- Welcome: A Letter From The Founder
- New Resources: Highlights Of The Latest Additions To Our Resource Directory
- A Call For Your Articles & Input: A Letter From The Editor
- Simplicity: The Journey To Wholeness
- I Don't Know What Tomorrow Holds, But I Know Who Holds Tomorrow
- Co-Creating Fulfillment: The New Roadmap Foundation
- New Documentary Searching For People Like You! American Dream, The Movie
- Simplicity & Social Justice: Thoughts On The Competitive Society
- Gems Of The Discussion Forums: New Column
- Money/Life Balance In The New Millennium: How Much Is Enough?
- Zen & The Art Of Clutter: Embracing The Mess
- Reducing Your Grocery Bill: The Dollar Stretcher
- The End Of The Internet
Dear Friends,
I'm pleased to welcome you to the 59th edition of our free, on-line Newsletter!
Summer has finally arrived here in beautiful Trout Lake, Washington. The garden is in full bloom, (I planted way too much garlic). The days are long and warm. Soon afternoons will be spent down by the river soaking up the sun, fishing and jumping into the refreshing waters of Trout Lake Creek. Simple pleasures.... Yes, life is good!
This issue of our Newsletter is busting at the seams once again. Editor Fred Ecks has assembled a nice collection of articles covering everything from finding fulfillment to reducing your grocery bill to envisioning the future, and much more. In fact, we even found "The End Of The Internet." In addition, there are several special announcements to note: a request for your input on this publication and an opportunity to contribute to a new documentary film about the "American Dream."
Use the Table Of Contents to navigate to all of the articles.
Perhaps the thing I, personally, am most excited about are the New Resources we have added to our on-line catalog. In particular, the new title, The Dangerous Book For Boys, deserves special mention. This is a magical book. It is one of the best "simple living" books for kids I've seen in a long time — containing hundreds of exciting ideas to get boys away from the computer and TV. A quick glance through the table of contents sparks the imagination in so many exciting ways. It is a perfect summer gift and I highly recommend it for every boy age eight to eighty!
Finally, as always, thank you to all of our generous CyberAngels — those of you who have pitched in to help us move toward our 2007 goal of $14,000 to cover the costs of user supported Community Services — this Newsletter, the Discussion Forums, SimpleRadio and the rest. Without contributions from folks like you, these services would not exist. Keep up the good work!
Enjoy,
Dave Wampler
Founder
The Simple Living Network
Copyright © The Simple Living Network. All Rights Reserved.
Dear Readers and Prospective Authors,
I'd like to take a moment here to encourage your article submissions and ideas for this Newsletter. We're always on the lookout for new voices and fresh perspectives in the realm of "simple living." If you would like to participate in making this Newsletter the best possible publication in our field, please contribute your thoughts and ideas! We've created a Discussion Forum specifically about this Newsletter — CLICK HERE TO PARTICIPATE. (PLEASE NOTE: If you are not yet a member of our Discussion Forums, you will be asked to create a User Name and Password before you can make submissions to The Simple Living Newsletter Forum. It's easy and free!) Submission guidelines for articles are available by clicking here.
Thank you! We hope you are having a warm and beautiful summer, and that you enjoy this 59th issue of our free, online Newsletter.
Fred Ecks
Newsletter Editor
The Simple Living Network
- All New Square Foot Gardening: Grow More In Less Space!
- Deep Economy: The Wealth Of Communities & The Durable Future
- Living Green: A Practical Guide To Simple Sustainability
- My Job Sucks & I Can't Take It Any More! Help!
- The Dangerous Book For Boys: Recapture Sunday Afternoons & Long Summer Days - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
- The Flip: Turn Your World Around!
- The Not So Big House: A Blueprint For The Way We Really Live
- The Not So Big Life: Making Room For What Really Matters
Copyright © 2007
A story tells that the great Buddhist saint Nagarjuna moved around naked except for a loincloth and, incongruously, a golden begging bowl gifted to him by the King, who was his disciple. One night he was about to lie down to sleep among the ruins of an ancient monastery when he noticed a thief lurking behind one of the columns."Here, take this," said Nagarjuna, holding out the golden begging bowl. That way you won't disturb me once I have fallen asleep."
The thief eagerly grabbed the bowl and made off — only to return next morning with the bowl and a request. He said, "When you gave this bowl so freely last night, you made me feel very poor. Please teach me how to acquire the riches that make this kind of lighthearted detachment possible."
A Buddhist Story
The call of simplicity is the call of renunciation that can lead us to a better life, a more skillfully enriched life. It's a call that Nagarjuna recognized as giving him an inner peace, freeing him from an agitated mind preoccupied with the worry of looking after possessions. But in our modern shopping mall culture, how many of us are really listening to that call? How many of us are prepared to simplify our lives? How many of us are prepared to tread Nagarjuna's path?
Western society is increasingly being influenced by a fierce consumer-led market economy where financial value seems to be attached to everything. "Sales forecasts", "Marketing strategies", "Production targets", and "Distribution networks" are just a few of the terms used in an economic language that seems to penetrate every dimension of our lives, seeking us out, even in our very homes through television, the internet, radio, newspapers, magazines, telephone sales, promotion leaflets, et cetera. Who can then resist the temptation to buy, especially when so many people see their "purchasing power" as a normal function of everyday living and an expression of their individual liberties / freedom? The proliferation of shopping malls and retail parks attest to the effectiveness of this language which insists that we increase our consumption of goods and services despite any reference to real need.
Yet despite our engagement with an unprecedented level of consumerism and its implicit promise of a better life, health problems (both physical and mental) are still increasing — sharply in some areas. It seems that although our material needs are being met, deeper, more personal needs are not.
Another consequence of this attachment to consumerism is the amount of time that we give up — not only in the activity of buying, installing, maintaining and replacing goods and services, but also in the very time that we spend at the workplace in order to pay for it all. Time, along with our health, is the most precious commodity that we have, so we must spend it wisely. Unfortunately, in our busy lives (which are now rebranded "busy schedules"), we just don't seem to have the time!
