Welcome to The Simplifier, brought to you by…

Contents:

1. A Note From Lance

When the Shawn’s away…

2. Our Featured Quote

by H.R. Haweis

3. Article: The Resolution - Simplified

by PS Head Simplifier Shawn Tuttle

4. Your Simplification Tip

The Mantra

5. In the News

To keep organized, mix the old and new; The Beast in the Basement; and Train your spouse to run the house

6. Featured at ProjectSimplify.com

Happy anniversary to me

7. Keep Smiling

“If a man be organized…”

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1. A Note From Lance

“When the Shawn’s away, the Lance will play.” Or so they say. And I must obey!

Head Simplifier Shawn Tuttle is taking a much-deserved retreat—full on, with no computer or nothin’—along with her fellow PIRG alumni in Aspen, Colorado. Leaving me just enough time to orchestrate a coup and seize control of the Project Simplify empire—thus finally completing one of my key New Year’s resolutions of 2007! ;-)

Speaking of resolutions…I resolved to quit smoking less than a month after taking up that nasty habit at age 16. But it was almost a lifetime later before I finally managed to stick by my resolve, after getting news that an old friend of mine—also age 30 and also a smoker—had died after heart bypass surgery. I had three cigarettes left that night, and they were the last three I ever smoked. I stopped just like that, after literally hundreds of prior failed attempts. It’s been over four years since, and I’ve never even come close to backsliding.

The lesson? The big resolutions in your life may work in large and mysterious ways. The key to accessing your personal power to achieve major, jolting changes (and make them stick) may seem beyond your reach—until it isn’t anymore.

But why worry about the biggies now anyway, during the holidays? You have enough on your mind. That’s why Shawn’s article focuses on a different kind of resolution—easy, effective, and self-sticking, as it were.

What more is there to say? Happy holidays—we’ll see you bright and early next year. Drive safe!

Best wishes,

Lance

Lance Brown
Co-editor, The Simplifier
Dictator for Life, Project Simplify

 

 

 

2. Our Featured Quote

“Precious beyond price are good resolutions. Valuable beyond price are good feelings.”

-H.R, Haweis

 

3. Article: The Resolution - Simplified

By Shawn Tuttle

What New Year’s resolutions have you set in the past? Lose a few pounds, quit smoking, help others, get out of debt, perhaps? How often do you hear success stories for these big year-end goals? Not often. The process of making New Year’s resolutions seems to be hit or miss, mostly miss.

What seems to happen is that a wishful idea is verbalized to oneself, “I’m going to get in shape!” and one or two things are done to support this idea, for example a health club is joined, and then nothing else happens. The breakdown? A goal of that magnitude deserves the full planning process—and stating the goal is only the first step!

But jeez, the New Year’s resolution is made in a mood of reflection and imagination of how life could be different, not in the mode of analytical-brain figuring out timelines, resources, and benchmarks! Besides, the traditionally-hectic holiday months probably aren’t the best time for these anyways.

The Resolution Simplified

It doesn’t matter if you smoke, are 30 pounds overweight, and don’t have any friends. You can amplify the positive in your life, and even better, you can start right now, even if it’s still 2007. In fact, using a plan-free resolution will make those other self-improvement projects easier! If you’ve had less than great success with your New Year’s resolutions, then try making one that doesn’t require planning.

Plan-free resolutions don’t require major productions and yet they have lasting effect. You can bring more joy and happiness into your life by choosing a “fragrance” like appreciation, gratitude, or friendliness and applying liberally.

Resolution is defined as a determination, a firmness of purpose. If your intention has to do with improving your life or the lives of those you touch, you’ll have the greatest impact by being more appreciative, more grateful, kinder, or more friendly. Connecting with others through these heartfelt attitudes can have powerful and transformative effects.

You don’t need to set benchmarks with these resolutions, or spend money, or interact with exercise equipment. You don’t even need any will power! All you do is remember your resolution to, for example, have more patience, and adopt it in your life. That’s much easier! Save goal setting and the planning process for another time. Choose your fragrance(s) for the year and let it infuse your self, your thoughts, and your life. Then the next time you are driving on a 2-lane road stuck behind a “Sunday driver” cruising sub-speed limit, choose a response consistent with your resolution, and be patient.

Goals mean planning

This isn’t to say don’t set goals. Challenging yourself to improve your life through setting goals can be an incredibly powerful process. Quitting smoking, losing weight, getting out of debt—those are big goals. As such, don’t underestimate the magnitude of taking them on. There’s a time and place for everything, and big goals require big planning. Setting yourself up for success to achieve big goals means acknowledging the process, and tackling them when you are ready to go all the way with them.

Time for a change?

You’ve heard the old adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Conversely, if it ain’t working, don’t do it!

