Life Strategies - For those with one hand tied behind their back: How To Live A Good Life

Move towards simplicity.

Move away from complexity.

Keep your tastes simple. Life is more enjoyable when you have simple tastes. Don’t be the only one who does not like Dish Dash. Go with the flow. Be unfussy in your preferences. You can find something to eat anywhere. You can find something to please you at any restaurant, and in any house. Be a gracious guest.

Don’t be a food Nazi. Unexpected things happen. The waiter may drop water all over you. The dish may come out with cilantro, even though you said, “Please serve my tacos without cilantro”.

And then there are your friend’s behaviors. Such as the ones who keep you from your food, while they take pictures of the food for Instagram, Facebook, or Yelp. Avoid showdowns over things like this. Avoid internal jaw-clenching as well. Even if there are no Paul Ekmans to detect your discomfiture.

Focus on the overall experience of any experience, not all the things which didn't go right. More importantly, focus on the purpose – such as this was meant for you and your friends to have a shared experience and bond.

Keep your material wants and needs simple. Don’t go for the most expensive car, the biggest house, the biggest tv, the most lavish vacation.

Keep your purchases and expenses down. Your purchases and expenses shouldn’t complicate your life. Your purchases and expenses shouldn’t make it difficult to balance your budget. Your purchases and expenses shouldn’t make you get into trouble, or dig yourself into a debt hole. Your purchases and expenses shouldn’t threaten and compromise your short or long term financial stability and goals.

Keep your identity small. Adopt Paul Graham’s wisdom for your lifestyle. Though his advice was meant for politics and religion, it's worth adopting for your lifestyle. Don’t let FOMO complicate your life.

Keep your emotional needs simple. Don't be someone who is difficult to make happy. Don't get freaked-out, or become tearful easily. Learn how to meditate and become other-focused. Learn concepts such as metta, and let it inform your decisions.

Keep your money management simple. Go for simple invest-and-forget investments. Debt is on the complex side of the simple to complex scale. Avoid debt as best you can. If you take on debt, definitely take on only manageable debt, debt you can easily retire.

Live well below your means. Rent, buy used, live a minimal or frugal lifestyle. Adopt a FIRE mindset.

Keep your work life simple. Do as the Serenity Prayer advises: Do not try to control the things you cannot control. Control the things you can control. Seek the wisdom to know the difference.

What you may not be able to control is the speed at which you are promoted. What you may not be able to control is your longevity at a job.

What you can control is your ability to give your best to the job. What you can control is your ability to be a team player. What you can control is your ability to improve your results by using better skills and tools. What you can control is your ability to cooperate with your manager and align yourself with her/his goals. What you can control is to become a leader or team member who is capable of handling more and more challenging people and situations.

Keep your health goals simple. Don't try to imitate hard to imitate people. You don’t have to go for the gold. Just set small incremental goals. Apply yourself to achieving those goals. You may win the gold doing just that, as the British bicycling team did.

Keep your health routines simple. Find the easiest way to exercise. You don’t have to go all the way across town. Don't seek out complexity to achieve your health goals. Consistency is the most important thing.

Keep your relationships simple by following a few simple rules. Do what you say. Say what you do. Be dependable. Be trustworthy. Be fair. Be respectful. Be low maintenance. Love people for who they are. Try to understand the other person's way of being.

Don't try to make anyone a replica of you, or what you think they ought to be.

Respect each person’s uniqueness. There is no "This is the way men are supposed to be" or "This is the way women are supposed to be". Get over the idea of living in a Ken and Barbie world.

Go with the flow when people disappoint you. Let it go. The disappointment may cost you time, money, inconvenience, even loss of face. Let it go. Say to yourself, “I am stressed, but I can handle this.”

Adopt a simplicity mindset. Choose an area of your life that would benefit the most from it. Redesign that area of your life for simplicity - starting right now.

Acknowledgements:

Thanks for the feedback, (comments, likes, shares) on Part 1 and 2 of this series. I appreciate the kudos from old friends, new friends, and relatives who have become friends. You keep me going

NEXT, Thanks to all readers, current and future, for sharing my journey to wisdom, meaning and a better life. Like you, I am trying to find my way through this complex maze we call life, and I am honored to have you share my journey, as I continue to seek the wisdom hidden in plain sight.

FINALLY, A Happy Birthday shout-out: to those with September birthdays. I hope you will use your birthday month to think about any complexities in your life that are unnecessary, and bad for your sanity and peace of mind. Find a way out of those complexities, so you can enjoy the peace and satisfaction of a simpler life.

P.S. Not sure if you have time, but if you do, you may enjoy these other posts:

Friendships