Simple Life Reboot - Transformational / Healthy / Minimalism / Lifestyle / Edit

As many of the readers of Simple Life Reboot know, our journey to a simpler, more fulfilling life, began in the Spring of 2013. (see:  The Trip that Changed Everything) But before we “changed everything”, the over-arching feeling had been that we never had enough, enough money, enough time, enough of anything.  Our solution had […]

“If you want your children to turn out well, spend twice as much time with them and half as much money.” – Abigail van Buren My Uncle Russ once told me about a neighbor who sent his son over to ask if he could wash his car.  My uncle told the boy he would pay him […]

Daily we stand against the tide, the relentless negative forces of human nature that work to bring us down.  The challenge to be better, and do better, is never ending, and ever present, in each of our lives. How do the 7 deadly sins; wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony, play against the […]

Sheryl and I recently took a trip to Victoria, B.C., to wipe the cobwebs off our dashboard GPS map, and to fulfill one of the original intentions of our embracing simplicity almost two years ago, now. For those who are not familiar with our story, it was that first trip down the California coastline back […]

It happens every year about this time, mid-way through January, after the holiday meals and desserts have fully accreted and solidified in the form of “love” handles. Now comes the not-so-glamorous work of unpacking the storage shed, of taking off the extra pounds that have accumulated over the past couple of months, and getting back […]

This Christmas, when you gather with family and friends, remember that it is not about pretense or appearance.  Love everyone as they are, just as you are loved by God, who came among us to make things right. Focus on the needs of others.  Give your loved ones what they need from you, – a […]

“The only true gift is a portion of thyself.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson Sheryl and I love Christmas. For those of us who have discovered the value of the simple and minimalist lifestyle, the gift-giving portion of the holiday has become less important…to a degree.  The concept of gift-giving is beautiful, but for many at […]

“There is one day that is ours. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American.” – O. Henry I give thanks to God and Country, for without God, I would have no life, and without America, I would have no liberty. I GIVE THANKS …to AMERICA Consider for a moment the absence of […]

“Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance.” – Saint Augustine When it comes to our work, there is nothing wrong with hustle.  I believe that highly productive people are to be admired.  When […]

“Tell your story.” – Joshua Becker,  Becoming Minimalist, speaking at  SimpleREV 2014 There is something beautiful about hearing a person’s story that allows us to connect with both the individual and his or her experience. Whether a person’s circumstances are dramatic or cumulative, the sharing of a struggle to overcome challenges has the extraordinary power to instruct and inspire. Courtney Carver of  “Be More […]

“A great artist can paint a great picture on a small canvas.” – Charles Dudley Warner What does your life canvas look like? Are you filling up your canvas quickly, with an array of colors assembled as an afterthought, or are you painting with intention? When we act with intention, we exhibit a higher purpose, […]

Fear is deceptive. It often masquerades as something else, fooling us into believing an outright lie or otherwise thwarting our ability to make lasting positive change. Far too many of us yearn to reboot our lives into ones of greater simplicity, but we are stopped short by fears we cannot bring ourselves to face. Essentialism calls us to relinquish our […]

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” – William Morris When Sheryl and I moved from our large colonial home to smaller accommodations next door, we found ourselves faced with the necessity of reducing our possessions.  After a couple of moving sales and multiple […]

One of the most difficult questions we get is: “What do I do when I want to make changes,  but my loved one does not?” Whether the desired change is to rightsize, de-clutter, reduce activity  or financial overload or otherwise,  we generally encourage the inquiring party to make individual changes, and then wait patiently in the hope that demonstrated benefit will […]

Having just returned from Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A.  a heartfelt “THANK YOU!” to Joel Zaslofsky and Dan Hayes for putting together the first ever SimpleREV conference where folks from around the world came together to share stories and discuss how the simplicity/minimalism movement is changing lives and communities. Sheryl and I were honored to speak.  We told […]

Have you had this experience?  You start out strong, buoyed by the excitement of a new challenge and the promise of better things to come.  Then,  somehow,  as you move beyond the initial phase,  the load intensifies, progress slows and you lose some degree of confidence in the attainability, if not the desirability, of the objective. It can […]

Like many, I spend my fair share of time and effort trying to avoid physical discomfort. An example would be my strong preference for a comfortable bed.  So, why do I fondly remember sleeping on that bumpy mattress jammed in the back of our car on that California trip?    (Read:  The Trip That Changed Everything!) […]

