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What I Want My Life To Look Like In 2017

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As I am staring 2017 straight in the face I’m really not sure what it will hold or what I will bring to it. I feel like I am at such a crossroads  in my life. I can see what I want it to look like, I’m just not sure how to get there, or maybe how best to get there. There is a part of me that just wants to run off to an island, totally isolated, not worrying about all the trivial things that sometimes preoccupy so much of my mind. Would that work, would all my troubles disappear…probably not, but it’s a nice thought sometimes. So what can I do…

A Year of Simple Living

I do know that I want to structure my life in a way where I actually enjoy whatever it is that I am doing. I want to be present and focused. I want to develop a habit of staying in the moment. I want to wake up every morning and feel grateful for another day.

I want to look whoever I am talking to in the eye and give them my full attention instead of worrying about all the other things I “need” to be doing. I don’t want to be thinking about how I am going to answer them, I want to just listen. How nice would that be?

I want to focus on single-tasking instead of multi-tasking. Multi-tasking leads to stress, it divides our focus and causes us to lose the ability to live in the moment.

I want to appreciate nature. I want to look at the sky, watch the squirrel look for a nut it buried last month. Stop and listen to the wind, feel it on my skin.

I want to slow down and savor my food, you know actually sit down and eat it instead of standing at the counter cleaning up the dishes while I’m trying to eat my lunch. I want to taste it, really taste it. I want to be mindful of my food, where and how I am eating it. 

I want to live a better quality of life with less stress. Life can be so much more than just getting through another day. Life can be an amazing adventure.

I think this quote by Abraham Lincoln sums it up best. “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

Thanks Amanda for letting me think out loud.

 

 

My Favorite Podcasts about Minimalism and Intentional Living

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2016 is the year that I fell in love with podcasts. I cannot even express how much value these podcasts have added to my life. If I am doing a mindless task around the house or in the car by myself I am most likely listening to one of my favorite podcasters! You know what it is awesome, when you find a new to you podcast and there is like 100 episodes, binge binge binge! I really don’t know what I would do without these, they truly bring me so much joy. It’s my hope that these handful of podcasters keep doing what they do for many years to come!

The Minimalists Podcast

Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus, known as “The Minimalists” to their 4 million readers, help people live more meaningful lives with less through their website, books, podcast, and documentary.

The Mind Palace

The Mind Palace is a weekly podcast which explores what it means to live a well-curated life. We discuss minimalism, living intentionally, and applied philosophy. 

The Slow Home Podcast with Brooke McAlary

Listen in to learn what makes people change, how life is different once you adopt a slower way of life, and what their advice is to anyone looking to get out of the fast lane.

The Simple Show

The Simple Show is a podcast where we explore unconventional ways of living and making the most out of things like work, travel, and family. I talk shop with other people about what that looks like for them—food, travel, writing, books, parenting, work, fashion, and everything in between.

Live Immediately with Mike Campbell

The Live Immediately Podcast is where I have conversations with people who inspire me, who have taught me something, who have helped me grow and who are living life on their own terms. We dive into those big moments that have pushed them through the fears and self-limiting beliefs that hold so many of us back.

So, if you are at all interested in living more mindfully or slowing down and doing the things that you truly love then I highly recommend any and all of these. Do yourself a favor and listen, it could change your life and the way you see the world. 

Do you have a favorite podcast? I’d love to know what it is!

Inspiring Reads

These are some of the wonderful articles that I have enjoyed reading last week and I wanted to share them with you. So relax, pour yourself  some coldbrew or a cup of hot tea and get to reading! 

inspiring reads

The Elegant Art of Not Giving a Shit

Simple Reminders For The Holiday Season

All The Things You Don’t Need For A Perfect Holiday

How Simplicity of Heart Brings Freedom

Ease

The Mental Habit of Feeling Rushed & Overwhelmed

 

 

 

What Minimalism Means to Me

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During the day you will most often see me with my ear buds in, listening to podcasts, and being thoroughly entertained by “my people” as I refer to them as. They really are my people. I finally found them! I’ve never really felt like I belonged into a particular group until I stumbled upon minimalism. Then it all became clear, I was like Yes, that is me. That is how I feel. No one else in my life has ever expressed feelings like this. I’ve always wanted to focus on the things that were the most valuable to me, and to my family. I’ve always wondered why we let everything else get in the way, essentially saying that it is more important. It’s crazy. Each of us is only here for finite period of time, I don’t want to waste a day of it. I feel like I’ve wasted so many days and it’s not ok, and I won’t do it anymore. 

What Minimalism Means To Me

Minimalism is really just a tool to help you see what is truly most important to you. Yes, you usually start with clearing out all of your physical possessions that are weighing you down, but that is really just the first step. It is a great step but there is so much more to minimalism than that. For me it is about intentional living. It’s about figuring out what is important to me and living according to that. Meaning that I am not just going to agree with something if it isn’t something I really feel like I need to be doing. It means I will say NO a lot more and I won’t feel bad about it. It means that I will spend my days more mindfully, truly appreciating the moments, even the mundane moments that we might normally try to rush through. I don’t want to wish my days away. I want them to be well spent. I want to make sure I make an effort to let the people in my life that I love and appreciate know that they are important to me. I don’t want to keep it to myself. I want to show them that I care. 

The only way I can do all of these things is if all the other junk is out of the way so that my time and focus will not be wasted on it. It is ever changing, and that’s okay. Something that is important to me now may not be as important a year from now. It’s good to know that I can let those things go. You don’t need to drag those things along with you and let them weigh you down. Learning to release is healthy and takes practice. I have noticed it gets easier and easier.

Minimalism has helped me to be happy with me, it has helped me to be more comfortable with myself. It has helped bring focus to my life by clearing away a lot of mental clutter. It has helped bring clarity to my life, in a way that I have not seen before. Not to say that everything is magically clear but it has helped me to see what I want for my life more clearly. Minimalism may start with the “stuff” but it ends with a freedom that takes place deep within your soul. For me this equals happiness!