First Things

The problem is that very few people know what buffer is, let alone ever experience it. So why don't we have any? Why are we so overcommitted and crazy-busy? Life is a long-distance run not a sprint. If you and I are going to be effective over the long-term, we have to create buffer and pace ourselves. […]

The post #067 – Buffer (Essentialism Pt 17) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

Margin is the space between our load and our limits. It is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed. Margin is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations. If you and I are going to be effective over the long term, we have to create margin in our lives. This is not […]

The post #066 – Margin (Essentialism Pt 16) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

We previously likened looking at our lives as a journalist … listening, asking questions, connecting the dots, investigating. Another way to integrate Essentialism is to see yourself as an editor, where you edit your life. The root word for "decision" is cis or cid, which means "to cut." You see this root word in "scissors." A great way […]

The post #065 – Edit (Essentialism Pt 15) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

Sometimes we truly have so much to do, we don't know which end is up. But sometimes the frenzy is self-induced. Feeling overwhelmed is sometimes a matter of perception – if you think you have too much to do, your limbic system takes over and you can't think creatively about alternatives. Overscheduling is a common […]

The post #064 – Uncommit (Essentialism Pt 14) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

I dare you … dare you to simply say "no" to the trivial many things in your life. But how exactly do we do this? Sometimes that is easier said than done. Yet, the right "no" spoken at the right time can change the course of history. Are you ready to take this dare and […]

The post #063 – Dare (Essentialism Pt 13) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

Clarity … the first type of nonessential you're going to learn how to eliminate is simply any activity that is misaligned with what you are intending to achieve. We need a "mission statement" to help gain clarity in our lives. Knowing what our goals are in life are the first step in saying "No" […]

The post #062 – Clarity (Essentialism Pt 12) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

If the answer isn't a definite yes, then the answer should be no. Part of essentialism is being picky about what we say yes to. Your most effective no is a well-defined yes. Ok ok … but how can we really do this? How can we implement a stronger, selective criteria into our lives. We discuss that in this episode. […]

The post #061 – Being Picky (Essentialism Pt 11) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

Sleep … the last frontier. These are the voyages of "Gee do I have to?" and "I can live off of just 4 hours" craziness. The mission is to totally crash my life by going against every bit of research about what meaningful sleep actually is. Ok ok … so I'm being a little […]

The post #060 – Sleep (Essentialism Pt 10) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

Many of us have been lied to. We were told that play is trivial. That it is a waste of time …unnecessary … childish. And this is further from the truth. Play is essential in many ways. Stuart Brown, the founder of the National Institute for Play, has studied over six thousand individuals and has concluded that play has the power to […]

The post #059 – Play (Essentialism Pt 9) [Podcast] appeared first on First Things.

I want to get personal today and tell you about some of my struggles (and successes) with Essentialism. Also, I need your help! I discuss some of the future of First Things podcast in this episode. I hope you will consider taking the first annual survey of First Things listeners. The survey link is in […]

The post #058 – SPECIAL: My Essentials and the Future of First Things appeared first on First Things.