A freelancer is always inundated with many tasks to finish. Not only this takes up time off their day but also takes a toll on their peace of mind.
A lot can be done to be more productive, viz. by using apps, staying fit, using the pomodoro technique etc. Apart from this, a major change in your habit can benefit you in the long term, i.e. by embracing minimalism.
Minimal living does not mean living in scarcity. It means living with only as much, is required. To put this in another way, it means anything less will cause shortage. Scared? Need not be.
In our everyday life, all the objects around us seek our attention and our subconscious mind constantly strives to attend each one of it. The more clutter we have around us, more the attention is sought from our mind. We feel bogged down by such an environment, and eventually get tired. This drain is completely mental and can be improved by meditation and yoga. Well! That seems like a solution, but what if meditation helps us to elevate higher from current highs, rather than bringing us up from the lows of stress.
Imagine walking into a clean, bright room, which has nothing but a desk and a chair. The moment you enter the room with an intention to work, your free thoughts will help you achieve your task faster and better. They will not be swayed by the clutter, both around you and within.
That is what meditation does to your inner self. Makes you minimal from within. We begin to focus on the vital few in life. Dispassion is easy. We understand ourselves much better and are at ease with ourselves. This brings the energy we have, together and can be put into use on the task at hand.
Minimalism yearns simplicity which is vital to lead a real purposeful & happy life.
It is so simple to be happy, but so difficult to be simple – Rabindranath Tagore
To adapt this way of living is also a brave decision like the one you took when your started freelancing. But once you achieve it, there is no looking back.
To begin with, you can declare a clutter-free zone, maybe your work place.
- Discard all that is duplicated.
- Deal with all the documents. There is only 4 things you can do with a document; Do, Delegate, Delay, Destroy. Either you finish the task; delegate the task to someone; delay, if it awaits input from someone else, or simply discard the document. The same can be done for your inbox and to-do list.
- Dress with less. Reduce your wardrobe and see how it reduces your mental trauma of getting ready in the morning. I, personally wear only black and navy blue trousers, because any shade of shirt goes off well with it. I just have to pick one and move along.
Try & see how do you find it. Once you find improvement in your productivity, we can discuss more on this. Keep watching for this space.
Also, let us know your thoughts on this.