Essentialism by Greg McKeown

I started reading Essentialism by Greg McKeown in the middle of December 2016, finishing it just before the middle of January 2017. So it coincided with me working on my annual goals for Crumbs and my own personal goals. It was only by chance that reading the book and goal setting coincided, however I’m so glad it happened that way.

I was starting to feel overwhelmed with all that I wanted to accomplish. It seemed I was working so hard daily, even on weekends, without accomplishing all that I had planned. I thought that since I manage my time well, I should be able to accomplish it all. But that wasn’t the case. Everything was a priority…but everything can’t be a priority. As McKeown explains in his book, the word priority came into the English language in the 1400s as a singular word, meaning the very first thing. Only more recently in the 19th century did it become plural.

I realized as I read through the book that if I focus on my many ‘priorities’ that either they will not be done well, or won’t be done at all. What’s the solution? Something has to be removed. Even if it might seem as a ‘good’ goal or task….but it’s standing in the way of something better. McKeown rightly quotes Jim Collins from his book Good to Great “Good is the enemy of great”. By trying to do all that I deem to be good, I’m not going what might be great. One of the books main take-aways for me, was doing less, but doing it better.

One of the Essentialist traits the book emphasizes is the ability to make choices for ourselves. This is one of the traits I don’t find I have a problem with, probably because I grew up with my mom always reminding me to replace any sentence that started with “I have to…” with “I chose to…” If you are the type of person that has difficult saying no, you will benefit a lot from reading this book.

Another Essentialist trait is taking time away to evaluate your life. Time to evaluate the vital tasks from the rest, and to remain focused on what’s important. I find that journalling helps me a lot in staying on track. Someone with a busy life might think “Who has time to journal?” But in fact journaling can help in saving you time in the long-run by staying focused on your priorities…or ‘priority’.

So one of my goals for 2017 is to cut out the trivial things from my thinking and daily routine. One very simple thing is grocery delivery. It might seem simple right? But I’m the type that loves grocery shopping! Most foodies enjoy it too. But now I’ve started getting used it, and can use that time for something more productive and fulfilling. Material possessions is another big one! More stuff clutters your life and lessens productivity. Just think of how much longer it takes to find a piece of clothing when it’s hidden in a closet so full it’s about to burst? Or a kitchen tool that’s lost among the many many others?

I highly recommend this book! If you are having trouble identifying your life’s priorities, or you never have enough time, or you are too busy without being productive, then you will benefit so much from reading Essentialism.