How to Live An "Organic" Life

Have you ever felt the pressures and expectations of keeping up with today’s latest lifestyle and trends? Yes? Okay, fess up. How many of us have an Apple product in our house? iPod, iPhone, iPad, Mac computer, etc.? I do. I received an iPod from a vendor a few months ago, and it is still sitting in the package on my dresser. Now, some of you might say that it’s a waste for me to not use it right now. I mean, I could download 100’s of songs and listen to them while I go on my daily walk. But, if I did, I could be missing out on something more important than an iPod or iTunes. I could be missing my family and the time we have together.

My daughter is the first one to tell you that, I’m “on my computer all the time.” I post to Facebook, Tweet, share updates on LinkedIn, and can work the social media sites pretty well. But, does all of this really matter in the big scheme of things? Well, listen up. If you are trying to keep up today’s fast pace, you are going to hit a wall. You are going to hit a wall and not know what happened. You will spend hours on Facebook, keeping up with the latest news on what your friends had for breakfast. Then, when you reflect at the end of the day or evening, you will wonder where your time has gone. If you copy and paste what is in the world and put it in your life, your world will become more complicated. Did I hit a chord with anyone yet?

Now, I’m not against technology. I love it and am glad that many things are much easier as a result of the technological changes. So what is a person to do in this attention deficit and information saturated society? It’s easy. The first thing to do is look at a child. Kids don’t really feel the pressures that we do. They are straightforward, simple, and pure. Years ago, food that was grown was pure. It didn’t have all of the chemicals, additives, and preservatives like it does today. While we can by organic, chemical free food in the grocery store, you pay a pretty penny for it. How do live an organic life without paying for what matters to you most?

The second key is to not fall for systems that are too overcomplicated. Sounds easy, but this is hard to do. Here are some more tips:

1. Don’t fall for systems that are too complicated. Some smart phones are more complicated to operate than others. Don’t get flustered over how to work one just because it is the latest and greatest thing on the market. I know that I only scratch the surface of the features that mine has. And, I don’t spend hours on end to learn each and every one of them, too. I know the ones which help me do what I need to do and ignore the rest. Why clutter my life with more useless information if I don’t need it?

2. Do not make commitments that you can’t keep. Don’t pack so much into your schedule that you are overwhelmed with obligations.

3. Make simple, uncomplicated decisions. Sometimes, my husband and I can’t decide on where to eat. We discuss many options, what sounds good to us at the moment, the restaurant deals and specials available, and so forth. But, there are times where we discuss the choices so much that one of us gets frustrated, and the decision is to not eat out at all. Then, the frustrating tone may carry over into the evening because no one is happy. Had we made a simple choice of maybe alternating who decides where we are going to eat or each only suggesting one restaurant rather than looking at a menu of several, the decision would have been less complicated. Make simple decisions to live a more “organic” life.

4. Don’t compromise who you truly are. Know where your heart is. Don’t put on a façade for people. Living a “fake” life not only puts you “on task” 24/7, but also you have to continue to live the lie and act accordingly. Too much drama and brain power is required for this lifestyle. When you are truthful not only to yourself but to others, you feel a sense of peace and clear thinking. Don’t let life take the sweetness and innocence of your youth and turn it into something you aren’t.

The above tips are suggested to get back to living an “organic” life that is pure and uncomplicated. Don’t allow the environment of today to make you into a diluted, hybrid mixture of a person that is stressed, overcommitted, and living a “fake” life. Instead, look at life as if you were a child again, untarnished by the world…straightforward, simple, and pure. When you do, you will receive more pleasure out of life and live “organically”.