“Living simply is not about living in poverty or self-inflicted deprivation. It’s about living an examined life where one has determined what is truly important and enough…and then just let go of all the rest.” ~Duane Elgin
While I don’t consider myself an expert or authority on minimalism or simple living, I do recognize the value of focusing on aspects of the practice. That’s right, I consider minimalism or simple living to be practices that lead to a more happy, balanced, and meaningful life. But because there are so many rewarding aspects to the practice, and so many juicy benefits to share—I’ve decided that a focus on each one as an individual “tip” would be helpful for myself—and perhaps you as well. So to start with, I wanted to come up with best benefit of them all. And I couldn’t do it! The truth is that since I started practicing a more simple approach to life—the benefits keep showing up. That’s when I decided that the primary SMART Minimalist tip is to let you know that simple living offers more benefits than you can imagine—and the only way to start experiencing them all is to just begin discovering them for yourself. [Read more…]
Don’t think you have worthiness issues? Never struggle with feeling good enough? That’s impossible according to author and speaker Brene Brown. Over the weekend I came across this woman’s work and it got me thinking a lot about how even the most confident among us still struggles with feelings of vulnerability. According to Brown, the only ones of us who don’t feel at least a little vulnerable are sociopaths without the capacity for empathy. In fact, Brown believes that, “Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage.” So what do you do when you aren’t feeling good enough or worthy of love, happiness and success in your life? Fortunately, Brown offers ten powerful practices that can lead to greater courage, confidence and self-acceptance for each of us.
Have you ever asked yourself what would happen if aliens ever found our planet and began monitoring our TV networks? Thom and I have asked ourselves that question—especially after hearing about reality shows like “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.” But even if those aliens only tuned into our news channels and programs, what do you think their view of the human race would be? Unfortunately, the day-to-day hostility and aggression frequently viewed on those programs would likely be enough for any alien to determine that our species is egocentric, violent, and highly competitive. In fact, if you watch much TV news at all, the average person would probably be tempted to think the world is a very scary place and that any minute something horrible could happen. But is that true? Are we really that egocentric and violent? Or are we actually much more compassionate and empathetic than we sometimes believe? Maybe exploring those questions is one way to find out why we struggle to get along in this day and age. 
At the end of every year I have a habit of going back and reviewing things that worked well in my life in the last 365 days. I think it’s useful to explore the actions, mindsets and understandings that have enhanced my well-being and happiness—and recognize those that didn’t, so they can be modified And because a big part of living SMART 365 is staying conscious, awake and aware—this practice might prove valuable for all of us. I’ll start by sharing a few ideas that increased the quality of my life in 2012.