less.

After my previous post I have made the decision – let’s hope it’s a conscious one – that I will “live with less”. I am already a mnmlist when it comes to buying stuff for myself. My mamas taught me that you only buy something when you need it. So I am a firm believer of “if you do not need it, then you do not buy it”. Probably why I spend most of my money on food. Ya havta eat ya know?

Thanks to Leo Babauta, Zen Habits and mnmlist – “less is the answer”.

Here are a few things I will start doing and in some cases – change the way I do it. If you want, you can add a few things to the list and let’s do this together – yay!

• Avoid new stuff (possessions)
• Learn to love less (contentedness)
  “The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” – Socrates
• Clear distractions (doing)
  “Without distractions, you’ll be able to focus. You’ll find peace. You’ll find time for doing what you love.”

Here are a few things that you can do / do less.

“It starts with a decision: I want to be less busy. I don’t want to do this anymore.”

1. Cut back your social networking to network (or two at the most) – including Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, forums, etc. These are hugely distracting.
2. Cut back on your social networking “friends”. Stick to your actual friends and colleagues. Networking with thousands of people you don’t know is superficial and distracting.
3. Limit time on social networking, email to specified periods. Set the times you allow yourself to do these activities – from 1-2 p.m., for example.
4. Do less email. Start by sending less. Check email less often. Use the phone or face-to-face conversations when possible.
5. Shut down the internet to work. Disconnect, and work without distractions.
6. Get away from the computer, spend time with actual people.
7. Single-task and focus.
   Which is why I always recommend “The Art of Power” by Thich Nhat Hahn (one of my all time favorite books).
8. Focus on the most important tasks first, before you get distracted.
   Sometimes it is a good  idea to set time limits. Okay Narry, you have 20 minutes to pack all your clothes back into the closet. Errr, 20 minutes… umn, sure! One hour later.
9. Make two lists: your ideal day, and all the things that fill up your day (all your commitments).
   Get a moley or start with something plain and simple like teuxdeux – it does work, but with some people they have to commit to doing that too. Wink wink.
10. Spend a day in silence. Probably one of the most difficult things to do, but I promise you things happen when you turn it down. Try it, you might just like it.

Daily musts (for myself).

1. Set a limited reading time. When it comes to RSS feeds, set limits and do it at specified times. And the rest of the time? Read books, yeah the ones that you can hold in your hand and have pages – paper pages. Woah.
2. Write. You do not have to be a writer to be good at it. Write about your want to achieve or even how you feel. You will save money, but not having to go to a therapist anymore. Write down your dreams and if you want, you can doodle your dreams too. Note to self.
3. Both Leo and Thich, will tell you to breathe. It works. Now please make a plan to read that book.

Please note: I have quoted Leo a few times in this post. Read all his articles.

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