The Effortless Life: A Manual for Contentment, Mindfulness, & Flow

by Leo Babauta

A Concise Manual for Contentment, Mindfulness, & Flow.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Philosophy, Lifestyle, Psychology, Personal Development, Audiobook

57 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Leo Babauta is a simplicity blogger and author. He created Zen Habits, a Top 25 blog (according to TIME magazine) with 260,000 subscribers, mnmlist.com, and the best-selling books focus, The Power of Less, and Zen To Done.

Babauta is a former journalist of 18 years, a husband, father of six children, and in 2010 moved from Guam to San Francisco, where he leads a simple life.

He started Zen Habits to chronicle and share what he's learned while changing a number of habits.

Reviews

[Sergei_kalinin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Это очень смешная книга.

"Смешная" не буквально (в ней нет анекдотов и прибауток), а по уровню изложенных в ней идей.

"Смешная" - не означает насмешку над этой книгой и её идеями. Смех - это клинок с двумя гранями; одна из которых - разрушать и обесценивать, другая - чувствовать радость и позитив.

По существу:
Книга искренняя. Она описывает личный опыт автора, и это честно, и это интересно, и это особенно ценно. Это плюс :)

Но это не дневник, т.е. не текст, который пишется только для самого себя, и который читается ТОЛЬКО самим автором этого текста. Это было опубликовано для широкой аудитории. И даже если книга не содержит прямой и навязчивой пропаганды ("вступайте только в нашу секту, не дайте себя обмануть в другом месте" :) ), то она содержит в себе ряд продвигаемых автором идей разной степени токсичности ;)

В чём токсичность? Для современного человека остаётся не так много возможностей (стратегий) для саморазвития и самосовершенствования. Ещё в начале 20 века это очень хорошо понимал Гурджиев, который сформулировал идею "четвертого пути". Поясню.

Самосовершенствование = образ жизни. Методы самосовершенствования экологичны. Если ещё проще: то, что хорошо и прекрасно для блогера Лео Бабауты, может быть совершенно бесполезным для автослесаря Петровича. Минимализм - очень древнее изобретение :) Гурджиев называет это "путём отшельника". В любой религии есть куча текстов, которые призывают отказываться от излишеств и жить "простой" жизнью (и Бабаута здесь не оригинален).

При этом уже тогда учителя и наставники прекрасно понимали, что (уж простите за тавтологию!) проще всего простой жизнью жить в соответствующих простых условиях - удалившись от "мира" (людских дел и отношений); поселившись в гордом одиночестве где-нибудь в хижине в горах. В определенном смысле это очень пересекается с идеальной жизненной моделью поколения Y - абсолютно свободный одиночка-фрилансер, живущий в своём индивидуализированном уютном мирке.

Разве что во времена расцвета традиционных религий (того же даосизма, который так любит цитировать Бабаута) "путь отшельника" понимался как физическая изоляция, в то время как сейчас речь идёт больше о психологической автономии, о "внутреннем отшельничестве".

А если я не хочу идти "путем отшельника", который предлагает и продвигает Бабаута в своей книге? По сути дела книга - пересказ старых религиозных истин (у Бабауты это дзэн и даосизм, но это есть и в любой другой религии). Есть ведь огромное количество людей, живущих не жизнью блогера-отшельника Лео Бабауты, а совсем иначе. У них своя собственная жизненная экология. Подойдёт ли им продвигаемая автором "жизнь без усилий"?

Почему вещи - это плохо? Мир состоит из вещей; отказываясь от вещей, я отказываюсь от мира. Почему бы тогда сразу не убиться об стену - это быстренько бы решило все проблемы с минимализмом? Вроде как автор призывает отказываться от лишних вещей, но как решить, какие именно вещи "лишние"? Главный подтекст книги: "Как сделать так, чтобы быть более счастливым?", и отказ от вещей (по мнению автора) - это способ стать счастливее. А если человек счастлив именно от обладания вещами?!

Абсолютно та же самая история с призывами отказаться от борьбы, от "напряжения", от успеха, от целей. Это всё части человеческой (индивидуальной, социальной, культурной, исторической и т.д. и т.п.) жизни. Почему мы должны отказываться от этого?

Кстати, по поводу отказа от целей идея неплохая, но расписана у Бабауты очень слабенько. Те же самые идеи (только раньше, и гораздо более толково и практично) расписаны у Тимура Гагина в его текстах о "достигаторстве".

