The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials.

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Clearly define what matters most to you and your work.</li></ul><ol><li class="ql-align-justify">What are you passionate about?</li><li class="ql-align-justify">What meets a significant need in the world?</li><li class="ql-align-justify">What can you get paid to do?</li></ol><ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Where these three circles intersect would be a good place to start to search for your purpose. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Use your purpose to guide your decision-making ("Make one decision to eliminate 1000 later decisions").</li></ul>

Clarity of Purpose

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Thinks: All things to all people Vs. Less but better</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Does: The undisciplined pursuit of more Vs. The disciplined pursuit of less</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Gets: Lives a life that does not satisfy Vs. Lives a life that matters</li></ul>

The Model: Nonessentialist Vs. Essentialist

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Eliminate Distractions: Both physical and digital, to focus on what matters.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Design Routines: Establish habits that reinforce your commitment to essential tasks.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Make Time for Reflection: Regularly reassess your priorities to ensure alignment with your goals. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Be Intentional: Live deliberately, with every decision aligned to your essential purpose. </li></ul>

Execute (1/2)

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Politely decline non-essential tasks and opportunities that don't align with your goals. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">"No more yes. It's either Hell Yeah or NO!" - Derek Sivers</li><li class="ql-align-justify">90%-rule: Give each option in your life a score between 0 and 100. Everything below 90 gets rejected -> NO</li><li class="ql-align-justify">The Essentialist dares to say no firmly, resolutely, and gracefully. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">They say yes only to the things that matter. </li></ul>

Say No Gracefully

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Invest in What Matters: Allocate your resources - time, energy, money - toward activities with the highest payoff. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Build a Supportive Environment: Surround yourself with people and tools that foster focus. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Learn to Let Go: Release commitments and expectations that no longer serve your purpose. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Commit to Continous Improvement: Regularly refine your approach to maintain focus on what's truly essential. </li></ul>

Execute (2/2)

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Protect your time and energy by creating limits on commitments. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Make a list of personal and professional dealbreakers. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">The essentialist sees boundaries as liberating.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">They set rules in advance to eliminate the need for a direct "NO!". </li></ul>

Set Boundaries

Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Identify and pursue only the most important goals.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">"You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything." - John Maxwell</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Certain efforts produce exponentially better results than others. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">The Essentialist thinks almost everything is nonessential.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">They distinguish the vital few from the trivial many. </li></ul>

Focus on the vital few

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Understand that choosing one path means forgoing others</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Saying yes to any opportunity requires, by definition, saying no to several others.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">"The essentialist asks: What is the trade-off I want to make?"</li><li class="ql-align-justify">"What can I go big on?" </li></ul>

Embrace Trade-offs

<ol><li class="ql-align-justify">Essence: The core mindset of an essentialist</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Explore: Discern the trivial many from the vital few</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Eliminate: Cut out the trivial many</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Execute: Making execution of the essential few effortless</li></ol>

Overview

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Develop the ability to choose in every area of your life. </li><li class="ql-align-justify">Make use of the Pareto Principle (80/20-rule). </li><li class="ql-align-justify">"The ability to choose cannot be taken away or even given away - it can only be forgotten."</li></ul>

The invincible power of choice

If you don't prioritize your life, someone else will.

A really great book that depicts how to makes important tasks nearly effortless by eliminating the non-essential and gaining a new focus through all the noise around us. 

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • More than one million copies sold! Essentialism isn’t about getting more done in less time. It’s about getting only the right things done.   Featuring the new Essentialism 21-Day Challenge • “A timely, essential read for anyone who feels overcommitted, overloaded, or overworked.”—Adam Grant   Have you ever: • found yourself stretched too thin? • simultaneously felt overworked and underutilized? • felt busy but not productive? • felt like your time is constantly being hijacked by other people’s agendas?   If you answered yes to any of these, the way out is the Way of the Essentialist.    Essentialism is more than a time-management strategy or a productivity technique. It is a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely essential, then eliminating everything that is not, so we can make the highest possible contribution toward the things that really matter.   By forcing us to apply more selective criteria for what is Essential, the disciplined pursuit of less empowers us to reclaim control of our own choices about where to spend our precious time and energy—instead of giving others the implicit permission to choose for us.   Essentialism is not one more thing—it’s a whole new way of doing everything. It’s about doing less, but better, in every area of our lives. Essentialism is a movement whose time has come.

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Greg McKeown is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Greg McKeown has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Greg McKeown's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

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