Nov. 26, 2023

3 Mindful Minutes: Essentialism

The player is loading ...

Discover the simple but profound concept of Essentialism to reduce stress, cultivate mastery, deepen relationships and live a life of meaning.Discern what is absolutely essential, then eliminate everything that is not, so you can make the highest possible contribution towards the things that really matter.
Buy the book Listen to more Three Mindful Minutes Join Cass Dunn's mailing list
Connect with Cass:www.crappytohappypod.comhello@crappytohappypod.com
www.instagram.com/crappytohappypod www.tiktok.com/crappytohappypod
Join the free 7-day Happiness Challenge:www.cassdunn.com/happiness

Connect with Cass:

www.cassdunn.com
www.instagram.com/cassdunn_xo

Contact Crappy to Happy:

Email: hello@crappytohappypod.com
www.crappytohappypod.com
www.instagram.com/crappytohappypod
www.tiktok.com/@crappytohappypod

Are you a coach, therapist, service provider or solopreneur struggling with self-doubt and imposter syndrome? I'd love to talk to you! (for market research purposes only!)

Book a call with me to share your experience.

Want more great content and less ads?

Upgrade to Paid in the Spotify or Apple podcasts App to get immediate access to "Beyond Happy", the subscriber only podcast featuring bonus content, meditations and more!

Transcript

WEBVTT

1
00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:09.199
Hi, I'm cast done. I'm a psychologist, a coach, mindfulness

2
00:00:09.199 --> 00:00:12.759
meditation teacher, host of the Crappita Happy podcast, and author

3
00:00:12.839 --> 00:00:16.079
of the Crappy to Happy books. Welcome to today's three

4
00:00:16.160 --> 00:00:18.920
Mindful Minutes. Today, I want to share with you an

5
00:00:19.000 --> 00:00:24.199
idea called essentialism and explain to you how this concept

6
00:00:24.440 --> 00:00:27.760
can help you live more simply, with less stress and

7
00:00:27.879 --> 00:00:31.359
more meaning. I first heard this term when I read

8
00:00:31.359 --> 00:00:36.960
the book Essentialism, The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McEwan,

9
00:00:37.439 --> 00:00:40.439
and in that book, Greg explains that it is about

10
00:00:40.479 --> 00:00:44.439
making the wisest possible investment of your time and energy.

11
00:00:44.880 --> 00:00:48.399
It is a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely

12
00:00:48.560 --> 00:00:53.560
essential and then eliminating everything that is not, so that

13
00:00:53.600 --> 00:00:57.479
we are making our highest possible contribution towards the things

14
00:00:57.560 --> 00:01:00.640
that really matter. When you have clarity about what is

15
00:01:00.679 --> 00:01:04.359
truly important to you, it becomes much easier to say

16
00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:09.920
no to distractions and focus only on your most important priorities.

17
00:01:10.200 --> 00:01:14.200
Having this alignment reduces stress because you're no longer pulled

18
00:01:14.319 --> 00:01:19.560
in multiple directions, chasing after multiple goals, putting your energy

19
00:01:19.640 --> 00:01:23.920
into various different activities, whether at work, in your personal life,

20
00:01:24.040 --> 00:01:28.920
in your relationships. It also helps you to avoid overburdening

21
00:01:28.959 --> 00:01:33.719
yourself with unnecessary responsibilities because you're only focusing on the

22
00:01:33.879 --> 00:01:37.319
essential tasks, the ones that are really moving the needle

23
00:01:37.400 --> 00:01:40.400
and taking you closer to what is most important to you.

24
00:01:40.840 --> 00:01:44.359
This kind of simplification means that you're likely to have

25
00:01:44.439 --> 00:01:48.319
a more manageable workload, and at its core, essentialism is

26
00:01:48.400 --> 00:01:54.040
really about quality over quantity. It's about doing fewer things,

27
00:01:54.359 --> 00:01:57.519
but doing them really well. So this kind of approach

28
00:01:57.719 --> 00:02:01.719
leads to higher quality results. It gives you the opportunity

29
00:02:02.040 --> 00:02:07.640
to cultivate mastery, to go deeper into anything, whether it

30
00:02:07.799 --> 00:02:12.599
is a goal, a hobby, a relationship, your friendship circle,

31
00:02:13.240 --> 00:02:18.520
your work tasks. You're no longer juggling numerous low impact

