One Simple Way to Regain Some Simplicity

With the start of every New Year, I’m always evaluating what in my life needs to stay and what needs to go in order to find simplicity. Just like a house gathers unneeded stuff over time, so do I. Before long, I feel weighed down and frustrated. I find myself simply going through the motions of all my obligations. The obligations don’t even have to involve another person. I can easily be tied to my own internal expectations. This past year, I didn’t even make it to the dropping of the New Year’s ball before that sense of being ineffective and weighed down overtook me. I made some adjustments earlier in the year, but it might be worth your sanity to join me on my newest decision.Here’s my plan: For 2016, I’m committing to limit my texting to the hours between 8am and 8pm. Over time, I found myself communicating later and later each night and earlier each morning. I’d rarely call someone at 10:45pm, but sending a quick text here and there as I was laying in bed became all too common. This morning, I rolled over to find a text that was sent to me at 6:50am. It was nothing critical. Likely, it was just a convenient time to communicate. I’ve been there a thousand times. Yet I must admit that a certain amount of stress greets me when a text beats my alarm clock… or worse yet, wakes me up on that one day I get to sleep. Recently, I was that text to a friend. Yikes![bctt tweet="A certain amount of stress greets me when a text beats my alarm clock."]A few weeks ago, Chris and I interviewed Mick Ukleja – an expert on millennials. (Go here to check out all the Lead Like Jesus podcasts. Our chat with Mick will air this spring.) He made an interesting observation. He pointed out that instead of work-life balance, this generation has work blending. With technology always at our disposal and more flexible work environments than previous generations, I see this to be an accurate description.Like most things, this has an upside and a downside. There are times when I need to spend the afternoon helping my son or daughter, so my workload shifts to after business hours. I get that. When those circumstances occur for me this year, I’m going to attempt to revert to an old fashioned email. Certainly, we all have different schedules. A rush of emails from Karin may occasionally come late at night or in the early morning hours… but somehow it beckons less of a personal interruption to someone’s family time than a text.Will I always be able to stay within those boundaries? No. My Monday morning walking partner longs for the day I touch base with her before Monday morning, but I don’t make any promises. I'll undoubtedly have occasions that necessitate later texting, but what can wait in 2016 will wait.[bctt tweet="Adults are sometimes as bad as teens about being stuck to their phones."]Adults are sometimes as bad as teens about being stuck to their phones. Perhaps this will provide for a little better blend and a sense of actually being present when we're home. If you try it, let me know.Any other new ways of life you’re implementing for 2016? I would love to hear some...