Choosing Less

February 9, 2010

Choosing less is a daily challenge for everyone, regardless of where we are. We all have a lot of stuff. We all have the same challenge, whether we are living in a city or on the countryside. We are living in a culture that values “More is Better”.

To be honest, I sometimes hesitate about what to do next. Why? On the one hand it is rather tempting to turn my back on everything and start all over again. I am dreaming of a simple life on a sailboat and exploring the world, traveling all over the place or residing on a tropical island, away from civilization. Not the way Tom Hanks lives in Cast Away, but rather a modest beach shack in Samoa or Tonga, like “Big Z” in Surf’s Up.

Palms line Lalomanu Beach in Western Samoa. Photo:lonelyplanetimages.com

On the other hand, it’s probably easier to follow the hurdle and give in to the world of excess. And it’s probably true that a century ago it really was easier to step away from civilization and live in the woods or in some remote location. On top of that, in our modern society, it becomes harder to say “NO!” to all these great restaurants, luxury shops, new cars, gadget hypes, second homes, etc. The need for more is winning more supporters everyday. Even in remote locations they are dreaming of our western lifestyle.

Is it really possible to choose for less and to simplify our lives?

Yes, it is possible! Although I admit I sometimes even like the excess and luxury, it is a conscientious choice to choose less. For me it’s about Living Simply and Less is More. I know we can change in different ways and that one of my goals is to Slow Down. It is also clear to me that choosing less is not about plunging into poverty. What I am really longing for is a better quality of life. Remember, eat the chocolate first :-)

I want to focus more on the fun in life, rather than on being inspired by the “More is Better” way of life. I deliberately choose simplicity and more meaning in life instead. And you know, saying “no” to some of the excess, means saying “yes” to other opportunities that have more and lasting value. Or to put it in the words of John C. Maxwell: “Learn to say ‘no’ to the good, so you can say ‘yes’ to the best”!

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We Change

January 6, 2010

“Things do not change, we change.”

- Henry David Thoreau -

What if I would invite you to a “Walden”-vacation, where you recreate Thoreau’s world famous 19th century retreat? You’d have to survive without your mobile, computer, internet, tv, car, Twitter and to make it worse also without electricity or indoor plumbing (sic!). Of course, you’d be carrying your own luggage, preferably a backpack. The planned excursions include starting a camp fire, sleeping in a tent, enjoying the beautiful scenery around you, getting closer to nature, creating friendships for life, contemplating on your life, setting up an action plan and doing nothing. Also enjoying the silence is an all-time favorite! :-)

Would you sign up? Thoreau did. And he enjoyed it. When I walked my camino to Spain, I enjoyed it too! I came a lot closer to nature those days.

Anyway, all this to tell you that Thoreau longed to simplify his life, free himself from distraction and find more meaning in life. He believed that by changing his environment, he would change something inside of him. A couple of weeks ago I changed my environment also. And it worked! More flow, more results and I started 2010 as a happy camper :-)

As you know, we sold our house and we’ll change our environment again. I am looking forward to it!

So, are you ready to simplify your life? What are your next steps to change your environment?

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Living Simply

December 27, 2009

Almost every day I have a conversation with someone on simplifying our lives. For most people it is very hard to understand that we do not want to continue in this “rat-race”. Of course, we still want a full life, but sometimes it is getting ridiculous. We have tried more and more of everything, only to find that life has not become easier, better or even what we hoped for. We are continuously running from one thing to another. More people, more fun, more money, on and on. We sometimes long for the day that it won’t be so busy. And who’s planning all that? Right, we are!

During these last months Tonia and I had several discussions on where our lives are going. Especially during her walk to Santiago. We came to the conclusion that we are making it too difficult for ourselves. Our lives are too complicated. There must be a simple way to change all that. Where is the Genius Shortcut here? :-)

So, it all changes now! We are committed to simplify our lives. How do we simplify the details that make up our lives? And aren’t those details important? Not anymore…We are thinking in a different kind of abundance now. We are downsizing and reorganizing our lives towards a continuous process of joy, freedom and contribution. To give you one example: with the extra money we are saving on our (new) house, we can travel more, explore more cultures and enroll for extra trainings. We are spending the same amount, but in an optimized way. Another example: some of the extra money we make on our house will be donated to a charity. Third example? While our monthly running costs are downsized, we can easily take another time-out or sabbatical when we feel like it. We no longer need months of savings to cover for us, while we are somewhere else enjoying more.