Simplicity, if we really engage with it like Nagarjuna, gives us more time to focus on what's important in our lives. It provides opportunities for reflection. It provides space so that a more contemplative frame of mind can open up, leading to deeper insights, clearer understanding — panna vimutta (liberation through wisdom).
Simplicity helps to make our lives more manageable, less stressful, with positive implications for our health.
Simplicity gives us time to enjoy ourselves more.
Simplicity brings greater moments of contentment and well-being.
Simplicity helps in our relationships, making them less strained.
Simplicity increases the quality of life, and increases our enjoyment.
Simplicity brings a presence of mind that aids clarity.
Simplicity cultivates mindfulness, making us more alert and more sensitized.
Gandhi once said, "Civilization, in the real sense of the term, consists not in the multiplication, but in the deliberate and voluntary reduction of wants. This alone promotes real happiness and contentment." These are wise words for us to reflect upon. Simplicity, in all its manifestations, enriches our lives in proportion to how much we let go. It's not reductionism but liberation, taking us away from the acquisition and greed that can flourish in our attitudes of control and attachment. However, this is not to suggest that simplicity is easy, that we can quickly and effectively bring it into our lives. Simplicity is a constantly evolving issue / dynamic that needs negotiation, compromise and flexibility. We need to be regularly looking at the finer details of our lives to see if we can make appropriate adjustments and reductions. The quest for a simpler style of life may involve us in some struggle with others, and with ourselves, but a rich harvest will eventually follow if we pursue our aims skillfully and mindfully.
The work ethic that has taken root in our society shows no signs of abating. Indeed, many reports highlight widespread increases in the number of hours we officially work. The "overtime culture" that we have allowed to develop in the workplace has now become the norm. Workaholics are now, unfortunately, no longer a rare breed. The prevalent attitude of "It's good to work, lazy not to, so carry on and do as much as you can" is a flawed attitude. Studies show that after 50 hours of work our performance drops by as much 25%. Then after 70 hours it drops at an alarming rate where we are not really contributing anything and may even be undoing our previous efforts. Another problem with the "work is good" brigade is their non-discriminatory approach. Work is considered good irrespective of its intrinsic merit. This traditionally supports many quite unskillful industries (e.g. the manufacturing and selling of armaments) because, it is argued, they contribute to the economy and provide employment, but this gives no account whatsoever to the harm and damage that they may cause in a wider context.
Stress-related illnesses have shown a marked increase in recent years, and it is our attachment to over-burdened work activity that is causing some of the damage. In our present climate of overachieving, we rush through our days telling ourselves that we can manage, that we may even be able to push our boundaries on performance even further, but can we really? Is this what we want, or are we just being swept up in a competitive neurosis in the name of personal growth and development?
The quest to achieve in an harsh, competitive marketplace may be indicative of deeper, underlying motives. Psychologist Cary Cooper has carried out research in this field and has shown that many high achievers "recalled vividly, memories of loss, whether of parents or place, and associated feelings of insecurity." It seems that where we have been lacking in some areas of our lives, we may try to seek out some form of compensation elsewhere.
Slowing down and letting go are the prerequisites of a simple life that can reward us in so many enriching ways, if we are prepared to listen attentively to its message. The choice is ours. Do we decide to keep on the treadmill of activity and acquisition that can cause us so much damage, or do we follow the call of simplicity that can release us into a more manageable, saner world?
Nagarjuna knew the answer to this question and followed the call of simplicity, but it is unlikely that we could ever commit ourselves to his degree of personal engagement — after all, we are not Buddhist saints! However, the path of simplicity invites everyone, with no exceptions, to journey along its way. This is what we must do: accept the path, in the knowledge that it is progress that we are seeking, and not perfection.
"'Tis a gift to be simple."A Shaker's Saying
Journey well into simplicity.
About The Author
Michael Lewin, who has a degree in Psychology, has spent 25 years teaching and supporting a variety of different groups, from children with special needs to adults with learning difficulties. He is active in a number of UK-based Buddhist groups and has regularly published articles in a number of UK psycho/spiritual magazines. As he says, "I am at that stage in my life that I want to pursue the spiritual path even further to find out the depth I can penetrate. I am a seeker, if not for perfection, then at least for some kind of personal progress that can bring me joy, contentment and happiness." Contact Michael at: lewinmick@hotmail.com.
Copyright © 2007. Reprinted here with special permission from GreenMoney Journal
There's a line attributed to either Yogi Berra or Dan Quayle: "It's difficult to make predictions, especially about the future."
Actually, despite its absurdity I agree with this statement. None of us knows what the future holds. But one thing is certain, especially in the face of clear and unassailable evidence about the declining condition of our planet — failure to try to influence humans' behavior towards the earth is inexcusable. Or, as a friend of mine says, even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.
At Stonyfield, our motto has always been that the best way to predict the future is to invent it. And so, in that pathologically optimistic spirit, I pen this essay with an optimistic activist's bias. I will briefly discuss climate, energy and food, the three topics that have defined my last 30 years' work.
Several weeks ago, I heard a presentation by Dr. James McCarthy, President-Elect of the AAAS and Alexander Agassiz, Professor of Biological Oceanography at Harvard University, upon their return from the 4th Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Jim relayed that the consensus of the global scientific community is that we have about a decade to "downwardly adjust" the current trajectory of global warming trends from the worst-case "business as usual" path that will yield catastrophic impacts on the natural world in the middle of this century. The scientists believe that if we act swiftly and definitively we can potentially induce a leveling of the greenhouse gas production and coincidental temperature increases to more tolerable and survivable levels.
I believe that awareness of the ecological consequences of climate change will do nothing to wake our species from our fossil fuel stupor. But the clear and growing alarm about the economic consequences of these trends will be the dominant social and economic reality of the next 15 years, as well as the next century.