В качестве резюме: мне вот лично очень не хватает не очередного пересказа азбучных религиозных истин об "отказе от мирского", а некой действительно новой модели саморазвития ("четвёртого пути" - "пути хитрого человека" по Гурджиеву), подходящей для современного человека и для современной жизни.

И было бы очень здорово, чтобы эта модель не навязывала однобокие ценности вроде "избыток вещей - это плохо, отказ от вещей - хорошо". "Четвертый путь" должен опираться на ценности и экологию современного целовека во всём их разнообразии. Т.е. нас много и мы все разные :) И далеко не всем подойдёт модель "простой жизни" от блогера-буддиста Лео Бабауты :)))

[Charmin · Rating 5 out of 5]

HIGHLIGHTS:
1. NEEDS:
If you have few needs, you have few expenses and then have a reduced need for work.
- If you have few needs, you have less pressure to succeed and you can relax more.

2. SUBTRACT:
- Every single thing added to our lives requires new efforts.
- We don’t account for all the maintenance required for each new thing, friend, hobby, and goal.
- Get out of commitments that aren’t enhancing your life, but rather complicate it.
- Learn to subtract expectations and needs.

3. TRUE NEEDS:
- True needs have been complicated only by the society we’ve created. The long hours that we must work to support invented needs.
- Reduce your needs, be content with little, and life‘s required effort drops by a mile.

4. Let go of pre-defined outcomes.
- Stop letting yourself be limited by goals. If you live without goals, you explore new territory.
- A life without expectations: you accept reality as it is. You accept people as they are. You do not force people into containers that you have created for them.
- If you learn to give up expected outcomes, and let go of wishing that things were different, you won’t get upset. You’ll adapt. You’ll flow.

5. BE FLUID:
- When we acknowledge the fluidity of our lives, we learn to use that fluidity to our advantage. We flow. We are open to changing currents. We see things with open eyes, instead of trying to make the world adjust to our plans and goals.
- Do your best to work by not spending so much energy pushing yourself into doing stuff you hate.
- When we are in the midst of chaos, let go of the need to control it.
- By leaving yourself fluid, you allow yourself to see things as they change, adapt with balance, learn as things happen, and use this new information to change your course intelligently and intuitively.

6. UNNECESSARY:
- Do Nothing Unnecessary
- By giving careful consideration to each action we take, we can start to refrain from unnecessary actions.
- When you find yourself thinking about what you want, start appreciating what you have every day.

7. CURATE:
- Be a curator of your life.
- Slowly cut out things until you’re left only with what you love, with what’s necessary, with what makes you happy.

8. RELATIONSHIPS:
- Letting go of expectations simplifies relationships.

9. LET GO OF THE STRUGGLE:
- Struggle comes when we try to force things down a certain path.
- Flow around the obstacle like water, finding an alternate path, letting go of the set paths.
- Adapt, be fluid, and accept the changing course.

10. START SIMPLY:
- Practice one little thing, in small bursts throughout the day.
- Mistakes help you learn.

[Olli Lukkari · Rating 2 out of 5]

A super short manual/collection of writings on ideas for how to live life effortlessly. I liked the author's idea and life experiment of trying to live their life without any expectations (sounds quite hard, and the author also had to train themselves constantly to trying to let go of expectations and wishes for any desired outcomes on how things should go).

Also, the book was written all without any copyright claims, so anyone is free to distribute or copy or edit the book's content. Babuta told that many of his blogs fan also helped edit the book in this way, which sounds pretty inspiring to me. The book was super simple and short, not bigger history or culture lessons or insights here - which I could have appreciated - but then again, minimalism is kind of one of Babuta's most dear themes in life.

[Danielius Goriunovas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ši knyga buvo nuostabi. Tokia nuostabi, kad pats panorėjau paimti ir ją visą tiesiai perrašyti į Debesylą.

Šimtas balų iš šimto!

[Lina Maharani · Rating 3 out of 5]

KAUM MEDIOKER TETAP BAIK-BAIK SAJA

Ada banyak tulisan yang bernada memotivasi namum di beberapa orang, ini malah seperti antitesis yg bikin makin tak ingin mengikuti. termasuk saya.

