Much of the world we live in is made up of the idea more is better. Go to the grocery store and 3 options of flavor have become 72 options. Stand in the coffee line to try to sort out the 47 flavors that could be added to your coffee. Buy a squishy for your kid and now select between a million different shapes, colors, designs, etc (anyone else’s kids squishy obsessed?).
The concept of more certainly can have a good place in our world. More ways to help our kids. More ways to travel and experience the world. More ways to create a better financial future. More has a place but not in all aspects of our lives.
As time continues to fly by, I’ve found myself searching more often for the subtraction button. Is it a sign of me getting older? Maybe. But I think there’s also the perspective that I’ve lived enough years where right now I know where I want to invest my time and energy. By default, I know where I don’t want to spend my time and energy and this is where the subtraction button is becoming my good friend.
Drama on social media – subtract.
Engaging with negative conversations that are just intended to pull people down – subtract.
More meetings for the sake of more meetings – subtract.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of more. I find myself trapped plenty. Am I giving my kids enough to grow in school, sports, or other interests they have? Am I doing enough different things at work to keep building my career? Am I doing enough to keep my health and wellness journey moving in the direction I want?
There’s no simple answer to any of these questions. It will always be fluid. And while any of the areas we prioritize are areas we deserve to push ourselves to see how much we can grow, it’s not simply about doing more. It’s about channeling your limited time and energy into the more that aligns with how you want to continue to grow. The stuff that doesn’t align with how you authentically want to grow – hit that subtraction button.
Feeling like we must have our kids involved in everything offered under the sun to keep up is a big difference from giving our kids opportunities to push themselves in an amount that also allows them to just be a kid. Subtract the excess.
Continuing to connect with co-workers that find the negative in each situation or those that want to pull you to mediocrity because that’s where they’re comfortable with may not deserve your time and energy. It may sound a little harsh, but the negative influence needs to have the subtraction button hit.
Health and wellness journey is a great example where more has taken over. Everywhere we go for food there’s bulk items we can buy, a million different supplements that are supposed to change your life, and processed foods that have 99 ingredients. While marketing has become extremely influential, more isn’t necessarily better. Sometimes the keep it simple method is the best method for our health and wellness journey and that subtraction button can be hit again.
Whether it’s social media, walking into a store, searching online, or wherever else your attention shifts, more will be a common theme. More has its place in our world of continuing to grow. But the more needs to align with where we’re authentically wanting to grow.
Too often the more is just more and doesn’t serve a purpose for us. When you find the more doesn’t align with authentically how you want to grow, hit the subtraction button. Remove the excess that’s consuming your time and energy that you could be using towards your priorities. Let subtraction be an answer to help you solve how to channel more energy to where your passions are.
“To attain knowledge add things everyday. To attain wisdom subtract things everyday.” – Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu
Take your step: reflect on today and search for areas of your day where the idea of more didn’t align with how you wanted to use your time and energy. Was it a conversation with someone that typically brings you down? Was it excessive social media? Pick just one or two moments to learn from and adjust tomorrow to minimize the “more” that’s consuming you to shift your time and energy to your priorities.