I studied the causes of climate change and advancing alpine tree line back in the 1970's. Despite the attempts by many activists to sound the alarm since then, we have lost 30 years as a species. We've known what to do, but we've lacked a renewable resource — will power- to act. I believe that the economic realities have finally woken us up, and that we will see dramatic changes in our behaviors and activities in the near future. What does this look like?
First, in general, the next 15 years will be characterized by a national identity crisis as Americans undergo a deep and painful but hopefully "civil" war between two polar worldviews. On one side will be a large segment of actual or "wanna be" affluentials who will be reluctant to shrink, downsize or reduce our homes, cars, gadgets and footprints. This populace will embrace new technology that allows them to maintain the traditional American lifestyle while advocating nuclear over fossil fuels, offsetting vs. actually reducing energy usage, and ultimately paying a premium to maintain the world they were raised to expect.
On the other side will be a large populace who, for mostly economic (as opposed to moral or ecological) reasons, will accept the lower social and environmental risks of downsizing (within reason) but who also treasure security and will be reluctant to embrace the proliferation risks of a nuclear-powered society.
These two worldviews will dominate American political debate starting with the 2012 races.
Here are some other predictions:
Insurance Costs — A variety of tax initiatives will be introduced to move us in stages from taxing income to instead surcharging waste and consumption, but well before these triggers are in force, we will all feel the pinch of rising insurance costs. Indeed, many regions, especially those in low-lying coastal areas, will find that property insurance will become unaffordable and this will force people and businesses to relocate.
Legislation and Commerce — We will soon see a National Emissions Cap and Trade System. Companies large and small will become engaged in a vigorous accounting and trading of greenhouse gas credits. Measurement systems and auditing enterprises will abound, as will a whole new wave of credible but also scam advisory services and technologies to help businesses drive down emissions. Just as mobile phones went from being a fad to a necessity in the last decade, the business of reducing greenhouse gases and climate footprints will transition from being a virtuous "image" building exercise, to a routine business practice.
Unfortunately, few if any politicians will be brave enough to lead a debate about enacting the really necessary fuel tax surcharges on consumers that will be required to make deep dents in America's climate footprints. But a few brave leaders will advocate credible campaigns to fund a national "Apollo-like" investment program funded by surcharges on businesses, and some of these ideas will be enacted. These will of course have the same effect as a consumer tax, and eventually, by the time 15 years have passed, this too will be widely accepted.
Legislatures will be fiercely competing to offer the most attractive incentives to lure renewable energy and organic food businesses to set up shop in their states. And all cities and towns will be required to convert aerobic energy-consuming waste treatment plants to anaerobic digesters that rely on the gas produced to fuel air-compressor pumps for these operations.
Technology — We will shortly see an avalanche of new hardware and software to help businesses and individuals understand and reduce our footprints. Hybrid cars and low-wattage light bulbs are just the start. Motion-sensitive light switches will become the norm. Miles-Per-Gallon meters will be featured on every car's speedometer as will engine kill switches to limit idling at stoplights. Pneumatic, compressed air storage and power systems will obviate the need to convert fuels into electricity to run motors and other mechanical systems. Screen savers will disappear in favor of higher speed shut-off (and turn on) sensors. Just as organic foods "suddenly" showed up in markets everywhere, consumers will suddenly see a rash of super-insulated refrigerators, convective stoves, solar photovoltaic roof panels, insulated window shades, lower wattage appliances, etc.
Energy Choices will of course dramatically change, once the legislative incentives begin to be felt. A new industry will emerge that enables home owners to convert their roofs into utilities — companies will effectively lease your roof space, installing photovoltaic cells on rooftops which trickle flow back into the electric grids, and the homeowners will be charged for the net electricity they use. Wind farms, especially in offshore venues, will sprout. A fierce and highly public debate will take place over the role of nuclear power, but a couple of terrorist scares will quickly put an end to that fight as fears about proliferation win out. New highly efficient fuel cells will become widely available as will tree farms and wood chip gasification utilities.
Food — Consumption in general will become a much more conscious endeavor. New certification groups will emerge who will offer third party climate footprint scoring similar to organic or kosher certifiers today. Readers can get a look at an early version of this type of effort by going to a new NGO funded by Stonyfield called Climate Counts (www.climatecounts.org).
Food manufacturers will publish climate ratings on their packaging right next to the nutrition information, and even fruits and vegetables will be rated based on their food miles, and embodied energy. Organic food and fiber products will be ubiquitous, and thanks to both volume efficiencies and the new fossil fuel surcharges, they will cost less than non-organic items. A new 3-star hierarchy will be established in which the organic, local and most nutritious items earn the highest ratings, while the merely organic receive only one star.
Edible and compost-able films that are grown without the use of fossil fuels will now serve the function formerly filled by cellophane or plastic. Organically raised fish will replace meats and poultry as the top choice for protein. And corn-based feeds for dairy and other livestock will be replaced with algal and other lower-on-the-food-chain nutrient sources, which in addition to reducing the energy costs of feed will also dramatically reduce cow flatulence. Dairy barns will have solar powered pumps to inhale the cow gas for recapture and use.
Other packaged goods — packaging weights will plummet as industry and consumers jointly recognize the enormous opportunity posed by source reduction to both dramatically cut the embodied energy of products, but also the fuel required for transportation.
Retailers too will compete to have the lowest carbon footprints.
While clearly this is a somewhat optimistic view of the next 15 years, I am, after all, a businessperson and thus a realist. Thus, I do believe that none of these changes are going to transpire automatically. Regrettably, there will continue to be truth to the adage that "experience is something you don't get until just after you need it," and I fear that each positive step will require considerable economic, ecologic and health pains before they can be manifest. The wild card of course is the question of what degree and level of terrorist activity will result from the chaos of shifting energy priorities and disappearing ecological resources. It is completely conceivable that nations will go to war over, for instance, water, as climate changes impact fresh water supplies in marginal and coastal zones. How we respond to these outbreaks will be as decisive a factor in our social behavior as energy taxes.
