Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose?
I began to ponder on this, as I would so often override a choice of simplicity in life and subconsciously choose the complicated option instead. Of course the situation never felt great – at the end of the day, often leaving me feeling exhausted and overwhelmed.
I began to realise that even though I preferred things to be uncomplicated and simple, I was not used to it because I was in a pattern of complicating my life. Then I realised we as a society are generally not used to things being simple. I continually felt as though there were not enough hours in the day and never felt like I achieved all that I felt I should. But what if there were enough hours in the day? And you could get done all that was needed, and more? What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time? Or that there is never enough time?
I started to experiment with this concept, firstly starting my day without planning how it was going to be before I even got out of bed. I knew I had to get up, and yes there was a basic outline of what was needed, school lunches, breakfast, tidying up, showering etc., however none of this was done in any particular order: getting up was first, then from there I did what was needed, sometimes it was maybe to make school lunches first, other times it felt supportive to start with preparing breakfast and ‘talk time’ with the kids first.
What I began to discover was that if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment; then I could move onto the next thing once I was finished. My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.
This is only one example of how I began to choose simplicity in my life. Feeling and choosing things that would keep my life simple, even in the simplest of situations. Now I am able to be more discerning with the choices I make, preferring and accepting that I can have a life of simplicity.
I was amazed that I could get so much more done without the rush and chaos of previous times.
I observed that as soon as I started to think of “what’s next?”, or “am I going to have time to get all this done?”, of course things in my life would begin to go pear-shaped and things quickly managed to get messy. By messy I mean complicated, and the time and space that was once there quickly became filled with my going off in different directions trying to complete and achieve, rather than feeling what is there to be done in that time frame.
Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication. For example, I may want to check my emails but if the children had not yet had their breakfast before I started checking my emails, I would rush going through them; however, if I got the kids organised with breakfast, that would allow me the time to check my emails without the complication of trying to do two things at once, neither of which had 100% of my attention: taking the latter approach I don’t have to experience the stress and complication of trying to do too many things at once.
Choosing the simple option in my life began to create more time, getting done what was needed without the rush and overwhelm I used to regularly experience. I now have the time to do extra things that I normally would not have had the time or space to do.
Slowly introducing simpler ways of being in my life in the mornings began to expand out to my days, and then my evenings until eventually my mornings, afternoons and evenings all rolled around the same way.
The tools shared through the teachings of Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon have supported me in another way of being that has enabled me to bring simplicity into my life, making choices that are supportive of me.
By Nicole Serafin, age 41, Tintenbar, Australia
The Truth about Serge Benhayon 
Nicole it was great to read this blog again, as I feel simplicity is constantly being refined. I’m finding when I over plan, then I go in the doing, and my body feels tired and aches, but when I don’t, the energy within me is amazing and similarly to you, more seems to get done, without the effort.
It certainly is worth experimenting with and observing how you and the body feels and allowing life’s flow to not lead the way and making space for your flow to lead instead.
Nicole, I loved how you highlighted that simplicity has a flow on effect onto others and your day.
I’m not the biggest fan of complication, yet I create them and get in such a tis when it’s been in your life for a long time. And then something simple as simple walks through your door, we don’t always know what to do or we default to complication again, until that muscle becomes stronger and we default to simplicity.
This ‘another way of being’ certainly brings simplicity and supportive way of living. To break free from it is truly inspiring to do more and eventually bring more, so life is simple living.
It is good to observe the little complications continually sneaking and coming in the way as we choose more and more of simplicity. When we choose more of simplicity that flow is super amazing to feel and once it is felt, it leaves a marker or a standard for the next to develop even further.
Making a choice to have simplicity in our lives makes so much sense, ‘Slowly introducing simpler ways of being in my life in the mornings began to expand out to my days, and then my evenings until eventually my mornings, afternoons and evenings all rolled around the same way.’
Yes, and it is our choice, ‘I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication.’
Great blog Nicole, reminding us to introduce simplicity in a simple way!
This has been so great to read today because of how practical it is. I’m sure the majority of the worlds population could relate! I’ve found that focusing on one thing at a time and taking it gently and step by step really supports me, if I try to take in all that needs to be done and stack it mentally within me it’s chaos. I like the feeling of committing to one thing at a time, it is so much simpler and less stressful for the body. It’s a great question though to ask myself through the day if my choices are supporting simplicity or not.
Melinda taking one thing at a time makes sense, there is no multitasking otherwise we provide a diluted fragmented service. Life is about quantity and to be more meaningful it needs to be all about quality. Anything less will not do.
Choosing simplicity allows space to appreciate how amazing we all are when in connection and rhythm with with the Universe.
We don’t like to think that life can really be that easy and love to get caught up in the drama of complication, which puts the ‘I’ very firmly in the ‘me’ making us feel like we are in the driver’s seat and in control of where we are destined, but in truth in this belief we are still as much a vehicle of energy as when we keep things simple and are simply obedient to the impulses that come through.
Absolutely Nicole, a simple walk for 10 minutes a day makes all the difference.
Having a picture of how things should run definitely gets in the way of simplicity. Accepting and surrendering is simpler than fighting and trying to control. Not that I find that option easy all the time. The feeling I get is that sometimes what appears to be a mistake or even ‘wrong’ may need to be allowed to happen for us to learn to allow ourselves to be moved with true responsiveness, rather than meticulously plan our movement to fit yet another picture or ideal we set up around the idea of simplicity.
Sometimes I wondered why things were taking me so long to do and you made me realise how I was allowing distraction so I would be checked out. And honestly, I have totally underestimated how checked out I am most of the day. Through experiences, I have the mechanics in place to get things done, but really, I can feel how unforced and uncommitted I have been. I got up this morning later than I had anticipated, and I could feel a part of me going ‘Oh well, next time’ already trying to write off the rest of the day, or the week, or could even be life. I hate that.
The older I get the more I enjoy simplicity because it creates space in order to be with oneself and with others.
Most would say they want a simple life but most of us are not really honest about what motivates us to act in certain ways. We often enjoy complication if we were to be honest.
So what does complication give us is the question, because simplicity certainly feels so much more lovely.
You would say of course we pay attention to what we are doing, how would I not do, it is so simple but the truth is that our mind kicks in the moment we do something and we get thoughts about the next thing or what we did before or.. well you name it and we complicate it. Living from one moment to the next that is all we need to do to make life simple.
When we choose simplicity we create space within and around us.
I wonder if that is a giant clue as to why we prefer complication ! With space comes feeling where we are at and that can be uncomfortable.
I love coming back to this blog and appreciating how my life has changed from one where it was all about complexity but not actually completing much, to one that is very full but all about simplicity. I was caught in the trap of thinking complexity meant I was working hard (be it at home or work) and yet now I appreciate the simpler life is the grander it can be.
The more we let go of control and just allow what we are to run its due course we are offered an opportunity to learn far greater lessons in life then when we bring in the stops with control.
With simplicity I feel more light and expansive, when I go into complication it is obvious as I go into my head and disconnect from my body.
The main keys for simplicity given by Nicole: My mind and my body in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.
Thinking about things that ‘need to be done’ makes me feel tired before having even started on anything. Staying present with my body is lessening this complication the mind brings in.
It is amazing and fascinating that just a thought that you have to much to do or if you will have enough time to do it brings in such a heavy complicated approach to life. It has and still is a learning and refining of knowing what needs to be done but not focusing on the to do list, just being totally 100% present in what I am doing, keeping it simple and wow is it super confirming when this happens. Everything slips into place and without drama or exhaustion.
“What I began to discover was that if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment” I love this – and it is so true! Space opens up – time too – when I focus on the matter in hand.
The questions we raise, and its sequence, may set us up for complication or for simplicity.
Yes it really can take time to get used to things being simple, easy and uncomplicated. It is in so many things and situations, even simply reacting to a situation creates complication and we so used to doing this. But being aware of the possibility of simplicity and space I noticed for myself that it naturally gets more and more normal to accept simplicity and embrace it.
Focussing on time has the added effect of causing unwanted stress to the body and this is very clearly demonstrated in our workplaces where everything has a deadline and ‘time management’ is championed.
True Julie when I focus on time I am already complicating how things go, I feel my body is going into tension to get things done and my mind is thinking how I can get it all done in a certain timeframe. Stress is garantueed and exhaustion and illness are not far away.
Bringing simplicity to anything that we do makes everything easier for all involved, and in addition everything then has a natural flow.
Complication is exhausting – simplicity is revitalising.
I simply love simplicity.
Expressing simplicity as the new norm or standard offers us the opportunity to live nothing less. How often do we say yes to this call?
I feel I invite in complication whenever I am thinking only of myself and what I want to get done…. not what necessarily needs to be done. Complication has been like a dependent friend that needs so much time and attention and loves the limelight. A friendship that has never served me well.
Staying present and remaining flexible as to how things pan out during my day gives more space and I am able to accomplish more, despite the amount of time and tasks remaining the same.
Complications are distractions, whereas simplicity allows us to connect more deeply with ourselves.
It feels like we avoid simplicity to avoid being still and feeling what to do, because we don’t quite trust that it will be okay and that everything that needs to get done, will get done. We’re so used to controlling and manipulating life, making sure that we’re safe and secure and fully covered, that to drop all that feels like a huge risk: will things work out, if we’re not driving and controlling them at every moment? Giving it a go is the only way to find out.
The more we let go and allow ourselves to feel what to do next, the more we get to feel that it actually works: there really is more space in the day, and in our bodies, when we drop our pictures and expectations of how the day, or we, need to be. So it feels like the key to all of this is a total surrender: not a giving up, or being a victim of life, but a total acceptance of who we are, all of our ‘stuff’, and how life is at the moment. With this acceptance and honesty, we have a place to start from.
I brought simplicity to baking the other day. By assembling all ingredients and utensils before I started and placed them in the order they were needed to be used. It was effortless. This method can be applied to other areas of our life also.
I like to complete tasks as I go and when I return to a room I don’t find something unfinished or half done. This creates space as I’m always meeting a room that is clear and ready to go.
We simplify life through our movements, by being consciously present as we move from one particular location to another. The body knows what to do, it’s the mind that complicates and over works.
A power that comes free when we choose simplicity! We are often so easily helped and it equally often serves another when you have chosen to make things simple.
The more present we are with what we are doing the more space is created. If we were to live a whole day like that we would be totally revitalised.
There is so much simplicity first and foremost in staying present with ourselves so that we aren’t doing multiple things in multiple places at once in our minds.
Having complication in our morning is a sure way of setting up for complication during the day, and then the cycle commences. i like how you pinpointed the role of the picture in all of this. In the mornings, I definitely have pictures of what should be happening and now I feel it’s time to feel what to do.
‘If I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment,’ this is gold, it makes a huge difference letting go of the pictures we have about our day or for anything for that matter.
I love what you are presenting here to consider, that being driven by time and the tasks that need to be done does not truly support us to truly live our true potential. It in fact limits the quality of what we can bring. If we focus alone on this we can move through our day void of love and true purpose, simply going through the motion and not bringing our rich quality to all we do. When we move with the simplicity of honouring what is true, moving in honor of the love we feel, we then move through the day with greater presence and not needing to know what is next but rather being guided by a truth that knows what precisely needs to be next.
Super gorgeous what you share Carola; ‘moving in honour of the love we feel…’, yes from that space we are moving in the flow and the natural rhythms of the universe and as such we are continually impulsed of what is next, thus no need to think which comes from our heads.
Attaching to how things should be, look and feel can confide our ability to live with more simplicity and flow. The constraints we put on ourselves or championed from another are not really supporting ourselves to just be who we truly are.
There is also control and protection involved with complication. Complication is so much the norm in our homes and workplaces that bringing simplicity can rock the boat. So like dressing ourselves down to not draw attention, we also can complicate ourselves up to not be noticed too. Therefore not showing our true natural way of living simply.
I’ve noticed complication in business can also come with sense of cleverness, as if producing a system that’s very complicated is somehow a show of superior intelligence (!), and complication can be used to hide an ulterior motive such as taking advantage of customers.
If we focus on what we are doing and are very present with ourselves then space opens up, we have more energy and don’t finish the day feel like we have been pulled from every direction.
Absolutely Fiona, I also have experienced this know that this way of living and being supports my health and well-being and i can honestly say that my life is enriched in every way as a result.
What you have described Fiona is like the foundation for simplicity and equally available to all – being present with ourselves and our body in our day.
I recently got stuck in a situation whereby I had to renew my driving license, and I put it off for three years. Thinking that filling the long form in, getting photos and paying the post office to check it over was too much hassle and time-consuming – I could have done it a dozen times or more in three years. Anyway, I couldn’t find my old paper license and wanted to renew it once and for all and got onto the computer to see how I could get a new one. I filled in a form for a lost driving license which took minutes, they were able to use my passport photo, and my signature from when I applied for my passport and the license was with me in two days. It also cost me a fraction of the price it would have cost going the other route.
An important question to ask Nicole… “Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose?” What is it that makes us go for the drama, emotion and false excitement of complication? Could it be that we are so exhausted we need this stimulation to get us through our day?
“I was amazed that I could get so much more done without the rush and chaos of previous times.” It is absolutely amazing what is possible when we keep things simple and stay connected to the true purpose of what we have to do. Not only do we have more space to do what is needed, but we get supported in ways to do what is needed that is almost unfathomable.
We cannot hide when simplicity is chosen, simplicity makes truth obvious. Avoiding simplicity is avoiding truth and thus responsibility.
It seems that certain situations trigger the complication and probably this is because the last time we were in that situation we chose complication. As an example maybe the way we look for work in a worried, frantic way or go into the story of having no money – the list is endless. So when that cycle comes around again what are we met with – more of the same.
It does seem ironic, that the more we do, the more we can and do do when we are not in any kind of drive to get things done. When we approach things from a feeling inside us that feels true and has no doubt, it is quite incredible what can be achieved. It really is as though space literally opens up and time becomes almost insignificant.
Ahhh how refreshing to read this blog. Often we create complication where it is not needed. We can un-learn this and embrace our natural simple way of living.
‘if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment’ This is such a great example of how to build a simplicity into the fabric of our lives.
“Choosing Simplicity in Life Over a Complicated Life” – the more simple we make something, the easier it is.
I have learnt that if things are not simple than something is not true about them. This could mean what I am doing is not true at that point in time or the quality I am in is not what is needed there and then. Otherwise there is just this beautiful flow, almost dance, of movements that follow each other and keep building on each other.
I find it fascinating that although most of humanity appears to live in complication everyone expresses that they want their lives to be simpler. Unfortunately, no one is going to wave a magic wand and turn a life of complication into a life of simplicity, that is something we have to do for ourselves, and it begins very simply by making different choices; the magic is ours to make.
That’s true Ingrid, people talk about the past decades as being a simpler time, and maybe in some ways that is true considering the different way we live and the pressures of today’s life, but as Nicole has shown us it’s up to us, we don’t have to live life from the outside in, but can choose a way of life that comes from honouring how we feel on the inside first.
Yes it works so much more efficient to give everything we do all our attention instead of trying to beat time by doing two things at the same time or doing something just before we have to do something else even though there is no space to do it. Letting go of this battle with time is very lovely and it offers a whole different way of living life.
Beautifully put: ‘Letting go of this battle with time is very lovely and it offers a whole different way of living life.’ It offers space and the opportunity to live from our connection with divinity.
What we all hold as our wisdom is simplicity. When we make things complicated we fight against our simplicity, which is not needed. Hence coming back to our simplicity is actually serving us to let go of any complexity at that very time.
