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Simplifying is a means to an end, not the end itself

I recently read an article over at Zen Habits (How Complicating Your Life Makes Simplifying It Worthwhile) which made me pause for reflection as it mirrored a conversation I had had with a friend the day before. My friend was simplifying for the sake of simplifying. She wanted to get everything extraneous out of her life…family, friends, commitments, job duties, household items, hobbies, you name, she was out to purge it. I asked her why she was in such a frantic mode to jettison chunks of her life. Her answer was accompanied by a look of incredulity. “I’m simplifying. I thought you of all people would understand.”

I do understand, to a certain point. But simplifying is not an end goal, it is a means to an end.

As Leo over at Zen Habits says, Simplifying as a goal would lead to an empty life. “Simplifying as a goal would lead to an empty life. It would take out all, except for the bare necessities. The only people I know of who do this are Buddhist monks. And yet also for them simplifying is a means to an end, as they are seeking enlightenment through meditation. Simplifying takes away the unnecessary distractions.”

Unless you are a Buddhist monk, you will have to do something with the spaces you create with simplification. Even if it is slowing down and enjoying the remaining parts of your life more. Simplification is getting rid of the clutter in your life that holds you back from living the best life you can. Once the clutter is gone, you can truly concentrate on the non-clutter.

And how do you know what is clutter? If it’s not a positive influence in your life, that’s a pretty sure sign. What will be left after you get rid of that stuff? The things that are truly important will be left; it will vary from person to person, but it will be important.

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