A Time to be Simple

Life is a challenging roller coaster ride. We struggle to hang on as it takes us around sharp turns and through unexpected loops. In one moment in time, we are on top of the world. The high is only temporary because we soon feel the ride taking us down further than we could ever imagine.

This analogy begs to ask the question "Why?" Why do we put ourselves through unnecessary pain and struggle? Although we can not control what life hands us, we can control some of the things we bring into our lives. The simple truth is that we spend much of our time trying to gain approval from sources that do not matter.

In order to gain peace of mind, we should make the resolution to be simple. We should strive to make our lives less complex. We should sit down with pen and paper and think about what really matters to us. If you are like me, you are allocating less time to the things that really matter and more time to frivolous unnecessary activities.

If we elect to simplify our lives, then we must be ready to ask ourselves some diffiucult questions. Our answers to these questions can greatly improve the quality of life for many of us. We may find that some "life adjustments" may be in order. If so, the time may be right for you to simplify.

Question One: Do you have too many "vampires" in your life?

We all have "vampires" in our life and they strive to suck every ounce of energy from us. For example, I am a person that has difficulty saying "no." As a result, people often call me because they know I will commit to help plan a retirement party, volunteer my time, or help with any cause or charity. Eventually, I had to learn to say "no." For some reason, I thought that the world would end if I failed to offer assistance every time the phone rang. My inability to say "no," became a vampire that sucked energy from me. One of the more important things that we can do to simplify our lives is to reduce the unnecessary activities in our lives.

Question Two: Do you have trouble asking for help?

We often make life more difficult that it really is because we forget to ask for help. Our society has conditioned many of us to believe that asking for help is a sign of weakness. The problem with this notion is that none of us should have to bear our burdens alone. In actuality, asking for help is a sign of strength. Some tasks just can not be completed by one person. This is why we have trouble living a simple life. We can not eliminate the idea that we have to be a superman or superwomen. In order to regain balance and control in our lives, we must learn to drop the trappings of society and live our lives according to what comes naturally to us.

Conclusion

The road map to simplicity is different for each of us. I am still struggling to find the right coordinates for my inner GPS. I do know, however, that it is time for me to simplify, and identifying the problem is only half of the journey.