PERTINENT INFORMATION LTD. A center for information to help businesses grow faster "Giving You Valued Information"   Susan Pilgrim, Ph.D. specializes in engaging the spirit of individuals, teams, and organizations. Simplifying Life

Not since the days of Thoreau has there been such an emphasis on simplifying life. As a generation, the Baby Boomers have had it all -- cars, status, big homes, money, and lots of stress. They're discovering that "having it all" isn't everything it's cracked up to be. Something's been missing. That something is meaning. Fundamentally, "simplifying" is determining what's really important to you. If you've been searching for more meaning in your life, consider some of these suggestions. Determine what's really important to you. Is it family? Making a difference? Achieving a personal goal or athletic feat? Knowing what's important to you will make all other decisions easier. Evaluate your lifestyle. What are you willing to change? What complicates your life? Do you really need the big house, big mortgage, and big taxes? Can you get by with two cars instead of three? Must you get a new wardrobe every season? Must you attend all of the social, cultural, and entertainment events? Always tell the truth. When you do, you don't complicate things by having to remember who you've told what. Evaluate your activities. Decrease the number of social activities and obligations you have for civic, charitable, and volunteer work. Talk with your children about what can be eliminated from their schedules. Make conscious choices. Use what's really important to you as the yard stick against which you measure the choices you make about how you use your time, energy, and money. Reduce your conflicts. Determine who you have conflicts with. Resolve them. Refrain from getting into new conflictual situations. Work out solutions rather than letting the situation get out of hand. Do nothing. Just be. Relax. Enjoy quiet time. Read inspirational material. Listen to music. Meditate. Contemplate. Be grateful for everything, the tangible and the intangible. Spend time in nature. Walk. Hike. Bike. Fish. Bird watch. Listen. Grow a garden. Grow vegetables and flowers. Give away what you don't use. Stay at home one day a week. Spend the time doing whatever you desire. Take the telephone off the hook. Avoid interruptions during meals, discussions, and personal time. Spend connected time with family and friends. Do it yourself. Be creative. Instead of paying someone to paint a room, learn how to do it. Make home improvements family projects. Turn off the television. When you do, you talk more, listen more, read more, and play more. Take off the pager. Reduce your 24 hours-a-day accessibility. Set up a home office. Negotiate with your boss times you can work from home. Travel during non-rush hour traffic. Take alternative, less congested routes to your destinations. Clean out your closets and storage spaces. Get rid of what you don't use or need. Donate it. Recycle it. Reuse and recycle. Use kitchen items such as paper and plastic bags and aluminum foil more than once. When they're not longer usable, recycle them. Clean up your finances. Consolidate any debts and pay them off as quickly as possible. Save money for retirement and emergencies. Cut expenses. Determine what you can do without. Always look for the best buys. Pay in cash for purchases. Exceptions would include high ticket items, travel tickets, and any other items that may need to be returned or when service may be questioned. Cut up all but one of your credit cards. Pay the balance in full each month. Pack your lunch. Increase your flexibility about when and where you eat. Reduce the hassle and expense. Run errands at the same time. Keep a list of errands that need to be run and items that need to be purchased. Then, once or twice a month when you have the time or you're in particular need for some of the items, schedule your errands. Be a smart consumer. Listen to the Clark Howard Show on WSB-AM 750 for consumer tips. Make sure your will is up-to-date. Although you may think this doesn't simplify your life, it'll make things much easier when you're gone. Simplifying is about letting go of status, material things, and excessive activity so you'll have more time and opportunity to engage in what's really important to you. You can live a meaningful life -- comfortably, peacefully, and simply. ===================== If you want to explore more ways you can simplify your life, here are some resources you might want to check out. Downscaling: Simplify and Enrich Your Lifestyle (1993) by Dave Babbitt Simply Happy: How to Simplify Your Life & Find Happiness (1996) by Rebecca Merriman Simplify, Simplify: And Other Quotations from Henry David Thoreau (1996) by Henry David Thoreau Simplify Your Life: 100 Ways to Slow Down and Enjoy the Things that Really Matter (1994-book, 1997-audio cassette) by Elaine St. James Slow Down & Simplify Your Life (1991) by Mark Thurston Newsletter and Ezine Resource Find exactly what you're looking for In our quest to provide you with tools and information to help you change the way you work and live, we've gathered a comprehensive list of newsletters on all aspects of business and life. The benefits are all there. Click here to go there.

A Practical Guide for Taking Gentle Control of Life Living InSync is a way of life, a way of living, a lifelong process that exemplifies the mind-body-spirit interconnectedness in life. The essence of being InSync is found in the five dimensions of life--physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual.Living InSync® means assessing and optimizing your personal power, understanding yourself and others, envisioning what you want from life, making conscious choices and pursuing goals to be the person you want to be. By assessing your personal power, you become creative, decisive and productive and can take gentle control of your life. Living InSync® offers a personalized, proactive, step-by-step approach to help you assess where you are in life, who you want to be, and where you want to go. Maintaining a balance between and within the dimensions offers you a perpetual challenge because the evolving nature of your being is dynamic and ever-changing. By responding to life's challenges in new ways and by recognizing that perfection is a static, nonexistent state, you'll experience insights about yourself and the unlimited opportunities for success and peace. You'll find that when you live InSync with yourself, you're more InSync with others and the Spirit.

Dr. Susan Pilgrim, author of Living InSync® -- Creating Your Life with Balance and Purpose (Health Communications Inc.) and Moving InSync® with the Spirit (in press), and president of Life Investments, is an Atlanta-based international speaker, business consultant, and coach. She specializes in engaging the spirit of individuals, teams, and organizations. Her work represents a unique blend of experience and education in the areas of business management, education, and psychology. She customizes programs to meet the needs of the client and designs them to increase personal, professional, and organizational productivity. Susan's committed to positively influencing the lives of those in her audiences. She encourages all who experience her work to invest in themselves so they can get what they want in life. She earned her B.S. at Presbyterian College, her M.Ed. at the University of South Carolina, and her Ph.D. at Georgia State University. Her memberships include the National Speakers Association, American Society for Training and Development, and the Georgia Society of Association Executives. Her columns appear in a number of business, health, and personal development publications. Susan Pilgrim, PhD 877.467.9627 209.825.9459/fax spilgrim@transbay.net

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