In the end, though I have faith in my fellow humans. My favorite philosopher Lily Tomlin says "No Matter How Cynical I Get, its Hard to Keep Up", and while our ostrich-like behaviors over the last decades might give rise to gloom, doom and cynicism, I prefer to think that necessity will be the mother of wonderful invention in the years ahead. My $325 million per year enterprise started 24 years ago with seven cows and a leaky barn, but has grown over 27 percent per year for the last 18 consecutive years. If we can do that, than I guess anything is possible.
Article By Gary Hirshberg, President and CE-YO of Stonyfield Farm, Inc. More information at: www.stonyfield.com. Article originally published in the GreenMoney Journal's special 15th Anniversary "Visionaries" issue (Summer 2007). More information at: www.greenmoney.com.
Copyright © 2007
Editor's Note: The following article introduces three questions which are core to those seeking alignment of their finances with their personal values. This is explored further in the article "How Much Is Enough?" later in this Newsletter.
I have two piles of money worth $2 each. One pile is a $2 bill, and the other is a pile of two silver dollars. Theoretically all have the same value, right? They will all buy a sticky bun, for example. But if I say you can have $2, which pile would you take and why?
My late Grandmother would have said: "Who needs a sticky bun?" When she had the chance, she'd get silver dollars and rather than spend them, would give them to me. In turn I would save them in a special place so that they still wouldn't be spent. What that $2 in silver represented for both my grandmother and myself is a loving connection that endures even twenty years after she died. Notice, however, that she hadn't given them to her grandson, who may have immediately spent them on baseball cards!
When dealing with others around the issue of money, there are two aspects that determine the quality of the interaction, one is values and the other is behavior. This is universal. A "product" arises out of the behavior of the producer. If the behavior of the producer aligns with what the customer values: voila! Mutual satisfaction. This is also true in the most intimate of situations. If a wife makes a purchase with the household money, and that purchase aligns with the values of the husband: voila! Mutual satisfaction! The question is, what do people value? If we really explore this, we find that it is rarely actually fulfilled with the thing bought, or the money made. The value — or, more often, the unconscious psychological need — is met by what that transaction represents.
The problem with western economic theory, as well as most personal finance advice, is that we think the economic sphere is somehow separate from the complex web of human values and needs. This is the fallacy that leads to so much dissatisfaction and conflict in people's personal experiences.
- Error #1: We don't recognize that every transaction we do is based upon either our values (life, liberty, etc.) or our immediate psychological needs/fears (prestige, security, acceptance, etc.)
- Error #2: We assume everyone else has the same values and the same needs, to be met in the same ways.
Ultimately, we are the same in that we all want to feel fulfilled — but our ideas of what brings fulfillment, and our methods for pursuing it are very diverse and often illogical.
In any endeavor, whether running a business or making a meal, there are three elements: motivations (theoretically values), strategy, and actions. We want a healthy family (value), so we plan out a balanced menu (strategy), and then we do the tasks to buy, prepare, and serve the meal (actions). It seems obvious, but in reality personal strategies are often based more on our psychological needs (often dominated by our fears) than our stated values. In other words, we often settle for grabbing fish sticks, ketchup and tater tots on our way home from work. We adopt that strategy rather than admit we are not Supermom and need to share responsibility for creating fresh, whole-food meals. We end up dissatisfied with both our mothering and our diet, but at least we avoid fighting with the kids, or negotiating with a grumpy spouse — and anyway, tater tots are so cheap! Due to our fear of scarcity of money, time, and blood sugar, we sacrifice our stated value.
Because money is such a taboo subject in our culture, it can be hard to talk about why we do what we do with it. Initially it may be easier to talk in terms of another economic commodity that's a little less loaded: space. We all "spend" space in our homes, and the smaller your home is, the more value space has. When you think about your stuff,
- How do you categorize each item: need, comfort, luxury, or clutter?
- What value determines that category?
When Chris made the big decision to move in with Tyler, their first big decisions as co-habitators were how to "spend" the limited space in the closet. So they systematically planned a closet remodel. When asked to characterize the items they wanted to store and what values undergird those characterizations, they were fairly aligned. A vacuum was a need because they both valued cleanliness, extra blankets were a luxury, but since they both valued family it was important to have extra bedding for visitors. Then Tyler said the many backpacks were clutter, and Chris exclaimed, "Not my bag!" Tensions started to rise.
Tyler explained the value behind the clutter categorization: the value of an efficient, clean space, with Chris admittedly rarely using the bag. When asked what value the bag represented to her, Chris answered "service to children — my first job of my career, all the kids signed that bag. When I see it I remember my life's purpose. And independence — it's my own bag and it reminds me that I'm my own person even if I'm now in this relationship."
Standing outside the situation, it's easy to see that a backpack in a closet will not guarantee that Chris will have a feeling of "enough-ness" in terms of either self-reliance or career satisfaction. Indeed, it may get in the way of her value of harmonious compromise. In my observation, our stated values are usually based on our best hopes, but before we act, we are often diverted by our psychological needs, often based on fear, because of some painful experience in our past. Usually when we are basing our decisions on fear, we tend to act not in the most efficient, effective way — but don't bother telling us we're being irrational, as it will only increase fear and defensiveness!
Once they got down to what this simple backpack represented to each of them, they realized they respected each other's values. Chris also valued efficiency. Likewise Tyler respected Chris's underlying values that she associated with the bag, and sympathized with Chris's fear of losing her own personal compass in taking this big step. So they compromised on how they would "spend" the space, and built a special place for the backpack to hang, where it was out of Tyler's way, but Chris could see it every morning as she headed off to work.
If we want to have less conflict and more fulfillment around joint economic decisions, it's really important to come back to the elements of economic exchange: values and behaviors, and try to avoid assumptions that these elements are the same for others as they are for us. We need to check in with each other.
Most importantly, we need to be really clear that our own behaviors are a clear reflection of our values, rather than an unconscious reflection of our fears. If our partners can see that, they will trust us to be reliable and honest in our negotiations with them.
