Simplify Your Life with this ONE Simple Tip
I’m always looking for ways to make my life just a little bit easier.
And I suspect you are too.
Because who needs complicated?
This one tip will help to simplify your life and it couldn’t be easier.
I’ve talked about the concept of doing a decision detox before, but I think it’s worth revisiting.
Because Decision fatigue is real! And the science behind it is fascinating!
It’s often the reason we opt for takeout instead of cooking dinner after a long workday or skip the gym in favor of a netflix binge.
Our brains get tired of having to make SO. MANY. DECISIONS.
DECIDE ONCE
So, even though it may seem counterintuitive, having fewer choices can actually simplify your life. Within the first few minutes of waking up, you’ve likely already decided:
Whether or not to hit snooze button
What to wear for the day
Eggs or oatmeal?
Tea or coffee?
Are you going to meditate or go for a run?
...and all of these little decisions add up. So by the end of the day, your brain is tired!
Which is where one of my very favorite pieces of Kendra Adachi wisdom comes in … DECIDE ONCE.
If you haven’t read Kendra’s book, The Lazy Genius Way, I highly recommend it. So much wisdom and practical solutions on how to simplify your life.
It may seem counterintuitive but fewer choices can actually be really liberating. The key here is that YOU are the one deciding. Having your freedom of choice limited by someone outside of yourself has the exact opposite effect.
Take a few minutes to think about some areas in your life where maybe you’re giving yourself a few too many options. Where are you making the same decisions over and over again, and is there something you could decide once instead?
Here are a few ideas to start limiting your daily decision making:
Simplify bedtime. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. No need to decide if you’re going to stay up late to get some extra work done.
Meal prep your lunches so you don’t have to decide if you’re going to eat at home or order out. If you’re like me and don’t like to decide exactly what to eat you can still set yourself up for success by doing a little bit of prep in advance and making the healthy choice the easy choice.
Wake up and write. I don’t wait for inspiration to strike. If I did I would be waiting for a looooong time. I just show up every morning and write. It’s not always good. In fact, more often than not, it’s not good at all. But the habit and the practice simplifies my morning and as with many things, showing up is the hard part.
Sign up for a workout class in advance (or schedule a time in your calendar so you’re less likely to skip it). Making committments to yourself and then following through on them helps to prove to yourself that YES, YOU CAN actually do this.
Try a go-to outfit formula so you don’t have to think about what to wear. (Steve jobs is notorious for this) and frankly it's the reason I own A LOT of black.
Establish simple daily rituals. Knowing what you do in the morning, evenings or the transition from work to home can be a really powerful way to decrease overwhelm. Don’t overthink it or try to do too much. Simple really is the key here.
Set up automatic payments for your monthly bills. GAMECHANGER.
Create a list of dinner ideas that your family loves with a link to the recipe or create a meal template (taco tuesday, meatless mondays, pizza on fridays, etc). It’s fun, everyone has something to look forward to and no more wasting time trying to figure out what to eat only to end up with takeout, again.
Say no more often. I cannot stress this one enough. When you’re already juggling a lot and then add more to your already busy schedule, it forces you to make more decisions about how you’re going to make it all happen. Keep it simple and learn to say no. (If saying no is something you struggle with, practice saying, “let me get back to you.” It buys you a little more time to evaluate if it’s something you actually can/want to do.
The best part is that you get to decide which areas work for you.
If you LOVE fashion, an outfit formula probably isn’t an area you’re interested in simplifying. Find the areas that work for you in your life and go from there.
A friend of mine has a huge family with so many nieces and nephews it made holidays feel overwhelming. She was always searching for the perfect gift that everyone would love. Now she has her own formula for gift giving so she only has to “decide once.” She chooses a few books that she is currently loving and friends get one and family members get another.
They’re books that she loves so it feels good to share them with others and holidays have become soooo much easier. It’s simple, but effective.
Here’s some final advice from Kendra, “You have permission to let go, wonder and go slow or to desire, hustle, and power through. Whatever you choose, make sure you’re focused on what matters to you, not what matters to Instagram, your mother-in-law, or the ones in your head saying you’re not enough. Every choice matters because each one matters to someone, but hold only the ones that matter to you as you live as a unique, stunning, powerful individual, embracing what matters and ditching what doesn’t, you’ll empower the women in your life to do the same.” So much YES to this.
Try limiting your decisions and start building habits that support how you want to feel so you can simplify your life and breathe a little easier.
I’d love to hear some of the areas where you are deciding once!