You see, we are looking at things in a different way now. We are living simply and at the same time achieving more. Less is more!

So, what could you do to simplify your life? Have you thought about that? Now would be a good time :-)

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Less is More!

December 21, 2009

A classical title for my plea to stimulate simplicity.

Life is complex if you want it to. Can we make it simple again? Sure! Just let go of some of your activities and luxurious materialism. Easier said than done? Probably. So, what can you do to make your life simple again? Simply give up more!

To set an example, my wife and I decided to sell our house. We are moving to a smaller house. Of course, we can make a lot of excuses for not doing it. At the same time, we did create a list of what it can and will bring us instead. The most important one for us is freedom! We want to create more freedom, so we can travel more, invest more in personal growth and help more people. By downsizing we can actually save a significant amount extra every month. Of course, we’ll be happy in our new home too! And this doesn’t mean we’ll buy a dump :-)

So, how does it work? Here is a fictitious example :

Value of the house : 300,000 €

Mortgage : 150,000 €

Net : 150,000 €

New House : 180,000 €

New Mortgage : 120,000 €

Own Means : 60,000 € + costs notary, energy documents… 20,000 € = 80,000 €

Net Profit : 70,000 € (=300K – 150K – 80K)

With 70,000 € you can buy yourself quite some freedom :-) And yes, I know, it’s just a fictitious example, just fill it in for your own situation and be amazed how much “extra” freedom you can get by downsizing.

On top of that, if you invest this at a 20%/year rate (ask me how), you’ll double it after 4 years! Of course, you can also spend 10,000 € this year and gain 12K € next year (@ 20%), of which you can spend another 10K € to enjoy your freedom. And you could do this every year. In my world spending 10K € on extra freedom is fantastic! Oh, by the way, you could repeat it yearly. And you might consider giving away 10% to your favourite charity too : 1,200 €! The remaining 800 € will probably cover extra costs, taxes and partially inflation, right?

So, now that I’ve shown you how to do it, what steps are you taking to simplify your life? Sure, it takes courage and it doesn’t have to be the same plan we are executing, but I am sure you can downsize easily too. So, let me know which actions you are taking…

PS : if you are interested in buying our house, have a look at Immoweb (Dutch).

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Coach or Couch?

November 11, 2009

I am a very positive person with lots of enthusiasm. Sometimes I still get moved by the negative influence of others. By writing about it, I am sharing these feelings and I can give them a place. Several wise people told me, why don’t you blog about it…

Too many coaches I have met lately are giving me a less than positive or impressive feeling. It seems most of them are into coaching because they want the ride the wave. Of course, I respect everyone and granted that each coach has his own programme or model to work with. So do I. What surprises me mostly is that the majority of the coaches I have met so far are unhappy themselves! So, how do they expect to help others with this negative state of mind?

On top of that, it seems that most of them are more into a therapy kind of business model where they keep the customer (are they really coachees?) coming back on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. They actually stall the process of improvement for their customers. So, the longer it takes to have them make a couple of steps, the more money they get. Is this really in the best interest of the customer? They don’t think about that. Frankly, they don’t care. To me they are more a “couch” than a “coach”. They want people on their couch rather than really help people towards a happy, fulfilling life! This is where I step up and say “NO”!