“It sure seems like you’re working pretty hard just to ‘simplify‘ your life”,  a somewhat skeptical friend observed. He was, of course, right … though I did not want to admit it. Fortunately, we both had other pressing commitments, otherwise I would have had to acknowledge that taking steps to simplify our life continues to be […]

Nimbleness is the ability to pivot, to adapt to new circumstances and keep moving.  It is achieved, primarily, through the creation of margin in our lives. In this fast-paced, unpredictable world, our ability to remain calm, constant, and in control is in direct proportion to the resources and options we can muster at any given time. […]

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown. –H.P. Lovecraft Change is something people have always resisted. It’s something we fear and try to avoid, even knowing it is inevitable, part of life, itself. Today, change is occurring at a pace […]

“Money is not the prime asset in life. Time is.”  Unknown Far too often we fail to appreciate the preciousness of time. Unlike other resources,  it is irreplaceable.  Nonetheless,   we tend to operate in default mode, either rushing about or coasting along,  giving very little thought to how spending time doing “X” may well preclude us from […]

I wanted to edit it out.  In our 67th episode, Interview with Mom, we asked if she had learned anything from observing our Simple Life Reboot journey.  I hoped to hear how inspired she was, or perhaps how we were making a difference.   Instead, she paused, and said: “Well, I’ve learned that you’re much more compassionate than I realized.” […]

Sheryl and I have been talking lately about some of the unexpected benefits of our decision to simplify our lives. It was just 15 short months ago that we undertook The Trip that Changed Everything, our 10-day tour of the California coastline between Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara.   Meandering south along Highway 1, listening to podcasts […]

Far too often the journey to simplicity focuses on our own needs and desires. In an effort to share another perspective, Dave and I sat down for a candid talk with my mother, Carolyn. Mom has had a front row seat on this roller coaster ride to greater margin.  Though not a “fan” of reducing possessions, she stood by us as […]

Sheryl and I have been influenced by a number of extraordinary thinkers on the subject of simplifying your life to focus on what is important.  One person who has inspired us is Michael Hyatt , author of “Platform”, and online entrepreneur, who spoke recently at the World Domination Summit in Portland, Oregon, U.S.A. Default Approaches Michael’s […]

  Sometimes the unexpected will test and grow you (and perhaps your audience as well).  This video is a cell phone recording of a “rap” I performed at the 2014 World Domination Summit. Please read about the experience in SLR 065 “What Are You Afraid Of?“

There was no forewarning.  One moment I was happily standing with two other summit attendees.  The next,  I was struggling to maintain my composure, holding back an overwhelming urge to cry, scream, and vomit. It all started innocently enough.  Dave and I were attending the World Domination Summit.  As big Amazing Race fans,  we were thrilled to learn that WDS […]

What things do we need from others to feel our life has worth? The answer to that question informs us about why material treasures so inadequately satisfy our most basic emotional needs. Three emotional reservoirs are required in order to be happy.  They are the longings of our heart… …to be known …to be needed […]

It’ s time to reclaim downsizing as an empowering  practice.  For far too long,  downsizing has been understood to be a process of decline whereby individuals were forced to make undesirable lifestyle changes due to the loss of  employment, relationship or health. While the initial  impetus may be an involuntary loss,  “downsizing” itself,   if done mindfully,  is a positive.  In […]

You hear a lot of people talking these days about following your passion.  Too often this advice includes dropping everything to go after that one thing in life that “fulfills” you.  But what effect does “dropping everything”  have on the people who depend on you? Following your passion is not something we advocate here at […]

Many of us come to a point in our lives when we sense that something is wrong. We work harder and harder, and yet, never quite seem to achieve our desired lifestyle. Is the goalpost moving? Or, is some other dynamic at work? For those of us seeking to edit the non-essentials from our lives […]

We are blessed to have four wonderful children.  With Father’s Day just a few days gone, a lot has been on my mind regarding being a father. When you become a father you surrender the right to be a selfish man.  At first it’s against your will, but as time goes on and you hold, […]

What is the best way to tackle a daunting task or behavioral change?   Many authorities emphasize the traditional approach of goal, structure, and feedback.  While helpful,  such approach lacks  the transformational jet fuel of adventure and experimentation. Rediscover Adventure Ask a young person why she tried chocolate on her broccoli. She may well answer  […]

