Do you want to simplify your life?
Modern-day life is overwhelming. There always seems to be something to do and it feels like you are juggling so many different things. Firstly you are not alone and you don’t have to stay overwhelmed. Keep on reading to find out 7 ways to simplify your life.
1. Declutter and organise your home
Homes can be overwhelming. Most people have more possessions today than people did one or two generations ago. This results in homes that are filled with things. This results in making your home environment stressful to live in and difficult to clean. Decluttering and organising your home is a great way to simplify your life.
First, you’ll need to declutter. Go through your home and get rid of things you don’t need. Try to be as ruthless as possible. Then once you’ve done that you need to establish a home for all of your possessions. When you have a home for everything it means your home is organised and it will be easy for you to tidy up and clean.
2. Plan your meals ahead of time
Another great way to simplify your life is by planning your meals in advance. This will help to simplify your life in two ways:
- When you plan your meals ahead of time it will make your shopping easier. You can create a list based on the meals you have planned. Having a list will make your shopping experience easier.
- When you plan your meals ahead of time it stops you from wasting time in the day thinking “What should I have for breakfast, lunch or dinner?”. By making these choices ahead of time it allows you to be productive and hopefully make better choices about what you are eating.
3. Learn to say no
The majority of the time when you say yes to other people’s requests it means more work for you. By learning to say no, rather than automatically saying yes, you should be able to minimise the number of things you have to do in your life.
4. Simplify your wardrobe
Do you have so many clothes that you never know what to wear? An area that most people can simplify is their wardrobe. Now I’m not suggesting you have to be super minimalist and get a capsule wardrobe but go through all of your wardrobe Marie Kondo style. The aim is to make sure that everything you own ‘sparks joy’. If you haven’t read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo you can check it out here.
5. Sort your digital life
If there is one area where you are definitely likely to be managing more than you used to it is your digital life. I’m talking emails, files, apps – the whole lot. Setting up a simple digital system for your life will not only help you now, but will help you into the future as it is likely there will be more and more options. Areas to look at:
- Emails – Get a system in place. Maybe you swear by inbox-zero or maybe you swear by using search. The system doesn’t matter as long as it works for you and makes managing your inbox simple.
- Files – Do you have a system that enables you to quickly file and retrieve important information. If not, it is time to get that in place and don’t forget to back your files up.
- Apps – When was the last time you looked through all of your apps? Think about the last time you used an app and whether it is still relevant for your life today.
- Passwords – are you always forgetting your passwords? If so you might want to invest in a password manager that does the remembering for you
6. Get clear on what is important to you
Earlier I mentioned that you need to learn to say no more and getting clear on what is important to you with help with this. There are endless options for how you can spend your day and that is part of the reason why life has become so complicated. However, when you get clear on what is important to you it is easier to work out the things you want to do and the things you don’t. By knowing what is important to you you’ll start to do less of what you aren’t interested in and at the same time make your life easier.
7. Automate as much as possible
Whilst technology can make your life more complicated it can make your life easier too. Automation can be a powerful tool for simplifying your life. This may be applicable in multiple areas of your life, but one area that it can definitely simplify is your finances. Set up direct debits and standing orders so your bills are paid automatically and that you are automatically saving too.
There you have it! You now know 7 ways to simplify your life.
Obviously you don’t have to do all of the things above, but even by following one or two tips, you should hopefully start to simplify your life and give yourself the time and energy for the things that really matter.
In the comments, I would love to know if you have any other tips for simplifying your life.