There are three questions that can really help people align their economic decisions with their highest aspirations, whether as individuals, as a family, or in social groups. You can answer them individually, and then use them to help clarify where you each are coming from and trying to go together. Then you can co-creatively find strategies to meet each person's values with actions that work for all involved, until each can reach that place of feeling acknowledged and fulfilled.
- Will I/we receive fulfillment worth the life energy spent (to acquire it, keep it, maintain it, etc)?
- Is this in alignment with my/our values?
- If money/time/energy were not an issue, would I/we make a different choice?
These questions seem simple, but look out — if you take them seriously and apply them to all your economic exchanges, they can create space between your fears and what you actually do. Using such a calm inner compass for how you spend your money, time, and energy will help you align your daily decisions with your deepest values and highest aspirations, leading to financial integrity and mutually respectful partnerships that help you meet your goals in life and love.
About The Author
Rozie Hughes is the Executive Director of The New Roadmap Foundation, a non-profit organization. New Roadmap offers practical resources that empower people to align their financial choices with their life goals.
Related Resources
Traversing the country from the glitz of Las Vegas to the homes of everyday men and women, a new documentary called American Dream will take audiences on the journey of one man as he tries to make sense of a world that seems to have lost its mind.
Including a variety of engaging interviews with celebrities, luminaries and industry leaders such as Danny Glover, Howard Zinn, Vicki Robin, Ed Begley Jr., Jean Kilbourne, Rickson Gracie, Satish Kumar and others, American Dream helps shed light on our consumer culture, its causes and effects. With a combination of humor and insight, we discover an America we never knew we were a part of.
Currently the film's producers are on a search for everyday Americans to tell their stories. We want to hear from people who live simple lives, city dwellers that have relocated to the country, ex-shopolics, people involved in simplicity circles, really anyone who has a story about transitions in their lifestyle.
Please send a short summary of your experience to justin@americandreamthemovie.com and we will be in touch very soon!
Copyright © 2007
Simplicity has often been attacked as a yuppie movement with no relevance to the poor. Certainly I would never give a talk to poor people about how to simplify their lives! The poor are trying to survive, and that's not what living simply is about. Simplicity is about making conscious choices for the well being of people and the planet, and poor people don't have the luxury of choices. (Ironically, of course, the planet is less harmed by poor people than by richer people who use up so many more resources.)
However, the concept of Simplicity is vital to helping poor people because Simplicity's underlying goal is to "put money in its place." People are impoverished because of the greediness of the rich. And people are greedy because of the mistaken belief that being rich will make them happy.
All the research shows that it doesn't! After a certain point, more money doesn't increase happiness, and in fact could have a negative impact, because the more money you have, the less time you are likely to spend involved with community and the common good. It's having caring relationships, not having a lot of money, that is at the root of happiness.
Furthermore, the bigger the gap grows between the rich and the rest of us, the less happiness anyone has. Why? Because a wide gap in wealth undermines social cohesion and creates a ruthless, highly competitive society where everyone is your adversary. There's little cooperation, caring, or community.
When we talk of Simplicity, one of our goals is to help people understand the negative things greed does to people. The concept of Simplicity is central to combating poverty because it's greed that helps keep people poor.
The competitive society undermines all of our lives, not just poor people's. In my book Slow is Beautiful: New Visions of Community, Leisure, and Joie de Vivre, I explore how difficult it is for any of us to be happy in a nation that is speeding toward the cliff. Our hurried, fast pace has pushed us to the brink. We're no longer able to take our time to enjoy the things that matter — things like friends, family, community, nature, or solitude and contemplation.
We in the Simplicity movement need to remember how vital our message is for social justice. Unchecked greed is at the root of selfishness, war, corruption, unhappiness, and the destruction of nature. And greed exists because people mistakenly think that being rich will make them happy.
As we live more simply —spending our time and money in congruence with the well-being of people and the planet, and finding time to enjoy our lives— people will be drawn to a way of life that brings joy and peace of mind.
About The Author
Cecile Andrews is a community educator, author of Circle Of Simplicity and Slow Is Beautiful, and contributor to several books on living more simply and taking back our time. She and her husband are founders of Seattle's Phinney Ecovillage, a neighborhood-based sustainable community.
Related Resources
Copyright © 2007
I'm starting a new column to draw attention to some of the best conversations happening in The Simple Living Network Discussion Forums. (PLEASE NOTE: If you are not yet a member of our Discussion Forums, you will be asked to create a User Name and Password before you can make submissions to The Simple Living Newsletter Forum. It's easy and free!)
There are three discussions I'd like to point out this month, each related to the physical aspects of simple living — space, how it's decorated, and the things that fill it.
The first, in the "Frugality & Tightwadding" Forum, asks for "opinions of updating home to keep it sellable". Do those updates really pay off when selling a home? If one's expecting to stay in the same home for ten years, does it make sense to update now to enjoy the results, or wait until just before selling so the updates will still be in fashion? Or, if home improvement just isn't a priority, is it more environmentally sound since the new owners may rip out brand new "updates" to finish the home in their own style?
Next, in the "Organizing Your Life" Forum, people respond to the question, "How simple can one go?" There's discussion of the contents (or lack of contents) of participants' homes and what they would consider their ideal possessions. It shows that what's one person's necessity can be truly another person's clutter.
Finally, in the "Enough!" Forum, participants have fun listing "Things I Thought I Had To Have", ranging from the mundane (clothes iron) to luxurious (an airplane) to the profound (other people's approval). This discussion motivates the aspiring simplifier.
If you've never been to the Discussion Forums before, check out the introduction to our on-line community. Then join in the fun!
About The Author
Ann Haebig is a part-time geek, part-time bicycle advocate, and dedicated follower and promoter of the Your Money Or Your Life program. She lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her partner, cat and recently adopted banjo. Ann can be reached at ahaebig@pobox.com.
Copyright © 2007
This is the fourth article in a series discussing Your Money Or Your Life from a modern, personal perspective. The most recent article in the May-June, 2007 edition of this Newsletter reviewed Step3: Where Is It All Going? That step helped us to create a monthly tabulation of the money flowing through our lives. An important distinction was that this was an act of discovery, not a budget. We're not going on a diet, we're engaging in a change of lifestyle. Rather than setting targets for our spending, we're working to align our finances with our own personal values. We're taking all those beautiful lifelong dreams of what we'd love to do in life, and making them real, step by inevitable step!