In modern American culture, being a big consumer has almost become a badge of honor. We enjoy acquiring and displaying material wealth.  Our approach of spend now – pay later, is based on the faulty premise that happiness can be purchased with  the acquisition, collection and consumption of things. Truly, to live is to consume. However, when we make consumption our primary objective, […]

The genesis of the project was practical and uninspired – but the outcome was akin to finding hidden treasure. No Room For Albums When we moved into our smaller space,  we simply did not have room for the family photo albums we had lovingly assembled over the years. We had no choice but to box […]

Are you afraid to drink from the cup of success? What is it that keeps us from realizing our best selves, the person we were born to become? Sharing our journey with you here at Simple Life Reboot continues to help us stay focused on building our new life of margin and deep living.  We […]

If you are reading this and are over the age of 40, please stop.  Wait, on second thought, nix that. Whatever your age, please keep reading… but only for the purpose of ultimately sharing or implementing the simple lessons it has taken me nearly five decades to learn. Now, as a disclaimer, this article is […]

What is the course of your life?  How we understand the unfolding of our lives not only impacts our ability to weather life’s storms, it also shapes the journey itself. As Dave and I get to know people creating margin and focusing on priorities rather than stuff, we cannot help but draw parallels between the […]

Do you manage urgency, or rather urgently manage, the events of your life?  Simple living is made possible when we  focus on the long term important issues so they do not become short-term critical emergencies due to lack of planning and execution. In a former life, I was a restaurant owner.  In the heat of […]

Far too often we forget to tell people how much they mean to us. Dave and I would both like to take this opportunity to thank you.  We recognize that by reading this,  you have taken precious time out of your day.  We treasure you as a reader and are committed to honoring your time. […]

Quiet time is hard to find. So when a client canceled an appointment a few afternoons ago, I decided to drive to a local hill and get in a short, solitary hike. Mt. Pisgah is situated a few miles south of Eugene, Oregon.  It rises over a thousand feet above the surrounding Willamette Valley, and […]

It washes over us like a tsunami – an unmanageable wall of information. The greater our desire to be current, competitive and connected, the more likely we are to be paddling ourselves to exhaustion.  We prefer to drown than miss out on something important… We need a lifeguard! Fortunately,  we have “SAM”.  SAM not only […]

To what extent are we willing to go into debt, make unfair demands on family and co-workers,  or compromise healthy habits,  in order to achieve objectives? Is our standard of living too reliant upon our willingness to push ourselves to the limit? Long Term Impact We may view our pedal-to-the-metal approach as proof of a […]

Imagine leaving behind the home of your dreams to begin living the life of your dreams. Sheryl and I made that decision in August 2013.  Our beautiful home, the home in which our kids had grown to adulthood, was  no longer serving our needs in the most positive way.  In fact, it was beginning to […]

This is my chair. When I reflect upon why I bought it,  I realize how much our  intentional living journey has changed me. You see when  I purchased it,  I thought I needed to fill a space.  While I didn’t really “need” another chair, I thought our  family room required something new … plus,  it […]

It was the spring of 2013. Driving south from Eugene, Oregon,  Sheryl and I wanted to stay with family the first evening in Santa Clara, California, and then begin what we hoped would be a little adventure trip.  The plan was to drive down the California coastline along Highway 1.  We would take our time, […]

What is a simple lifestyle? Time and again I have seen how a thoughtful, concise explanation of values and objectives permits even very different people to understand and relate to one another. As an attorney, I make my living with words. You can imagine my consternation on the occasions when I have been unable to […]

“It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new.  But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful.  There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.”  – Alan Cohen When was […]

Sheryl and I have decided it’s time to dig out our running shoes and begin rebuilding what is left of the legs that carried us across the finish line at the Hood to Coast relay race with friends and family in August of 2012. We are inspired by the fact that regardless of age, a […]

Have you attempted to change your life before? Is change easier if it’s voluntary, or if there is no choice in the matter? In the summer of my senior year in college, I discovered the answer.  An oncoming car crested a hill in my lane. It struck my small car head-on with such force that […]

To be good at life is to have good relationships.  What is life if not our connection to the people we get to know and love? But, in order to live a life of generosity and connection, we must first take an honest look at ourselves.  We must also understand, in very practical terms, what […]