Monthly Archives: November 2009

Every now and then I come across an article at Zen Habits and then I find myself going “yeees!”.

Here’s one:

Declutter your life and eliminate the unnecessary.

1. Have a vision for your life.
Think about the lifestyle you want. What do you want to own? How will you spend your time? Where will you be? Be specific.

2. Find your motivation.
Don’t be meaninglessly minimalist. Be purposeful and deliberate in your quest to want little.

3. Experience the benefits.
An uncluttered lifestyle will always be the best way to switch from a “want more” to a “want little” mindset.

4. Be noncommittal.
Decisions become scary when they’re set in stone.

5. Understand the psychology of influence.
Start by reading about how marketing weasels will try to manipulate you and for more depth pick up a copy of Robert Cialdini’s classic, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.

6. Grow into it.
Be mindful of all your purchases and desires and regularly ask yourself “Does this fit into my vision.

7. Lose yourself.
Focus on doing interesting things rather than buying interesting things.

8. Crunch the numbers.
For example, backpacking through Thailand is something I dream of doing. Now, say it costs $25 per day to live in Phuket. If I were to see an Xbox game selling for $50 I’d ask myself “Is that game worth sacrificing two days in a foreign culture?” Most of the time the answer will be a resounding “No”.