Simplifying My Life and My Blog

The last year of my life has been tough. I have had a lot of ups and downs. I am thankful for some good friends that have stood by me and helped me to keep pushing ahead. It has been difficult at times, and I have come to the conclusion that in order to move forward, I need to simplify things in my life.

One example is this blog. I have a love-hate relationship with WordPress. I love it for what it is and what it does, but I hate it for writing. It is not the writing actually, but all the mechanics around publishing a blog post. I have to write the post, edit the post, optimize it for SEO, assign my tags, my keywords, my categories, and write an SEO description. Then I have to find an image, buy an image, crop it, compress it and upload it. Sometimes, OK often, the thought of doing all that, prevents from writing in the first place. I have almost 90 draft posts waiting for all that to be done to them, erg…

It kind of doesn’t make sense. I sacrifice helping others, because of the mechanics of writing a post. I have to simplify things in my life because time is an asset that is in limited supply. So I am going to make some changes, the first of which is this blog.

  1. I am not going to have images anymore, unless there is some compelling reason for it. I am tired of the cost and time associated with finding the images and getting them setup. I think the trade-off of good content is preferred.
  2. I going to wrote shorter posts, more frequently. I know longer posts are preferred by many, but I just can’t swing the time. The thought of writing a 600 to 1,000 word blog post is another thing that sometimes prevents me from even starting. So they will be more focused posts.
  3. I am going to try and not be a perfectionist. So you might see a mistake here and there from late night or early morning writings. Please kindly let me know and I will fix them.

Peace Pilgrim stated, “The simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace. A persistent simplification will create an inner and outer well-being that places harmony in one’s life.

That is exactly what I am going for. I welcome your thoughts as I attempt to begin anew.

Leadership Trait to Ponder: Simplicity

Simplicity-Todd-NielsenToday the leadership trait to ponder is Simplicity.  The dictionary defines Simplicity as: the quality or condition of being easy to understand or do; something that is simple or ordinary but enjoyable; lack of subtlety or penetration. Below are some of my favorite quotes to help inspire and illustrate this trait. Simplicity can be one of the most difficult things to accomplish. I have seen compensation plans and processes that were so complicated that all it brought was disdain and frustration towards the leader. As you read these quotes, think about how you can exemplify this leadership trait in yourself.

Quotes on Simplicity

 

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ~Leonardo da Vinci

 

Simplicity in character, in manners, in style; in all things the supreme excellence is simplicity.”~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

Simplicity is the glory of expression.” ~Walt Whitman

 

“There is no greatness where there is no simplicity, goodness and truth.” ~Leo Tolstoy

 

“The art of simplicity is a puzzle of complexity.” ~Douglas Horton

 

Simplicity is the most difficult thing to secure in this world; it is the last limit of experience and the last effort of genius.” ~George Sand

 

“Simplicity and repose are the qualities that measure the true value of any work of art.” ~Frank Lloyd Wright

 

“I feel that the simplicity of life is just being yourself.” ~Bobby Brown

 

“Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art.” ~Frederic Chopin

 

“I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” ~Lao Tzu

What do you think about when you ponder Simplicity? Please share your thoughts in the comments section!