10 Things to quit to simplify life
I think to have a happy and fulfilling life, it is essential to keep life simple. But simplifying life itself feels daunting, to make it easy for you here are 10 Things to quit to simplify life.
We underestimate the potential of unlearning the wrong things. Often they are more effective than learning new things. In this post, I am sharing things to get rid of to simplify life. I am very sure that starting to get rid of even a few of these things will simplify your life and make it more intentional and peaceful.
I have already written a post on 100 simple ways to simplify your life. In this post, I am specifically discussing things that I personally quit and make a conscious effort to not engage in them.
Let’s have a look at them.
10 Things to get rid of to simplify life
Here are 10 things to get rid of to simplify life and make life easier.
1. Seeking validation from others
It is a human tendency to feel accepted and loved by people around. You need people around you to recognize and accept you. But you make life difficult and complicated when you thoroughly rely on others’ validation. This makes it difficult for you to make decisions and choices in life based on your will and thinking, you get into a vicious cycle of thinking about what others think of you and how your actions will be perceived by others.
You must stop seeking validation from others as it can result in low self-esteem and overthinking. In today’s age of social media, it is very easy to unconsciously get into the trap of seeking validation. The number of likes on a photo does not define you. You must rather indulge in self-validation, and ask yourself what you really think about yourself, or will an act make you feel good and happy rather than asking others about their opinion on the matter.
2. Expecting others to make you happy
This is something I have learned a hard way. When we expect others to make us happy, we often find ourselves disappointed, as we are expecting too much from others. We put additional responsibility on others to take care of our happiness, when in fact we can only bring happiness in our life.
No one can make you happy as you are the only one who can do it as you best know what brings joy and happiness in your life. We can’t control what others do or don’t do, but we can control how we react.
As Elbert Hubbard says “Happiness is a habit—cultivate it.”
You can avoid a lot of discontent and relationship trouble and simplify your life when you take charge of your happiness and stop expecting from others.
3. Unnecessary expense
Whether you accept it or not finance is a huge part of your life. You, cannot be at peace if you gave huge bills to pay or debts to clear. So keeping your finance under control is important to keep your life off problems and maintain it simple.
The easiest and most effective way to maintain your financial goals is to cut unnecessary expenses. Living a simple life does not mean living a life of scarcity but living with things that are essential.
You should get rid of things that bring unnecessary expenses into your life. It can be impulsive shopping, eating out at expensive restaurants, or shopping for luxury brands. When you have fewer needs you have fewer things to worry about and can make decisions in your life based on your choice rather than your needs.
4. Things you no longer need
In order to have a simple life you must get rid of things that you no longer need. Declutter things that you no longer need, will make your space simpler and in turn your life. When you have fewer things to deal with organizing and maintaining things is easy, and you are less overwhelmed.
You should not limit decluttering to physical things but also your virtual space. Decluttering and organizing your computer, and email can simplify work. A decluttered and organized space brings a sense of calmness and reduces stress in your life.
P.S. you may like to read my post on How to organize and declutter emails
5. Mindless scrolling
I think most of us will be guilty of mindless scrolling over the phone and should definitely consider getting rid of this. Many times without even realizing we spend way too much time simply scrolling over the phone and waste time that can be used for doing more productive things.
At end of my work day, I used to spend some time on social media as a break and had a realization that I could have more intentional ways to relax rather than mindless scrolling, switched to a more meaningful way to relax after work. I have written more details on it in my post, 5-step system to help you relax and unwind after a busy day.
You will save a lot of time and will be more intentional and productive when you quit mindless scrolling and will be able to simplify your life.
6. Toxic people
People around us a great role in our life Jim Ron said “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with” so choose your company well.
If you find people that are manipulative, bring negativity into your life, or lower your self-confidence they are not worth being part of your life. You should gradually try to limit them in your life.
Toxic people can complicate your life and limiting them will not only save you time and energy but also simplify your life.
P.S. If you are dealing with toxic people at work you would like to read 12 effective strategies to deal with negative coworkers.
7. Toxic habits
Your habits define you and your life. We all fall into habits that are not good for us and without our realization, they affect our life. To simplify life it is essential that we introspect ourselves and identify habits that either affect our health, lifestyle and time. It is important to be mindful of these habits and to try quitting them. I have listed a few habits in my post, 10 Toxic habits you must quit today for a happier life.
8. Comparing yourself with others
To simplify your life you must quit comparing yourself with others, comparing your life with others will only make you feel discontent and unsatisfied with your life. It distracts your attention from the goal and complicates your life. Instead, focus on being your own person and doing things that make you happy. You won’t be happy if you’re always comparing yourself to others because you’ll never be content.
9. Hustle Mindset
When you are constantly working hard and get relentless to complete work, it leads to burnout and exhausts you. Hence to live a simple life you should give up on the hustle mindset. It makes you feel overwhelmed, it is said that the journey is more beautiful than the destination. But when you are in a hustle mindset you do not enjoy the process. This is something that I realized recently, even if I have achieved something I am unable to feel satisfied with it as I am just chasing things.
Trying to slow down and feeling your emotions make you more content and lead to a simple life.
10. Long to-do list
To simplify your life you should quit chasing long To-Do lists. Try and be more intentional in the way you spend your time. Before taking on a task you should think if it will add value to your work or life and if it is aligning with your goals. Accepting work just because you are unable to say no to people or are too ambitious will make life difficult for you.
Do not make a long to-do list but make a list that will help you be productive and not overwhelmed. My post, 10 Ways To Make An Effective To-Do List details on making a To-Do list the right way. Also, you should learn to prioritize your To-Do list and delegate to avoid ending up with a long To-Do list, you can refer to my post on How to prioritize work tasks.
Conclusion
So, these are 10 things to quit to simplify life, you will need to make efforts to quit them but surely with constant efforts and time, you will be able to meet your goal of living a simplified life that is happy and fulfilling.
