Renegade Yogi

Thinking small

We’re often told to think big. I’ve pushed against this before. It’s almost like we’re reentering the inflated ambitions of the 1980′s. I think that sometimes, we have such external pressure to think big that we need to remember how to think small.

Thinking small is determining the least you could live with to lead a fulfilling life. It’s the “All I need is my wife and kids” view of life. It’s nothing new. It’s the same exercise as asking “what would you take to a deserted island”.

The thought experiment is designed, like the desert island question, to strip away your day-to-day fantasies and help you discover what is most important to you in your life. The difference from the desert island question is that you are not transported away and forced to be minimalist. Instead, you think about your life here, with all of its practicalities.

So, the exercise is very simple: make a list of everything you need to live a fulfilling life. The list should not be that long. These are not things that you would like to have or would make things easier if you had. These are the absolute most barest necessities.

After you have that list of necessities, go through each one and really make sure you need it. Do you really need a house, or just shelter? What is the minimum shelter you can get away with? A tent or a mansion? Be very specific. If you wrote “food”, try to be more specific than that. Do you need steak? Rice? Hot dogs? Protein and fats? Make the list as specific as possible.

Here are some principles that might help you construct and edit the list. Here’s the deal, though. No one can make this list for you, but yourself. You have to follow your own intuition on this one. No set of rules is really going to tell you if an item should be on the list. However, sometimes they can help guide your intuition to a better understanding.

• Ask yourself: Would life be worth living if I couldn’t have this? If the answer is yes, chuck it.
• Minimalism is usually better. Remember, the idea is to get as small as possible.
• Maslow’s hierarchy of needs might be helpful.
• Don’t forget: loved ones, life’s work, higher purpose, or feeding your soul.

It is so easy to fill our lives with distractions that don’t make our lives worth more to us. This exercise can help you to see what it is that you don’t want to distract yourself from, and really understand what you value.

Please, post anything you’d like to share in the comments. I would love to see what lists you’ve come up with or any modifications to the exercise you think are helpful.