6 Ways to Streamline Your Life and Gain More Clarity

The following is adapted from The Self Help Book by Jared Graybeal.

It feels like every time I ask someone how they’re doing, the word “busy” comes up in the first few sentences. As our world continues to grow louder, faster, and more connected, it’s easy to allow the chaos to rule our everyday lives.

With almost everything available at the touch of our fingers, and so much stimulation all around us, it is easy to get and stay distracted. Most of us are distracted in our lives right now but have grown so comfortable with this new normal that we don’t even realize it. 

When things begin to get jumbled around in my mind, it feels like I am walking around with one of those balls full of rubber bands in my brain. Whether it’s projects, work stuff, hobbies, plans, or responsibilities, they all seem to get mixed in with each other and begin to decrease my effectiveness, which is counterintuitive to a life of consistent growth. 

That’s when I know that I need to take a step back and audit my current lifestyle. One of the best ways to stretch yourself is by intentionally gaining clarity. Here are a few ways to get started.

Tip #1: Consistently communicate.

Unfortunately, in school we are taught all sorts of subjects, from math to writing to science, but no curriculum or practical teaching is developed around the importance of communication. Whether you’re a leader, pastor, manager, advertiser, salesperson, or even just a spouse, the inability to communicate well will cripple your potential. 

Improving your communication can be as simple as using simple, straightforward, and understandable language for the audience or the person you’re speaking to. If you’re interested in learning more, there are plenty of classes, books, podcasts, and TED talks out there to help you gain clearer communication skills. 

Tip #2: Start fasting. 

If you practice organized religion, you’ll be familiar with this concept in a slightly different context. But for the same reasons why religious people fast in order to gain clarity and become closer to their creator, fasting from distractions can help you clear your mind and gain more control of your thoughts in order to grow. 

Whatever distracts you might be different than what distracts the next person, but it could be anything from social media to Netflix to binge eating.

For example, try to take a day or two a week off of social media or television, and see how much more productive and clear your days can be.

Tip #3: Create a “to-don’t” list. 

Over time, we accumulate roles, responsibilities, and habits that we simply don’t need to be doing anymore. Also, it’s possible that there are hobbies, habits, and friendships that may not be conducive to the future you’ve envisioned for yourself. 

At the end of each month or beginning of each new month, take one to two hours to sit, reflect, and document the things that have added up in your day-to-day. Once you’ve established a few, add them to your to-don’t list.

For those things that are holding you back from becoming the leader you were born to be, they need to be eliminated, and only you know what or who they are.

Tip #4: Eat better. 

Yes, I’m a fitness guy, so of course I’m going to bring up eating healthy, but there’s more to it than that. Countless studies have shown how eating excess amounts of processed foods, saturated fats, and simple sugars can negatively affect our cognition and ability to focus. 

By eating a diet rich in whole foods, vitamins, and minerals, you are empowering your brain and body to grow and, in turn, become smarter and stronger. Oftentimes, our grogginess could have much more to do with our diet than needing another coffee. 

Tip #5: Learn to say, “No.” 

Some of us waste too much time and energy doing things we don’t enjoy or things that don’t add value simply because we don’t know how to politely decline our friends, family, and coworkers when they invite us to things or ask us to do things. In turn, it becomes difficult to maintain a relative level of clarity in life. Your vision for your future gets skewed, and you become too “busy” to really make any progress. 

Never feel obligated to others’ time (unless it’s a spouse or superior when at work, duh). You have the right to prioritize yourself, and if you are overly apologetic about saying no, it will either seem ingenuine or that it’s possible you can be convinced otherwise. 

Tip #6: Find time to be alone. 

This one is unusually hard for a lot of people. Humans crave community. Even introverts like to hang out with introverts. But sometimes we are compensating for our discomfort with loneliness by always surrounding ourselves with people. This is most people’s unconscious way of never getting to know themselves, and never being able to sit with their thoughts. Whether it’s taking a two-day trip by yourself to the woods, the mountains, the beach, or even a nearby staycation, or something as simple as going on a long walk with no music, getting alone consistently will stretch your ability to gain clarity in your life and grow as a leader. 

I suggest making a habit out of it in small increments daily or weekly, so you rarely get to the point where you feel like you absolutely need to get away or just drop everything, because that isn’t always a possible scenario depending on your work or family situation. 

Clarity will give you the space to grow. 

Now that we’ve gone over those, it’s time to take a deep breath. Are you feeling overwhelmed? Chances are, reading another list of “6 Tips to Simplify Your Life” could actually make you feel more stressed out than it did before. 

That’s exactly what we’re trying to avoid. I say all of this to remind you that you are allowed to take steps to slow down, breathe deep, and create the kind of life you want to live. Without making space for clarity, we often end up in relationships, careers, and even lifestyles that don’t align with who we are or who we want to become.

Whatever it looks like for you to gain clarity, remember that you are at the driver’s seat of your own life, and it’s okay to ease up on the gas a little. 

For more advice on simpler living, you can find The Self Help Book on Amazon.

My mission is to encourage, educate, and empower others to live happier, healthier lives. I am a NASM-certified personal trainer, fitness nutrition specialist, behavioral change specialist, CrossFit Level 2 trainer, and corrective exercise specialist with an education in marketing and psychology from the University of North Florida. I own and operate two companies. One is Superfit Foods, a healthy, subscription-based, fully customizable meal prep company. The other is E3, a business consulting and marketing agency. I’ve done a few cool things, like exhibiting Superfit Foods at Forbes Under 30 and giving a TEDx Talk on nutrition and mental health, and every day I get to work hard at doing what I love.