Simplify

Simplify is one of the values from my mom’s handwritten list. My mom was a great partner to have to help clean out clutter. While she held onto items that were valuable or had special meaning, she disconnected easily from excess stuff. Many times she would report on our daily chats that she had been to the Goodwill to drop off a load of clothes or unneeded possessions. She didn’t want her things to run her life. She kept the power over possessions.

Earlier this week I was listening to Peter Attia’s podcast with guest Arthur Brooks. Brooks aptly points out (using Buddhist principles) that many people strive to have more and more (money, possessions, followers) to chase satisfaction. But, satisfaction is not just the sum of everything one has, rather it is one’s haves divided by one’s wants. In this paradigm, if one’s “wants” continue to rise even if one’s “haves” also rise, satisfaction does not improve. The key is to reduce what one wants. Said another way, “Happiness is not having what you want, it's wanting what you have.” This quote is possibly attributable to Rabbi Hyman Schachtel.

In the end, simplifying one’s mental desires, and one’s physical possessions is freeing. It’s something I want to remember as my daughter arrives and grows up. It’s not about how many toys she has, but rather the experiences we share. I want to model the mindset of using things as tools in service of having a good life and not spending life in search of the perfect things to acquire.

So long for now.

-Felix