The 5 Steps To A Simple Marriage: Part 4- Simplify
Photo courtesy Sleestak66
Have you bought the new 3G IPhone yet? What about the Wii Fit? Or the Apple Airbook? While there is nothing wrong with any of these items, as well as many others, do you really need them? Do they simplify life or make things more complicated?
On the surface, the latest cell phone/calendar/email server/game console/navigation system may help in organizing life, but at what cost? Many people will rush out and pick up the latest gadget before they can really afford it. Paying by the credit card shuffle in order to keep up with the trends. So do these gadgets really simplify life in these instances? No.
Rather than focusing this post on the materialistic pulls that may complicate life, it’s also important to look at how you can simplify schedules, family routines, marriage, parenting, and households.
- The best way to simplify life and marriage: do less. Learning how to say no will simplify life in many ways. Face it, we get bombarded daily with opportunities to fill our schedule. Dinners with friends, birthday parties, work events, church meetings, trips, whatever. The old adage is true, if you don’t take care of your time, other people gladly will. To take charge of your time, learn the fine art of saying no.
The fallout for saying no will most likely not be near as devastating as you’ve played up in your mind. Say no. It’s a complete sentence. - Declutter. I’ve written on this idea before. It really works. To try it out, take a moment this week and pick one drawer or closet or room (if you’re really ambitious) and declutter it. Begin by emptying everything from the drawer, then organize the stuff you still use as you replace it back into the drawer. Get rid of the rest of the stuff. Do this enough and you’ll cover your entire house.
- Live in a simple home. Here is a guide that will help.
Rather than adding to this list, I’m going to keep it simple and end here. Feel free to add to this on your own in the comments below.
Did you miss the first parts of this series? No worries. Here they are. Part 1, part 2, part 3.
Corey is the editor of Simple Marriage as well as a licensed marriage & family therapist. While he has a Ph.D. in Family Therapy, he only occasionally likes to be called doctor. If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe so you don't miss any future posts.4 Responses to “The 5 Steps To A Simple Marriage: Part 4- Simplify”
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[...] Original post by The Simple Marriage Project [...]
First I committed us to my firm softball league. Then I committed us to someone-from-my-firm’s kickball team. I obviously didn’t remember how much I hated our free time being scheduled like that. When I told him we played our last game, he said “Than God”.
We’ve agreed. The next time someone asks, the answer is “no!”
I use to think if I wasn’t booked up, it would be a boring day. Now I rejoice when there is nothing on my calendar. Then I can do things around the house or just chill with a book or hang with the hub. I have found the older my kids get the less I have on the kid agenda. It’s nice.
Decluttering is my biggest challenge. I get overwhelmed with the process and get stuck with organizing the stuff I weed out to get rid of it. It usually ends up in a pile somewhere in my house for an extended time before I tackle it.
The decluttering thing is huge. My wife and I are moving right now, and I can’t wait to get rid of our junk!