32
00:02:18.719 --> 00:02:21.319
tasks or activities. I would say the same if you

33
00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:23.560
have your own business, it can be tempting to come

34
00:02:23.639 --> 00:02:27.759
up with more products, more services, more offerings, when really

35
00:02:27.879 --> 00:02:30.639
all you need to do is go deep on one

36
00:02:31.039 --> 00:02:35.280
product or offering or service, become expert at that, and

37
00:02:35.360 --> 00:02:39.159
forget the rest. Choose what is going to get the

38
00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:42.439
best results, what you really enjoy, what you're good at,

39
00:02:43.080 --> 00:02:46.439
and go deep on that. Double down on that. This

40
00:02:46.599 --> 00:02:51.199
is about focus and discipline. Essentialism helps you live a

41
00:02:51.280 --> 00:02:55.439
more meaningful life in various ways. It encourages mindfulness. It

42
00:02:55.520 --> 00:02:58.280
forces you to stop and consider, is what I'm doing

43
00:02:58.360 --> 00:03:02.680
right now the most important thing? Is this aligned with

44
00:03:02.919 --> 00:03:07.439
my ultimate purpose objective? What I have chosen to be

45
00:03:07.520 --> 00:03:11.719
my highest priority. Obviously, you can't always one hundred percent

46
00:03:11.759 --> 00:03:14.159
of the time be only focusing on what is your

47
00:03:14.199 --> 00:03:17.879
highest priority, but it does make you get intentional about

48
00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:20.800
what you're doing. Where is your focus? Where is your attention?

49
00:03:21.439 --> 00:03:26.199
Are you wasting time, effort, energy on things that ultimately

50
00:03:26.719 --> 00:03:29.560
don't matter. When you begin to focus on what is

51
00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:32.840
most important, you give yourself the space to grow and

52
00:03:32.919 --> 00:03:35.719
develop in those areas. So this can really help you

53
00:03:35.800 --> 00:03:40.159
to feel more confident, more skill. This boosts your self esteem,

54
00:03:40.639 --> 00:03:44.599
and it also promotes balance and well being because when

55
00:03:44.639 --> 00:03:47.039
you start saying no to things, when you stop over

56
00:03:47.159 --> 00:03:51.680
committing yourself, you can actually maintain a healthier lifestyle. So

57
00:03:51.759 --> 00:03:54.199
if this idea intrigues you, I would encourage you to

58
00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:56.360
get the book if you haven't read it already, but

59
00:03:56.439 --> 00:04:01.319
you can start by identifying what is essential. Regularly evaluate

60
00:04:01.400 --> 00:04:04.560
your activities, your commitments, and ask yourself if they align

61
00:04:04.719 --> 00:04:07.719
with your core values and goals, if they give you

62
00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:11.240
a sense of satisfaction and meaning. If this is really

63
00:04:11.280 --> 00:04:13.840
what is most important to you. As we come to

64
00:04:13.879 --> 00:04:15.759
the end of a year and start a new year,

65
00:04:15.800 --> 00:04:18.079
this might be an opportune time to take a little

66
00:04:18.160 --> 00:04:20.759
audit of all of the areas of your life and

67
00:04:20.879 --> 00:04:25.079
ask yourself what is essential. When you know what's important

68
00:04:25.120 --> 00:04:28.800
to you, you can start politely but firmly declining any

69
00:04:28.839 --> 00:04:32.959
office or invitations or requests that don't align with those priorities,

70
00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:36.319
knowing that this is because there is something more important

71
00:04:36.360 --> 00:04:39.600
to you. I hope you have enjoyed today's three mindful minutes.

72
00:04:39.680 --> 00:04:42.240
If you enjoy the show, please consider giving a rating

73
00:04:42.279 --> 00:04:45.199
and a review. Subscribe to you never miss an episode,

74
00:04:45.240 --> 00:04:48.120
and I cannot wait to catch you on the next

75
00:04:48.160 --> 00:04:49.680
episode of Crappy to Happy

3 Mindful Minutes: Essentialism

New to Crappy to Happy?

How to cultivate unshakeable self-confidence

Do you have an "Upper Limit Problem"?

Reclaiming Happiness: Why Every Woman Needs a Passion Project

Dispelling Myths About Menopause and HRT with Dr Louise Newson (Part …