Inspired Essentialism is about helping us discover what is most important to us in order to live more intentional lives. Personality typology is a theme I touch on often because it’s such a useful tool for each of us as individuals to narrow down our purpose. These systems give us a framework for analyzing our motivations and gaining the self-knowledge required to sort out what’s important to us versus what others have told us is important. The Enneagram is one of those tools. I’ve written about the Enneagram types through the lens of minimalism and essentialism before. But you may be wondering what books about the enneagram you should read to learn more. To summarize, the Enneagram describes nine personality types, each based on a core fear and…
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So, you want to live a more intentional life? Your first baby step is to journal. Journaling can be a powerful tool for self-reflection. Setting aside dedicated time to ponder a question and write out your answer can lead to some fascinating discoveries. If you already have a journaling habit, you know that your answer to a prompt can really surprise you! I crafted the self-reflection journal prompts below to address questions we all need to ask, but most of us avoid. I’ve written before about the importance of sorting your top priorities from lower-value activities you spend time and energy on. That sounds simple, but it’s no easy task. Many of your “fluff” activities are valuable and enjoyable in their own ways. It’s nonetheless…
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I’ve shared plenty of tips here for how to declutter your physical space. Most of us have experienced a cluttered home. Things piled up in our living space because we didn’t take time to decide what is worth keeping. This series on the Enneagram offers similar advice for our minds. Each Enneagram type tends to hoard unique “psychic clutter” – unhelpful beliefs and habits that hold us back. For more context, see the introduction to my first post about the Enneagram 1. Here, we’ll focus on the Enneagram 7. How can personality typology help us with mental decluttering? Well, systems like the Enneagram and MBTI help us identify destructive patterns that tend to go together. Identifying your personality type doesn’t tell you everything about who you are. But it can show you some common pitfalls to…
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Are you a mom to young children and feeling some mom burnout? I would honestly be surprised if the answer were an unequivocal “no.” In researching this post, I even found out there’s a medical term called “Depleted Mother Syndrome.” There are so many reasons moms feel burnt out that I can’t get into them all here. But the Cleveland Clinic page linked above and this article from Prevention are great places to look for more information about how you got to this point. What I found lacking in those sources, and similar ones, is suggestions for how to turn things around. Some tips are helpful, but most are not…
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Have you tried all the traditional productivity tips to get more done each day? Are you often rushing to complete tasks and disappointed in your progress no matter how much you accomplish? There’s a simple reason for that (but one you won’t want to hear): your expectations for time management and productivity are too optimistic. If you’re in the time optimist club, you’re in good company – most people are unable to accurately estimate how much time and energy various activities take. There is good news, though – there’s a simple solution for time optimism: realistic time management. I introduced this topic in a previous post. I define realistic time…
