later, I was able to defy my prognosis.

Do you think Doctor Georgia has any idea the impact her words had on me? We rarely find out if what we say makes a difference, but I’m here to tell you it does.

When we allow ourselves the realization that our words have the power to hurt or heal, we awaken within us the ability to inspire others. Because the truth is, we all have the same power Doctor Georgia has. She chose to use that power to inspire me, and because of that my life changed forever.

Ever since I heard those inspiring words, I’ve committed myself to being a “Doctor Georgia” to everyone I meet in life. This commitment is the reason I became a motivational speaker, it’s why I became an author to share my story with the world, it’s the reason I started a nonprofit, and the reason I committed myself to fostering and adopting children in need.

I want to challenge you today. I challenge you to be a Doctor Georgia for others. Our words have the power to hurt or to heal, and everyone is fighting a battle whether we can see it or not.

We all know someone in our lives in need of inspiration. So next time you interact with them, try replacing a passive statement of, “You can beat this…” with an emphatic one like, “You WILL beat this!”

Not only will you energize and inspire others, you’ll feel energized and inspired in your own life. We all have the power to change lives, the only thing left to do is to use it.

***

Chris Norton is the author of The Seven Longest Yards. Watch this powerful moment with Dr. Georgia and his entire story in the new documentary 7 Yards: The Chris Norton Story, available everywhere tomorrow. Or watch the official trailer today.

How Four Words of Hope Changed My Life Forever

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from Chris Norton.

Can you think of a moment when someone’s words drastically impacted your life? Maybe this moment came from a parent, a teacher, or mentor.  Maybe it came from a doctor, a coach, or a friend. For better or worse, words can have a huge impact on the way we live our lives.

They can make or break someone’s day. Our words have so much power and influence, much more than we often give them credit for. How you choose to use this super-power can make the biggest difference in someone else’s world. I’ve learned this first hand.

This lesson came to me on the 4th night of my unexpected ICU stay. Four days earlier, I was just a normal, athletic, 18 year old freshman college football player until I made a tackle that left me paralyzed from the neck down. 

After emergency surgery, I was given a mere 3% chance of ever moving below my neck. Let me clarify, not a 3% chance to walk but a 3% chance just to move. My life had changed forever.

Sleep was nearly impossible. It was so quiet I couldn’t hide from my thoughts and fears. Most nights, I cried myself to sleep.

At 2:00 AM on the fourth night, I lied in the gurney wide awake.

It wasn’t just worry that kept me up, every two hours a doctor or a nurse entered my room to make sure my vitals were in check. Typically their interaction with me was always routine and clinical. But on this night, a physician entered the room and did something different.

She knelt down next to my bed and said, “Chris, look me in the eyes.” Thinking back on it now, I remember she was kind of mean about it! 

Her voice was direct and commanding, she sounded more like a character from an old time western movie than the slender woman in her 60’s with short red hair and glasses, that knelt beside me. 

Our eyes locked and she said, “My name is Georgia. I’m from Wyoming. Do you know anyone from Wyoming?”

I told her no, and I think, “Where is this going?” She continued, “Well, people from Wyoming don’t tell lies. I’m here to tell you—

you will beat this. You will beat this.” 

She delivered these words with so much conviction, I couldn’t help but start to cry. Up to this point I questioned whether all the time and effort I put toward my recovery would ever pay off. 

Doctor Georgia didn’t say, “You CAN beat this,” she told me, “You WILL beat this.” Every part of my being believed Doctor Georgia in that moment, and instantly my faith was restored. A day later, when I started physical therapy, I heard her words echo in my head, “Chris, you will beat this!”

Day by day, I grew stronger and stronger. Doctor Georgia helped me discover just how much impact one person’s words can have.

Fast forward 5 weeks. Though my stay in the hospital was far from over, at this point my resolve was unshakeable. I would lie in bed dreaming about one day moving my legs and walking again. I put these dreams into action by working as hard as I could in every physical and occupational therapy session.

I decided I needed to do more, so I asked my physical and occupational therapists to write down workouts for me to do outside of my scheduled therapy time. I kept reminding myself, “Your future will take care of itself when you take care of today.” A few days later, on Thanksgiving Day of all days, with my family by my side. A miracle happened…

I wiggled my left big toe.

Just one week earlier a doctor said I would never move my legs again. But there in that moment, I had proved him wrong. And the big left toe was just the start. Over the next several years, I slowly gained strength throughout my legs. Eventually I was able to walk across my graduation stage. A couple years later I had enough strength to walk my bride, Emily down the aisle.

Because of those four little words — “You will beat this”— I never gave up. And 5 weeks later, I was able to defy my prognosis.

Do you think Doctor Georgia has any idea the impact her words had on me? We rarely find out if what we say makes a difference, but I’m here to tell you it does.

When we allow ourselves the realization that our words have the power to hurt or heal, we awaken within us the ability to inspire others. Because the truth is, we all have the same power Doctor Georgia has. She chose to use that power to inspire me, and because of that my life changed forever.

Ever since I heard those inspiring words, I’ve committed myself to being a “Doctor Georgia” to everyone I meet in life. This commitment is the reason I became a motivational speaker, it’s why I became an author to share my story with the world, it’s the reason I started a nonprofit, and the reason I committed myself to fostering and adopting children in need.

I want to challenge you today. I challenge you to be a Doctor Georgia for others. Our words have the power to hurt or to heal, and everyone is fighting a battle whether we can see it or not.

We all know someone in our lives in need of inspiration. So next time you interact with them, try replacing a passive statement of, “You can beat this…” with an emphatic one like, “You WILL beat this!”

Not only will you energize and inspire others, you’ll feel energized and inspired in your own life. We all have the power to change lives, the only thing left to do is to use it.

***

Chris Norton is the author of The Seven Longest Yards. Watch this powerful moment with Dr. Georgia and his entire story in the new documentary 7 Yards: The Chris Norton Story, available everywhere tomorrow. Or watch the official trailer today.