Since deciding to own less, I’ve experienced countless benefits: more time, more money, more freedom, more energy, less stress, and less distraction. Owning less provides me the opportunity to pursue my greatest passions. It’s great. And I’ll never go back to my previous lifestyle. But along the way, I discovered something even better than owning less: Wanting less. I’ll explain. via Owning Less is Great. Wanting Less is Better..
6. Use meaningful measurements of success. Resist the urge to let society define success by achievements, awards, monetary value, or public recognition. Consider attributes like courage, effort, honesty, patience, determination, risk-taking, and compassion when evaluating yourself or your loved ones. Make a point to acknowledge your beginning point and frequently celebrate your progress. via A Season to Gather Happiness.
There is hardly a soul who would stand up to make a case for poor health or the joys of feeling terrible, yet eight out of ten of us live our lives as if we’re afraid good health might sneak up on us and do us in. Look around any office, look at a random sampling of shoppers in a supermarket, and you will see paunchy, pallid, tired-looking people who probably eat the wrong food, drink and smoke too much, exercise rarely and, while not ill, are not well either. They drift into that miasma of stimulants, sedatives, snack foods, nicotine, late nights and slow wits that dulls the texture of each day; the victim never notices that his body and mind are working at half speed while his daily routine carries him along at an ever more frenetic pace.
9) Fewer consumer choices = happiness. Eliminating shopping from our schedule frees up both our time and mental resources for more productive endeavors. It takes a fair amount of energy to spend the afternoon at the mall selecting the perfect shade of turquoise golf shorts. It’s a lot easier to wear what we have–or score something from Goodwill. My goal in life isn’t to be a consumer and I relish how few times I need to Read more…
We spent years going to open houses and investigating the market before we bought our home; adopting Frugal Hound happened only after years of holding off for the right moment to own a dog; we waited to get pregnant until we felt adequately prepared for the challenges of parenthood; I didn’t go to grad school until I secured a way to attend for free; and we postpone every major purchase until we’ve had ample time to explore all Read more…
New research from the University of Barcelona published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences found that early risers are more persistent, and resistant to fatigue, frustration and difficulties. This tends to be associated with lower anxiety and depression, higher life satisfaction, and a lower overall risk of substance abuse. The Night Owl lifestyle also has a greater downside. “Night owls tend to be more depressed, have a higher dependence on caffeine, and use alcohol Read more…
“Have a plan and a direction. Know what you want to accomplish: not just for the day, but in the big picture,” Strauss said. With a clear schedule and mind, and a focused to-do list that has been properly seeded with preparation from the night before, you’ll be able to wake up as productive as possible. You might even find the early morning is your Magic Time. If you want to get ahead in life, Read more…
The rise of set, intentionally-constructed obstacle courses would largely have to wait until the 19th century. In Europe, this period saw a significant upswing of interest in physical fitness, which rose in tandem with feelings of nationalism that were surging in the continent’s respective countries. Frequent wars had shown nations like France, Britain, and Germany the necessity of keeping their peoples in fighting shape. Various schools of thought developed as to how best to do that, but most focused on gymnastics and Read more…
Abandon Guilt, Embrace Your Truth While there’s certainly merit in learning from others and sharing our stories, I find that blatant comparison almost always yields frustration or guilt. We only have incomplete understandings of other people’s lives and trying to model our choices off of theirs is naturally flawed. Hiding her face in shame: not very productive, Frugal Hound In many ways, I think our culture doesn’t encourage the value of charting one’s own unique path. Although rugged Read more…
You can get out of debt too Paying off her student loan so quickly was not easy and it required sacrifice. But her advice is to believe in yourself. You can do this! Another thing that worked for Adrienne: “Take some quiet time to really imagine how it feels to be out of debt and envision how it would feel not to have to make that payment. Try to step into the feeling of why Read more…