When we are connected with our bodies, we wake each morning with purpose. Purpose gets you up in the morning, and is a great foundation for the rest of the day to remain focused, yet open to what is needed throughout the day – with purpose there is flow, with flow there is always simplicity.
What I have noticed recently is that when I let go of how things should be done and when, there’s far less stress and I feel free to get on with whatever needs doing, and this is very much supported by understanding time as space rather than a lineal progression. Holding onto pictures and indulging in reactions is how I used to dramatises my journey.
Yeah I have adopted some of these ways of being more present and it does pay off in feeling much less overwhelmed. I am yet to be able to maintain focus and purpose and can easily get distracted and get lost in something. It really is about dedicating oneself to the bigger picture, purpose and then allowing what is next to be forefront.
Having always chosen complication in the past in my life I can feel how exhausting and time wasting this was, I now enjoy the simplicity of my life and feeling how space opens up so beautifully when we let go of this old pattern.
‘What if there were enough hours in the day?’ This question alone is enough to bring us to a stop and consider how we are relating to life, space and time. If we’re constantly running with this idea of ‘never enough’ then we always feel like we’re behind and catching up. Keeping things simple and letting go of pictures of what we think we need to do, by when, really does start to change this.
We create our own canvas with the choices we make, that canvas can be of a simple and loving life, or it can be one of complication and struggle, whatever we paint, we are the ones holding the brush.
I can feel that what you share is absolutely true. It’s clear to me that this is a very wise way to live.
Put in this logical way, it feels very illogical that we choose complication over simplicity. I find that delay also causes complication because we do something many times in our heads by putting it off, it is much simpler to go with the flow.
I have found this too Gill, being in delay does contribute to complication because we are no longer in our natural harmonious flow that brings everything to us easily. Choosing to procrastinate and put things off, only harms ourselves plus it takes more time to go back and pick things come again.
“I find that delay also causes complication because we do something many times in our heads by putting it off, it is much simpler to go with the flow.” How true Gill, and the delay and constant turning over of the task in our heads is exhausting.
Complications and drama are often a go to feeling that will leave us looking for the next fix. What is interesting to feel in this blog is how simple living can make this a pattern of the past.
What happens when you choose simplicity? In my experience it feels like you have space. And in that space what occurs? I find that I am able to feel more. So is it possible that the speed of our life is down to our feelings we don’t want to feel rather than it being simply too hard? Thank you Nicole for this powerful blog.
We can choose to make things simple or complicated – but it is important to also note that anything in between also feeds the complication.
I find when I am thinking ahead about what I have to do I find complication sets in with its drive and anxiety, When I can be present with what I am doing life becomes more simple as i am not taken out of my body into something else in the future.
I agree Jill Steiner sometimes just thinking about what needs to be done in a day makes me feel tried before I even start. I have found that rushing and trying to do two or three things at once doesn’t work either.
Simplicity brings a beautiful order in which everything has its place and nothing is left out. And all in less time!
Simplicity brings us to our inner stillness, and in this stillness we get to feel all we have not lived and and all we could possibly live. For many this is not a place they wish to end up feeling, for there is much work to be done to make this stillness become their every day.
Reading this I could feel how control and complication go hand in hand. We chose to try and control life instead of allow life to present what’s next. Which comes back to our lack of trust in our part of the plan.
I love the simplicity of being with myself, wherever I am, whatever I am doing. It feels like a very natural way of being.
Complication reaffirms you seated at the driving seat. It is about you, not about it. Simplicity, is you as part of a flow and you moving with it.
In those times I have been struggling to find an answer or solution I know I am in my head. When I come back to keeping things simple, the answer or solution is simple and crystal clear.
I used to think that multi-tasking was the way to get everything ‘done’ but now realise that it just adds complication and makes everything take much longer to complete.
We have all those pictures as how a day should look like, with a sequence in doing what we should do instead of feeling what is there to do (or not) and have no attachment but be present with what presents itself. I have a simple morning this day and although I feel how my mind wants to interfere, I choose based on what feels true in my body and this has given me already much more space in my body and my day.
Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose? Great opening question. My experience is that it is our deeply ingrained patterns lived day in and day out that has created our tight fast momentums that lock us into a way of being that becomes normal.
The key for me that unlocked that door was to realise that there has to be more to life than the one I am currently living, there has to be more. When the student is ready, the teacher always appears. I was ready and this is when I met Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, I attended his courses and presentations. I already knew everything Serge presented but was not living as I was carrying a lot of baggage of the emotional kind, which I began to clear and let go of. Today my body is feeling the benefit, as it feels tons lighter and so spacious and I look and feel younger.
There is usually a simpler way and, if there isn’t, there is usually a way to deal with a great deal of complexity in a simple way.
‘Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication’. This is great when we can feel the difference and come back to the owning that it is ourselves that create the complication or the simplicity – ouch!
I used to think that I had control and was somehow clear and powerful when I would make life complicated and then work through that complication, looking back from where I am today when I have started to embrace the real power in simplicity i can see that the complexity actually means I can avoid my power.
I love the simplicity and space that simply feeling what to do next, offers: the more we are able to let go of pictures of what we think needs to be done, by a set time, the more we are able to just allow life to flow and come towards us, instead of chasing after it.
That is true. It helps further if we then do what there is next in a way that is harmonious without falling into old pattern more than is unavoidable.
If it is not simple then it is not true – it is as simple as that.
That is a brilliantly simple motto for life, and I agree, the truth is always very simple in its delivery, if it’s complicated there’s something else going on we need to look at.
Thank you Nicole, I have read this before however I feel reading today I am more able to take in what you are sharing on a practical level and relate it back to my own day to day experience. Complication is definitely a choice, as is simplicity. It’s a great sharing, thank you.
Complication is *involving* – we feel we are active and even achieving something until we take a step back and notice that we went the long way round.
It is so incredibly simple that it’s hard to fathom how hard we make it to just be present!
The mind easily can think that simple is too simple as it has so many concepts and ideas about how things should be etc, but for the inner heart simplicity is the deepest knowing, pure of anything that deviates it away from the truth.
Yes, that simplicity is in harmony with the purpose as well. The simplicity may have many steps but the feeling of simplicity remains throughout.
Complications keep me busy, involved, distracted and frequently things go wrong which increase the involvement and now give the impression of purpose. There is a lot to be said for complications if distraction is what we want.
Simplicity is truth and love presented on a platter without any side dishes or decoration.
Simplicity leaves us naked of any pretense or protection, everything lays bare in the open exposed for what it is. Simplicity equals awareness.
I like simple, always have, although not always chosen this. Having chosen struggle and complication in the past, everything being a choice, I am now choosing to keep my life simple and as I do, life just flows and I can get a sense of what is coming next.
I was good at work keeping things simple. With computers, any extra complication can be a nightmare so it is better to keep things simple.
It’s cool to appreciate my job as it requires me to be in the moment much more than say a job that is the same in content.
Has anything truly beneficial ever come from complication? Certainly not when you consider how anything complex is often hard to understand, leads to inefficiency and is often hard for anyone to follow.
The power of simplicity is greatly underestimated in our world, and more attention to it would literally transform life as we know it today.
Love this Nicole. Since developing a loving relationship with my body, I am becoming more and more aware of how much effort is needed to create complication, and how uneasy and tense my body feels if I begin to go into complication. I now realise how beautifully life flows with simplicity when we move, live and engage with the world guided by our connection to who we are within.
Yes, the world at large avoids simplicity, because in simplicity there is no drama to get caught in. In complication, the wheels keep spinning, faster and faster all the time. It’s been a default for me many a times to go into the frazzle of something and get caught up in complexity when there is none. Simplicity and space is always there for us to claim – when we are ready to let go of the identification that complication feeds us with.
It’s incredible how much we complicate our lives, I love each day that I bring more and more simplicity to life. I’ve found I have to make a choice to keep things simple and not get caught up in right and wrong, but the results are more than worth it.
I agree DN, the choice to keep things simple is a very worthwhile and rewarding choice to make.
Lately I’ve noticed how addicted to making this completed I have been and continue to be — but now I’m actually ‘catching’ how it feels for me which is great! The more I clock how awful it is to weave a big messy entanglement around me, the more I’m also being how simple it is to keep things simple. Complication for me has been a way to hide – that’s been the big one to unearth and see. When i keep things simple, there is a vast spaciousness, and no hiding in sight.
I consider simplicity to be one of the most beneficial arts of life; it restores everything back to its essence and innate beauty.
When life is full of complication, it is very hard to see how life can be simple, so it is a process. A process to let go of emotions and drama, the things that do create complication. Learning that when we simplify, we can free up space within us that can allow for other energies to be there, that are not taxing or demanding, but confirming and appreciative.
I find when I end up in a complicated situation it is because I am too focused on an outcome instead of staying connected to myself and what I am doing. Complication seems to easily slip in when my mind is running a hundred miles ahead of my body.
Letting go of expectations of how we need life to be, allows us to break free from the constraints and complications of creation and to be more in the flow of what is needed at the time without compromising our quality within.
From my lived experience living in complication is a most unnatural way to live, but this is how so many of us live and end up very exhausted as a result. In stark contrast living in simplicity is actually enlivening as it is free of the stickiness and heaviness that comes with the complication that weighs us down, holds us back and drains our precious energy in the process. Complication was part of my life for many years until I became aware that living this way was a choice and with this awareness it made sense that living in simplicity was also one choice away.
A great question… we all love simplicity, its what we all want yet for most of us we don’t choose it, we choose complication. I like the idea of trying out for a day approaching everything and asking how simple that can be, can it be more simple.. am I complicating it. I have no doubt it would be very eye opening.
Yep, a classic disease for this day and age…Busyness and multi-multi tasking. I feel like I’m in a circus sometimes, trying to juggle 30 things at once..only to crash and burn and hate everything and everyone and claim I ‘need’ space and alone time. But, I recognise the drive behind all the doing is where the draining of my energy begins…the pushing, the trying, the needing…So, gently gently gently, I adopt a new way approach, and simply experiment with that.
As a society, we generally all crave more time, yet we all make our lives complicated by hanging onto issues and problems. Life actually isn’t that complicated – it’s how we live that makes it so, or not.
Yep hanging onto those issues and problems keeps us stuck and in contraction. Sometimes we just need to ask for support, just in the asking things can already start to shift as the awareness creeps slowly in that there has to be an easier and simpler way….and there always is!
It’s a great point Bryony about issues complicating life. If we allow our love to be expressed without restriction life flows. If we hold onto issues about people that becomes one way we can complicate things with various behaviours including avoiding others or certain situations, etc. Life then becomes something we strategise instead of being all that we are with all that is before us.
Simplicity is the language of our body – complication is the language of our mind – and since we live in a very mental driven society at the expense of the body, it makes sense that complication is our familiar way.
Wow, that is gold Rachael, your whole comment is a pearl of truth, thank you. “Simplicity is the language of the body…”.
Yes, I agree we all love simplicity in truth, yet some are still choosing to let go of their need for complexity.
Yes, I would also say that we all love simplicity but we hold a strong belief that life is complex and complicated.
The moment we step away from simplicity the doorway is wide open for any complication to flow on in and once in it is often very hard to get it out as it has a way of weaving its sticky tendrils around everything. What I have found to dismantle the complication is to stop, come back to my breath and take one simple step, and from there the complication begins to dissolve; how long it takes will be totally up to us and to our commitment to that one simple step.
It’s either one or the other isn’t it Ingrid, no in-between.
This is a fact we all already know and yet it’s not the norm. We have a saying for it, “keep it simple”, “life’s not meant to be complicated” etc etc and yet we do the opposite. How do we get there and then at some point almost wake up and realise we are at an opposing end of a point we can see doesn’t work? If it didn’t cause such destruction you may call it funny but we push ourselves into all manner of complicated places only to stop or be stopped at some point and shake our heads and wonder why and how we got there. For me this shows there is something else at the wheel and the mere fact of many people doing the same thing creates a consciousness or group think that allows this to occur. The way back from this is through our body, through our movements only then can we be aware of each step and in this awareness not walk down a road with a blindness that puts us at a point that doesn’t support us. They say that ‘life is simply here to live’ and in this way if you aren’t true living it then your mere existence becomes complicated.
Thank you Nicole, this was great to read today as I can see how I use time to create rush and complication, instead of keeping it simple and focusing on being with my body and mind together equally, as well as on the task I’m doing.
Boy oh boy did I used to like living in complication, it was laced in how I spoke, how I lived, what and how i was at work, all of these things that I choose to keep me in complication, ensured that I wasn’t able to bring any simplicity. It ensured that I didn’t feel my true essence which is very simple.
Second blog today I have read from Nicole Serafin.. How simple can simplicity be “Feeling and choosing things that would keep my life simple, even in the simplest of situations.” and “Now I am able to be more discerning with the choices I make, preferring and accepting that I can have a life of simplicity.” When we read those quotes about simplicity are we willing to accept simplicity is that simple?
Thank you Rik you made me chuckle 🙂 That pretty much sums it up.
If we are present with all we do, then we discover that simplicity is what is there for us. If we choose to race ahead to what is next or later, or be anywhere other than in the moment which we are in, I find the tension in my body is instant and anxiety kicks in.
Complexity is a choice… whereas simplicity is our nature.
Imagine telling a friend what you have been up to recently, chances are they might say ‘hey stop – could it be there’s a simpler way to go ahead than that?’. The complexity we choose every day is never ending it seems. How beautiful then to take a moment to be our own best friend and simply stop anything that gets too far out of hand. The greatest things in life are simple, so if we want to feel awesome we know whatever we do, it’s got to be simple too.
If the day is starting to feel a little like the pressure is on then this is a really good moment to stop. Just for a moment this stop allows me to ask “is this the simplest way to do something or am I making it complicated”?
Bringing more simplicity to our lives is something everyone would welcome I imagine, your first example to assist this is great Nicole, ‘being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment’.
Complication gives us identification, simplicity lets us know who we naturally are.
Spot on Alex, and delivered in a nutshell – simple and clear.
Simplicity and the sense of space seem to go hand in hand. The moment we make time the dominating factor both, simplicity and space, are lost and everything becomes about solutions, achievements, management.
One tool I use is to be curious. In the past I have just accepted my way of doing things as given. When I started to be curious, I was then open to considering doing things a different way and this had led to the simplification of my life. I have realised that most of the complication came from allowing my head to rule rather than my body.
‘What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time?’ This is a great question Nicole, and the key to living in our natural rhythm. When we are in that rhythm everything constellates.
The world is so busy all the time, to the point that busyness, and thereby complexity are valued highly. But truth be know simplicity is much more valuable than complexity.
This blog is an absolute Godsend. I thought the key was planning everything out but this often leaves me feeling distressed and hooked on outcomes. I’m going to change things up.
What simplicity offers above all else is space, and in space there is the opportunity to expand.
If life is not simple, then for me it is off track… the more complication, the more off-track it feels and I therefore am. It’s a simple equation I come back to constantly.
A great point Jenny, I feel very off track when I go into complication, by staying aware it is easier to clock when this happens and to come back to my movements.
“Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose?” What a great question Nicole, one I used to ask myself regularly, and I am sure that I am not alone in this. Living in complication feels heavy, sticky and is very exhausting but over time I found that it had became the normal way of living and was simply accepted as this is how life is. I absolutely love the fact that I have discovered that there is nothing normal about it and the simplicity I have always longed for is only a choice away.