Pada dasarnya bagaimana orang menjalani hidup itu ada dua sisi; kpd dirinya sendiri & kpd selain dirinya. Dua sisinya gak bisa serta merta jalan bersama, kadangkala kita keras ke diri sendiri & melunak ke orglain, demi menjaga kedamaian dunia. namu ketika perlahan kita mjd diri sendiri di hadapan orglain maka hanya akan menjadikan kita sbg orang2 yang 'merugi' di mata orglain. Padahal rugi nggak nya kan kita yang tanggung bukan mereka?

Buku ini memaparkan praktek hidup biasa aja, cenderung minim dlm segala hal. Kunci utamanya mmg bermula dari pikiran dulu; sederhanakan cara pikirmu dulu. Menurut saya pribadi, gimana caranya menyederhanakan pikiran ketika kita adalah org yg memang kompleks? Saya rasa menyortir pikiran lalu perkataan adalah sebuah awal yang lumayan 'do-able' daripada menyederhanakan pikiran. Hanya dgn memilih mana yg sejatinya perlu kita pikirkan di waktu tertentu kemudian mewujud dalam bentuk apa, itu adalah self-control utama.

GImana dengan kamu? :p

[Nurzhan Mukashev · Rating 3 out of 5]

В общем хорошая книга и дает дельные советы по разгрузке своего быта, чтобы "опустошить свой чердак", а может даже квартиру. Нашел ее в одном из списков книг по минимализму (essencialism).
Автор приводит практики, которые резонируют с моим пониманием отказа от ненужного и использования только необходимого. Но меня слегка отталкивает почти аскетическая тяга к полному "обесЦЕЛИванию" быта и жизни. Наличие осознанной цели ежедневной деятельности для меня явлется императивом существования, поэто��у его совет отринуть все вызывает во мне такой когнитивный диссонанс, который я пока не могу перебороть. Автор и предупреждает, что не все будут к такому готовы. И это нормально.
Рекомендую к прочтению.
Сам может позднее вернусь к ней.

[Dorsaf · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fast read. Interesting content. Some ideas/ concepts are worth trying. The author promotes a minimalistic approach to life. In order to lead a zen life. the open non copyrighted approach to writing the book is part of the experiment geared towards simplicity and eliminating anything that could trigger complexity. Some concepts can work for some people and it might not work for others but it shows a path to such possibilities. Worth reading or listening to the audio. If you are constantly on the run, perhaps have a go. It can be an anchoring or re-centering experience.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very quick read about how the author suggests living an effortless life. Not sure how feasible all of it is for me personally, but there are definitely some aspects worth looking into. One aspect I really appreciated is how the author admits his ideas aren’t for everyone right away but recommends returning the text in the future to see if anything new stands out. With the book being so short (an under 2-hour audiobook) makes this advice not only possible but also something I will probably do at some point.

[Vlad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is simple and easy to read with short chapters, but it is to be savored slowly and mindfully.
It offers you suggestions on how to lead a simple life in all it's areas: relationship, work, consumption, eating, exercising.
I've been practing the simple life for the last 8 years, declutting my life from unecessary things - and it's really good to see there is a human current also aligned with this ideas.
I recommend to look into the Leo's blog on minimalism:
https://zenhabits.net/

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, the title certainly appealed, but the quality of the writing went downhill from their. Effortlessly, no doubt. Others may possibly find it helpful. I'm taking it down to the charity shop so someone can find out.

[Ievgeniia Rudkovska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Очень понятные и полезные советы. Сразу трудно всему следовать, но в целом то что хотелось бы делать в жизни.

[Svitlana Bovdur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Хороший краткий, но не сжатый, конспект основных принципов, которые помогают поменять жизнь. Эдакий чеклист, проходишь и смотришь где что не доработано.

[Meelis Nõlvak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liked this little handbook. Didnt agree with everything 100% but overall has many good ideas how to live good stressless life.

[Morpheyy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most useful books I've read so far this year.

[Ott Vaiknemets · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sain selle RR-ist 100% alega, praegu tahetakse juba 3 euri, ära maksa.

[Liisi Park · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lihtne lugemine, aga ma ilmselt ei ole sihtgrupp.

