Why We Long for Simplicity

When I tell friends that Mollie and I are starting a blog, they usually ask what we’re planning to write about. 

From here the conversation takes a predictable turn. No matter how many topic ideas I share, they almost always fixate on one…the same one: how to live more simply.

I was very surprised how much our friends had to say about this topic. They shared how much they longed for more simplicity. They talked about ways they have simplified and how much it meant to them. Most of all, we heard resounding support— this is a topic we want to read about.

So, as we launch this new blog, I thought it would be appropriate to start by sharing my own journey with simplicity and what the appeal of living simply has been to me.

My journey with simplicity

In college I started and ran a blog called The Art of Minimalism. I wrote about the aesthetics of minimalism and what it means to live simply through the eyes of a college student. In total, I wrote nearly 100 blog posts across a range of topics:

• Letting Go of Imaginary Needs
• The Art of Doing Nothing
• The Essentials of a Healthy Mental Diet
• More is Not Enough
• Slow Down, Enjoy More
• 20 Reasons to Become a Minimalist

Looking back, much of my writing reflected the idealism of a college student, but nonetheless, something about simplicity had struck a deep nerve with that younger version of myself.

While that blog winded down and my passion for the outward manifestations of a minimalist lifestyle have become less extreme, it is a value that I have continued to pursue in the decade since.

In the rest of this post, I want to share some of the reasons why I still aspire to live simply. If any of them seem appealing to you, I hope you’ll consider subscribing to our blog as we continue to explore these topics in the coming weeks and months.

Why live simply

Increase freedom to pursue new ideas. The launch of this blog was possible because of the simplicity that is core to the life Mollie and I have made with each other. It is a simplicity that we find satisfying and also full of possibility. We have been intentional over the years about not filling our days and evenings to the very max. When we find something we want to pursue (like this blog), we find room, and then we deliberately choose what should be removed or deprioritized. Mostly, this luxury comes from saying “no” to many of the things people take for granted that they “have” to do.

Decrease “bad” stress in your life. Many people seem to pack their schedules and lives so full that even the smallest unplanned event becomes a source of stress. Any misbehavior from a child is experienced as a distraction, instead of an opportunity to help your child grow. I realize the many noble impulses that lead people to become so busy, but in my own life, I am doing everything I can to resist. Life’s unplanned events are what add adventure to our lives, I don’t want to wish them away. And being a parent is the job I so gladly signed up for, I don’t want to rush through the stage of their lives where my influence is most important. Simplicity, when done thoughtfully, has been a powerful antidote against the American default of becoming too busy for our own good.

Learn to appreciate limits. Simple logic might lead you to believe that more choices and more options are better, but I have often found that pleasure and creativity increase in the face of limits. Mollie and I often reminisce about the joys of our first year of marriage, despite the fact that every discretionary dollar we had was going to pay down our students loans as fast as possible. 

No money for restaurants? We found delight in learning to use cheap, simple ingredients in new recipes. No internet? We loved our daily walk into town to visit the library. No entertainment? We made up our own games on a neighboring tennis court. The truth is, while we are grateful for a much more flexible budget today, we are no happier than we were in those “simpler” early days in our marriage.

Improve focus on what matters. Unlike some who advocate simplicity or minimalism as a lifestyle, we don’t see simple living as our ultimate goal, only a means to pursue what matters most to us. By simplifying our lives, we leave a margin of time that allows us to respond to the needs of those around us, say “yes” to last minute dinner invitations, or be involved in the life of our local faith community. Simple living, the way we imagine it, is not a selfish pursuit, but one that promotes human flourishing.

Make your environment more calming. Because of having 3 young children, our home is not nearly as minimalist as my wife and I would like (especially for my tastes). It is a tradeoff that we have been happy to accept. However, we have always appreciated the calming effect of a home that is not filled to the brim with clutter and regularly strive towards that goal. In our bedroom, the one room reserved exclusively for us, we have created a clutter-free oasis that is our retreat.

Live with more clarity. As we have removed mental and physical clutter from our lives, we have found a corresponding increase in clarity and an ease to our daily decision making. We also experience less “time-related stress” because we know that we have guarded our time to pursue what matters most to us. Of course, getting to this point and maintaining it has involved learning an important skill— saying “no” to many good things that we “could” do or “should” be doing. I will not oversell this idea and say that saying “no” is fun or easy. But for us, the increase in motivation and satisfaction we enjoy as a by-product of our clarity are rewards well worth the effort. 

Consume less, create more. In college, the more I simplified my life— my habits, my goals, my schedule— the more I found time to create. I wrote more and more blog posts, created an ebook, invested more into my young relationship with Mollie (at the time, my girlfriend). The simplicity in simple living is not merely about doing less, though for some people that is an important first step. It is really about cutting back the noise, the clutter, and the things we do out of habit that aren’t driven by passion or love. Without even trying, I found myself “creating” more as a natural by-product of cutting back on what I “consumed.” 

What is simplicity to you?

For me, simplicity is a filter.  It is the art of knowing what to overlook and where to invest my most precious resource— time.

By keeping things simple, I hope to avoid many complications that make life less enjoyable and less fruitful. By avoiding complexity, I hope to avoid certain mistakes and stay mostly within my circle of competence.

Simple living is not a label I want to be known for, but rather a tool I want to leverage to live my one life well.

Let us know in the comments what simple living means to you and why you long for a simpler life.