Get Organised!
Whether you are attempting to live the simple life mainly out of choice or mainly out of necessity you must be organised. No matter how well informed you are on the harm that blind consuming does or how enthusiastic you are to save the world, unless you get organised you will neither save any money nor make any positive contribution.
Chart Your Spending - for a month make a note of everything you buy. Work out how much you actually spend and on what. Work out your regular expenses (rent/mortgage, phone, electricity etc.) as well as how much you spend on clothes, food, travel, entertainment, gifts, charity. Use this information to work out what you spend too much on, what you can cut out or cut back on. Look too at what brands you buy and where you shop - could you make more ethical choices?
Reduce your Stuff - over time (up to you but maybe over a couple of months) look at the stuff you already own but now rarely use - clothes, books and tools are good areas to look at. Cut out the the stuff that is really only taking up storage space. Maybe you could sell it on Ebay or at a carboot sale. Or perhaps you could give it to a charity shop.
How can you simplify? - After detailing how you spend your money, look at areas you can realistically do something about. Don't try to do everything at once. Don't throw away the car and get a bike if your workplace is ten miles away for instance. Don't go converting your front lawn into vegtable patches just yet if you have never grown anything before. Try to set realisable goals and don't take on too much too soon. Your vision of living simply may take several years of gradual restructuring of your life to realise.
Prioritise your spending: Look at what you spend stuff on. You may spend a lot on clothes but relatively little on food (actually the cost of food has dropped by 4% in real terms since 1999). But which is more important - nutrition or style? Organic food may cost more but it's better for you and the planet. Spending less on designer labels may give you the money to spend on better food. This is just a for instance but it is crucial to decide what is worth spending your money on and what you can do without. In the end your purchases will have more value.
See the BBC Newsnight Ethical Man website for several discussion on how and what an individual must organise in order to take a simple life. This follows one reporter who tries living as ethically as possible (by his definition, maybe not everyone's) for a year. Several interesting articles and videos.
Chart Your Spending - for a month make a note of everything you buy. Work out how much you actually spend and on what. Work out your regular expenses (rent/mortgage, phone, electricity etc.) as well as how much you spend on clothes, food, travel, entertainment, gifts, charity. Use this information to work out what you spend too much on, what you can cut out or cut back on. Look too at what brands you buy and where you shop - could you make more ethical choices?
Reduce your Stuff - over time (up to you but maybe over a couple of months) look at the stuff you already own but now rarely use - clothes, books and tools are good areas to look at. Cut out the the stuff that is really only taking up storage space. Maybe you could sell it on Ebay or at a carboot sale. Or perhaps you could give it to a charity shop.
How can you simplify? - After detailing how you spend your money, look at areas you can realistically do something about. Don't try to do everything at once. Don't throw away the car and get a bike if your workplace is ten miles away for instance. Don't go converting your front lawn into vegtable patches just yet if you have never grown anything before. Try to set realisable goals and don't take on too much too soon. Your vision of living simply may take several years of gradual restructuring of your life to realise.
Prioritise your spending: Look at what you spend stuff on. You may spend a lot on clothes but relatively little on food (actually the cost of food has dropped by 4% in real terms since 1999). But which is more important - nutrition or style? Organic food may cost more but it's better for you and the planet. Spending less on designer labels may give you the money to spend on better food. This is just a for instance but it is crucial to decide what is worth spending your money on and what you can do without. In the end your purchases will have more value.
See the BBC Newsnight Ethical Man website for several discussion on how and what an individual must organise in order to take a simple life. This follows one reporter who tries living as ethically as possible (by his definition, maybe not everyone's) for a year. Several interesting articles and videos.
posted by voluntarysimpleton at 11:47 AM
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