Day 294/366 days Towards Self-Mastery.
The real value of living simply is that you soon realise you have very few real needs.
Consequently you are able to be very easy going, accommodating of others and their wants and needs without being overly affected.
When we live complex lives with a long list of wants we end up feeling as though we are compromising all the time.
The same is true until we have done sufficient inner work.
Our wants get confused with our needs, and before long we've compromised what we think is important and resentment gets a grip of us.
Getting really clear requires getting intimately acquainted with yourself. Knowing yourself deeply. Who you are, where you've come from, what your longings are, how you want to live, what's really important to you?
These things will boil down to a very few things.
For me it's this simple. I need to be around nature, I need a lot of time in solitude, I need authentic connections that enable me to participate in the relationship (it's not all one-sided). I need fresh air, quality food and plenty of sleep. And finally, I need to be excited about something that I can devote my time and energy to.
Anything else I can compromise. Life's become easy, fluid, comfortable, authentic and enjoyable.
Understand what you need and what you want. Be as generous and as flexible as possible. You'll meet a lot of people who are very fixed in their ideas, their wants and their needs, and they'll appreciate that you are able to bend.
But first, know thyself. Be prepared to speak up for your needs. Put everything out on the table transparently. Then negotiate from there.
Otherwise you'll spend too much time feeling resentful and frustrated.
366 days Towards Self-Mastery
When I considered my New Year's intentions for 2020 I had just one: To allow my heart to love what it loved...and let it lead me. (If not now, then when?)
I've spent months working on integrating my life. To live life more fully with my home life, my interests, my work, my responsibilities, all coming together, all connected. I want to give each the attention that they desire and need, and still have time and energy for the others. That means living and working from the heart.
As I was clearing out my bookshelf over the Christmas break I discovered Simple Abundance. I set it aside to explore it on New Year's Day as I lazed through another delicious day of nothingness. Sarah, the author, says this book is about living in grace. Living in grace I realised, is about Self-Mastery.
My thirst for understanding the human condition has driven me all my life, and hand-in-hand with self-mastery it has been a life-long goal. And seeing as I love to write, that living in grace is about self-mastery, and I love a bit of a challenge, then if I am truly going to let my heart lead, I really don't have any other choice. So scary as it feels, I'm starting out on a daily mission of leaning into the suggestions of this daybook and making a daily post to keep me accountable. If not now, then when?
I'm Josie. You can find out a little more about me here.
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
This book is written for the Australian and NZ market because it refers to seasonal changes. It's available on Amazon here if you'd like to follow along.