I became a life coach, because I am passionate about it, not for the money. I help people create the life of their dreams. This excites me so much that it becomes hard not to do it! People who haven’t seen me in a couple of years really see the difference. I am enjoying a happy life and feel really “lucky”. I went through a massive transformation process myself. It has changed my life. By coaching others towards their goals in life and helping them to get clarity on what they really want or the legacy they want to create, I feel energized and satisfied. It brings me a lot of happiness and it shows…

My point is, if you choose a coach, take some time to see who he/she really is. Are they happy? It’s like love. You can only give it to others if you have lots of it yourself… I am also thanking you for your commitment to really change your life. Working with a coach which is indeed a great step forward. And of course, there are lots of great coaches available for you. Even coaches who work with a “couch”-programme. The question is, what type of coach suits you best? And who will actually take you to your dreams? Choose wisely!

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The Internet knows…

October 19, 2009

What does the Internet know about you?

Great question. Some people just post anything online. Some might regret it later, others not at all. But what is out there about you? I found an interesting website called Personas. It visually represents just how much the internet knows about you in an arty way. How does it work? Just type in your name. Personas will analyze the text of the Google results, breaking your web presence down into various keywords or categories. These include everything from “online” to “books” to “social,” and each one has a color, so each person’s name results in a unique band of colors. Here is mine (click to see full version):

Personas

Of course, if more people have the same name as you (I know at least 3 do!), the results can become a bit blurry (No clue why “military” is in mine). Nevertheless, it is a very colorful overview of who you are on the Internet. On top of that, it shows how smart the web becomes and how far software can go to digitally track you.

So, what’s in it for me? What’s truly me : online, social, professional, media, management, education, news, sports, books, legal… What not? military, genealogy, fashion…

Give Personas a try yourself and see what the web comes up with :-)

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Superwoman

September 30, 2009

Tonia has arrived in Santiago de Compostela! After 2,500km hiking through Belgium, France and Spain she did it! I told you already how proud I am. Having walked the last 800km myself, I know this is a very impressive journey. Tonia grew tremendously during this trip. I walked a merely 300km with her on this trip and saw her growing every day. Tonia, my Superwoman

She got rid of a number of fears. She met these special people along the way. New friendships were born and she enjoyed several miracles. Tonia received these incredible insights and also found her life’s purpose, her legacy. This is all so exciting!

When I return home this weekend, I will have a brand new woman. Not just any woman, but a Superwoman. I need to warn you that the picture you see here is my “old” Tonia, the day she started her walk on the 12th of June. She’ll never be the same again… So, next time you meet her, you’ll see this wonderful glow and energy burst around her :-)

Tonia, again, congratulations! It is official now: I am the happiest person on this planet, especially monday when we’ll finally be reunited again!

Oh, by the way, she is completely in shape, so she decided to go to the end of the world, Finisterre. This is the place where the zero-marker is placed. 0km to go, the edge of the world, the vast ocean in front of you. There she will burn her last remaining fears and some clothing as a final ritual and completion of her journey.Finisterre, Spain, 0km Camino marker She is ready for a brand new start! Watch her…

Here is a detailed map of her journey. I invite you to congratulate her on her blog.

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eDay 2009

September 13, 2009

eDay 2009eDay is a community initiative designed to raise awareness of the benefits of recycling computers and the hazardous nature of electronic waste (e-waste), while offering an easy way for households and schools to dispose of old computers and mobile phones in an environmentally sustainable manner. Through Rotary North Harbour, I commited to contribute and give back to New Zealand by participating as a volunteer for this eDay.

As part of Crew 11, I was in charge of interviewing drivers about their awareness of e-waste issues. Here where my questions :

  • How did you hear about eDay?
  • What is the main reason for bringing your computer waste here today?
  • If there was no eDay, how would you dispose of your computer waste?
  • What other e-waste do you have that you would like to recycle?
  • Would you like to hear about today’s results and eDay updates via email?

Bert Verdonck interviewing on eDayBy giving back to the community and in this case a project that fits rather well with what I do. My public speaking, training and coaching about Genius Shortcuts is mainly focused on using the computer in an easier, more efficient way. So, it makes perfect sense to contribute some of my time to an event like eDay.  Most of you already know that I dedicate about 10% of my time to charities and good causes. Our main project is Go Bananas, which will get a kiwi chapter in the near future…

Although we had rain and quite some wind, lots of people where bringing in their e-waste. These are the results of our eDay : 1,128 cars bringing in 46 tonnes of e-waste! In total 16,391 cars delivered 966 tonnes of e-waste! An awesome result! If you want to know more about e-waste and eDay in particular, I recommend you to visit eDay’s official website.

