ACTION. Just hearing that may cause some people to think positively and others to react negatively.
When you think about your life, you will always need something to change or improve it, and that is the power of action.
However, there are probably many people who know what they are doing but are unable to take action. The more we think about it, the more difficult things seem, and sometimes we lose the will to even take the first step.
But that may be because we carry too much extra stuff.
Just as it is easier to carry a bag with the bare necessities than to carry a heavy bag filled with everything, it is easier to act if we keep our minds simple.
If we are constantly thinking about all the things we have to do, it will become harder and harder to take action. There are so many things that need to be done, but our bodies are stuck in the opposite direction.
In this article, I will show you how you can lighten weight of your belongings and increase your energy by getting rid of the things you don’t need in your life one by one.
Fewer belongings = More action
Mountaineers are said to be very particular about their belongings. They say they pay close attention to durability and functionality, as well as weight.
Naturally, there is a limit to what they can take with them while climbing a mountain. Even with similar belongings, a difference of just a few grams can add up to a difference of several kilos in the end.
As a result, your own physical fitness will continue to be affected by it, a difference that can even affect the success of your climb.
Although I mentioned mountain climbing as an example, the same thing can be said in our daily lives.
If we think of our belongings as “the load we place on ourselves,” then placing too much of a load on ourselves in our daily lives can make a big difference later on.
For example, many of us work 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. We may even have to work overtime. In addition, some of us may have stressful relationships, private life, love life, and side jobs.
The more you do, the greater the load on you. If that load is too great or continues for a long time, you may break down or become depressed and not be able to continue living the life you had before.
Life is like a long race. It is very important to reduce the load on yourself by not having unnecessary things.
If you are currently working on something you care about, it is important to keep yourself light by eliminating unnecessary items.
Lighten the contents of your bag.
As we reported in the mountaineering example, lightness is directly related to the ability to act. Therefore, it is important to keep things as light as possible by minimizing the number of items you normally carry.
In the bag you usually carry around with you, is there anything in it that you do not use?
Once you have reduced the number of things you carry, pay attention to the weight of each item.
Smaller or thinner smartphones and computers are definitely easier to carry.
The contents of your wallet are also important. Are there any unused credit cards, receipts, or other unnecessary items in it? Since electronic payments are now widespread, you may be able to reduce cash to a minimum.
Coupons and loyalty cards that you think you are saving money with not only weigh down your wallet, but also make it difficult to take action by having to go to certain stores.
You may think it’s a small difference, but a lighter bag will make you feel lighter and more active.
Lighten your clothes and shoes.
Next to your bag, you should also pay attention to the clothes and shoes you wear on a regular basis.
There are many different materials used in clothing and shoes, but the weight of each varies greatly. Clothes made of heavy materials such as leather or denim are hard to move in and make you less active.
Nowadays, many clothes are made of high-performance synthetic fibers, so let’s start by changing to something lighter and more comfortable where we can. The fact that you often feel tired in the evening that you did not feel in the morning may possibly be due to the clothes you usually wear.
And next is shoes. As with clothes, the weight varies greatly depending on the material. Heavy leather shoes weigh more than 500g, while lightweight sneakers weigh less than half that.
Boots are not only heavy, but also take time to put on and take off, which directly affects your mobility.
In addition, don’t choose shoes based solely on their lightness, but also on your own preferences and comfort. That way, in addition to physical lightness, you will also feel lighter.
Lighten your bag.
Once you have lightened the bag’s contents, clothes and shoes, the next step is to focus on the weight of the bag itself.
There are many kinds of materials used for bags, but while outdoor brand bags are very light and functional, leather bags are heavy, and a hand-held bag that makes you lose the use of one hand will reduce your mobility.
Nowadays, many outdoor brands are selling business-oriented items and bags that could be used on a daily basis. Try to use a bag that is lightweight and allows you to use both hands.
Lighten the top of your desk.
Many people are not good at keeping things organized. It is easy to feel that it is a chore to put things away, and when you notice it, things are scattered all over the place.
I am sure you have experienced the distraction and inefficiency that comes from having unnecessary things scattered all over your desk. If it is your work desk, you need to think about work efficiency even more.
First of all, make it a rule not to put anything other than what you need on that desk. If it is a work desk, put only what you really need for work.
For a work desk, a computer, keyboard, mouse, and light stand would be the bare minimum. Anything else should be eliminated from the desk and put away, or thrown away as much as you can.
Throw away the things that you “may need” only on occasion. Most of the time, you will never use it, and you can get it when you need it.
And now let’s look at computer desktops. If you have a lot of stuff on your desk, you probably have a lot of unused files and documents on your computer desktop.
