We are not our stuff. We are more than our possessions. Our memories are within us, not our things. Our stuff weighs on us mentally and emotionally. (Location 254)
Minimalism looks different for everyone because it’s about finding what is essential to you. (Location 302)
Minimalism is a tool we use to live a meaningful life. There are no rules. Rather, minimalism is simply about stripping away the unnecessary things in your life so you can focus on what’s important. (Location 304)
to eliminate life’s excess, focus on the essentials, and find happiness, fulfillment, and freedom. (Location 317)
Passionate people turn to their passions when they are feeling uninspired. On those days when they don’t want to get out of bed or start that new project, passionate people focus on the things that get them excited. (Location 897)
For the two of us, this meant actively identifying ourselves with more meaningful labels than our corporate-given titles like director or manager. This meant we had to publicly identify ourselves with meaningful labels such as mentor, leader, contributor, and minimalist. (Location 919)
Certainty feels nice—it makes you feel comfortable, it makes you feel warm and fuzzy—but it’s sometimes the biggest underlying reason you don’t make the changes you want to make. That is, you’re not happy with your current situation, but you’re comfortable enough that you don’t want to sacrifice your comfort today for something that could potentially be less comfortable tomorrow, and thus you don’t change. (Location 952)
The reality is that the long-term pain of regret far outweighs the short-term pleasure of certainty. Second, you can associate more pleasure with the long-term fulfillment of pursuing your passions and living your mission. Either option—or a combo of the two—will give you the leverage you need. (Location 959)
When a change doesn’t last, it’s because the person doesn’t see enough long-term benefit from the change (i.e., they don’t associate enough satisfaction with the change, or they associate too much dissatisfaction with making the change). (Location 1132)
To get this leverage, we associated dissatisfaction with our current states (i.e., the way we looked in the mirror, the way we felt after a big meal, and all the other negatives that generally made us feel terrible). Then we began to associate immense amounts of satisfaction with the daily changes we had made (e.g., we enjoyed experiencing food as nourishment, rather than entertainment; we enjoyed our daily exercises, finding satisfaction in the small changes we were making in our bodies each day). (Location 1135)
Once you decide to make a change in your life—once you have enough leverage—it’s important to take immediate action toward making the change. (Location 1139)
The same holds true for all areas of life: the key to real growth is consistency. Consistent, gradual action taken every day is the way we changed our lives. It feels like a slow climb at first, but once you build enough momentum, you won’t want to stop growing. It’s growth that makes you feel alive. (Location 1167)
If you’re constantly asking yourself How am I adding value? you’ll start getting some great answers. When you think in terms of adding value, you’ll start to notice everything you do begins to add value in various ways. That’s because over time you’ll begin to weed out anything that doesn’t add value to your own life or to other people’s lives. (Location 1200)
The point is that there will always be something there to tempt you from doing the things that make your life more meaningful. The good news is you can avoid those tempting activities by transforming the positive experiences you dislike into positive experiences you enjoy. In this way, all the positive experiences that relate to your life are made enjoyable. (Location 1264)