[Elizabeth Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Effortless Life raises some interesting points, but its numerous shortcomings drag it down into mediocrity.
This book covers some basic ideas about minimizing stress in one's life by eliminating unnecessary stressors. Viable suggestions include integrating mindfulness into daily life and working around obstacles instead of cursing them in vain.
The general thesis of the book is an exhortation to simplify, to subtract as much from life as possible until only the essentials remain. Thus, all of the effort spent on the unnecessary will be eliminated, freeing up one's time and energy. It sounds good as pop philosophy, but the practice of simplifying one's life is much more complicated then this book lets on. For example, an oft repeated bit of advice is to do what you are passionate about in the moment. This sounds great, but most people don't have jobs that allow them to focus exclusively on their passion. Kudos to those who do, but most lives (not just jobs, but lives in general) require attention to mundane if not odious tasks. Bills have to be paid, dishes have to be washed, and if your work schedule is set by your boss, "I'm not passionate about that right now," is an attitude likely to be answered with a pink slip. This book gives the barest attention to these aspects of reality.
Let me be clear: I do not think that the primary author or any of the contributors to this book are advocating whimsical selfishness. I don't think that's what this book is about, but much of it is so vague, I would not be surprised if readers walked away with that impression.
I ultimately gave this book three stars because it has an excellent concept but poor execution. The core idea is that much of the stress most people experience, both self-generated and unneeded, can be eliminated through the application of mindfulness and the simplifying of one's life. This is a great idea, the veracity of which I find impossible to argue with. But integrating big ideas is hard work, ambiguous work, and it comes up short in terms of nuance. Giving up expectations is another life-choice suggested to quell a lot of stress and disappointment. Disappointed expectations causing suffering is an idea as old as Buddhism, but there are circumstances in which we need expectations, such as the expectation that contracts will be honored or that our fellow citizens will follow the law. Nowhere in this book is that extremity addressed, it just says over and over again to get rid of expectations.
I was disappointed in this book because it was marketed as a "manual", but contains much more lofty ideas than practicality. I expected it to be more thoughtful and balanced.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite- but there were some interesting tips!

[Bistra Ivanova · Rating 2 out of 5]

За щастие този сборник от малки текстчета не бе достатъчно дълъг, че да чувствам, че съвсем съм си загубила времето :-) Всъщност някои от идеите са абсолютно смислени (бъди съзнателен - прецени *сам* в кои неща наистина си струва да влагаш енергията и времето си), но като цяло не мога да приема сериозно автор, който твърди, че смисълът на живота е да му се наслаждаваме :-)) Дори по пирамидата на Маслоу човек има нужда от повече от "храна, подслон, дрехи и връзки", както твърди Лео Бабаута. Или поне за себе си зная: животът е услуга на човека, а не обратното. А че животът ни помага, ако му позволим - няма спор! В най-страшните си мигове съм усещала как този път *наистина* падам, но отнякъде се появява животът и ме хваща, шипва ме по бузката и мълчаливо ми дава знак да продължа.

Хм, като преглеждам отново съдържанието, виждам, че до голяма степен възгледите и действията ми съвпадат с идеите на Лео Бабаута, но през повечето време, докато четях, си мислех "дрън-дрън-дрън, колко си досаден". Подразни ме сякаш стилът "и аз бях глупав като вас, но сега съм различен!!!", щото аз не го виждам нито като човек, от когото имам какво чак толкова да науча, нито на когото да се възхищавам.

[Cara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't read Leo much any more because it seems like he mostly says the same thing over and over. However, I really wanted to read about how to live without goals and still accomplish stuff. I wanted to find out how to work but not be too attached to any outcome. HOW TO!

Unfortunately, he doesn't talk much about how to. He talks about why to, and aspects of a simple life, many of which are oh-so-familiar. Bah. I'm disappointed but not surprised.

This is a decent book, except he's still insisting that just because he can be healthy without animal products, nobody else needs them either, so basically anyone who does eat meat is a selfish bastard hedonist Bambi-killer. Hey Leo, we all have different enzymes. Some people can't get enough iron or calcium just from plants. It's like how some people can process lactose and others can't, or how some people can't eat gluten because it makes them sick. You don't know why people eat whatever they eat, so how 'bout you lay off? (Peeve.)

[Ismah Fathimah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mulai membaca pengantar saja sudah senyum senyum tersindir. Buku ini mengajak pembaca menyederhanakan hidup dan menyadari mana kesulitan dan kebutuhan yang dibuat-buat sendiri. Beberapa gagasannya menarik dan yaaah cukup ekstrim dari gagasan umum lain tentang tujuan hidup dan kebahagian.