This is such a great awareness “My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.” It sounds simple and is simple yet to move ‘ahead’ with the mind while actually physically in the current place amounts to all sorts of issues some that may take a while to reveal themselves with their unpleasant effects.
So true Sandra. Doing more than one thing at a time is the ultimate false economy – lots of effort for little quality.
I love this Leonne, it would make a great post it note – perhaps a reminder message a couple of times a day to support coming back to ourselves.
I don’t know about you be when I was a child I was often told by my parents to stop rushing and do one thing at a time, and yet as I grew older I became aware that generally we are celebrated for multitasking, which as Nicole has so clearly exposed, means we do nothing well and feel rushed and anxious throughout our day. Could it be then that we do actually know that focusing on one thing at a time and being as present with this as possible is the way to live in harmony with ourselves, and so we are deliberately sabotaging ourselves in a way to avoid the responsibility of living our full potential.
Thank you Lucy, that is exactly how multitasking is “we do nothing well and feel rushed and anxious throughout our day” – absolutely true.
We choose and whilst it is simplicity we want, it is ‘complication’ we make out of trying to make things simple!! Holding back complicates life because when we holdback we are going into a story or manipulation of the details of what is either happening or going to need to happen in our day. Bringing all of ourselves to each moment as it presents and following through on what feels true in that moment brings a natural unfolding simplicity in life. Thanks Nicole.
The simplicity of doing one thing at a time, so my body and mind are in rhythm with each other is a beautiful feeling. I agree it is a feeling that opens up space to allow all that needs to be attended etc. to be done. Why would I choose anything less than this feeling, particularly when the thoughts are much more complicated, let alone the outcome?
Learning to master to live with, “My mind and my body …. in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time” is an ever on-going learning that is so rewarding.
I can very much relate to this. If I set out with a plan or an image and when things do not happen accordingly, I would experience it as a challenge and fight to put it back to how I think it should be. But if I were connected with myself, I would be in the readiness of whatever is there to be taken care of.
The truth is complication is a familiar momentum in the world, this is a momentum because collectively we have chosen complication. And the more we choose this, the more familiar it becomes, the more normal it is being accepted. But we can also choose to stop and not feed into this momentum anymore because we know we deserve much more. We can choose simplicity and repeatedly so, to make that our normal once again. It is very worthwhile to do so, because our life deserves to be awesome and amazing, because that is the truth of who we all are.
I have found that when we have no order or rhythm in our day, we bring in complication and time just runs away with us, when we have an order things are simple and there always seems ample time to get things done.
Step by step un-raveling complexity even in basic things happens with a willingness to be aware and choose to let go of the existing patterns around the thoughts, push, momentum that drives the autopilot we can be on. Connecting to my body is a great way to check what is behind the intention; if I can’t connect then the mind is using complication as the source of action.
We definitely have the tendency to over complicate life, and I agree with many of the comments above that our lack of completion is a big part of this. I find when I begin to have loads of incomplete things life begins to feel incredibly messy and complicated. And your blog also has me pondering that when life IS simple, do we cherish this and work to keep it this way, or is it in these moments we get distracted and bring in complication. It feels to me like simplicity and focus go hand in hand.
Women tend to pride themselves on their ability to multi-task and I have been guilty of this myself. But I find it harder and harder and far less desirable to do, as I can now feel the strain this places on my body. However I’ve only arrived at this point after years of self-development work, investigating what it is to truly be a woman first – before I do anything. The more I know that, the more I feel in my body what needs to happen when – and when I push myself to ‘get things done’. The more spacious approach is definitely the way to go and my body loves me for it.
I needed to read this this morning! I have done what I felt was needed and it feels great to have completed that particular job but it means my usual routine is out and I was starting to feel pressured and stressed, reading this I am going to relax and know that I did what was in front of me and allow the rest of the morning to unfold, not with a list of what I need to get done but what is needed next. Lets see how it unfolds!
It’s fascinating how much time we can waste complicating things, or having our mini ‘off’ moments during the day such as when we spend 10 minutes on social media, watch television or otherwise get distracted, and how if we bring PURPOSE to these minutes we create space to look after ourselves, others and enrich life.
I agree Nicole, it’s as if when things are too simple, I look for some complication because I cant believe life can be that easy. I too have changed my approach to how I do things. Simply not rushing myself and allowing a flow to happen has reduced my feeling of overwhelm to almost zero most of the time.
‘What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time?’ I can very much relate to this blog at the moment as this is what I have felt more and more over the last few weeks. That I am rushing to fit everything in and always lagging behind. However after having a few sessions with Universal Medicine practitioners in the last week and making an effort to change this I have noticed a slight change. Today I had a really intense day at work with unexpected situations plus a lot of work to prepare for the next day, I caught myself going into ‘stress’ mode and then instead of running with this made a choice to stop, be with me, and do one thing at a time and not go into the overwhelm .. and I really noticed the difference. The key is coming from and being with us in every moment and not allow our day to run us instead.
Along with simplicity I also find that completing or completion takes away complexity, as it is so simple to move to the next task when I know I am completely finish the last, and completed it with all the love that I am to the best of my ability..
Thank you Greg, I really appreciated reading your comment about the importance of a sense of completion before moving to the next thing.
Appreciation is a key to living in completion, because how lost are we if we complete something that ‘feels-amazing in the most humble way’, so we can then deeply appreciate before we move to the next “X” to do, what ever that might be.
Something that I’ve recognised in myself is how we can make ourselves an identity out of complication – it’s like by making things into a struggle or more difficult than they need to be we feel more defined as an individual with our problems so to speak but in true simplicity that is where I feel genuinely connected, and it’s not that there won’t be challenges but that I will handle them in a different way.
I recognise that old pattern Fiona, making things more difficult than they need to be, and sometimes it can creep back in, but I do observe it because it feels so yucky in my body. Then I am able to let go, get out of my head and back in my body!
The greatest complicator I have found is the habit we have, of holding back. It leaves vital sentences unsaid, documents unsent and actions incomplete. It introduces doubt and hesitation, where naturally there is none. Reading your words today Nicole is a beautiful reminder to me to get things done, and move on, with no dwelling in or hanging on.
Having lived as someone who regularly complicated life and made it very busy it has been life-changing to begin to stop all these unhealthy patterns that left me exhausted and start to embrace a life of simplicity and to feel the lovely flow and space that this choice brings.
I feel I avoid simplicity because it is impossible to not feel the power that lies within and with that comes enormous responsibility but I am starting to appreciate that responsibility is actually a joyful process not a dreaded burden.
This is such an appropriate and needed blog post Nicole that I feel would support almost everyone I know, in particular myself! I’d very much like to practice doing one thing at a time more efficiently than doing 10 things at a time and forever chasing my tail. I have given it a go a couple of times, and realised that it’s an absolute illusion that you’re more efficient when you’re juggling. It’s actually not the case at all, you just feel like you’re more productive by virtue of the fact that you are racing around like a mad person.
This is so true Nicole, when I focus on one thing, and take that thing through to completion, whatever that point is for that day, there is far more space and efficiency in what I get done and how the day feels. I do find a very persistent impulse to complicate however, usually by way of distractions while l’m doing one thing, to start something else I see along the way also needs doing. It requires a solid focus sometimes to complete what l’m doing at the time, and not get waylaid. That is when complication sets in, things don’t get completed and the day starts feeling squeezed and as though nothing really got done.
When we bring in complexity it’s like we’re pulling ourselves apart into different pieces – the mind distracted with one or many things whilst the body is doing something else rather than bringing the whole of us to the task at hand…
I always love coming back to the fact that choosing simplicity over complication, in all aspects of our lives, provides an opportunity to live in harmony, love, truth, and stillness. How awesome is that; why wouldn’t we choose simplicity over complication?
The relationship between time, presence and simplicity is profound. You have inspired me to pay more attention to how I choose what to do and to stay present with what I am doing when I am doing it.
There was so much in this blog for me Nicole. First point that woke me up was you talking about how being present in what we are doing saves time. I was finding it difficult to stay with the blog as my mind was wondering off to other things, it made the blog take a lot longer to read. What I was being distracted with was something that I had not expressed. It allowed me to see another importance of expression and how when something is not expressed we can use it to delay and distract us from being present. Second was choosing what was supportive in that moment and not following a picture that needs to be filled. Quite often I notice I have a picture of what I want the kitchen to look like before I move onto the next point. This picture brings in complication as I stop moving to an impulse and move to an images instead.
When we think ahead we’ve already gone into complication by virtue of the fact that we are placing emphasis on something outside of ourselves rather than surrendering to the flow that’s already there that our body is in harmony with.
In other words we lose presence and at the same time the simplicity that would be there too.
It’s a big one to knock on the head as we’ve been conditioned to be constantly calculating and planning. But I am learning steadily that my body’s intelligence knows exactly when something needs to happen and that the best planning comes from me being super still in the simplicity of not trying, just enjoying being in the moment and the flow.
Oh Nicole you make it sounds so easy and it is! A simple choice to be 100% present at all times, creating space and the what is next to unfold. I love this and are inspired.
I have often wondered why I used to find myself living such a complicated life but those were the days before I came to the understanding that my life was created by me, and me alone, from all the choices I had ever made; I had created the complication I have found that as I take more and more responsibility for my life, let go of controlling everything around me and consider every choice I make very carefully, the complication is very slowly being replaced by simplicity, a way of living which I am absolutely loving.
In recent months I have made simplicity the focus of many of my daily routines. If it gets complicated I have been stopping to take note why this is so. It is interesting to feel that in many cases I have ‘liked’ the complicated as the simplicity has been drilled for so long as not possible. The beliefs and patterns can often set up a roller coaster road of ups and downs when the simple path is always there for the offering. What is incredible to notice is how we can be more and the quality we bring to each moment is lived more!
“Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication”; such a simple statement Nicole delivering such an important message. The choice is ours simplicity or complication. Sounds simple, however as you have pointed out, it is a gradual process of continual self awareness and learning.
It is all about choices and that is the simplicity of it ALL.
I love how our choice to stay connected to our body offers us such simplicity in our next movement. When we are present and with one movement at a time there is space for expansion in our lives because we are not stretching ourselves in too many directions to get things done. Simplicity is the key to expansion and a flow to our movements which ultimately sets our rhythm for living.
Simplicity is when we allow ourselves to go one step at a time. Through the thinking ahead and then worrying we create complications that need not be.
This is such a great blog to read this morning as I can feel a little bit of complication trying to sneak its way into my day. This is a very old, and previously deeply ingrained, pattern that does not feel very nice in my body at all. I love the idea of “Slowly introducing simpler ways of being in my life in the mornings” and from there allowing this way of being to naturally flow into my day. This is going to be the one supportive tool that I will be taking with me from this blog; a work in progress that I am looking forward to.
“What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time? Or that there is never enough time?” I could relate to this, I found I was approaching time this way and I was in a constant battle with time, just never had enough time and I would feel exhausted all the time, causing myself to eat food to keep me going. I was in a merry go round.
I guess simple is this moment right now, not going ahead in our minds or recalling the past in our thoughts – just – what does this moment need right now?
We make dealing with complexity (the complexity that we create) a way of life that fills us, gives us identity and keep us very busy. So, complexity is a great way to avoid connecting with ourselves deeply and to feel life from there. And, the truth is that we can create complexity as much as we can and praise ourselves of how well do we deal with it, but if we do so we will miss every opportunity to feel what life has to offer us.
The power of true simplicity is not to be underestimated! I love how you say Nicole that with being present and focussed on doing what you were doing until complete and then moving on to the next that space opened up in your day and you felt more connected as there wasn’t the background drive or rush to be already doing something else.
Your writing is so accessible and supportive Nicole. Have you considered sharing all your blogs in a book? Such amazing life lessons that are simple and relatable! The word simple or simplicity would have be in the title! Thank you – a great reread!
This really exposes the silliness of going ahead of myself, rehearsing already what I am going to do next up in my head while doing something else, thus ending up spending twice the energy and exhausting myself – and all this while being absent and constantly anxious, so the busyness is our own making, an indulgence.
It is true that our society is geared up to manage complication and even glorify it. Simplicity is a reflection of truth and as a society we are generally not living from a connection to truth or a willingness to know truth. Hence our every effort to avoid, deny, disregard, over-ride the truth becomes that complication, a movement away from the truth that can in fact never be hidden. As such our lives become an exhausting array of efforts to manage the complication that we choose. Every moment presents the opportunity to connect to the truth we know within, or not, from which we choose that which is a movement in truth, simplicity or that which is a movement away from truth, complication. The choice is always ours to make and this is what is so empowering to realise.
I love what you have shared on the power of simplicity yet find myself contemplating how it seems that so many of us find comfort or at least normality in the complexity as if the challenge makes us feel like we’ve achieved more… and yet we do it in ignorance of the true support of ourselves and others that is denied … for if we are not truly present giving all of our attention to the task at hand, the true focus and quality of giving all of ourselves to what we are doing whether for ourselves or others is just not there.
It is amazing how joyful life can be when we keep things simple. We have the image that simplicity is boring and mundane but it is far from that. The more simple I make my life the more quality time I have with others and myself because I am not worrying or thinking about everything I need to do.
I used to be the ultimate ‘mulit-tasker’, the more tasks the better, and then wondered why life became so complicated with many tasks begun but very few completed, and a lot of stress building up in between. These days I choose not to do even two things at once as I can feel the complication rolling on in very quickly with my body starting to tense up. Now I choose to bring my full focus to one thing at a time which ensures that it has my undivided attention; now that to me is living in simplicity.
I have found this too Ingrid, that in attempting to do many things at once there is a tension created in my body as if I am holding myself in to make room for all these jobs. I make myself small and yet there can be a feeling of importance that I am getting all these things done. This is when I have found refuge in my mind and left my body behind. Staying with myself and the awareness of my body creates space right away and I can enjoy myself in what I am doing not because I am ticking a box or ‘making progress’ but simply because I am doing what needs to be done.
The simplicity that I feel has expanded in my body as I started to be more with my movements as I am doing a job.
I have found the same as well Greg, the more I simply stay with what I am doing the more things flow and become simple. If I get caught up in things then they get complicated and never really flow.
After reading your blog Nicole I am reminded that simplicity brings clarity and purpose to living in this world; a gorgeous reflection thank you.
Being present with the body in what we do does keep life simple. It is when the mind kicks in and starts getting ahead of us that life becomes complicated. Keeping life simple is often avoided as we then get to feel our own complications.
Complicating life exposes the adopting of any identity that comes with what we do, it can also expose the fear of not being included, of needing to fill up the day and the need to be needed. Complication separates. Simplicity allows for what is to unfold in it fullness to unfold by allowing and trusting. It also feels like simplicity is about being in the moment that we are doing what needs to be done and never about how much we can get done.
The truth is that keeping things simple does not have a big story attached to it nor does it have a drama, an expectation, an investment nor any identification as it is all done and dusted in the moment. There is simply nothing to talk about!
This is a great sharing because I think many mothers think that they have to make everything about the kids before they can do anything else and this can often then set up a resistance from the kids too. It is great to do what is needed for your kids but doing it in a way that honours you too.
‘What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time?’ What if there is another way?
Even in a question like “Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose?” we can answer from simplicity or from complication. That shows that the option of going either way is always there.
When we make life simple it feels like anything is possible, literally, because all that matters is the quality of the moment we’re in right now. Likewise with complication, when we make life complicated it feels like hardly anything is possible. It’s all a simple choice of the quality we want to live in.
