Showing posts with label simple slow unbusy. Show all posts

DREAMING SMALL DREAMS WHILE LIVING A SIMPLE LIFE

Finding contentment in small dreams, simple living, and a life of peace and quiet.

CHOOSING MY PERSPECTIVE

I think contentment and happiness both depend on our perspective. A friend shared an article with me recently about choosing what we focus on and the story we tell ourselves about our circumstances. It reminded me of the post I wrote many years ago about choosing our memories - we can choose to remember all the things we didn't receive, or we can put that aside and remember all the small joys that we experienced through childhood and into our adult years.

One of the biggest perspective choices I make is about how I see my small, quiet life....
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LIVING IN CONTENTMENT vs CONSTANTLY NEEDING TO LEVEL UP

Are you caught up in the need to be more and have more? Is social media making you discontent? It's time to stop comparing and find contentment.

LEVELING UP

I've reached the point in life where I don't feel the need to "level up" anymore. I want to live a good life and to be the best version of myself - but not to keep up with the Joneses or to be "on trend". I think the online world has a way of making us feel like we're missing out, or that we're less than we could be - there's always someone or something that's better than us.

Here's a few things I've seen lately....
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WHAT DOES REST LOOK LIKE IN MIDLIFE? AND WHY DO WE NEED IT?

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WHEN "REST" KEEPS APPEARING

I've noticed that the word "Rest" has been appearing in my Facebook feed a lot lately, and I'm finding myself drawn to thoughts and words that repeat in patterns - I feel like life is trying to tell me something. So when this quote arrived on my screen I decided I needed to curate a few of those restful reminders and share them...
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RE-SHAPING ASAP (AS SOON AS POSSIBLE) INTO A NEW AND BETTER FIT

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SOMETHING OLD BECOMES SOMETHING NEW

We all know that ASAP normally stands for As Soon As Possible - but a little while ago I came across a new set of descriptors for the abreviation that I felt fitted my age and stage so much better. I no longer have to be running around getting everything done right now and right away, my life flows more calmly and these new ideas fit me so much better....
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LIVING LEAN AND LIVING CLEAN - HOW TO LIVE A CLUTTER FREE LIFE

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LIVING LEAN AND LIVING CLEAN

I'm not sure why, but I've never been a big spender and I don't tend to get caught up in wanting to buy the newest gadgets, fashions, or fads. I guess I'm a bit of a "less is more" kind of girl, and that's been a bonus when it comes to keeping down the clutter in our home and maintaining a tidy environment.

What I've noticed though, as the Western world has seemingly become more and more affluent, is that many people with spare cash tend to spend it on possessions. They fill their homes with furniture, gadgets, clothing, shoes, beauty products, and so much more. I think "less is more" has been replaced with "more is more" these days, and it all takes time to maintain and organize. Recently I received an email from one of the lovely women who read my blog that said (in part):
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THE ART OF LETTING GO: HOW TO SIMPLIFY AND DECLUTTER YOUR LIFE

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 THE ART OF LETTING GO

Over the course of our lives we accumulate so much in the way of clutter - notably, our possessions, commitments and even our thoughts. So, in a world where less is often considered more, it is a good idea to simplify and declutter all aspects of it on a regular basis.

The best way to do this is to let go of everything that is holding you back. If you don't, you can start to feel completely overwhelmed. But, if you do, it can be quite a liberating and invigorating experience.

But how do we kickstart the process of letting go enough to actually be able to simplify and declutter the complexities of our lives? And what does that actually mean?

Today I have a collaborative post that puts the spotlight on the art of letting go and how you can create the physical and mental space you need to live your best life.

 

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WHAT DO THE REAL LUXURIES IN LIFE LOOK LIKE?

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LIVING AN ABUNDANT LIFE

I used to think that living abundantly and luxuriously involved an expensive lifestyle and having everything you could imagine at your finger tips, wanting for nothing. As time has moved on, I've found the types of abundance and luxury that revolve around extravagance are meaningless to me. I have no desire at all to add more "stuff" to my life, to own more, to spend more, or to keep up with the Joneses.

Abundance and luxury for me are all about the small delights that are part of everyday life, simple pleasures that we often take for granted. Today I thought I'd share some of them....
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WHY NOT START A "TO-BECOME" LIST INSTEAD OF A "TO-DO" LIST?

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FIGURING OUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT

I used to be a very busy person. I used to juggle several different roles each week - and often had a few on the burner on any given day. I was proud of all I could accomplish and how many things I could tick off my to-do list; my self-worth was firmly attached to my productivity.

Since leaving work and settling into retirement, I find my priorities have shifted significantly. I don't find my sense of achievement in how much I can cram into my week, instead I'm finding it in who I'm becoming and the qualities I want to invest in to get there...
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TURN THE PRESSURE DOWN - BREATHE AND FIND YOUR CENTRE

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TURN THE PRESSURE DOWN

When I chose Equanimity as my Word of the Year, the driving thought behind it was how to centre and ground myself in quiet confidence and truth. I don't want to be striving after all the bells and whistles this world parades in front of me, I want to live a life that's free from stress and juggling too many balls.

Retiring from work has given me the opportunity to move away from performance based living, I don't have to jump through someone else's hoops anymore. Life is on my own terms - as long as I remind myself of a few simple home truths now and then.....
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THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SCARCITY AND SIMPLICITY

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SCARCITY VERSUS SIMPLICITY

I have a strong aversion to scarcity. I lived with a scarcity mindset for most of my adult life - the fear that there wouldn't be enough....the concern that our income wouldn't be enough into, and through our retirement, the unsettledness of never being sure how much would be left over each month after the bills were paid.