My credit union sent me their monthly flyer last week. In it, they advertised their home equity Visa card. "Pay with your home equity card!" bellowed the promotion. My own reaction aside, I think this home equity credit card perfectly illustrates the need for Step 4. Step 4 is about aligning our financial lives with our own personal values. When someone buys something with their home equity credit card, they're in fact selling their home to buy that item. Considering the transaction from that angle, are we operating in alignment with our deeply held values when we pay with our own homes?
What's Your Dream?
In my opinion, Step 4 is the heart of the Your Money Or Your Life program. This program isn't about money; it's about creating the lives we've dreamed of! In Step 4, the big issues we're dealing with aren't "How should I go about figuring out how much I've earned in my life?" or "What sort of system should I use for tracking my finances?" or "What categories should I use when tallying my expenses?" No, we're finally asking the big questions, in all their glaring beauty: "What did you want to be when you grew up?" "What have you always wanted to do that you haven't yet done?"
Be careful! Spend some time contemplating these questions. I say that because these lofty dreams are going to become reality. Be careful what you dream of, because you're going to live it. If you've always wanted to climb Mt. Everest, get ready, it's going to be cold up there! If you've always wanted to find the time to learn the piano, take care of your fingers, because you're going to need them! If you've always wanted to volunteer at the local animal shelter, let's hope you're not allergic! The point is this: we're not dreaming, we're planning our future.
Discovering Fulfillment
How much is enough? That's the question we're answering for ourselves as we begin contemplating the first question presented in Step 4. The question is, "Did I receive fulfillment, satisfaction and value in proportion to life energy spent?" We're asking that question of each category of expenses in our monthly tabulation. This is different from simply answering the question of how much is enough. Rather than saying that some certain amount should be enough (i.e. budgeting), we're discovering the answer for ourselves.
For each category of expenses, how did it feel? Do you wish you had spent more there, or less? Did it feel just right? For example, I spent about three hours of my life energy on a pair of running shoes last month. I bought last year's model on a closeout sale, so I'm happy with the price I paid. I find running to be very rewarding in my life, and replacing my shoes regularly helps to avoid injury. The problem is, I'll need to buy another pair soon, and that closeout sale has ended. I can't find that discount price now. I wish I had bought two or three pairs instead of just one. I would have experienced greater fulfillment by purchasing more running shoes at the same time. Oh well, live and learn. Next time I run across a sale like that, I'll buy more!
Ann was frustrated by the amount of money (life energy) she spent on rent each month in San Francisco. As she says, she "was determined to find something just as fulfilling for less money." Her motivation and consciousness about this were reinforced as she kept looking at it every month in her tabulation. She moved a few times to try a variety of situations that turned out not to be fulfilling. Eventually she happened upon the unconventional idea of living on an old houseboat. Now her rent is half what it had been, and her "backyard" is filled with a variety of waterfowl. Her commute isn't optimal, but the overall situation is fulfilling for her.
Alignment With Values and Life Purpose
Most of us can figure out easily enough whether we feel fulfilled with our spending on various items over the past month, or if we wish we had bought more or less. But this next question involves deeper contemplation: "Is this expenditure of life energy in alignment with my values and life purpose?"
Whoa! Hang on a second! What's this "Life Purpose", anyway? While some of us were blessed with knowing a clear purpose for our lives from the very start, many of us were not. In fact, this turns out to be a major stumbling block for lots of folks following this program. It sure has been for me. I'm not such a contemplative person, so basing my financial life on my life purpose was quite a stretch. In the absence of a single clear purpose, I've instead identified some of my own core values, and used them to direct my financial decisions. Nobody else is watching me do this, so it's easy enough for me to change this later if I discover a deeper purpose in my life.
Sheila and her husband found that they strongly value knowing how to do things. They make their own wine and brandy. It doesn't save them a great deal of money, but it's closely in alignment with their own core values. They share the delicious results with everyone they welcome into their home.
Lynn applied this concept of personal values in Step 4 to her income source, rather than just expenses. She changed how she earns her income to a type of work that closely matches her values. In contemplating Step 4, she was able to take steps in her life to find her "right livelihood".
Step 4 invites us to explore our own values and life purpose? What's important to you? Who do you want to be when you grow up? How would you like to be remembered?
What If I Didn't Have to Work for a Living?
The final question that Step 4 presents is, "How might this expenditure change if I didn't have to work for a living?" Looking around in the popular financial literature, there is a lot of advice in this area. The "professionals" tell us to estimate our post-retirement expenses to be anywhere from 70% to 100% of our pre-retirement expenses. The thing is, how can they claim any such thing? They don't know us! They don't know our values or what fulfills us. They talk about "retirement", while we're talking about Financial Independence. From my perspective, "retirement" sounds pointless and boring! What am I supposed to do, buy a big RV and lumber around on the interstate from campground to campground until my health fails? Personally, I'm far more interested in being a wilderness ranger, helping backpackers in remote regions, and learning and sharing the local ecology with others. Meanwhile, that big RV would cost a bundle, and those campground fees add up, and there's all the fuel, and campground food, and so on, while the wilderness ranger spends a summer in a place where a dollar bill is totally useless. To me, this illustrates the difference between "retirement" and Financial Independence. It doesn't take a whole lot of money to be Financially Independent.
I love this riddle presented in the book: "Who is more Financially Independent — someone who can fix a toaster, or someone who must pay another person to fix it?" If our vision of not having to work for a living involves having the money to pay that toaster repairman, our expenses in each category may not change appreciably after we stop working for a living. But if we're willing to learn to fix that broken toaster, our expenses will drop when we have more time. For me, I love learning how things work, and fixing them. I can't begin to explain all the things I've learned to do since I stopped working for money! In the meantime, my expenses have plummeted. I simply don't need so much money any more.