Brilliant Nicole, so many of us champion simplicity and buy magazines eulogising its qualities. We might even go on short courses and watch TV shows all about it. But even if we apply it to the arrangement of the things in our house, do we actually introduce it into the way and quality we live? Or do we relentlessly request complexity? Just lately I have seen that complexity is a big addiction for me, and now I start to understand that in simplicity is quite revealing and shows me all the ways I behave that are not true or really me. Sometimes its seems I don’t want to see this – hence the struggle and ‘tough times’ that I choose to let overwhelm me.
I so relate Joseph, for I can also go into a complex way of doing, instead of bringing my focus back to the simplicity of my movements as I am doing them. I found myself doing this today and had to slow down and feel my body more. This was great as I caught myself before I went into overwhelm.
There is no stimulation in simplicity, and thus why we avoid it. Lead a simple life, and you cannot hide nor bury the tension of life that we all have cope with. Bring in complication and you can bring in a thousand reasons to justify the way you live your life.
Agree, in simplicity all our created complication is exposed, not so comfortable to feel, and yet it allows the space to feel and access what is true.
Wow! What you have shared is nothing short of a modern day miracle. I also have found that slowing down and making space in my life has made huge changes that have only been a benefit and also for those around me.
“What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time?” This is a great question, I was constantly fighting time, when this was shared with me. So I decided to also experiment with myself, with starting myself getting out of bed, staying connected to myself and allow each task to unfold, rather than going into a doing and a ticking of check list. This made such a difference and time seem to expand.
So true, when I think of a list of things to do, I can go into a total overwhelm, but once I get started by dealing with one thing at a time, I often surprise myself by how much I actually get done with no stress and in fact I am left feeling as though I can do even more.
With simplicity comes clarity and truth in my experience… if I don’t have any one of those things, then usually I don’t have any of them.
You have exposed here a simple truth that many of us do not wish to see Nicole – that when we simplify things, space ‘opens’ and we are given all that we need to get the job done. What then says this of the complication we use to override such wisdom and the satisfaction we get from creating such delay? An uncomfortable truth that many of us do not wish to look at for it asks us to give our all in every moment and not live in the fragmented way we have become accustomed to, that although very familiar, is so far from our true norm.
Keeping the mind in line with the body is key when it comes to keeping simplicity and to the ability to complete things in my experience. There is nothing more fracturing than jumping from one thing to the next, which occurs for me when I let my mind go ahead of what l’m currently doing, bringing in the ‘next’t thing before I am complete with the last. If I follow that, then I end up split, nothing properly completed and feeling the complication and overwhelm of not getting everything done when it is needed to be done.
To be absolutely honest Jenny I find the same situation occurs for me when I jump from one thing to the next. Also because I do a lot of physical work I get small injuries very quickly when I forget to keep it simple.
Yes agreed Greg, that is exactly when I will knock, cut or scratch myself too… annoying at the time but to be honest, I wouldn’t have it any other way. 10 and 15 years ago I could ‘get away’ with so much more self-abuse before my body would pull me up.
This is so true Jenny, I am also finding as I take more accountability for what I do that I have gotten to a point where I have no lag time before my destiny or karma catches up with me. Being obedient to what I feel, which is the love of God, allows me to enjoy these little learning’s for in the past I would deny all the little outplays that happened to me so that eventually I would get a big stop. A big stop was something that happened because I did not heed all those little knocks and I usually ended up in hospital.
Simplicity is key to our lives and brings us back in life to the very basic principles in life. Without simplicity we would be unable to cope, as within complexity clarity is lost and hence the true power of each one of us is revealed.
Choosing simplicity over complication is such a simple yet powerful lesson, thank you for the timely reminder.
Nicole you ask “Why is it that simplicity in life is the preferred option most would choose over a complicated life, but not always the option we choose?” The simple answer is that complexity must be our preferred option if that is what we are choosing.
After having lived a life rife with complication, these days I make the choice to live in and with simplicity, but after it being a constant companion for so many years, complication still manages to sneak in every now and then, but now I have simplicity to compare it to, it doesn’t take too long to clock it. For me complication is so easy to register now as I begin to feel constricted, my head feels like it’s over flowing, and there doesn’t seem to be much space to do anything at all. In stark contrast, simplicity offers endless space and there is a feeling of lightness and freedom throughout my body. .
A timely read for me Nicole – Thank you
“Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication.” What an incredible awareness to be bringing to not only your life but to all of those around you. When we bring simplicity into our lives, it can then show a different way to be in life – one that is not filled with drama and complication. I have tried both and I am here to day that simplicity beats complication any day but the trick is to always keep choosing it because I know I can easily slip into complication.
I love it to be aware how I make things subconscious complicated. In the beginning I was a bit shocked to allow myself to feel the extent of doing it but than I found out that there is an old underlying pattern of holding myself in a constant drive with it. This insight helped me to get a more deeper understanding why I am doing it and so I could change it. Complication is really exhausting and also a distraction and it is worth to change it.
I love simplicity, doing one thing at a time with presence. When things get complicated I know I have lost connection with my body.
I used to pride myself on being a multi tasker. However I would jump from one thing to another but never pay full attention to what I was doing at any one time. Choosing simplicity over complication has changed the way I do things, preferring to complete one task at a time, for the most part these days. Jobs get finished just as quickly, but certainly with more quality of presence.
Absolutely Sue, and I also find that I am tired at the end of the day if I do ‘not’ keep things simple.
“Choosing the simple option in my life began to create more time, getting done what was needed without the rush and overwhelm I used to regularly experience.” Beautiful Nicole. I have a tendency to complicate life but when I keep things simple life flows more easily and my head feels clearer. Clearing out clutter in my home is helping hugely also.
Letting go of planning, driven by overwhelm has been another aspect that I have released control over…… or imagined control that is! Working with what presents first has been a complete eye opener, as the order or tasks would not have even been on a to-do list, but it works out that you have time in abundance to complete whatever suggests itself. This has gone even further with feeling where I need to be, having followed an impulse to travel interstate to go to a concert, I soon realised that I was in the perfect place to assist a friend who needed immediate practical support, when I found out I just smiled and knew I was here for a greater purpose.
I just love to read this blog.
Thoreau once famously said “simplicity, simplicity, simplicity.” Those words when lived and understood represent the pathway to a much deeper understanding of life. Complexity is the enemy of wisdom, even though it is the enamoured brother of knowledge. But of what use is knowledge if it is not lived. Of what use is it knowing the names and chemical composition of the stars, if we cannot connect to the fiery spark at their core? Of what good is it knowing the names of the trees if we cannot connect to the stillness offered by the wind as it whistles past it branches. Of what good is a hard days work if we are too tired to see the sunset and say “I love you” to our wife? Give me not complexity but simplicity, and I will show you God in every detail imaginable. Give me complexity, and I will give you a thousand reasons to deny the divinity that resides at the very core of all existence.
Deeply beautifully said Adam, thank you. A real appreciation of simplicity in truth and how much richness there is to unfold in our livingness of that word.
The inertia in my body of a life time of thinking ahead and rushing into things with anxiousness, meant that even when I gave myself a daily plan and got onto one activity with plenty of time to do it, there was still this nagging feeling that there was so much more to do and so little time to do it. This inertia made my movements more stilted, rushed and clumsy and chewed up the time. It has only been learning to be very present with my body and taking responsibility for bringing care onto all my movement that this inertia really started to be discarded and more harmony can be felt in my body more consistently.
It is pretty amazing how much space opens up simply by staying present in whatever it is we might be doing. There is a natural flow and order to life when we keep it simple and feel what’s next instead of living to a plan.
Most of us have been so use to living life in complication that we forget that there is simplicity available. Thanks to Serge Benhayon, we have been shown some tools to re connect to the simple way of life and bring more simplicity in which also helps with creating more space.
Great blog! And great topic too! What if life could be super simple? Could we handle it? We think the complication is difficult but I would say the simplicity can bring more challenges.
When we are in the flow of life and allow things to unfold there is no striving pushing or making things happen, everything has its own order and rhythm. When I try to control how my day is going to go I don’t stay open to the flow and push through regardless and my body suffers and the day becomes complicated and staggered and things that should normally take a few minutes take much longer.
Oh my God – Yes Nicole, I know how much I had a life of complication and sorrow and how I was in a constant battle of doing it right, doing it wrong.. Instant hurt and attack on my body. Since I come to the work of Universal Medicine , I found out all of this (consciously becoming aware of the lie I was living). Since that it is a re-turning to everything I know inside me which I learn through principals of my own temple (which is my body). Since connecting to my body – I have re-found my way.. Now it is up to me and all of my choices (free will). So well said Nicole, it is our choice to choose simplicity over complexity! Woohoo.
Nicole I would always say I wanted a simple life but chose a complex one, perhaps it’s because at the time my version of simple was really wanting no responsibility, and an easy life? In complexity I can flourish as I’m great at fixing problems but in simplicity there are no problems to be solved and so I have to appreciate me for just being me. Simple really, but the very reason I allowed complexity from morning until night. Whilst my life is very different today it’s interesting to see that complexity creep in when there is no reason for life not to be simple, but it’s up to me!
We can over complicate even the true underlying feeling of simplicity, crazy really when you think about.
It seems too simple, taking one thing at a time and having our thoughts remain with what we are doing, but to actually try it and feel how we live in relation to this way of being is a huge thing to explore. It brings the awareness Nicole shares about how everything we do is interconnected, there are no coincidence.
Simplicity is the key. Our body simply gets on with running each interconnected system within its own rhythm. If we complicate the rhythm by allowing our mind to interfere then we can cause chaos in our body.
I know from my own experience that if I let time be the ruler in my life, my body immediately reacts. It hardens and also becomes racey. What if this or other things happen to other people, could the stress around time that many live with and think is normal actually be affecting and harming our physical bodies? Yes I say!
We love the identification of complication.
Complication is the favoured way of the spirit and simplicity is the way of the Soul.
Unimedpedia – http://www.unimedliving.com/unimedpedia/word-index gives a great definition of spirit and Soul.
Approaching my days as you’ve suggested Nicole, for me right now, actually feels like necessary prescriptive medicine. I absolutely have to start stopping! I have to start implementing a way of being that I constantly imagine as ‘wouldn’t it be nice’. I’ve had glimpses of it. I’ve laid a mini foundation with my experiments to date, and now it’s about building on that and turning my normal around into a new normal where I am not running myself ragged. My health really depends on it.
I had to read the first couple of paragraphs 4 times. Why? Because my head was elsewhere with each attempt to read this article and it wasn’t until the 3rd paragraph that I realised I was not present at all and was reading the words without reading them. Before my fourth attempt, I stopped, took a breath, told myself that all I have to do right now is read, nothing else. And low and behold, I was able to actually digest what I was reading. It is so ingrained to not be present in what I’m doing, as I constantly running around trying to achieve the impossible.
Not only does taking things one at a time bring more efficiency to getting things done, I have also found it brings a marker to life that this is how we are meant to live -consciously present with what we are doing in each moment and that what we consider normal as being disconnected and living in our heads or lost in an activity or imagination is actually what allows things to get complicated.
In simplicity, seemingly insurmountable problems are easily solved.
The moment something starts to feel complicated I know it is off track… everything is simple when things are in the flow of life that is true and no matter what is going on, it all feels perfect.
Thankyou Nicole, I’ve enjoyed the reminders here to simply focus on one thing at a time and not rush ahead or try to multitask. Just simply being present with myself as I attend to one thing at and time, and enjoy the space this opens up as well as the absence of pressure on my body.
I like this Nicole very much. Thank you.
When we start to honestly unravel our old complicated and familiar patterns of behaviour it frees us up to be blessed with the spaciousness of simplicity.
I love how you stopped the multi-tasking that is so hailed in our society and started to focus on one thing at a time giving it all of your attention – this kind of simplicity creates a lot of space to be and stops the rat race we otherwise find ourselves in.
I love this Nicole. Super practical and simple. Brings much more enjoyment to even the most everyday of activities.
Simplicity is the way. Complication is a distraction that interferes with space that allows flow. Then there is a push to what we do.
Choosing to be present with whatever task I am doing has transformed my life and allowed me to achieve more without my former exhaustion. Feeling how time can expand and flow is so beautiful but what amazes me is how often I still choose to slip back into complication and overwhelm. When the thoughts come in that there won’t be enough time or I doubt my ability to complete a task etc I am already lost and sabotaging myself but for me actively sharing my appreciation of myself is turning this around and supporting me to more often choose simplicity and flow and banishing complication.
‘… I began to choose simplicity in my life. Feeling and choosing things that would keep my life simple, even in the simplest of situations. Now I am able to be more discerning with the choices I make, preferring and accepting that I can have a life of simplicity.’ There is nothing as full as a life with simplicity.
Complication is simply the human being’s way of avoiding the simplicity of Truth.
You capture the essence of how to break with complication and overwhelm in this blog, Nicole. To appreciate that all we need do is ensure mind and body are engaged in and focused on the same thing in the same moment rather than the mind anticipating, worrying and planning ahead, often off at tangents whilst the body is constantly playing catch up on the first task. It requires commitment and discipline to do this, but the benefit is a sense of real ease in knowing everything will get done – because it does get done. Just that we’re not frazzled this way by the end of it.
If we stay in the simplicity of what we are doing in the moment, life seems to have a natural flow a follow on from one thing to another, but as soon as our minds wander from what we a doing, then tension and anxiety creep in with the feeling of too much to do and am I going to get this all done in time. Our sense of time is completely changed, by not being in the moment.
It is quite ‘simple’ – really Simplicity takes us closer to God, ourselves and universal wisdom, complexity takes us into the illusion of the mind where we feel never enough.
‘I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment; then I could move onto the next thing once I was finished. My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.’ This seems obvious and I can feel the spaciousness in it and `I also know how I used to fear that I would not get everything done unless I did several things at once and fast. We really can stretch time by being totally with ourselves and doing one thing at a time and in this way bringing a quality to our movements that makes it a pleasure to do what has to be done rather than a chore or a habitual doingness.
‘But what if there were enough hours in the day?’ A funny question, why should there not be enough hours in a day, it is just us running around and trying to fulfil all the demands of society instead of following our natural rhythm trusting that is what is needed. And it is not only about trust, we know our natural rhythm is key to lead a life that benefits not only us but all. Reading your blog and realising simplicity is a choice that is always in my body is a great way to start my working day and listen to what my body has to say. Keep it simple is the key!
When we are in the thick of it, we don’t always realise that it is us that is creating the complication in our lives. Something as simple as being aware of not having an expectation of how the day should be, instead allowing it to unfold. Knowing there are certain things that have to be done, but not stressing and trying to do two things at once makes a huge difference. It is not that I don’t complete tasks, the ones that need my immediate attention are done and then the day unfolds until it is time for bed. It is a much simpler way of living rather than rushing around trying to cram as much as I can into my day, and feeling exhausted and incomplete at the end of each day.
How the mornings go are a big deal for all of us, do we prepare ourselves for day in a way that supports us or do we sabotage ourselves before we get out of the door? We have children to support for school before we go to work, we could go into a stress, raciness and drive to get things done, when for example a four year does not feel like putting his socks on, that is cool it happens, it is usually a sign that there is something to share and talk about. Keeping a simple flow and harmony in the morning is crucial to everyone leaving feeling prepared. So if I have work to do on the computer, I don’t stay on it late after the children have woken up. I have tired to squeeze some extra emails and admin in, in the past and it has not worked for me, delay comes in and the flow is knocked, this is when anxiety and raciness start doing the rounds in the family. Simplicity is a beautiful support, focusing on the priority at hand and moving on to the next is a wonderful way to remove complication and distraction, instead connection and purpose become prominent.