It wasn't a restful way to live, there was constant striving and juggling. Despite that, I'm a lover of simplicity, simple living, and less is more. There's a huge difference between scarcity and simplicity and I thought I'd delve into that a little today...

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THE GIFTS OF MIDLIFE

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IT BEGAN WITH IMPERFECTION

Brene Brown wrote a fantastic book called "The Gifts Of Imperfection" that was an eye-opener for me, and I'll be forever grateful for the lessons it taught me. I've learnt that it's okay not to be perfect, that I can be my authentic self, allow myself to be vulnerable, and to embrace this wonderful life I've grown into. 

Along with the gifts of imperfection, I've realized that there have also been several other gifts that Midlife has bestowed upon me, and I thought I'd share a few of them here on the blog today....
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LOOKING BACK AT A YEAR OF LIVING LIFE LIGHTLY

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WHY DID I CHOOSE TO LIVE LIGHTLY?

If you've been following along with my Word(s) of the Year for 2023 you'll know I chose "Live Lightly" to guide me through the last several months. I'd actually decided on a different #WOTY and then changed my mind at the last minute on my way home from a mini-vacation.

I'd realized that I was weary from all that had been happening in the previous few years, and I felt the need to be kinder to myself. Today I'm looking back at that choice and how it's played out...

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WHAT IS SOFT LIVING? AND HOW IT FITS AN UNBUSY RETIREMENT

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WHAT'S THE SOFT GIRL LIFE?

I saw a quote on Facebook recently that referred to moving into "my soft girl era" and something about the term resonated with me and my choice to live an Unbusy life. For so long we've had the "Girl Boss"/Fierce Fifty hustle culture sold to us as the lifestyle of choice, but when we all re-surfaced after the covid lockdowns, a new way of living slowly emerged where women were rejecting stress and choosing a more gentle way of living.

After some research, I thought I'd share what "soft living" looks like in Midlife....
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WHAT I'M LEARNING IN MY SIMPLE AND UNBUSY RETIREMENT

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RETIREMENT IS NOT A COMPETITION

I wrote a post a while back about not competing, or comparing your life with other people's highlight reels on social media. There will always be someone living a bigger and better retirement life. My Facebook feed is full of people I know who are super busy chasing their dreams and ticking things off their bucket lists. Sometimes I feel exhausted just reading what they're up to lately, and I wonder if I should be doing more now I have the extra free time?
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3 LOVELY BENEFITS OF A REGULAR "DO-NOTHING" DAY

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FIGURING OUT A NEW RETIREMENT LIFE

When I retired a few years ago I was burnt out from weathering a toxic job and having my boundaries disrespected. I was emotionally drained, and felt tired and defeated. The sheer relief of being home and not dealing with drama and stress was delightful....but I couldn't sit at home looking at four walls for long before realizing that I needed more in my life.

As my days filled with new activities, I needed to figure out a way to balance it all so that I didn't find myself busier than I'd been when I was working. It's so easy for our calendar to fill with all manner of events, and to lose that sense of being peacefully at home. This is how I found my balance....
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HOW I UN-RETIRED IN MY 60'S - AND BALANCE MY BUSY AND UNBUSY LIFE

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BEING UNBUSY BUT NEVER BORED

When I left my old toxic job I decided that I'd never work myself into the ground again. I looked for another job but just couldn't bring myself to risk repeating the issues I'd faced in the last one. I slowly found a new rhythm of living - choosing to retire early and to be Unbusy, letting life unfold at its own pace.

My days were filled with a mixture of activities and at-home time, and I was quite content with that, I never felt bored - just pleasantly occupied... Then my hip failed, and I had to drop most of my more "active pursuits" and Unbusy-ness started to slide towards laziness, dis-connectedness, and like I was living Ground Hog Day over and over again. It knew I needed something to change, but what?
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WHAT DOES LIVING GENTLY LOOK LIKE?

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WHAT DOES LIVING GENTLY LOOK LIKE?

This year I chose "Live Lightly" as my #WOTY and I mentioned several words that I associate with the idea of stepping lightly through the year. One of those words was "Gentle" and I thought I'd explore what that looks like in my life a little today on the blog.....
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STROLLING ALONG LIFE'S PLEASANT PATH

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PLEASANT AND PEACEFUL PATHS

When our children were born we chose a bible verse for each of them. For our daughter it was:
Her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are peace.
Proverbs 3:17 

We chose it for a number of reasons - prompted by the name Erin meaning "peace" and also with a wish for a pleasant and peaceful journey through life for her. I doubt she'd agree that it's all been plain sailing, but I think it's something we'd all wish for our life journey.
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LIVING LA DOLCE VITA IN MIDLIFE

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LIVING THE SWEET LIFE IN MIDLIFE

According to Think In Italian living "la dolce vita" means living a life full of beauty, pleasures, and mundane events. (Note the definition included "mundane events" - not leaping from one exiciting, action packed moment to the next). It translates to "living the sweet life". A similar expression is "dolce far niente" which is "the sweetness of doing nothing" - I remember coming across that term in the book/movie "Eat, Pray, Love" where the main character learns about the sweetness of slowing down and having restful moments, instead of living at a break neck pace all the time.
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WHAT DOES SLOW AND UNBUSY LIVING REALLY LOOK LIKE?

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WHAT IS SLOW / UNBUSY LIVING?

Some of my most popular posts have been about choosing to be Unbusy now that I'm in the second half of life. Retirement gave me even more opportunities to slow down the pace of how I was living each day and to be more intentional about how I use my time. I've become a huge advocate of the Slow Living and Unbusy movements, but what does it really look like in my actual day to day living?
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