As Lynn worked through the program, she gained an understanding of how important it is to learn more about investing. She came to the conclusion that she's valuing her life energy more by knowing enough to invest her savings in alignment with her values and future needs. More on this later, in Step 9!
Getting to Enough
The authors of Your Money Or Your Life included a short piece on "Getting to Enough" in their explanation of Step 4. This is important because the entire program depends on the concept of Enough. Until we find out how much is "Enough" for us, we can never be fulfilled. Our finances remain arbitrary and uncontrolled until we discover the point at which more isn't any better. That's what we're doing with Step 4: month by month, we're zeroing in on our own personal amounts of "Enough." How else could we have any idea of how much money we need to feel fulfilled in our financial lives?
Coming Soon
In the next article, we'll get graphic! In Step 5, we'll create a wall chart of our finances. It's a fairly simple exercise, yet it gives us a visible reminder of our progress down this road every day. Keep collecting those monthly tabulations from Step 3 — we're going to make it all much more clear next time!
About The Author
Fred Ecks is the volunteer Newsletter Editor for The Simple Living Network. He's a dedicated follower of the 9-step program detailed in Your Money Or Your Life. He uses the time freed up in his life for writing, volunteering, sailing, and trail running. He can be reached at fredx@pobox.com.
Related Resources
- Your Money Or Your Life
- Transforming Your Relationship With Money — Audio CD/Workbook Course
- On-Line Study Groups For Your Money Or Your Life
Registration In Progress.
What Is An On-Line Study Group?
OnLine Study Groups were created by The Simple Living Network (SLN) in cooperation with The New Road Map Foundation (NRM). Our purpose is to provide hosted, interactive, on-line classes for those following the nine-step program in the best selling book Your Money Or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin.
Your Money Or Your Life presents a simple, nine-step plan that will transform the way you think about, earn and spend money. This plan, a whole systems approach based on simple record keeping and your own unique life situation, works for anyone who earns or spends money. Singles and couples (with and without children), retirees and students, big earners and those below the poverty line have all been successful in doing the program.
We have created this OnLine Study Group venue because we recognize that group study is very helpful for those following the nine-steps. However, we also recognize that there are many folks out there who...
- do not have access to a local Study Group,
- find it difficult to attend face-to-face meetings on a regular basis, or
- wish to maintain the anonymity provided by the internet.
Curious? Click Here To Take A Tour
Copyright © 2006
Clutter. Disorder. Disarray. Believe it or not, I have come to respect these words and their meanings as I stumble and trip through my house.
Let me explain. I have a friend who is an incredible housewife (stay-at-home mom, domestic engineer). When I walk into her beautiful, freshly redecorated house, there is always the smell of something healthy and loving simmering on the stove. Her house is always spotless; clothes are always neat, wrinkle-free and put away.
Drips are promptly wiped up; dishes are done after every meal; floors are swept and the bathroom sink is completely lacking of toothpaste... um, er, are those balls or gobs? I am never quite sure what to call them. She also doesn't just mow her lawn: She landscapes.
Her children always look like they stepped out of a Tide commercial. There are no holes in the knees of their pants, and their faces are free from ice cream beards and milk moustaches.
My friend finishes her needlework projects promptly, and her husband always finds time to frame them. They are added to the wall with the promptly framed school pictures (rotated yearly) and the framed projects the children have brought home from school. She is the pre-eminent volunteer, a crafts woman extraordinaire, a Martha Stewart in the making and is always home when the kids get home.
Either my husband or I are also home with the children, but that is just about where the similarities between my friend and I end.
Somehow our clothes never seem to make it past the dryer. Well, that's not entirely true. They make into a basket in front of the dryer and then everyone pushes their way through to see if their favorite clothes finally made it out.
Choruses of "Hey, those are my socks!" and "I don't have any underwear!" are frequently yelled as the day begins.
Will someone please explain why they can put a man on the moon, but they can't make pants that kids can't wear longer than three weeks without putting holes in the knees? By February, my kids are all out of pants, but they have mounds of cut-offs.
If there are enough dishes clean to have a meal, this seems to be good enough. The dishes don't always match, but ... hey, who said chicken had to be eaten on a plate? And oatmeal is just as easy to eat with fork as a spoon, and besides, I am not giving up my coffee spoon for anyone first thing in the morning.
Our lawn is landscaped ... with the remains of trip to Toys 'R' Us. Lovingly strewn throughout the lawn are a variety of plastic shovels (I think the Latin term is Shovolius Ijusthavetohaveitius), a couple of bikes, a skateboard and socks. Don't ask me about the socks; I have no idea.
The lawn is mowed just often enough to keep the neighbors from calling the selectboard, and we did hang up Christmas lights last year.
Now don't get me wrong. I hate dirt just as much as anyone. Despite the clutter, I am proud to say that there is nothing growing (currently) in my refrigerator.
I have simply developed my own "Philosophy of Housework," otherwise entitled "Zen and the Art of Clutter." Don't be fooled, there is an art to it. It takes a long time to learn to leave well enough alone.
There are many righteous people out there now, telling us to "simplify." To get rid of our stuff, our debt, our desire for things. And I agree with a lot of it, but... I like some of my stuff. So I decided to simplify my mind. As Thoreau once said, "Simplify, simplify, simplify," and as Bob Newhart added, "Wouldn't it have been simpler to only say it once?"
Ask yourself: What can I live with? With a household full of active readers, my office in the house, and who knows how many craft projects, science projects and birthday presents in progress going on, I long ago decided that piles of books and magazines were acceptable. It's OK for the bookshelves and cabinets to be disheveled and for the kitchen table to be a virtual "inbox" for the plethora of papers that make their way into our home.
However, I do not tolerate leftover crumbs, food left out, unswept floors, etc.
Also, make your kids work! Most people are amazed when I tell them the things that my kids do to help. My 8- and 10-year-olds do very simple chores that save me loads of time, and it teaches them what it means to contribute to the family — or at least, what they can do to not make Mom angry. My teenagers take on more physical chores like stacking wood or feeding the sheep — and I have learned to tune out the standard heavy sigh, and I don't even see frequent eye-rolling anymore.