I find it interesting how we, (I have definitely done it) chose complication then feel overwhelmed and victimised by the very choses we have made. “Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication.” Making the choice to simplicity is responsible, complication brings drama and distraction. Choosing simplicity has purpose. A simple example is when I am planning my month, I book dates and meet ups in along with work but I also ensure that there is space to rest and as a family we don’t overload ourselves with ‘things to do’, so being at home, chores and appreciating simple rhythms are also part of how we live. And if I have work to do I make sure I get to bed and rest so I feel ready for it, I don’t stay up late and try and cram a heap of things in that will exhaust me. This for me has come down to how I nurture and care for myself, simplifying life is honouring of ourselves and others.
Thank you Nicole for a great blog on simplicity, it is interesting how the mind loves complication but the body loves simplicity and being in the flow of life, each moment naturally unfolds.
Like you Nicole when ‘My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time’ I too find life is far more simple and I am definitely far more effective, efficient and productive. When I add to the present moment the mixture of worries and pictures of what is behind me and get ahead of myself with what I still have to do its kind of like having several television screens on at once and I am trying to watch them all by giving them equal attention all at once. This of course is not only impossible but introduces a messy complexity and overwhelm that does not need to be there.
I am definitely work in progress on developing what you have shared here Nicole as I am still prone to try and be a modern day superwomen who races the clock and runs my days looking ahead to a certain time and then calibrating how much I can squeeze in up to that time – all of which often and easily puts me into overdrive to avoid going into overtime.
Nicole – this blog is so simply written and with focused attention of your newly found way. Life is so simple when we are living just in one moment at a time as you have commented. A choice we can all make anytime.
An inspiring read, Nicole. In a world where most are overwhelmed with unfinished to-do lists and attempting to multitask as a way of getting through, your advice to be present and focussed on one thing at a time, paying attention to what we’re doing in that moment, is a simple formula for addressing the root of the problem – to ‘keep our body and mind in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time’ and not, as is too often the case, leaving the body in autopilot whilst the mind goes about introducing anxiety over the next three things on the to-do list.
Great to read your blog, as it reminded me how I use to be in trying to rush and get so much done, that I was always complicating life and felt exhausted all the time. Like you I started on completing one task at the time, waking up having an outline but no real structure and focusing in one thing at a time, I found this was so supportive and I was able to create more space in my day. What I am now working on is deepening the quality in how I complete my task as if the quality is off then that too can leave me tired.
Thankyou Amita, your comment about working on deepening your quality in how you complete tasks, and the support this brings your body and vitality levels is a great support and reminder.
This sounds great Amita, I will do my best to get out of bed and just be with the day and allow the tasks to unfold in front of me.
So many magazines, websites and books advocate the power and beauty of simplicity. Yet from all I can see, it is not the way we live everyday. You show us all Nicole, how this elusive quality is not elusive at all but actually lies in our every moment. Love makes life simple, naturally.
“Gradually I started to feel how different choices created simplicity or complication” This is great Nicole, it really does come down to choosing love in the moment or not.
This is a great blog to re-visit and notice how there are areas in my life where I still complicate things instead of allowing the simplicity to flow – it is like I am trying to create an issue that isn’t truly there. Thank you for bringing this into my awareness I look forward to making different choices that are supportive and true.
‘ I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time,’ that THERE is how simple it is and YET we get caught in the next moment rather than lovingly staying present. Luckily we have every moment to practise in 🙂
One of the areas of complexity I still go into is in focusing on issues in myself or looking at areas I need to “fix”. I can feel this is just another way to make life complex and essentially is just beating up myself. Accepting myself in full, as I am, enjoying this and feeling I am complete, is another new simplicity I can bring to my life.
This is a great point, we can some times fall into the trap of ‘fixing’ and intellectualising our issues rather than appreciating our true essence. it is a great trick to expose. We are enough just as we are and allowing life to unfold and being aware and observant is a key to keeping it simply and not getting heady about it.
To focus on other one’s issues causes also a lot of complexity, I know I have chosen to do so to not feel how simple life can be when I just allow myself to be with me and let life unfold. Choosing distraction one way or the other will take a lot of our time and in the end makes life complex. We are not used to simplicity but it feels the true way of living my life.
Great point Samantha and Annelies, making my life complex by focusing either on my own or other people’s issues has been a big one for me and has given me a great deal of identification, which is hard to let go off. However it is so worth it as living simplicity is so much more joyful.
This is very inspiring to bring simplicity into my own life. Lots of practical and relatable examples here Nicole, thankyou.
What I can feel from reading this is connection to the flow of life and the natural order of things. When we try to change this we are fighting the tide of events and make things far more difficult than they need to be. This is still a work in progress for me as my life gets busier but keeping things simple is so important to keep my feet on the ground.
I agree Michael as I am aware that within my job things are getting ready to crank up for our busy season. So keeping things simple and not getting too involved with what comes next is a work in progress for me also.
‘My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.’ And how amazing does this feel? The flow, the fluidity, the purpose and the ease of which the body moves….ahhh conscious presence is so powerful.
Yes, true Yoga, and how the body loves to move in this supportive way.
This is great to read, just doing one thing at the time is more than enough, it brings our presence to everything we do. I can feel how simplicity brings an ease to our days, this is a great inspiration – got something to work on..
One thing at a time not 50 million, I love it you only have to do things once and presto done
So true Jaime!
Thank you Nicole for a simple blog on complication, I too am learning to be more discerning in the choices that I make moment by moment and the effect they have as to whether my day has a flow to it or whether rush and anxiety start to come in. I am becoming more aware of the power, in taking stop moments through out the day, to really feel where my body is at.
Great to read your blog today Nicole as I am having one of those days where I wonder if I can fit everything in, so it is great to stop and look at why this is happening. I can see it started in the morning when I got distracted from focusing on the usual things I start my morning with and so I am having to squeeze them into an already busy day and I am feeling the tension of this. When I feel like this everything has a sense of urgency and I become hurried and so I am out of rhythm with myself. Time to stop and re-gather myself. Thank you Nicole perfect timing for me for me to read this.
Thankyou Alison, the belief that we “won’t have enough time” seems to really trigger a lot of stress and drama for me, when it’s actually just a thought. I seem to take issues around “enough time” quite seriously and throw myself into an activity with very little attention to my own connection. It’s quite an illusion the concept of not having enough time and the subsequent push.
I find that if I’m trying to do get too many things done or going into a drive it’s a sure sign that there’s something I’m not wanting to feel and am avoiding an underlying anxiousness or I’m not appreciating and accepting myself as I am. These are moments for me to stop and remind myself that I am enough.
I love reading how not adhering to a strict itinerary but feeling what is to be done next creates an appreciation there is space. I will begin practising this at work where I can create lists but not necessarily feel what needs attention next. I know this requires me to trust what I feel and myself and let go of my need to control the anxiety I haven’t enough time to complete what I think I need to.
Sometimes I feel the what’s beneath this need to control is a feeling that I am not enough. Appreciating what I do bring to what I do addresses this. It is also when I am with myself I that I feel what is next to be done.
Thankyou Karin, I can really relate to the anxiety around needing to get things done. For me my anxiety is also tied to me identifying with what I can get done, instead of staying connected to me and appreciating what I bring to my day. I still put what needs to be done ahead of whether I am connected to myself or not. The pain and stress I can go into cannot be justified by a simple “to do” list.
Appreciation is a great support to keep life simple, when I do not appreciate what I bring I start to invest in what I am doing so it will bring me recognition but also I start to get anxious because it is never enough.
I can very much relate to what you are sharing here Karin, Melinda and Annelies, it is the identification with the doing that makes me so fixed on getting things done. The more I can let that go and enjoy just being me, the less anxious I feel and the easier and simpler life becomes.
There is a natural rhythm and flow that exists within us all and when we connect to this and live by this way of being life does become simple and very flexible where the body moves with such beauty, grace and wisdom, knowing exactly what is needed. It is a lovely flow to be in and like you say Nicole when you drop out of it life does become messy and complicated.
“My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time”. Its such a simple sentence yet it is a pearl of wisdom from the depths of your soul Nicole. This simple approach makes such a difference: to the quality of what we do, the overwhelm we may be feeling, the people we interact with, the order of our day and of course how much we do. So often I find the struggles I create are because my body is doing job 1, while my mind off is who knows where (job 99!).
Amazing Nicole. Choosing simplicity is so awesome to have in a day. Things are complicated and messy and there is tension if we are trying to think about what is ahead of us and construct how they should be, but with an open approach it feels life is far less stressful. I like how you said that obviously you have some idea of what you have to do, but there can be a flow and simplicity in how we order things during our day and it comes naturally.
Staying out of my mind and not mulling over any thoughts has been a great key for me in maintaining a beautiful simplicity and consistency in my life.
Nicole this is the second blog from you I read today. How paradoxical and yet so true that “Choosing the simple option in my life began to create more time.” For me one example of this was being overwhelmed at the prospect of being on the expression programme. How much time would this require of me everyday? It is now well integrated in my daily life. It is like opening a big window to the new day and see what happens from then on. As you say being in our presence is the key.
When I read you say “But what if there were enough hours in the day?” Nicole, I know that there are, and that its the complication we choose that makes it seem otherwise. Your explanation makes it practical and easy to understand how we can clarify our choices to bring a simple way of life. Love is simple and so am I.
I work in a fast paced busy office, I find if Im not constantly present I get drained and overwhelmed. Keeping it simple is the key and this blog is a great reminder. Thank you Nicole
‘My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.’ And this gives us the quality, how we are in everything that we do. A great reminder for my day today!
Thank you Nicole for sharing. It feels really supportive to read about the choice we have to keep things simple or to make things complicated.
Nicole you have shared knowledge of gold, thank you. I have many mornings of rushing and complicating things. I’m going to work on making simpler choices and watch my mornings transform. Thank you.
I wholeheartedly agree Nicole the tools shared through the teachings of Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon have been so supportive and educative in our evolution.
Simplicity over complication is a wonderful example of these amazing tools.
If I can just focus on what I am doing and not become caught up in wanting to box tick I gradually find that the feeling of just being with me is far too beautiful to want to complicate the moment by distractions that lead me down the slippery slope of wanting to control what is outside of myself. The connection within then becomes the choice that allows me to feel that I am complete and do not need anything other than be at one with myself.
I have come to understand that choosing simplicity does not mean choosing the perceived ‘easy way’ in that moment, but rather the truest way, where we are honoring our connection to who we are, from which a natural simplicity flows. As when choose what is perceived the ‘easy way’ to avoid honoring the truth what follows is a momentum of complication that does not support who we truly are, which then actually makes it far less easier to be ourselves.
The complication comes from doing from the ‘shoulds’ or the habitual ways of ‘this is just how it is done’ and so, doing way more than necessary. More and more I give myself permission to not be perfect and rather just do what is needed, with my full presence, and then to feel complete about what has been done rather than dwelling on what has not yet been achieved. It feels like an essential ingredient in building joy, self worth and the capacity to repose.
Great to read Nicole. I have been pondering this for sometime now, why there are days where I feel as though I am fighting time, or the feeling that there isn’t enough time to do all the things I want to do. In reflecting after reading your blog, I am seeing the importance of feeling what is there to be done in the timeframe rather than imposing a list that comes from a picture of what it should look like, which has come from something outside of me. I will continue to explore this, coming from deepening my presence and surrender to the moment and watching when those thoughts and pictures enter to take me away from the spaciousness of the present moment.
I love that expression ‘fighting time’. I’ve done it all my life, and yet it is such a futile exercise. Nicole’s blog has it right, in learning to find the space to do each thing as it needs to be done. We can drop our fists, and cease the battle – freeing up so much more of our energy for the thing we are doing in that moment.
I loved the concept of choosing the simpler option when we are presented with a choice, also how you described living in a more connected way of completing one task and then feeling what needs to be done next, rather than driven from our mind or a set programme.
“My mind and body were in the same place at the same time doing the one thing”,
How often are we not present with what we are doing and already thinking about what’s next to do, living in this way is exhausting as we are doing many things at once, and puts our nervous system under unnecessary stress.
I love simplicity, complication just uses so much energy and makes everything so more confusing. Thanks Nicole
Hi Nicole, this sharing is great inspiration for people who have children to get ready for school and themselves to work. It is so easy to complicate our lives with things that don’t really serve us in any way, but doing something with care and love, fully focusing has to be a more harmonious way to start our day.
Doing one thing at a time…I was a master juggler and everyone complained! No one ever felt like they got my full attention and you know what, they didn’t. I am getting much better now, I take myself off into another room to read or be on the computer and when I am with others I am with them. I am now the one on the receiving end of multi taskers and having to feel what it felt like to be on the receiving end of me! Mmm
“My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time”.
This is such a huge part of keeping things simple and is something I am working on in my living. Sometimes sticking to fixed and rigid routines can also make things complicated and stifle the natural flow, as you have illustrated here so beautifully, Nicole.
I have become aware that I harbour an old belief that if something is hard or complicated, then to stick with it and see it out to the end you are a committed and responsible person. Reflecting on this I realise that the truth is that to be in complication, and maybe even enjoy it, can be about feeding a need, needing to be needed, or even a distraction from connecting to the truth that lies in offering ‘within’. Simple is beautiful and it feeds love, allows space and endless amounts of time to just be all that you are. I love ‘Simple’.
This blog feels like an anchor, holding steady in the face of the huge waves of complication that can wash over us. Just what I needed to read today. Thanks Nicole.
Complication is now a great marker for me if it is going on in my life it is time to stop and ask what is the investment make it simple and let it flow.
I love this, Nicola. I was just feeling a little messy and scattered in how I was going about my day, and reading your blog has given me a perfect stop moment.
A very inspirational blog Nicole thank you. I can notice a difference in my mornings getting the children ready for school when I am present as opposed to not. I am working on the consistency of that. Quite often I have the thoughts of not having enough time the day to get everything done.
I love what you share Nicole, we would all prefer a simple life, yet are often not prepared to make the changes necessary to achieve it. We even use the excuse that life is so busy and complicated that we don’t have time to make changes. I have also found that a simple commitment to being present in all that I do, opens up space and allows more time. If I race the clock, it always wins.
Thank you Nicole, to be reminded to choose simplicity over complication by focusing on one action at a time is very supportive and timely. I can get anxious about all the things to do when I rush ahead of myself. When I stay present with the job at hand my body breathes and feels much more harmonious.
This resonates with me too Bernadette – Choosing to focus on one thing/job at a time. It is surprising just how much gets done. A gentle rhythm comes into play and keeps me focused on the job at hand, my breathing and my body movements. Anxiousness keeps away which was a constant for many years.
Awesome blog Nicole – thank you for sharing your lived wisdom. This is a beautiful reminder that we always have and make the choices that determines how our day will flow. And I love this line – ‘My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.’ It is truly empowering when we choose stay present with ourselves as we then allow ourselves to claim the space that is simply and naturally there in which we know what is needed next.
Great blog to read again Nicole and be reminded that life can be very simple and uncomplicated when we stop trying to be efficient and do multiple things at once. I am guilty of this and how it can set me into anxiousness that I won’t get everything done. I have also found that doing 2 things at once means I no longer enjoy or appreciate what I am doing because I am too busy trying to move onto the next thing.
