10 Tips For Living A Simple Life

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People who live simpler, have fewer possessions and contacts have a better chance of being happy. Minimalism is all about having and doing what counts – things and actions that improve your everyday life. So here are my top ten tips for living a simple life:

1. Clear your mind. Try writing down and analyzing your own thoughts (check this out). It really helps having a clearer mind and being more concentrated. Don’t expect to have a simple life if you have complicated thoughts and feelings.
2. Unclutter your home. It’s a good idea to have and use only what you need. Clean up your desk and shelves – anything that you use only from time to time should be hidden from the eye so as to avoid visual clutter. A cleaner home means a cleaner mind.
3. Reduce your possessions. Do you really need all those books you’ve already read? Give them out to the library or sell them somewhere. Anything that you don’t use, you don’t need. Really.
4. Limit your tasks. When I wake up each day, I think of three or four most important tasks that I should complete. Creating the unbearable challenge to finish off too many tasks stresses you out.
5. Do one thing at a time. Don’t multitask. When you’re doing something, abstract yourself from the world around you. Turn off your ringtone, don’t check your emails and don’t chat with friends. I’ve found out that doing one thing at a time means doing it faster and better, leaving me more free time to spend on myself.
6. Simplify your social life. On my phone’s contact list, I only have about 10 mobile numbers. The ones that belong to people who I communicate with regularly. All those business numbers and various contacts are on a separate piece of paper I carry with me all the time.
7. Create some free time. Spend some time alone, drink tea, read self-improvement books. Meditate. Exercise. Increase your free time so that you have more time to make your life better.
8. Don’t rush. There’s no need to hurry. If you’re late for that meeting, getting nervous about it won’t help. Face the facts like a normal person and remove those stressful feelings and thoughts.
9. Have one place for everything. A simple life means less worrying and more organization. Have a place for everything and always put everything in its place. It’s hard to do from the beginning, but once you’ve formed the habit you’ll feel fantastic about it.
10. Lessen or stop watching TV. It overloads you with information – news, commercials, people you don’t really care about, films you don’t really need to see. I’ve reduced my TV time to 20-30 minutes per day.

I hope you found that useful. Not enough? Check out Leo Babauta’s Simple Living Manifesto. It contains 72 ideas to simplify your life.