Simplify Your Life

Are you just so busy with mundane activities that you can't find time for the things that are important to you? Most people are in a terrible rush and are far too busy to enjoy life. Do you have too much going on and too much complexity in your life? If this is your problem then here is some advice from writer Elaine St. James:

1) Resign from any organizations whose meetings you dread.

2) Learn to live with less information: stop watching TV news, cancel half your magazine subscriptions.

3) Work where you live, or live where you work.

4) Be in bed by 9pm one night a week.

5) Live on half of what you earn, save the other half.

6) Keep asking "Is this going to simplify my life?"

To which we can add:

7) Make a 'stop doing' list of things you do regularly but don't need to do.

8) Stop reading gloom-ridden newspaper reports, stop speaking to negative, cynical people.

9) Simplify finances by reducing the number of accounts, standing orders, direct debits, credit cards, insurances and investments you have. Consolidate and save time.

10) Delegate more.

The Pareto Principle tells us that 80% of the benefit comes from 20% of what we do. The other 80% of what we do is of low value. Let's eliminate the low value activities.

If we can de-clutter our lives we can free time for important things. Look at your garage or your study - are they filled with junk that never gets used? Is your life in a similar state? If you can eliminate the junk in your garage or the pile of papers that are never read in your study then you can take a similar approach to all the time drainers in your life.

Paul Sloane runs workshops on lateral thinking in business.

http://www.destination-innovation.com