Own Less, Do Less, and Say No (Part 1 of 3)

The following is an excerpt from my book "7 Maxims of Time Management" and addresses the first component of Maxim #1: Simplify.

Maxim #1: Simplify

“Own less, do less, and say no.” – Geoffrey Beene

This is one of my favorite time management quotes because we are so often guilty of (1) living and/or working in clutter, (2) attempting to squeeze too much into each day or doing too many things simultaneously, and/or (3) allowing the use of our time to be dictated by others.

Own less

Earlier, in the section on "Root Causes of 'Time Management' Problems," the first reason listed was “Failure to organize around priorities.” Organization has two components. One that we’ll discuss in Maxim 6 centers on structure and schedules in managing tasks. The other involves the foundational principles of simplification and organization in managing things, the subject of Maxims 1 and 2.

Simplification involves “stuff” and activities. Own less stuff. Do less in the way of activities…do this proactively by prioritizing activities you elect to do and saying no to activities that others attempt to impose on you that may be a priority to them but not to you.

Own less. Complexity and clutter create subconscious mental stress that is distracting at best and debilitating (e.g., hoarding) at worst…AND you have to dust it all which is also a time waster! In the spirit of “You can’t see the forest for the trees,” dealing daily with complexity and clutter distract you from seeing, much less accomplishing, your priorities.

Is clutter a problem for you? Do you have kitchen drawers that are sometimes hard to open because they’re full of utensils you rarely, if ever, use? Do you ever have to search an office desk drawer to find a pen that works? Does it seem like every flat surface in your home or workplace is covered in everything from stacks of paper to cute figurines?

IF clutter is problematic for you, start your quest for gaining control by reducing the clutter – drawer by drawer, table by table, closet by closet, room by room – then organize what’s left as described in Maxim 2.

How important are ‘things’ to you? I’ve often written that, “He is not wealthy who has much, but who wants little.” I thought I had coined that phrase until I discovered that some old dead guy said:

“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” – Epictetus

The “7 Maxims of Time Management” is available on Amazon. As an added bonus, the ebook includes a link to download a free PDF copy of "QuoteNotes: The Ultimate Quotational Reference System and Authoring Tool for Professional Speakers and Writers."

To read all three parts of this article:

Part 1: Own Less

Part 2: Do Less

Part 3: Say “No”