Living Simply: Having More Time and Less Money

How precious time is. What if you could stop spinning out and be calmer, more alert, and alive? Isn't that what most people really want? Time with their loved ones, time to do hobbies, time to walk, time to think, and time to call one's own. It's hard to measure time. We have clocks and calenders, but time is a fleeting, nebulous thing. It is something we are given freely, and something we have a limited amount of.

How do we slow time down? Going into nature is an excellent way to slow time down. It's cheaper, too. Instead of going to the mall, where the air isn't as fresh and the pace isn't as slow, why not take your family hiking? Or bicycling? Or to the beach? The more we love nature, the more we want to keep it around. Nature, too, is limited in supply. It's important to teach our children to preserve what is left.

Another way to simplify life and take advantage of time, is to barter for supply and services. Put out ads for barters, put up posters, and ask around for what you need. Money comes with its own price tag. It means someone has to work for it, to give up their precious time for it, to settle for less in the quality of life. Bartering brings the recipient in closer contact with the other giver. Think of it. When we exchange money, it is impersonal and fleeting. When we barter, we talk to each other, make deals, and acknowledge the other's product.

Simplify. Simplify. Get rid of what you don't need. If you're not using it, someone else certainly can and will. Why not let go? Make room for more to show up in your life, and it will. You'll breathe better when you empty your closets and get rid of clothes you never wear. Have a clothing exchange party. Have everyone bring a plate for lunch ,and clothes they no longer wear. It's a fun way to get to know each other better.

When you go shopping, ask yourself if you really need what you're buying. Try to shop with cash only. Tell yourself when you go to purchase something with a credit card, that you are actually paying twenty or thirty percent more than what's written on the price tag. Remember, late fees and over the limit fees, too. So many people get them without knowing how it happened. Credit cards are set up to be confusing and as a result, expensive.

Finally, stop putting what you really want to do at the back of your priority list. Put it at the top, or you'll never get to it. When you don't live life on your terms, you will always have a nagging feeling that something isn't complete. It isn't. Your dreams are the foundation of your life. Without living your truth, you have a sense of emptiness. Unfortunately, many people fill this emptiness up with the wrong things. Talk about wasting time.

Simplify means getting straight to the point of your life. Give yourself permission to take time to enjoy your life.