Oh, did I tell you several famous Kiwis attended this event? One of them was Peter Fox (Olympics – Sailing), who participated at our North Shore City event.

So, what did you do this weekend to contribute?

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GTD with fun

September 2, 2009

“Getting Things Done with Fun”

- Bert Verdonck -

This is definitely another perfect quote for me. GTDWF, Getting Things Done with Fun! What I really mean is that a lot of people are so focused on GTD alone that their life becomes a mechanical process. They might have a “mind like water”, but are they happy? Do they have fun? Some successful GTD-addicts don’t know what to do with their free time? How’s that possible? Why did they start applying GTD in the first place?

So, as a Creator,  I know that I always want to improve things. I am great at starting new things and new projects. And I admit, I am sometimes less of a finsiher. But, I am always looking to have fun! And the fun takes me to some extra steps, sometimes the necessary ones to finish a certain project. Here is my advice : Have fun, always!

It’s up to you to do something with it (or not). And if you’d be looking for ways to improve your life, how would you approach GTD with more fun? What action do you take?

Anyway, have fun in the process, always :-)

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Triplet Challenge?

August 28, 2009

As a creative person, I often come up with new ideas, textbytes and just a lot of fun things. I just realised that triplets play an important role in our life. Take my logo for instance, a great C-triplet: Create, Connect & Contribute. I wrote about these before…although I added a fourth one later on.

Now, I’ve set myself a new challenge :

Create a full alphabet of inspiring triplets!

So, the letter C is covered. What’s next?

E?

“Enlighten, Entertain & Educate”

Enlighten. It might sound logical to everyone I know, but not for me, until today. I was contemplating on yesterday’s event “In Shape for September” (Dutch), when it occured to me that I am really helping people by enlightening them. I show people the light! They are often lost … in the dark, some even unaware of where they are. So, I’ll shine my light and help them to come into the light again, so they really get it. You see, that’s one of my key drivers, the joy I get from people “getting it” and from inspiring them, so they become enlightened.

Entertain is a word that I feel is inspired by Tonia. On a great terrace somewhere in France, when I was visiting her on her camino, I suggested to play a little game. We ask each other alternative questions in series of 3. One of the questions she asked me was : Entertainer or Trainer? Being a fast thinker, I immediately created a new word : entertrainer, but that was avoiding the answer and besides this word already exists. Oh, yes, I chose Trainer. She agreed for the professional part, but among friends she feels like I am bit of an entertainer too. I always make people laugh, especially her (and I love it!:-) ). Yes, it’s about telling jokes or having fun with practical jokes. “Enjoy Every Day” is my motto, remember? And yes, I sometimes “Go Bananas” too! I admit :-) She says that a lot of our friends really like my sense of humor. Ok, I didn’t know that. Thank you! Now, lately, I get the same feedback from most of my trainings, that people not only enjoy it and learn a lot, but also love the fun moments in it (I am not sharing them here, you have to be there to be in the “know”…). I must be doing something right :-)

Educate. Well, I already mentioned this earlier. I want to change the world. I started with myself. By the way, the results are amazing :-) And my life is also about contributing to others. I used to have a lot of criticism about the educational system. Instead of staying in that negative energy, I changed it into a positive drive to help schoolteachers, trainers and other coaches as well. How? By sharing my Genius Shortcuts and by providing faster, more efficient ways of learning. Who would have thought that I’d be in education? I didn’t. Yet, I love it! The great thing is that people actually change for the better. And that’s beautiful, because they pass it on again (and again), so we are all improving the world, one step at a time.

I hope you enjoyed my explanation of the E-triplet. Curious? Yes, I am curious about your feedback on these and of course also about your personal E-triplet. Ready to share it? Please do. You might change someone else’s mind or view on this world too…

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