If the resolutions you set for the new year usually last until, say, New Year’s Day, then change your strategy. There’s no law that says a resolution has to be one way or another—it’s entirely up to you. If the conventional resolution structure isn’t serving your needs, try the plan-free resolution approach—or another approach of your own design.

Endings and beginnings

I see myself standing at the edge of a cliff. Looking back at the path that led to this point, I smile at the hills and valleys dipping and rising behind me. I turn to look out into the expanse, wondering about the trail of this coming year. Will it be rocky and steep? Smooth and level? What new terrain will there be to explore? What unanticipated challenges will arise?

I desire to step lightly into the new year—a lightness reflecting the pleasure of being on this journey. Obstacles in the path will be dealt with, mountains will be climbed, and rivers crossed. Laughter and joy will outweigh the sweat and tears. Successes will be celebrated as I choose the most interesting path up the mountain. I lift my foot and step forward.

—

Shawn Tuttle is founder of Project Simplify.

4. Your Simplification Tip

The Mantra

Your feelings and attitude toward experiences and relationships in your life are largely guided by your head (another way of saying “it’s all a head trip”). While the head is good at navigating certain aspects of our life, it is also tends to get stuck in thought patterns—pulling you down the strangely inviting path of dejection and negativity.

A mantra is a word or a phrase that you repeat to yourself to regain control of a mind hijacked by negativity. Mine is “gratitude”. It could be “peace” “love” “joy”. Religious names are frequently used by people of certain faiths. It almost doesn’t matter what your mantra is, as long as it works for you—providing you with a sturdy handhold with which to pull yourself back into line, and back on a positive path.

The next time you catch yourself thinking or saying, “I’m no good at this,” or “no one will ever hire me (or love me)”, immediately call up your mantra.

 

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5. In the News

Compiled by The Simplifier co-editor Lance Brown

To keep organized, mix the old and new (The Boston Globe)
URL: http://tinyurl.com/37y4ka
The perfect planning system for your personal preference may be a portable PDA, or a paper planner. Or a pair of painters from Panama, who you pay to prepare a portrait of your perplexing plans. The key is to not let the paradox inherent in choosing planning paraphernalia paralyze you. Pick the pieces or parts that work best for you, and persevere proudly.

The Beast in the Basement (The Wall Street Journal)
URL: http://tinyurl.com/382qy5
Sports equipment is some gangly stuff. Or bouncy, or heavy…it’s hard to think of a piece of sports or recreation equipment that isn’t a bear to store, from soccer balls to snowshoes to snowmobiles. This article has some tips and some products that might help you get ahold of the many elements of an active lifestyle, or at least help you keep from losing the other half of important sports pairs.

Train your spouse to run the house in case of crisis (The Arizona Republic)
URL: http://tinyurl.com/2ka3bv
We’re always looking for new angles on organizing, and this article has a good one—urging household members to share information about how things work, in case various home jobs need to be exchanged in case of emergency. Or just in case of a snow day, or a phone inquiry, etc….it’s all about making information easy to find, which is cool by us.

If you know of something in the news that should be featured here, let us know!

 

6. Featured at ProjectSimplify.com

by The Simplifier co-editor Lance Brown

Happy anniversary to me

It was two years ago this week that I climbed aboard the Project Simplify starship and joined its merry band of galactic travelers (i.e., Shawn Tuttle) on a quest to revolutionize the spirit of mankind.

And it was two years ago this week that I single-handedly forever transformed the Project Simplify website—from a tiny speck of dust, to a radiant diamond that shimmers like a thousand suns reflecting upon the fourteen lakes of the ancient gods.

(It was much longer than two years ago that I developed a talent for gross overstatement.)

Now, it’s true that everything changes our lives—the way we use every second that passes forever influences all the seconds that will follow. But even so, we all look back on some hallmark things that “changed our life”, and we’re usually not talking about the fact that we got caught at a red light or happened to try a different brand because it was on sale.

Well, working with Shawn and Project Simplify has changed my life, for the better. Big time. And two years ago this week will always stand as a milestone in my professional and personal development. And it all started with my work on ProjectSimplify.com. (Making this a topical segment, not just sentimental schlock.) So happy anniversary to that!

 

 

 

7. Keep Smiling

“If a man be organized…”

“You need to make a New Year’s Resolution to GET ORGANIZED. As Benjamin Franklin so aptly put it, in one of his pithy maxims: ‘If a man be organized, then that man be a lot more organized than the man whom do not be as organized as the first man I was talking about earlier in this maxim.’ Or words to that effect. I have the exact quote around here somewhere.”

- Dave Barry

 

 

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Thanks for reading!

Publication Information
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The Simplifier is published by:
Project Simplify
P.O. Box 597
Nevada City, CA 95959
phone: 530.205.5775
web: www.projectsimplify.com
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