Gagasan utamanya adalah mengajak pembaca untuk hidup seperti air: mengurangi kebutuhan, tidak memiliki tujuan dan rencana tetap, tidak mematok harapan, tidak membuat kebutuhan palsu, tidak terburu-buru, dst.

Untuk saya pribadi banyak gagasan penulis yang bisa dicoba untuk dilakuakan. Jika kita tidak punya ekspektasi apapun maka kita tidak akan kecewa 😂.
"Kita terus-menerus membuat rencana yang tak pernah benar-benar berjalan seperti yang kita bayangkan. 'Kalau kau ingin membuat Tuhan tertawa, buatlah rencana,' kata pepatah lama."

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

From the author of Zen Habits, a phenomenally successful blog. You can pay as little or as much as you like for it.

It is similar to his other books and blog posts: it advocates a simplified life. Minimalism, focus, monotasking, decluttering and curation are presented as methods both to achieve what you want in work or projects, and to find happiness in your personal life.

His philosophy is influenced by Zen and Buddhist concepts, but there is no reference to religion. Instead, Zen ideas are applied as practical recommendations.

Leo's vegan, car-free, goal-less life is probably too austere for many people's tastes, but serves as a good example of how we can choose the important things in our life, and find new and simpler ways to do the things we enjoy in life.

[Mark Clackum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Effortless as in Goaless, but not aimless

Great clarity!
A notion worth considering: that most of our stress & anxiety & lack of free time come from "invented" needs... If we reduce our overhead & commitments down to the essential, then we dramatically reduce our worries & expand our free time. If we go so far as to give up self-imposed goals & simply do what there is to do for the joy of doing it then we still create for the joy of art & are fit from the joy of sports & are rich because we want what we already have.

[Patricia Groves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another classic from Leo

Confession: I have been a fan of Zen Habits, Leo Babauta's blog, for many years. The Effortless Life perfectly sums up what I am hoping to achieve in 2016 - today is New Year's Day, after all! This concise e-book is an effortless blueprint to guide you towards and effortless life. It discusses home, family, work, commitments and the surprising obstacle to achieving the goal of an effortless life: Goals! It won't take long to read - two cups of tea, sipped slowly - but the ideas presented could change your life.

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple principles and simply presented, but with more than a little profundity. I found a lot of overlap with Stoic principles I have been learning about as well. The more I bring the kinds of simplicity Leo advocates into my life, the more I see the value in it. I still struggle with some ideas -- "the quantified self" has actually helped keep me mindful about important things; but perhaps those are crutches I can move past. I think I will revisit this book.

[Danny Plass · Rating 4 out of 5]

An effortless life? Is that really possible? Leo Babauta advocates letting go of expectations, going with the flow, and doing what you love. Instead of goals, let your values guide you. And perhaps most importantly: appreciate things the way they are.

The book is quite concise. Most chapters are less than two pages. Easy to read.

Definitely a recommended read, if only because the premise is the complete opposite of what everybody seems to accept as "the way to live" nowadays.

[Ashley Schmidt · Rating 1 out of 5]

Although I agree with some of the author's principles of simplifying life to make it more effortless and to allow yourself to become more mindful, other parts of the book I found hard to swallow. Particularly when he talked about his own eating habits and parenting methods. I feel very differently than he does in these areas, so it made the book hard for me to complete. Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinions on these topics, so this book just wasn't for me.

[Pallavi Sonal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Leo Babuta's writing , read the posts on his site zenhabits frequently and loved his book -"The Little Book of contentment". Though the ideas presented in this book feel a little too radical, will surely like to try out a few of them. As with his each piece of writing, there is always something to take away.
Also, his books are concisely written which makes it easy to complete in one reading session. And then you can go back again and again to refer.

[Bloodorange · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much, if you have a high school-level knowledge of buddhism and are prone to reflection every now and then. Also, repetitive (if you know Leo's blog) and virtually impossible to implement if you live in a less clement climate of have a job that you like which requires having contact with people on a regular basis. I liked the bit on giving equal weight to every action, though.

[Jason Dettbarn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, quick read. Some good nuggets of wisdom, but it never goes into too much detail. I wouldn't really call it a manual -- more like a manifesto. Heavy on concept, short on actual execution details.