We all want to simplify our lives, and especially our work lives, and that’s hardly surprising: the modern age is defined by distraction and excess. But Leo Babauta, the founder of Zen Habits, worries that our culture’s desire for simplicity might inadvertently be sending us down the wrong path. 

Simplicity, Leo says, isn’t about deprivation. When you imagine the simple life, you might picture a monk, or a writer living in a cabin in the woods, but this isn’t the whole picture. Instead, simplicity is a process of expanding and contracting, just like breathing. 

True simplicity is a process of determining what matters, and then making space for it. But if we don’t expand our world, our collections, our attention, we can’t discover what matters. While Leo believes many of us spend too much time expanding and not enough time contracting, he’s adamant that both components are crucial, and it’s the balance between them that fosters fruitful simplicity. 

Leo gives examples of his process for seeking simplicity, and explains why deprivation isn’t the goal. 

Connect with Leo on Twitter or at the Zen Habits website

You can find the full interview here: Leo Babauta teaches you the Zen Habits of simplicity and self-awareness

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CREDITS

Produced by Inventium

Host: Amantha Imber

Sound Engineer: Martin Imber

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