Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less written by Greg McKeown

My Actions

1. Practising minimalism

I have been practising minimalism since 2021, as mentioned in the previous post, and I intend to continue applying it to my life. Learning to embrace minimalism has profoundly changed my life. After discarding or donating heaps of unnecessary personal belongings, I felt relieved and refreshed. Without an abundance of clutter, I now have more space in my room and throughout the house. The reduction in visual noise has made my mind quieter and calmer.

By giving away items of good or average quality, I feel gratified knowing that someone else is likely to use them, maximising their value before disposal. Downsizing my personal belongings has also brought additional benefits. I now have greater flexibility in sorting my belongings before travelling, and I can easily fit everything into my car. No longer do I need to spend significant time sorting through items or finding storage solutions before embarking on a journey.

With a manageable number of belongings, I am fully aware of what I own and can easily organise them, deciding which suitcase or bag they belong in. This system allows me to know when it’s time to restock and only requires occasional reorganisation when necessary. As a result, I have more time to rest and focus on more important aspects of my life.

Due to these numerous benefits, I am committed to continuing my minimalist lifestyle and view it as a lifelong endeavour.

2. Understanding my essentials and applying them to daily life

Understanding my essentials has numerous benefits in my life. For instance, recognising sufficient rest and maintaining a regular wake-up time as essential elements enables me to approach my daily tasks with increased concentration and energy. Similarly, prioritising a balanced diet rich in nutrients has yielded noticeable improvements in my health. While the effects were not immediate when I first adopted this diet, my body gradually responded positively. Symptoms of hay fever and eczema diminished, and my reliance on antihistamine tablets decreased significantly compared to before. Additionally, I now find it easier to maintain a consistent wake-up schedule, a task I struggled with when consuming high-sugar and high-fat foods.

Furthermore, staying connected with family and close friends is another essential aspect of my life. Despite currently working in another country, I make deliberate efforts to nurture these relationships through regular home visits, phone calls and frequent online messages. These actions help to strengthen our bonds and maintain our connection despite the physical distance.

3. Learning to say no gracefully

Saying no gracefully to non-essentials can alleviate many worries and bring long-term benefits to your life, although it is often challenging. For instance, if you have family commitments or other important activities after work and need to decline excessive social events, like dinner parties at your apartment, you will need a few versions of methods to say no, so you can spend more time on your essential activities in life. For many employees, it is just so difficult to say no to work-related social events which may affect your opportunities to get promotion. However, you can be more confident in your decision of not spending too much time going to these social events if you have thought through your essential elements in your life. You could ask yourself some questions to clarify your essentials. Would you regret missing your kids’ birthday celebration to attend your boss’s promotion party, just to increase your chances of promotion? Would you prioritise your health over spending excessive time with clients socialising and drinking alcohol? Questions like these may be helpful to your clarification of your essentials. There are several graceful ways to learn to say no. If you care about yourself, your loved ones, and your life, you are likely to successfully to navigate the challenges of gracefully saying no. Initially, you might feel uncomfortable, but if you stick to your decision, you’ll begin to see positive results. This can really be beneficial to your life in the long run.