And they do not get paid for these chores — sweeping, wiping counters and tables, picking up toys, folding laundry, sorting recyclables and taking out trash, wiping down bathroom fixtures, etc. — any more than I get paid to do the dishes or scrub the tub.
Many parents feel that it's easier and faster to do most of these things themselves. I don't — do you know why? Who cares if it takes them three hours to clean the bathroom? If they are dawdling and that's how they want to spend their day, then too bad for them. It only took me a half-hour to clean the living room and now I get to do what I want.
And no, maybe Junior won't sweep "properly" behind the piano, but he probably got everything he could see, and if he can't see it and you can't see it, why look for it?
There are some days when I am just frustrated with the whole idea of housework. Why bother? There will just be more tomorrow. Housework never ends ... and that is why I have decided not to dedicate any more of my life to it than I have to.
Yes, I am still jealous of my friend's immaculate home and hopeful that no one has white gloves on when they come over to mine. But mostly I am happy when there are enough clean dishes for the next meal, and I'm happy when everyone has something clean to wear. When kids start telling me there is no clean underwear, then I know I've ignored too much!
About The Author
Michelle Kennedy is an author, activist, shepherd, organic farmer and mother of five. She is also the Founding Editor of Real Living — a new 'zine for the organically inclined. Contact Michelle directly by visiting www.mishakennedy.com.
Related Resources
- Clutter Control
- Speed Cleaning
- Organizing For The Creative Person
- Organizing Plain & Simple
- Unclutter Your Home
- The Spiritual Art Of Being Organized (PDF)
- The 12 Principles Of Being Organized (PDF)
- Better Basics For The Home
- Clean & Green
- Organic Housekeeping
Copyright © 2007
Hi Gary,
I am at a loss. My wife and I both work and we have four kids. We make good money between us but are always living paycheck to paycheck. One big problem is our grocery spending. I was looking at last month's expenses and saw that we spent over $1800 in groceries during the month at one grocery store (that is not a typo). There were a few other stops in there as well at some convenience stores. The really sad thing is we aren't eating steak and lobster — we eat frozen burgers 3-4 times a week, and tacos.
As I mentioned, we both work and although I appreciate suggestions about making everything from scratch, that is not feasible for us. Most times during the week we are not eating dinner until 8pm. We try to shop at Costco, Sam's Club, etc., but all that does is rack up a huge $400-600 bill there and then we still "run to the store" 3-4 times a week.
I am at the point of seriously considering paying someone to help us plan our grocery spending and meal planning. Is there anything I can try first?
Darren is right. His family does have a problem. They really should be eating steak and lobster if they're spending that much on groceries each month.
Let's attack the problem on two fronts. First, we'll examine a business tool that will help Darren understand the problem. Second, we'll see if we can suggest some tactics that will work for his busy family.
The business tool is one that's used by management to help identify and isolate a problem. It's sometimes known as reading a report from the 'bottom up'.
If I were to evaluate my departmental budget, I'd begin by looking at the bottom line. How did the total expenses compare to the planned expenses? If they were as expected, I knew that the budget details probably wouldn't provide many big surprises.
My next step was to look at the major subtotals that made up the budget total. Again I was looking for results that differed from the budget.
Only those areas with a significant difference drew my attention. By checking the subtotals first, I managed to focus my time on the areas where detailed study would pay off. Only then would I really study the individual expenses looking for items that were out of line and needed correction.
It appears that Darren has already done the first step of this process. He has identified that food is the problem. The next step is to figure out where in the food budget things are going wrong.
It will require a bit of work, but nothing too strenuous. Darren will want to take a month's worth of grocery store receipts and place the items into categories. The categories should reflect the type of grocery item. Here are some possibilities: meats, breads, frozen foods, fruits/vegetables, desserts, drinks, snacks, lunches, cleaning supplies, pet food. Darren will want to use the categories are most useful for his family.
He can use a computer spreadsheet or a simple notepad (one sheet for each category). Simply put each grocery item purchased during the last month into the best category. Then total the categories.
Darren will focus his attention on the largest categories. He will probably find a few areas that stick out as problems. He can then work on solutions to that more specific problem.
What we have done is taken a large, overwhelming problem and turned it into something specific that Darren can work on.
Next, let's look for strategies that match Darren's family. We'll focus on ideas for families that are very busy. He's right; no one is going to come home at 8pm and start cooking from scratch. Fortunately, that's not necessary.
The trick for Darren's family is to shift the cooking so that it's done largely before 8pm. There are a variety of tools and tricks to do that.
For instance, it's easy to put a roasting chicken in a slow cooker in the morning and have dinner ready when you get home. Or a roast. Or a stew. A search on 'slow cooker recipes' will turn up dozens of ideas for meals that will cook while you're away from home.
The freezer and microwave oven are a great tandem for the busy cook. The freezer allows for meals to be prepared days or even weeks in advance. The microwave allows those frozen meals to be ready in minutes.
Many families use the weekends to prepare complete meals for the freezer. They'll fix three or four meatloaves or a gallon of spaghetti sauce. Meal-sized portions are frozen for use in upcoming weeks.
Some families will even freeze individual meals just like a frozen dinner. That way any family member can head for the freezer whenever they're ready to eat.
Still others will do all the prep work ahead of time. For instance, they'll brown five pounds of ground beef and freeze one-pound packages. Half the work is done the next time they want to make anything requiring ground beef.
The trick is finding methods that shift the work from 8pm to a more convenient time. A trip to the library or internet should provide many good ideas.
Using these two tools should help Darren take control of their food bill without ruining their diet or changing their lifestyle. Now all we need is an invitation to dinner!
About The Author
Gary Foreman is a former purchasing manager who currently edits The Dollar Stretcher website TheDollarStretcher.com and newsletters. If you're looking for ways to stretch your day or your dollar, visit today!
Related Resources