Nicole I love how you point out that we are the creators of our day, in that our quality of being will determine how we experience time and whether we are rushed, feeling behind, or ahead of ourselves or wether we are fully present, relaxed and in the flow of the day. The space we create in ourselves is the space we feel in our day.
I am more and more uncovering all the different ways in which I bring complexity into my life, especially in how I am with myself and the issues I can continue to create. It is amazing how clever our mind can work and keeps us from the absoluteness of the simplicity that is in simply connecting to what is within. I have found that we are so used to having complex issues, things to work on and being in a constant doing that simply being has become very challenging.
The difficulties that complication adds to life is huge, but it is possible at a moments notice to disengage from complexity, to connect, and then the spaciousness of life is laid out before us.
Wow Nicole you nailed it with your awesome blog. I am guilty of making things complicated as well because I am a queen in organizing. Doing so I am always in motion and hardly never stop so I am good in overriding my tenderness and preciousness what I would feel otherwise. Instead of asking myself “what’s next?”, or “am I going to have time to get all this done?” I am on my way to learn to stop. Your amazing blog supports me to do so – thank you.
Thank you for your lovely sharing on choosing simplicity over complication. I have also experienced that as I choose the simpler things to start with in my day and stay present, i create more space in my day. As I am building on the simplicity I can see I get through more each day when I am present and connected, no longer feeling stressed or rushed. I am beginning to approach every task in a similar way, this way I find there is more clarity and everything does not feel over whelming or complicated. As I build this rhythm, I feel a steadiness flowing though my day. It has become clearer how complicated we can make our days, when we try and rush to do too many things, with out giving ourselves that 100% focus.
I should read this blog every day. I love the idea of creating simplicity in my life by being absolutely present in each task. Yesterday I concentrated on letting go of the tension in my body that comes with worrying about what will come next. I felt to just go with the flow of things and not anticipate or stress about how I thought things should be. It was a lovely day
A super supportive blog Nicole, because is there anyone out there who does not struggle at some point with feeling there is not enough time… I have pondered on my relationship with time and got to see how much time I waste…. For example I will spend more time on things when I already know this is complete as it is for that moment anyway. Underneath this I got to feel how I waste time because of the belief, I am not enough, which keeps me checking things and double checking things, and I realised how much time that takes ( and wastes!).
I also love simplicity Nicole, but I can also recall the times in my life when I have complicated things as a way to sabotage myself and the greatness I am. Your practical examples are very supportive of how we can make time work for us by being fully present with each task before going onto the next – a great reminder for us all.
You make a good point here Anna, do we create complication to keep us away from realising that we are pretty amazing without doing lots of things…if we have only ever been rewarded for what we achieve and how much we get done then we are far more likely to keep doing things, creating complication so we can be the master fixer getting even more reward.
Great point Lucy – its this attitude that creates the ups and downs, the ‘pinnacle moments’ when for an instant we managed to tie it all together in one massive complicated knot… but we can’t sustain it. The reward for simplicity is a clarity, a quality and most importantly that it is very easy to do again, and again, and again.
This is a great reminder for me of choosing simplicity over the arduous ways of complication. It makes sense yet we actively avoid the simplest way.
This blog Nicole is so super supportive as I am still struggling a lot with how to get things done and will I have enough time etc.? So I decide here and now that I will start experimenting with this right now!
A great reminder of how we make our day more complex by “…trying to complete and achieve, rather than feeling what was there to be done in that time frame.” Bringing simplicity into our day also brings a feeling of spaciousness.
It is so easy to get distracted and pile on the work load, already thinking of the next job or not even finish the current one and already moving onto the next one. This was a constant in my life and it showed in my tired body. What you share Nicole is simple – I felt complication was how life was – until the consequence of all that ‘hard’ way of living and piling on the pressure day to day caught up with me. It just makes so much sense – choosing the ‘simple option’ only came into my life when I introduced ‘self love’, this has opened up a whole new dimension to living life in full. Amazing as at the end of each day the amount achieved is almost double, energy levels sustained for longer. Awesome blog Nicole thank you.
Awesome Nicole! And so timely – I have found my week this week saw some unexpected activities arrive, and I have started to go into some overwhelm of getting it all done. The way you have shared this experience of yours is so easy to access and supports so many as what you have highlighted is a common ‘curse’ in society.
Thank you Nicole for a simply loving blog, when I don’t speak from what I am feeling and go into my head, things get complicated and confusing. When I simply speak from what I am feeling, the words come out clear and simple.
You only have to look at all the benefits of living a complicated life. It’s a great way to stay thin to began with, all that constant motion and you can go to the gym if life is not enough. You can stuff what you want in your mouths to fuel the motion. Stimulants to get you going and loads of things to slow you down so you can sleep only to start the process again. Ok, this process has a few small side affects, poor health, constant relationship problems, developing addictions to everything that lifts you up and shuts you down. Is this not the result of what we have been sold at the new normal? Why live a simple life and miss all of these small side affects
“What I began to discover was that if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focused on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment; then I could move onto the next thing once I was finished. My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.” Nicole thank you for these words, this is also my developing experience. More and more I’m observing how life ‘opens up’ and flows more easily when I’m not attached to a picture of how it ‘should’ be, but remain ‘with myself’ and open to whatever is presented. It is ‘simply’ wonder-full.
Same here Barbara. I too am observing how life opens up and flows easier when I am not attached to a picture of how it should be, but remain with myself and open to whatever is presented, and from there, it feels I gave myself more space to express my truth.
It’s beautiful to experience lately that time is ‘with me’ and that on days when I think there is too much to do, how it all just works out well. Things change during the day, an appointment is cancelled or something else happens which creates a lot of space in the day. I am learning to go more with the flow of the day and to trust that what needs to be done today, will be done. And what not, well, that is just for the next day.
I have enjoyed revisiting this blog Nicole, as I can get stressed when I think about all the things that I want to do. As you have found, when we begin our day staying present with the early morning rituals, it makes so much difference to the day, and then how much we can get done without feeling overwhelmed.
Timely reminder, as I checked in on this article again and reflect on my day and my level of presence with me.
thanks Nicole. Keeping things simple sure does have a healing effect on our bodies as well. I know when I am cooking in the kitchen and stay with my body and not try and over complicate things or make food with certain expectations, then I really enjoy cooking and my body feels wonderful. Whereas if I am trying to control things and not letting myself be simple then its quite hard and draining, my body feels gross.
Nicole thank you, it was so timely that I read your blog today. I am faced with a busy time for me coming up and I will take heed of your words of wisdom as I create the space I need for everything I have to do and be in alignment with my body.
I just love reminding myself to keep life simple and to not let complication creep in
Not surprisingly I keep coming back to your blog Nicole
I really appreciate what you have expressed here, thank you
Having your mind and body in the same place is the key to less complication as the mind without the body will always try to complicate things or wander to past or future.
I am re reading your blog today Nicole and in so doing I can feel a stillness in my body an acceptance that I know what to do when, that I don’t need the drive to make sure I get everything done. The simplicity of trusting my body is paramount. For some time I have been going with my impulses, doing what I feel to do when I feel to, but had not been aware of the tension I was holding in doing this. There has been a little niggly thought of you won’t get everything done if you do it this way. My experience has been that this niggly thought is not it, but I had allowed it to build a tension in me around doing what feels true and lovely. I feel now that there is a deeper trust in my impulses, this already feels much more simple.
The amazing thing about life is that really in every moment I am given the possibility to make a change. This is probably the biggest responsibility ever.
Often when ‘things’ are running smoothly I would even question that ‘can it be that simple’? and the answer is yes it can. Having lived with taking the complicated route for so long and got very stressed/exhausted in the process, the ease of completing tasks/jobs seem to happen in less time and more can be fitted into my day. If giving 100% attention to the task in hand there is more of a flow with consistency and much less overwhelm. Hearing my grannies words ” do one thing at a time its worth doing well”. A lovely sharing with us Nicole and one that I feel resonates with many of us – thank you.
Thank you Nicole. I love this blog. I often notice that there is a choice to do something in simplicity or complexity. I have also used complexity and hardship to have a strugglesome life- yet what I truly wanted is simplicity. It is an active choice that I am beginning to more consciously consider and make. For there is joy in simplicity, but stress and breakdown in complexity.
Everything in life can be simple even the complicated things… as long as the complication did not come from us. A giant aircraft engine has 1000s of parts and is very complicated but has a simple but lengthy method for working on it, Is it not the same for life.
This blog was an absolute gift for me Nicole. I can see so many areas where I make my life complicated. After reading your blog I have a very clear sense of the importance of truly creating space for each task so I can give it my full attention as it really is unpleasant to feel the need to rush things.
Thanks Nicole, there is that constant niggle to be the next step ahead (or two or three) of where we are and I experience the same (even reading this article), looking for distractions and reason not to be as present as I can be right now in this moment.. Perfect article to read right now.
Great article Nicole! I am always amazed at how different it feels when I let go of an outcome or remain unattached to the order of things I need to do them in. It’s so simple the way everything just falls into place. It’s amazing. BUT, this is not a regular choice I make. It is a very conscious choice, however I find myself choosing the complicated route more often than I would like. I recognise that it is a deep pattern that I still fall into the groove of, and it requires a lot of commitment on my behalf to stop, take stock of how I’m being, and choose differently. And it is definitely worth it every time.
So very true Elodie. I can feel that there are times when I want to shirk responsibility for creating the complication but I can also feel that responsibility is the key to the freedom of simplicity.
I’ve experienced the same.
Our minds can often get ahead of us and time becomes a rare commodity.
However I found doing one thing at a time, without delay or distraction everything that needs to get done gets done.
As I have observed my afternoon watching youtube videos of Playstation games I no longer own or play. This was a massive distraction and sadly has given away time that could have been filled with something more important.
It is a constant refinement of what your time is worth. Is it worth “being distracted” with activities that don’t really mean anything or doing activities that have purpose”
As I feel the biggest let down isn’t that we have done enough, because I’m sure I have done enough; I’ve watched TV, surfed the net and many other activities. However is this what I want my day to be defined by?
It is a constant choice to choose what you want to do and at the end of the day we are left with the choices we have made.
I too love simplicity and it is a good question to wonder why we would choose complication over simplicity. It is strange how struggle and complexity are entrenched in our culture. For example we have sayings like “too good to be true” when things go well. I wonder if sometimes an element of identification comes in with complexity so people make something look difficult and then can say oh look at me I sorted that out, I am so clever or I did such a good job or I worked so hard!
Thanks Nicole for the reminder that it is actually easy to keep things simple. It is easy when we connect and feel our body and move from connection rather than staying tied up in our minds of the shoulds and shouldn’ts of what needs to be done.
very inspired Nicole, choosing simplicity is a conscious choice and the trust in your self is what allows it, I am finding the more I am able to stay connected as you say the more trust I have in myself and then the simple option is the one I chose. Simple.
I am becoming more aware of how when I have a list of to do’s for the day I am setting myself up for stress, unless I focus on one task at a time and enjoy each moment and action. This conscious presence makes for a much more harmonious day.
I agree Bernadette. The to do list doesn’t often allow for variables. This leads me to feel to stressed when unexpected things need to be done. If I just allow myself to feel what is truly needed time and space open up.
It is truly beautiful that living simply provides us with the blessing of space to do what needs to be done in the quality of connection rather than tension. This then allows for us to feel and appreciate the natural expansion that comes with this choice to leave complication behind. A deeply supportive way to live.
It’s hard to believe that bringing in simplicity to life could be so simple. Being present and not living several thoughts at once sounds very calm and perhaps thinking about these things takes energy. We easily know that movement uses energy however we need to acknowledge that thought takes energy too and is one of the big reasons for our exhaustion. Multitasking has been sold to women as a talent. This is rubbish and leads to exhaustion. To be with ourselves in each moment allows an awesome clarity that multitasking and thinking all the lists in our heads will never bring.
When we choose simplicity we choose space; when we choose complication we get trapped into time. The difference between them is simply striking.
This is exactly how it feels, beautifully expressed. Thank you emfeldman.
So true emfeldman, beautifully said.
Such practical and simple examples you have given here Nicole, very powerful and wise.
Thank you for the gentle reminder to keep things simple.
It is insidious how complication creeps in!
It sounds so simple, yet it is truly powerful – it does create space and time seems to expand. And yet it is so hard to consistently maintain without the mind trying to hijack and insist on worrying about everything and anything that is not to do with the present task at hand. As I am learning, this is the way the mind likes to keep its individualism and keep the body racy and in nervous or anxious energy so that I don’t have to feel what is going on underneath all that ‘noise’. it’s very exhausting… As I am learning to deepen the connection with my body and accept what I am feeling, it is becoming easier to hold focus on the task at hand, and miraculously there is time and space to complete it, and consequently less to worry about.. magic..
By thinking what else needs to be done while I am already involved in doing something is an unnecessary distraction and sets me up for complication this is the way that I used live. Like you Nicole, I have found that if I choose to be with myself and be present with what I am doing then the day simply flows and I still get what needs to be done, without the complication, which can lead to creating stress.
The wisdom in this article, Nicole, is caressing my body inside and out. Sometimes there is a huge force against the choice of simplicity, coming from 1000s of people and lifetimes lived in complication, choices of complication that are just there waiting to be repeated. To have a reflection like yours in my back is truly supportive to make a change.
Thanks Nicole for your sharing. I too have experience the more that I do one thing at a time and focus on that, then there seems to be an expansion of time rather than the contraction that many of us may have experienced in our lives. Life then becomes much simpler.
Super simple description of the power of simplicity. Simply thank you.
Here’s to a simple life of space, quality and the joy it brings. Thank you Nicole for reminding how beautiful simplicity is.
I have recently felt this “Not having enough time” and how this takes away my time. Time disappears. But when I stay focused on what I am doing “Time stands still”
Thanks Denise for your comment. I have recently noticed I have an issue around being unfocused, I’m sure I am allowing time pressure to drive me instead of being present and still. Allowing time to be my master is something I intend to let go of.
This generally seems to work for me as well, being totally with the task in hand and not planning my next move or tasks over and over in my head before I actually get to do them, like you said, having your mind and body in the same place and keeping it all as simple as possible.
Yes Kev, not easy at first, but so simple… and the awareness that grows and unfolds, and the space that is created to observe and understand, is so worth it.
Yes Suzanne, how simplicity opens up more space, and our notion of time and thoughts about “not enough time” lose their influence on the way we live our day.
A simple life, a simple way of living is such a loving and beautiful way to live and as you say Nicole, opens up more space where time as we live it on earth is revealed as the illusion it is.
Your wonderful blog has certainly shown me that I have actually been simplifying my life a lot, but that there still are some places that ooze with complications, so more commitment to simplification coming up. I could definitely relate to the “going off in different directions trying to complete and achieve”, as starting one thing and not finishing it was something I excelled at, but now find it so much easier to complete, before going onto the next one; definitely a less exhausting, and much more simple way to live. It’s still a work in progress, but one that I am really enjoying.
Gorgeous Nicole. In my experience being consciously present does create space in our day where tasks flow effortlessly. It is a beautiful way to live and a wonderful marker if our day is not feeling that way.
Yes I agree and karenmuntelwit and re-reading this article has been a great reminder of that marker.
This is work in progress for me, to choose the simplicity and feel the spaciousness in my day. Re reading your blog made me realise that I very often fight with time instead of working with time in this simple way.
