On the advice of our client, Gary Klaben
of Chicago-based Coyle Financial Counsel, I picked up a copy of Matthew May’s The Laws of Subtraction. I
was trying to squeeze in a little R&R in the deep woods of western Michigan
where my wife’s family maintains a fishing cottage about 7 miles and several
dirt roads from the heart of one of the 10 poorest counties in the U.S. It’s on
the banks of a renowned fly-fishing and salmon-fishing river, but Internet
access and cell service is spotty.
For Type
A’s like myself, it can be maddening to be unplugged from the grid, and also
very difficult to find a gym, swimming pool or reliable paved road to work off
your excess energy. At first I tried to fight the swift flowing river, but you
just can’t swim, paddle or fly cast upstream for long before you eventually run
out of energy and start sliding backwards. You also realize that your body is
naturally conserving energy for your return to the frenetic world back
home—just like your brain is.
Waking
up at the crack of 10 am (we’re in the far, far western edge of the eastern time
zone), you also realize how information-overloaded we are the rest of the year.
As Matthew May would say, we’re caught up in “the age of the excess of
everything.”
According to May, you need to start removing all the “excessive, confusing, wasteful, unnatural, hazardous, hard to use, or ugly” things that cloud our decision-making process. We don’t need more premium, bonus or enhanced features—WE NEED LESS!
Our take? Start cutting back on email and text messaging every day and then try a 24-hour technology fast every week or at least limit your email/texting time to 3 intervals per day. Then start eliminating non-essential meetings, conference calls, commuting, air travel, HR trainings and other time-sucks. Then eliminate all the planning and confirmations needed to schedule the aforementioned. Guess what? All of a sudden you can think.
According to May, you need to start removing all the “excessive, confusing, wasteful, unnatural, hazardous, hard to use, or ugly” things that cloud our decision-making process. We don’t need more premium, bonus or enhanced features—WE NEED LESS!
Our take? Start cutting back on email and text messaging every day and then try a 24-hour technology fast every week or at least limit your email/texting time to 3 intervals per day. Then start eliminating non-essential meetings, conference calls, commuting, air travel, HR trainings and other time-sucks. Then eliminate all the planning and confirmations needed to schedule the aforementioned. Guess what? All of a sudden you can think.
Laws of subtraction in sports
If you’ve been following the Olympics, you see the laws of subtraction at work. Believe it or not, it’s actually safer for boxers NOT to wear headgear because researchers found that head guards create a bigger target for boxers, who in turn attempt more head blows. Experts say head gear also gives boxers a false sense of security. Still not convinced? Well several studies, including one commissioned by the International Boxing Association, (IBA) found that the number of acute brain injuries declined when head guards were not used. And the IBA found that the number of times a fight was stopped because of one boxer receiving repeated head blows fell 43 percent in bouts without head guards compared with fights with head guards.
If you
follow bicycle racing, you’ll also notice that the elite riders—who sometimes
pedal over 100 miles per day—ride in Spartan saddles with holes or deep slits in
the middle. You’d think that with all that riding they’d want seats with extra
padding, but it turns out that minimalist seatsdo more for rider comfort than
heavy padding does and reduce the risk of prostate and sterility
issues.
How about the backyard trampoline? We’ve always had one in the back yard and never bothered with protective netting around it (sorry homeowners insurance). Without a net, kids are less likely to take excessive risks and less likely to get the elbows, ankles or new braces caught up in it.
How about the backyard trampoline? We’ve always had one in the back yard and never bothered with protective netting around it (sorry homeowners insurance). Without a net, kids are less likely to take excessive risks and less likely to get the elbows, ankles or new braces caught up in it.
Not to be a spoiler, May offers 6 laws for eliminating mental clutter and
simplifying your life:
Law #1: What Isn't There Can Often
Trump What Is
Law #2: The Simplest Rules Create the Most Effective Experience
Law #3: Limiting Information Engages the Imagination
Law #4: Creativity Thrives Under Intelligent Constraints
Law #5: Break Is the Important Part of Breakthrough
Law #6: Doing Something Isn't Always Better Than Doing Nothing
It’s a quick and easy read if you can find the time. If you can’t find the time, we suggest you make the time to do so. As regular readers of this blog know, we recommend getting started on your New Year’s resolutions around Thanksgiving time. By the same token, August is the new September. Don’t wait until after Labor Day to start getting focused for Q4.
Law #2: The Simplest Rules Create the Most Effective Experience
Law #3: Limiting Information Engages the Imagination
Law #4: Creativity Thrives Under Intelligent Constraints
Law #5: Break Is the Important Part of Breakthrough
Law #6: Doing Something Isn't Always Better Than Doing Nothing
It’s a quick and easy read if you can find the time. If you can’t find the time, we suggest you make the time to do so. As regular readers of this blog know, we recommend getting started on your New Year’s resolutions around Thanksgiving time. By the same token, August is the new September. Don’t wait until after Labor Day to start getting focused for Q4.
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