PRINT-The Power of Less by Leo Babauta

Leo Babauta is the founder of Zen Habits and the author of The Power of Less. Leo is an insanely popular blogger, and I wondered why he became so popular. What do people get out of his writings and advice?

When you read Babauta, the answer becomes clear. Where other personal development types tell you to do more, Leo tells you to do less. The problem isn't that you aren't doing enough. The problem is that you are trying to do too much.

There are only so many hours in a day. You only have so much time, money, and energy. You can be ambitious and lay out all sorts of plans and aspirations. You will be giddy with the excitement of it all. But this is just daydreaming which leads to frustration. The problem isn't a lack of ambition. It is a problem of execution.

Leo's solution is simple. Less is more. You must decide between the things that really matter to you and those those things that don't matter at all. This reduces the frustration you feel over not accomplishing more. The fact is that we have limitations. We need to acknowledge this and move on from daydreams to accomplishments.

Once you know what you want to achieve, the next step is to pick one thing to be your focus. Then, you work on that one thing until it gets done. By taking the slow route, you actually get it done. Habits are easy to change if you focus on one at a time. This is the power of less. By doing less, you will achieve more.

This minimalist path is the antithesis to something you might get from Tony Robbins. Small simple steps yield more than overblown cheerleading and ambition. Leo Babauta is not a superman. He is just a regular guy who quit smoking, took up running, decluttered his life, and got his finances in order.

The Power of Less is Leo's blueprint for making more of your life. There is zero bullshit in this book. I highly recommend it.

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