And to understand that the MOST simple thing in the world, feeling the gentleness of our own breath, with no artiface or intermediary, is the doorway to an ongoing connection with our inner hearts that does, just by its very nature, lead us onwards and inwards to offer the deepest connection that a human can have.
I agree cjames2012. The simplicity of connecting to our inner heart, takes but a couple of focused gentle breaths, to then allow this connection to fill our bodies, this is most definitely the most beautiful feeling and is the deepest connection we as humans can have. One that does get more and more beautiful, as we continue to choose it.
Thank you cjames for both your comments… the mind so loves to hijack presence and create complications and conundrums to keep itself spinning, taking us away from that simple presence. but it certainly takes its toll. I used to think it was necessary for survival, but now I realise it was working against me in every way, creating more anxiousness and worry, whereas choosing presence and connection is proving to bring the understanding and awareness that was all that is needed.
Beautifully put cjames2012. Our breath is the most simple thing in the world, yet what it offers by way of connection also makes it one of the most powerful.
Agree cjames2012, it is one of the most simplest things to do. And it brings the point home that simple doesn’t mean watery or weak or not worth paying attention to.
As the gentle breath and focusing on your breath is one of the most profound and powerful things a person can do.
Beautiful cjames2012, what a cracker of a comment. The simplicity of breath cuts through the complexity of life and all of its drives and illusions. Complexity feels like a smokescreen to hide the fact that simplicity works. Many people also feel complexity is a sign of intelligence and simplicity the opposite. Perhaps calling someone simple will one day be a beautiful compliment.
The mind loves complexity, our hearts love simplicity, (yes there is a song there ..:-) and when we feel the simplicity and the graceful flow that does come from connecting with our hearts and feeling, the complexity starts to become so distasteful that we really take extra steps to keep out of that complexity. It really is a breath of fresh air, and keeps getting better.
Beautifully said cjames.
The simplicity of being and doing is felt powerfully in this blog Nicole, truly beautiful thank you for sharing how simple going about our day to day can be.
I have allowed myself for a while now to really stay with what I am doing and not thinking of the next thing to do already and it is quite special to feel how time expands and how much space there is for what I am doing in that moment.
It’s funny – just whilst reading your blog I realized my mind wondering to what I would have to do next for my job. I stopped. And really had to smile. Because I could feel how this is trying to keep me racy . With taking a step back here I can sense that these thoughts are forces I have to hold steady “against”. It is not willing to let all of me be present, wanting me to fall into the spiral of raciness and nervous tension, which I used to live on thinking I can do “more” in that energy. By having exposed that I can see that I must have chosen a not supporting energy first – otherwise I wouldn’t have thought about something else while reading. And by writing that I get back to full presence. Ha! Thank you for your reflection*
Simplicity is the way forward in life awesome.
Absolutely, it is the way forward. Life does not have to be complex, even though we tell ourselves it has to be. Complexity is a huge distraction, created by the mind.
So true Mariette, ‘Complexity is a huge distraction created by the mind” I have to admit that I still fall for this trick of the mind to stop me from feeling how amazing I am and let life come to me instead of chasing it and running out of time.
Thanks for the blog Nicole, I really needed to read this. I tend to carry every task that has to be done with me as I attempt to do one making me feel very pressured and often scattered and unfocused. It’s very tiring to do it this way. I feel quite challenged by what you’ve presented because I find it hard to trust that I can let go, attend to one thing at a time and actually get it all done. It sounds ridiculous now I’ve written it! I will look at this area and give simplicity a go because it’s really exhausting the other way.
Nicole I relate to what you have experienced about complicating our day – when I am thinking ahead about what else I want to get done today I can feel how my body becomes tense, and I start to feel stressed. I do love simplicity and order, and paying attention to the task at hand is really so much more enjoyable, it just takes practice! Thank you for sharing your wisdom.
Accepting that life can be simple was a huge revelation fro me, it has changed my life.
Yes I feel also that accepting this is the key…and allowing it to just be!
Great point Andrew, I too have recognised this pattern of being identified, by the mind, in activity and it is definitely tiring leaving my head and body to live in different realities until my head starts to hurt and signals a stop. Choosing the simpler options, as Nicole has suggested, and attending to one thing at a time brings a simplicity and an expansiveness which makes life a lot more enjoyable.
Me too Elaine, I used to get up in the morning with such a ‘to do’ list in my head that i would be in a state of near panic. Choosing the simple way, has meant for me doing things as they need to be done, and not putting things off – and not trying to do it all myself, it’s ok to ask for help.
“But what if there were enough hours in the day? And you could get done all that was needed, and more? What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time? Or that there is never enough time?” These questions are worth pondering on, thank you Nicole for deepening my awareness about simplicity versus complication
Thank you Nicole for re-introducing the simplicity factor into a way of being, for my mind craved the busyness and would manufacture complexity so as it, the mind, could be identified in its activity, but this way of living is very exhausting and creates a lot of stress and anxiety in my body unnecessarily.
So true Andrew. The mind manufactures complexity. The body enjoys simplicity. The key is to align the two so that they flow in harmony together.
Great comment – so much, expressed so simply.
Beautifully said everyone and I totally agree with you all, there is always a choice…simplicity or complexity, which in turn translates to living with an open heart from your body or, living from your mind. It’s a no brainer really.
Thanks for sharing Nicole. Its great when we get up and just go with how the morning feels. I often get quite rigid with my time and this was a great reminder to accept me a little more and choose the simple option rather than over complicating things and decisions I have to make. I am learning that its just better to make decisions straight away and then see how I feel afterwards. Instead of planning to make all of the ‘correct’ decisions in my day which means I don’t really learn anything because I am just trying to control life. It’s a learning process and boy there is so much to be explored!
I love reading your blogs Nicole. This blog especially is so easy to read with simple everyday messages to live in a way that is more loving with ourselves. I totally relate to the rushing and pushing to complete tasks and feeling like there is not enough time in the day. I find that if I am rushing in the morning to get ready for work then my whole day is out of sorts and it becomes complicated and actually increases my work load. If my mornings have been spent feeling still, present and focussed then the day flows and there is simplicity to my work.
Great initial question Nicole, and agree – not being owned by time but instead honouring an impulse as to what to do according to the flow of our day certainly does mean the day feels more open or spacious. I’ve experienced exactly this when on Sundays, I purposely choose to not wear a watch but more ‘feel’ the time. Loosing being owned or governed by time or task is respecting the natural order of timing.
Love it Nicole. What you have presented is actually huge, most especially in relation to the commonly accepted rush and chaotic pace of so much of life today. “But what if there were enough hours in the day?” This is a question we need to deeply ask ourselves… and, look at our avoidance of this question altogether.
For how DO we manage (and I’ve done it, lots) to live day after day, continually pushing, accepting a level of stress and nervous tension that we know doesn’t serve us well – and not changing such an ongoing momentum in life? For me, it was the feeling of not being (or doing) ‘enough’.. The more deeply I appreciate and accept that I am not only ‘enough’, but actually a beautiful, delicate, profoundly amazing woman and being, the less the ‘push’ has its hold, and the simpler things become. The choices, such as you’ve shared, in my day, become easier, more flexible, and, deeply honouring.
Most definitely still a work in progress, but my how things have changed already. I am inspired by your blog to go deeper and actually be more playful with it all now. Enormous thanks also to Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, without whom I’d still be exhausting myself completely on a treadmill I was most definitely not designed to keep up with.
I know that sometimes when something is simple I question whether I have missed something, “surely it cannot be THAT simple?” There is often a temptation to complicate a problem and make it more important when the answer is so simple. I have a beautiful message that I heard from Serge Benhayon: “If you feel under pressure to complete a task then you haven’t started early enough.” Simple.
I’ve discovered I like struggle and the complexity that comes with that. Of course I am not really enjoying myself but when I struggle with what is there in my life I can blame what is happening and make myself the victim of it. With feeling myself the victim I don’t have to take the responsibility.. clever don’t you think. For me your blog is a great inspiration to keep my presence and make it super simple and guess what, when I choose this there is so much joy in my life.
I love how you share your experience of how you got from complexity to simplicity. Being present with ourselves and what we do only makes a huge difference in how we experience time. I have found that when I live my day in this way things have their own time and flow of when they need to be done and if I honour this flow they all get done easily and without effort.
“What if it is actually how we are approaching our day that makes us feel like we are fighting time? Or that there is never enough time?” I loved these questions as they present the possibility that it is us who have a choice in whether our day flows or not. It brings back a level of responsibility that previously one could have overlooked, preferring to place blame elsewhere. It feels empowering to know that we can if we choose make choices that simplify our life and it is the way we choose to approach our day that can make it what it is.
Nicole thank you for this blog. I can really relate to it and I too have been choosing simplicity over complication more lately. It is truly profound how smooth life can be when we choose to be present in all that we do and don’t complicate our choices. ✨
Nicole, this is such a great blog. So simple.
Nicole I like the idea of not having a fixed idea about how the morning should enfold. Each day is new and being in our presence shows us what is best done at any moment, thus eliminating the rush and business we know so well.
Thank you Nicole, I love this blog, it’s awesome – it just makes so much sense and is true. I know when I complicate my life, which feels awful, my body feels tight, stressed, anxious, I come home exhausted and drained and make the most simplest of decisions into a complicated debate in my head. When really I absolutely love simplicity, so what is going on here? I feel I do it as it creates less time, less space, less stillness (that’s a big one I feel) for me to feel, and be the absolute joy and love that is naturally me. I know when my life is simple I can’t help but love life and people. I really love the line about “firstly starting my day without planning how it was going to be before I even got out of bed.” something i am still working on, as I have a tendency to go into planning mode. I can feel how tiring and draining that is even writing it! No more for me 🙂
A few years back I could not understand why people would talk about keeping things simple, as I was very much into making life complicated. But now that I am more aware of when I allow complication to creep into my life, it is so much easier to spot and is a great sign that something is not right.
Thanks Nicole. I am continually presenting courses to people and have to say again and again , “hey, yes it is this simple to reconnect to ourselves” because people are so used to complexity, and even feel that this is necessary, that if its not complex then it cant be real or useful. The continual investment in achievement in education at the expense of developing the whole person has left a vacuum of connection into which the mind streams, and yes it’s the mind that loves complexity. Universal Medicine always presents the opportunity for a simple reconnection, that can lead to a profound awareness and enriched life.
Lovely sharing Nicole. The grace and space simplicity it offers us is profound.
What a great start to the day Nicole. No planning, just doing what you feel needs to be done. I am going to try this instead of ticking off the tasks that need to be done in a prescribed order in the morning, that are done automatically, while I am mentally planning/scanning the next item to be done or what needs to be done during the day.This doesn’t mean that I won’t have a list, it just means that I will feel when to do my ‘doings’ and still keep appointments, of course!
I love this Nicole, I actually let out a huge big sigh when I read this ” firstly starting my day without planning it “. Immediately I felt a lightness and joy and much more in my body.
This is a great reminder for me to bring my choices back to simplicity and not try to get ‘as much done as possible’. It’s lovely to feel the difference in my body when I do choose to have my mind and body with me when I am doing anything. Thank you Nicole.
It is a very important approach to be flexible with your day, not cemented into a pattern. Thank you Nicole for writing this.
Thanks Nicole for your honest sharing- simplicity is absolutely the way to go.
Nicole your blog is a practical advice to be with your body and mind at the same time and place. Doing one thing at a time is a vey good reminder for this. Thank you Nicole because in our efficiency-oriented world such a loving piece of advice is very useful.
Thank you Nicole for the reminder to, in every moment, keep life simple.
A very big trap for me, which brings in complication, is my propensity to plan; in fact over plan! Which of course does not allow the rhythm and flow of life to simply be.
Today I am practising doing one thing at a time, and not planning out the whole day. Already the day feels full of potential and more spacious. Thank you Nicole!
I love your article, Nicole, the simplicity of your choices, changes and how you made it practical. It is very inspiring, thank you
The simplicity you are living with Nicole speaks through your writing – it is very easy and enjoyable to read. I was pondering this the last day or two, if my morning routine needed a more structured order to support my presence – it might need this – but what is really clear here is how doing one thing at a time with my full presence is what is needed first and foremost.
The simplicity is amazing with all that it creates – yet the complication-path seems to be very well trodden in my life ;o)
I am currently learning to appreciate every step that I take and to allow me the time that I need to arrive at what I can clearly feel is the truth.
Simple, simpler, Serge Benhayon.
I loved your comment Nicole ‘choosing to stay with me’. I have come to the realisation that not only ‘trying’ to ‘do’ more than one thing at a time is complicating but to also have the mind in the past or in the future creates even more complication and busy-ness and it is exhausting. We are moving around in a world where the majority of people are caught up in ‘complicating’ their lives and thus living with exhaustion. It is such a simple thing to just be present with you and not only does all else flow, the love that we are is truly lived and expands.
I love this:”What I began to discover was that if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment; then I could move onto the next thing once I was finished. My mind and my body were in the same place at the same time, doing one thing at a time.”
This is gold Nicole, when our mind and body are in the same place at the same time, we don’t get exhausted and time stretches out because we are in harmony. Thank you for this great reminder of how to be in the morning.
The state of being overwhelmed is self imposed by many expectations that are not from within us, I falsely pretend that I’m unaffected but have a similar state of anxiety against underlying expectations – complications that are draining to who we really are. One day at a time has helped me with simplicity. Good blog Nicole thank-you.
A beautiful blog Nicole and I agree with Andrew. The expectations we impose upon ourselves, and in my case the time frames, are a great source of anxiety and mean that we are continually ahead of ourselves and not actually present in our bodies. On the days when I am with myself, especially during the morning routine, the flow is incredible! I’m reflecting on how I have planned out my morning with time frames. So hard to ease away from it, but I’ll give it a go!
Having your mind and body in the same place at the same time is something that can change our lives so much and also make the task at hand more enjoyable. Thanks Nicole that line in particular is very helpful to me.
I really needed to read this today. It is certainly draining thinking “next thing, next thing, next thing.” A timely reminder.
I agree with Kev. So practical and supportive. It is so true that we over complicate life by doing too many things at once. Living in the past the present and the future all at once. I certainly know that when I get lost in my head my stress levels rise and bringing myself back to my body and the task at hand has an instant levelling and calming effect.
Superbly practical Nicole and a great reminder to stay fully focused on one task at a time throughout the day. This has helped me enormously to make my life less complicated and flow a lot better.
HI Nicole, I too used to choose complication over simplicity more often than not. Now, thanks to all that has been shared with me by Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, when complication begins to creep in I know it is a sign that somewhere along the way I have lost my connection with myself and I need to stop and reconnect. This simple moment then allows simplicity to be the feature again.
What a great tool – presence! 🙂 Nicole, it’s great to read how allowing yourself to do what you feel is needed then opens up more time and space! Simply one for me to try.
Thank you Nicole for this very inspiring blog, I am just starting to experiment to let the day and tasks come to me instead of rushing into the day with a plan too big to be ever completed. It is amazing what a change that brings and how suddenly there is more space.
I really enjoy reading your blogs Nicole, as you have a very straightforward and simple way of writing that makes sense. I am moving from a complicated life to one of simplicity and although I feel in the very early stages of this I can feel the potential for my whole life to change by making simplicity the focus.
Nicole I like how you allowed yourself to just feel what is next instead of planning the whole day ahead of you. It feels you allowed yourself to find your own rhythm throughout the day instead of letting a certain mindset of how the day should be, rule your day. Thank you.
