We make ourselves rich by making our wants few.  Henry David Thoreau, American writer

Most of us consume much more than what we need, whether it may be food, clothes, shelter, etc.  We buy more house than we use, eat more food than our bodies can handle, resulting in obesity and other types of diseases, and we generate so much waste which produce tons of trash that are overflowing our landfills.

 

If you are a “consumptionist” ( a term I like to use) the one thing you can do now is simplify your life.  To do this, you must achieve a clear understanding of your needs, not your wants.  Understanding your needs will help you choose things that are important for your survival and happines, not for your ego or for the status quo.  Get started on living a simplier life by eliminating 2 or 3 things from your life that you don’t need.  This could be clothes that you haven’t worn in years, monthly pedicures, 2 cups of coffee that you drink to keep you awake, or what about that 5 bedroom house you purchased for your wife and one child? Eliminating the extras will also help you to reduce your expenses, a benefit in today’s recessive economy.

 

Living simplier changes your life.  You will not only know what’s really meaningful and important to you, but it frees you from society’s definition of what’s important in life.  When you choose to live a simplier life, the Universe will always send you exactly what you need and when you need it. But what you must realize is that what you need may not always be what you thought you wanted. Don’t reject what the Universe sends you, thinking that something better is supposed to be on the way. Live everyday with a sense of gratitude for your blessings, and yes, even what you think are curses.