a.SIMPLE.LIFE
Howzit guys!
So, we finally have somewhere to stay!! Huge relief to me and the family!! In the end things turned out pretty well. Completely unexpected, but better in the end.
My mom’s adage of things always happening for a reason was true again. We landed up finding an amazing fully furnished house in Erinvale which is a beautiful golf estate right at the foot of the Helderberg mountains…oh and there is a golf course there too!! Not to mention right next door to one of my favourite Padel courts in Lourensford Wine Estate!!😊
We do not need to pack and unpack twice and can just put all out stuff into a storage facility until our new house is ready! The house has a very cool holiday vibe to it, and I am seeing this as a 5-month holiday where I can sort out all the various challenges and focus on getting the new house in Gordon’s Bay sorted and finalised, properly…
So, this weekend we are packing boxes…but we are excited to be moving into a more beautiful part of Somerset West! We are also getting to throw away and donate some of our JHB stuff that we do not really need anymore.
My goal in life has always been to live a simple life.
But what does that mean?
Simple to me is hugely different to someone else.
How you define simple is the key, I think.
For me, a simple life is to be happy and want for nothing. Be happy with what I have but at the same time know what it is that makes me happy.
Happiness for me is health, both mental and physical. Happiness is creating memories and sharing experiences with my family.
Keeping things simple is the challenge though.
We always want more, or push for a bit extra…
That is when things start going off track and we start complicating our lives…
How do we know when enough is enough?
This is probably the most important question, ever!
If we know what is enough, for us, then we will know how to deal with that.
Since Covid19 my biggest challenge facing my happiness and a simple life was finances. During the pandemic, the stress of no money was a brutal reality of how much we rely on money. Now, I am not saying that this is wrong, but we sometimes place too much pressure on ourselves, and our finances trying to live a life that is not right for us.
It is a big balancing act between what we want and what we need?? We instill these values in our kids when they are small, but its relevant throughout our lives.
Keeping up with the Jones’s is another huge challenge that we all face. Looking at what others have and comparing our lives to theirs! This is the worst thing we can do…
Social media and Facebook do not help either – people posting all their happy moments only, can be very misleading! We see other people travelling the world and doing things we would love to do ourselves and this puts pressure on us to emulate their lives. We then feel like there is something wrong with our lives.
Be sure you know what you need to be happy and lead a simple life.
I know someone here in the Cape that lives a very simple life. He sold his business and used the money to buy two houses. He rents out the one house and sub-lets the one he lives in. He also invested in a Paintball business that only operates over the weekend and these cover all his expenses and allow him to take the week off!
He does not have kids or a family, so it is a bit different, but my point is that he has managed to setup a life that is super simple. He has enough money to survive and cover his needs while having lots of quality to live! He has balanced his wants and his needs…
My situation is different to his obviously, but I still want to balance out my wants and needs…
Having moved to the Cape I have had the opportunity to re-evaluate the priorities in my life. In JHB I was working to get a salary and in my case some dividends as well. I felt like I got stuck in the process and could not break the cycle.
Once again, things happened for a reason, and I was able to get out of my situation and get the opportunity to make it better. I guess that is why it is so important for me to get it right, for me.
I have changed how I work and do business now and have a few income streams instead of one. It's still stressful but I have these in place so that I can focus on what makes me happy and what will bring me a simple life.
I also think, me being a very humble person helps me to see what the basic requirements are for a simple life. Also, age has taught me a lot too and I now see the world very differently than when I was younger. I want to create meaningful relationships with the right people and appreciate the smaller things in life. I want to work in-between living my life rather than the other way around. We often land up doing so well in business but the stress and demand that comes with it can rob us of these precious moments.
It's such a tough thing to balance and I do not have the answers but all I can say is that we need to KEEP IT SIMPLE.
UNBUSY your life.
Have an awesome week everyone and I will see you on the other side!
Later,
Joe.blogs