Me too Esther – I’ve been playing with this concept at work this week, and it is AMAZING how much space I seem to have! A huge difference indeed if we kill the notion of ‘busy’
I am slowly learning that ‘ being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment’. Thank you Nicole, this is the real beauty of simplicity – life actually works and flows when I am not spending it in the future and enjoy each moment as it presents itself. I do still allow myself to become distracted but I am finding that the more I come back to myself the more that, that is where I want to be – present in the moment and to feel the full beauty of that.
I can relate to having to juggle too many things at once, especially at work but find that if I focus on the one thing that has higher priority at that moment (as this can change from moment to moment) it helps.
Totally agree Jonathan. It can be so easy to take on more than we can chew so to speak and by simplifying and feeling more what is next, being open and tender with oneself allows for things to unfold more naturally. I want to use the word honour for it feels a lot like honouring what we know is true.
Thank you Nicole. Where you say about not having attachment to how the morning goes, being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time. I am beginning to experience this as I am finding it makes a huge difference rather than trying to fit it all in. The simpler it is the more it flows.
Your comment of, “trying to do two things at once, neither of which had 100% of my attention” is so so true. For a long time I had the belief that the ‘More balls one could juggle’ or ‘keep plates spinning in the air’ was a sign of success and competence. However, one or more, likely many in my case, would drop but I would keep striving to pick them up again. Like you, though, I have found it is much more successful and rewarding to ‘spin’ just one plate at a time. It is still a process in development as I can easily get distracted.
This feels like a really supportive way for anyone to go about their day, Nicole, It was especially helpful for me in that I tend to have specific morning, afternoon, and evening rituals, but have at times become too rigid about the sequence of doing the various tasks or exercises and I liked what you mentioned about simply feeling out what to do in the moment that would be the most supportive for everyone involved. That way things flow more fluidly instead of being so regimented.
This article presents a revelation to be with your body when you are doing your task. This is a huge and very important revelation as I have realised that trying to do two things at once really does drain the body and as you say Nicole, nothing gets 100% of you so it is impossible to really enjoy what you do in each moment.
In the past, I have often felt that I did not have time and so this was why I would have to work in this way but I can see now that my concept of time was not true and actually I was wasting time. This really highlights the great importance in being aware of ourselves and how we live.
Nicole, I really enjoyed reading this, especially the part “if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focused on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do” I find this is so true but not something I often stop to appreciate. I mostly see by not planning the morning to the second but feeling what to do next there is much more space but I then don’t reflect just how supportive that is for the rest of the day. Thank you.
Thank you Nicole. I too have found when I keep things simple and stay focused on each task, my day flows well. What is also amazing as you shared, is that time opens up for us when we choose simplicity. There is wonderful sense of spaciousness around us rather than feeling of constriction and stress when we make time a pressure in our lives.
I know this to be true too Mary but still find myself getting pulled out and into the busyness of getting things done. This blog is a great reminder to stay in the expansiveness of each moment and choose to be present as the next moment arrives.
‘Keep it simple student’ has often rung in my head when I can feel a pressure to get too much done with seemingly no time to do it. Learning to stop, stay with myself while doing one thing at a time has shown me so clearly that I can choose to make time for whatever there is to do.
I absolutely agree Mary, the Kiss principle is one that deserves consideration, and thank you, Nicole.
Nicole, this has offered me a lot of support. Like you used to – I can feel the race against the clock sometimes and feeling like I can’t get things done, no one is supporting me, there isn’t enough time – blah blah blah.
To look at it with fresh eyes, and in a way that simplifies things and lets me address tasks with my mind and body, feels like a door has opened.
I’m going to love taking that with me to work on Monday 🙂
More simplicity – less mess.
Very simple, super practical blog. I love your approach Nicole, it’s not just about doing one thing at a time but also considering what is appropriate in that flow. A great blog and an awesome reminder that there is always a simple way if we allow ourselves to see it. I had a great example the other morning – I was up super early and didn’t really plan my day but simply went from one thing to the next and it flowed and I was less tired than I can normally be, and now your blog re-iterates that this is no coincidence as I consider how I to be more simple in my life.
Thank you for a timely reminder I can still wake up with a plan in my head of how I want the day to go and the things I can ‘fit in’ rather than being with me with each thing I do and completing it. When I do allow this life flows, is simple and uncomplicated, but because it is so easy I think I have to do more and complications invariably set in.
Nicole, as you pointed out, a complicated life arises from being unstructured and disorganised. We can enjoy simple lives, yet still do lots of things which dove-tail nicely into one another. We can still have the sense of achievement but without all the disruptive stress and angst that goes with disorganisation.
‘I was in a pattern of complicating my life… pear-shaped and things quickly managed to get messy’ You are describing the majority of my life. I have also immensely found that making more time in my life from the moment I arise allows my day to flow. Now when something unexpected pops up there is no panic, just small adjustments and the flow continues. I just love the simplicity of my life now. Thank your for your words Nicole.
A lovely, clear and simple way to start the day – thank you, Nicole for this inspiring blog – a very welcome reminder to stay present and give full attention to whatever I am doing in the moment is what simplifies things.
“If I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focused on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment”.
This is key to me, having that presence takes away the brain chatter, the tangents, the thoughts that distract, and as you explain, this added focused means things get done more efficiently and with greater care and attention.
Super blog Nicole, when I have a lot of jobs to do I find that prioritising really helps and also completing cycles. If I I start a job, I finish it. By doing this I find I am not pulled in different directions and it actually saves time.
Completing cycles I have also learnt can be a great support as there are less loose ends to tie up that can play on the mind. Once it’s done and dusted it no longer hangs around and doesn’t build a momentum of having been procrastinated on.
Thank you Nicole for this blog with your great examples which make it even more easy to relate to. An area in my life where I allow complication is in making decisions. If I have to know the answers within a certain timeframe the push doesn’t allow me to feel the answer that is already there. And like you describe if I stay with me, feel my body, keep my thoughts on what I am doing in that moment I simply know what to choose effortlessly.. So interesting why we should prefer the ‘long (and time taking) route’ over the simple version. And recently I surprised myself by starting a new training within a week.
Thank you for your clarity in this article Nicole, I am still only beginning not to plan and attach to how the day will go. I love the part you write about having the mind and body focussing on one thing at a time, so simple and useful; just to be present, rather than the mind being ahead.
Hi Nicole. This is such a great article inspiring me to really trust being with the task at hand. On reflection, planning and being one step ahead actually gets me in a muddle and stressed. Whereas simply being with a task at hand allows me the presence to feel what is needed next. Being ahead of myself means I’m too preoccupied to pick up on what’s needed in any given moment. Being present also doesn’t allow time or room for judgement or criticism, just being. Thank you.
I always seem to be presented with what will support me as my life is now so much more supportive as I accept responsibility for my day. In re-reading your blog I felt able to connect with what I am being offered. Your blog feels like it is a blessing for us all and offers such simplicity and a more loving way to live life.
I can relate to this article only too well. I also like Jonathan’s comment as I sometimes find that I am a little deflated and I realise this is because I have judged myself harshly, made myself less or not enough. I am slowly more and more realising my self-worth and appreciating myself. In self-appreciation there is no room for judgement.
When I was employed as a PA working with very tight schedules and being quick and efficient at my job it seemed to me that I was always living ahead of myself. Conscious presence did not exist in my life at all. The complication for me at that time was not that I was disorganised but that I was too organised! I was going from one task to the other without presence in what I was doing, jumping ahead to the next thing to do. I guess I was very much in the “doing” (like so many do) because the more I did the more I got recognised.
Crazy.
It is obvious from the way you describe it, Nicole, that thinking forward and “I won’t have time to get all this done” takes us into huge complexity. We think it, and in so doing we create our own reality and walk straight into it. Instead of choosing to follow what feels right for that day in each moment and let it unfold, then it is simple. A lovely, gentle reminder, thank you.
Thank you Nicole. I am learning to keep things simple, my days off work are when I complicate things most, thinking about all the things that I want to get done on my days off and making a huge to do list for myself and hence then going into overwhelm.
I am laughing reading your comment Natalie as I experience it too, trying to fill in spaces with activities just to leave me overwhelmed and exhausted. This blog inspired me deeply and I had a great experience yesterday by choosing to do only one thing at a time, dedicating some time exclusively to complete a task I was postponing to do. In order to do so, I had to re-arrange my plans and it worked very well: I felt I had time to do a task without the complication of trying to do two things at once and at the end it felt completed and I did not feel exhausted or drained. Thank you Nicole for the insights in this blog.
‘I began to realise that even though I preferred things to be uncomplicated and simple, I was not used to it because I was in a pattern of complicating my life’ – I so relate to this. I have noticed that when things keep going wrong it is often my lack of commitment and focus that has got in the way, and allowed what should have been simple and straightforward to be awful and complex.
Dear Nicole, your blog really hits the spot for me! Being retired, all my deadlines are
self-imposed and therefore ‘artificial’. However, that doesn’t stop the mind from
interfering and creating chaos. When my artificial quotas of things-to-do remain
un-met at the end of the day, a gloomy sense of failure can result!
Thankfully, Universal Medicine has alerted me to the importance of always being present. Now I find I can ‘sign-off’ on jobs with a more palpable sense of satisfaction, than before, when I would judge myself as a ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ at the end of each day!
Simple is a word that is sometimes frowned upon in society and other times is appreciated for what it can truly offer. There are less illusions and confusions and complications when we choose ‘simple’. If we want to hide away from looking at stuff as I know I have in the past, then complicated is the way to go, but simplifying life and decluttering our home, our mind and our daily rhythm can bring so much calm and contentment. It is a work in progress for me but I am really appreciating the true nature of ‘simple’ Thank your for sharing your realisations.
Great great blog Nicole, I loved re-reading it. ‘and the time and space that was once there quickly became filled with my going off in different directions trying to complete and achieve, rather than feeling what is there to be done in that time frame.’ I can so much relate to it, when I am multi-tasking and multi-thinking at the same time, multi-bulding complications.
A brilliantly simple article.
Dear Nicole, thank you for this amazing blog about simplicity. It reveals a magical truth in life that everyone should know about – that if you stay with one thing and with yourself, time expands. And if you propel yourself into the future or try and think or do too many things at once, time contracts away. It has been proven time and again, and so the key is to be aware of what tends to make us rush/think ahead/get anxious/want to be more or somewhere else etc. Thank you for laying this out so clearly for us.
Thank you Nicole, this is a very timely reminder that we do have time, if we take things one task at a time and bring a little order to our days.
Hi Nicole there is space within the words which speaks volumes about how you are living simply. Thanks
I too love simplicity, I am choosing that for my life. Great sharing thank you Nicole.
Thanks Nicole. Very inspiring to read this morning where I am already planning what to do tonight and tomorrow! A timely reminder about just being present and focusing on what I am doing right now. It already feels better.
“Choosing the simple option in my life began to create more time, getting done what was needed without the rush and overwhelm I used to regularly experience. I now have the time to do extra things that I normally would not have had the time or space to do”.
I relate well to what you say Nicole and now appreciate allowing more simplicity in my life as opposed to creating complication.
I love to focus on one thing and find that I do get more done, more efficiently and in less time. Thank you for sharing Nicole – it is always a great reminder to choose simplicity over complication.
Definitely Julie, and then the flow is lovely.
There is a great quote which has an enormous depth to it “simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication”. What I notice is that I can’t just choose it once, but have to keep choosing it every day for it to have an affect. Otherwise the complications just sneak back in…
I love the way you write, Nicole. There is a lovely simplicity and love in it. Also I find your sharing of your journey of learning in your life very inspiring, giving me ideas and ways to make loving changes in my life. Thankyou.
The simplicity of focusing on one task rather than multiple tasks at once allows us to be with the task not distracted, as a result the task gets done quicker. I have found this is often the case and reading this blog has inspired me to continue to build this as a constant in my life.
I love this article for its simplicity and I am finding your comment, Leigh, on focusing on one task so true. Since first reading this article I have been more conscious of putting this into practice as well as allowing the order of the activities of the day to unfold more rather than working to a fixed plan. The result is there is a more natural flow to the day with much less rush and I am feeling less tired at the end of the day.
This is lovely. A beautiful reminder to keep things simple..
Bringing my mind back to the task at hand and not racing off too far ahead or behind has been really helpful for me too. I’ve noticed how it helps things to flow and changes the quality in which I go about my day. Simplicity is one of the key things that I’ve been inspired with from Serge Benhayon.
Yes, I agree Fiona, it is still a work in progress for me. And as Nicole says,
‘if I was not attached to how the morning would go, and being present and focussed on doing one thing at a time, it supported me to have more space in my day and things would take less time to do because I was paying attention to what I was doing in that moment;’, it is beautiful to live this way and experience this.
That is certainly my experience Ryan – focusing more on what’s needed and the basics of life creates more space.
This blog has really helped me Nicole, so a heartfelt thank you for sharing. I too am noticing that suddenly I have so much more time and space as each moment is no longer consumed with feelings of anxiety. The main practical tool has been stopping more and more to contemplate for a second before I do something whether I do have the available time and whether I will be rushing. Currently what I am finding is that if I feel I will rush and I honour and trust that feeling, another space opens up for me to complete the task with ease and flow. I’ll keep you posted…
Thanks Nicole, this has been very encouraging to read especially when we feel like there’s too much to do. One thing at a time and doing things so we are not rushed are certainly key ingredients for a simple, harmonious life.
I love the ‘simplicity’ of this article, thank you for sharing Nicole.
Thank you Nicole, love the simplicity of this article. I too am learning how simplicity is key to everyday life and how supportive this is as well as time and quality expanding. Sometimes I do this crazy thing that when there becomes ‘too much simple’ and a flow starts to happen, I question if all is ok and I create complications to prove it’s not ok! I then feel the yukkiness of this in my body as I’ve gone into an old pattern of needing to be in control and there is simply then a choice to stop, be present and feel. Thank you Nicole 🙂
Thanks Nicole, this is pure gold. I have also found that it just does not work trying to lasso the future into the present by thinking about what needs doing next and how it can be achieved; when I do it that way it narrows and tightens the available time and I end up in apprehension of what is ahead and pretty much don’t get anything much done because I am actually in several places at once.
I agree Gabriele – when things get complicated and I try to be in several places at once nothing really gets done (and I usually have to come back and fix it later on). Keeping it simple, one thing at a time… and this has the additional benefit of there being no overwhelm as well!
Simply amazing Nicole. Thank you for sharing.
This is beautiful Nicole, it is something I have been experiencing lately also. It felt very timely and confirming to read. Thank you.
Beautiful blog Nicole. Very very simple, yet very very profound, light and joyful. I loved reading it and I recognise very much what you’re writing. For much of my life, I’ve been very much on the other side of the spectrum, being very indulgent in complication… I am learning more and more to choose and enjoy the simplicity in life. With lots of appreciation, Floris.
Thank you Nicole!
Thank you Nicole, I was pondering on this very issue today and with many things needing attention, I made a choice to be with me first and allow what was most needed to emerge. I found myself going for a walk this morning and assisting others with things that I know I would have resisted had I not stopped and chosen for myself, instead of being driven by the perception that I don’t have time. Reading your post and responding is another example and has supported me in my day today. A blessing, thank you again!
Thank you for the simplicity you are describing your shift into more simplicity with! I too have often made my life very complicated and it was a reoccurring pattern that I wasn’t seeing. Slowly as I become more present in my body, simplicity is naturally there. There is such serenity in feeling the ease I can bring into life.
Nicole, your ‘timely’ article deserves a simple response.
Thank you.