The recommended way to organize your desktop is to create one folder that you can temporarily put away, such as “Temp” so that you can put away things you are working on.
For now, put things left on the desktop into that folder once, and once a month, sort the contents of that folder into necessary and unnecessary items. You will be surprised at how many things you don’t need.
In addition, setting your desktop image to an image of your choice will also enhance your mood, just like wearing your favorite clothes, and will help you take action.
Lighten the room.
And the next step is to lighten what you have in the room or house.
If you are in a room filled with a lot of stuff, just like your desk, it will only create a vicious cycle that will make you feel depressed and will not inspire you to act.
On the other hand, a room that is organized and has a minimum of necessary items will make you feel stable.
The standard approach to organizing things in a room is to throw away items that have not been used for 1 year.
You may think that 1 year is a short time. You may think that you paid for the item and may use it someday. However, it is still better that you throw it away.
To get something new, especially if it is something you never had before or if it is a dream, you need to be prepared to accept it first, even if it is a risk. It is just as important to invest ahead of time as it is to create a great return.
If you don’t want to throw it away, there are many ways to sell it, so think about how you can get rid of it.
Lighten your smartphone.
Today, most of us have smartphones. Even if you don’t have your wallet with you wherever you go, you probably have your smartphone with you.
Needless to say, smartphones are very convenient. However, if used incorrectly, they can also rob you of your precious time.
Have you ever picked up your smartphone for some reason and found yourself checking one notification or message after another, and before you knew it, you had spent a long time on it?
If you spend a lot of your limited time on your smartphone in this way, you will not have time to do what you really need to do or what you wanted to do.
To prevent this, it is effective to minimize the functions of your smartphone to the bare minimum.
Try deleting useless apps that you haven’t used in the past year. Again, delete apps even you think that you might use them someday.
It’s also recommend grouping all apps into categories and keeping them on one screen if possible. If you have apps scattered across multiple screens, time spent looking for the desired app or even swiping through them is time wasted.
And one thing to remember to do is to turn off app notifications.
It’s okay to turn on notifications for the really important messaging apps, but turn off all other notifications for apps that are not that important.
Lighten the action.
So far, I have told you about the importance of physically lightening your belongings, such as bags, clothes and shoes, desk and room, computer and smartphone.
From here, let’s focus on the mental part of your life to become more dynamic.
Lighten the night.
Even if you physically lighten your load, if you stay up late every day working late into the night, watching movies, or drinking heavily, you will feel sluggish and not want to move the next morning.
If you spend the whole day lying around, and when you finally get back into the swing of things, it is already evening, there is no way you will have the energy to take action.
If you do brain-heavy work before bed, such as playing games or watching videos, it will take you longer to fall asleep. Before going to bed, try to relax enough to extend your sleep time.
Sometimes it is necessary to make an effort to cut back on sleep. In such cases, it is more efficient to go to bed early at night and get up early in the morning to work.
Sometimes, when you are stressed from work every day, you may be tempted to drink alcohol. In such cases, try to make time to relax and forget about work completely for a couple of hours if possible.
Since it is difficult to fall asleep immediately after a stressful day at work or playing games, you can create a state in which you can easily fall asleep by allowing yourself a few hours to relax.
Again, active hobbies make it difficult to relax, so try to do things that help you relax both mentally and physically, such as a massage or a relaxing bath.
Concentration is highest in the morning.
It is said that human concentration is highest in the morning and decreases as night falls.
Early in the morning, the surroundings are quieter and our own concentration is higher. If you have important work to do or something you want to take seriously, it is best to do it in the morning.
In fact, many successful people cherish their morning hours.
And what you do during this time of highest concentration should be what is most important to you. If you have a dream, do something that leads to that dream; if you have a goal you want to accomplish at work, use your morning time to do it.
The most efficient results are achieved when you are working on something that makes you feel positive during the most concentrated time of the day.
Make the most of your morning time to enrich your life.
Taking action changes your life.
The only way to change your life is to take action. That is what many successful people have been telling you.
What I have been telling you is how to lighten your surroundings in order to take that action.
By lightening up physically and mentally, we make it easier to take the first step ourselves.
It may seem like a small change, but by lightening your belongings, you may go to places you have never been before. You may meet new people there.
You may be able to achieve great results because you are now able to concentrate on your work in the morning. You may come up with new ideas that had not been born before.
In this way, by lightening your load physically and mentally, you are unconsciously increasing your ability to take action. And the difference in your ability to take action will change your life in the future.
The methods introduced in this article are not difficult. Let’s start by lightening your daily belongings.
Comments