Less is more

[conwy]

For a long time I've been on the lookout for areas in life where less yields more.

Here's a small collection, not in any particular order:

Less food is more healthy. Documented research agrees that calorie restriction is good for health and longevity (assuming one gets adequate nutrition). Less obesity also means a wider range of clothing fits and you generally feel healthier and more alert.

Fewer belongings make moving / travelling easier. If you can pack everything into a few suitcases, or even one bag, imagine how simple moving house is. Also travel is more comfortable because you can take most of what you own with you, so you don't feel like you're missing anything.

Smaller dwelling means less maintenance and more socialisation. Usually cheaper. Also less cleaning, less repair, less rebuilding in case of a disaster. Also if you live in a shared dwelling or in a dense neighbourhood, there are more people to socialise with, or to call upon in an emergency.

Less career aspirations means less stress and more flexibility. Having a high-powered career trajectory might cost you your time, sap your energy, rob you of sleep, put you under stress and limit your location options. Lower-level jobs across many fields tend to be more abundant, yielding more options for living in different cities or abroad.

Lower energy consumption is good for the environment. Using lower powered devices allows us to draw on abundant solar and wind energy. Less energy expenditure also reduces negative externalities, e.g. heat, noise pollution, fumes.

Less car usage is safer and more relaxing. Driving is one of the riskiest things one can do in the modern age. It can also be stressful with unexpected traffic, difficulty finding a park and possibility of breakdown. Public transport, cycling and walking are all usually cheaper, safer and/or more relaxing.

Would you agree/disagree with any of these?
Would you like to add your own?

[loutfard]

Less action often means better action. We've been trained to immediately solve what we perceive as problems, most often by buying a solution. That's not always the best idea. Often, the problem will either go away by doing nothing, or a better/cheaper/durable solution will manifest itself with time.

Sometimes action obviously is required. A leaky roof will not fix itself. Your body won't heal itself from a late-stage cancer either. It pays to learn and trust your intuition on whether a problem requires immediate action or not.

[Frita]

Less action often means better action. We've been trained to immediately solve what we perceive as problems, most often by buying a solution. That's not always the best idea. Often, the problem will either go away by doing nothing, or a better/cheaper/durable solution will manifest itself with time.

Sometimes action obviously is required. A leaky roof will not fix itself. Your body won't heal itself from a late-stage cancer either. It pays to learn and trust your intuition on whether a problem requires immediate action or not.

Yes, sometimes problems are created simply to create solutions with possible secondary gains of power and control, attention, projection/deflection, etc. Interpersonal drama comes to mind.

[Henry]

Would you agree/disagree with any of these?

Not necessarily disagree, but with regard to housing, if you are inclined towards introversion, more people and pressurized socialization blows a gypsy caravan of donkey balls.

[urgud]

This one might be somewhat controversial, but if you never acquire a certain skill, you'll never incur the costs associated with that particular skill and will have to solve the problems arising from not having that skill in a different way (perhaps using your social capital). The obvious example in my mind is driving, but I'm sure it applies to a bunch of other skills as well, with varying degrees of cost/benefit ratios (probably tough to anticipate/solve in advance)

So not just "less is more" but "nothing is something"

[Frita]

This one might be somewhat controversial, but if you never acquire a certain skill, you'll never incur the costs associated with that particular skill and will have to solve the problems arising from not having that skill in a different way (perhaps using your social capital). The obvious example in my mind is driving, but I'm sure it applies to a bunch of other skills as well, with varying degrees of cost/benefit ratios (probably tough to anticipate/solve in advance)

So not just "less is more" but "nothing is something"

This seems to have plenty of applications: partying and all sorts of other pastimes/hobbies.

[conwy]

So not just "less is more" but "nothing is something"

I like this idea. It's a little similar (maybe not quite identical) to the idea of "pick your battles". Some battles simply aren't worth fighting, but are disguised to appear as if they are, generating masses of fools engaging in pointless competition. Stock picking is maybe one example of this, but there are plenty of others...

[ducknald_don]

This one might be somewhat controversial, but if you never acquire a certain skill...

I remember reading that wine connoisseurs get less enjoyment out of drinking wine than the rest of us. It seems for some subjects the more expertise you gain the more faults you can see.

[Lemur]

Lower expectations...less disappointments = more happiness.

https://theodoroutherapy.com/2018/09/16 ... happiness/

[zbigi]

I remember reading that wine connoisseurs get less enjoyment out of drinking wine than the rest of us. It seems for some subjects the more expertise you gain the more faults you can see.

There was also a study of car owner's satisfaction (in the UK), which showed that Skoda owners are most satisfied with their cars. Which shows that satisfaction is just basically reality minus expectations.

[Ego]

So not just "less is more" but "nothing is something"

I need to have peace and silence to concentrate, sleep well and be happy.
I need to have a lot of interaction and socialization to be happy.
I need to have novelty, innovation and change to feel joy.
I need to have rules, structure and order to feel joy.
I need to make logical, reasonable decision.
I need to make decisions that feel right.

We become the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.
The longer we tell a particular story, the stronger the needs become.

[J_]

We become the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.
The longer we tell a particular story, the stronger the needs become.

Ahhh what a nice thought Ego. More is fine, I tell myself. So I need more than one place in which I want to live each year. To have changes to keep life interesting. To live in different social surroundings, in different environments with different possibilities and to do different sports. To meet different friends.

I have learnt to live even such life in a frugal style. In an Ere style almost. Until I tell myself I want to change my need....

[grundomatic]

There is so "much" of everything in the modern, western world that "less is more" goes very far to improving one's life. There is a point of diminishing returns, where less will eventually be less. I was going to make a tiny house joke, but instead I'll address a line from @ego's "fewer inner needs is better". If I get grumpy and pouty because I miss my weekly game night, I probably do need (ha!) a reminder to evaluate what I really need to be happy. However, marooning myself on a deserted island for a decade in order to learn to be happy in solitude is, for me, going too far. It was probably unnecessary to point this out, as most people have a lot of minimizing to do before reaching the point of diminishing returns, but I wanted to put it out there, just in case.

[OutOfTheBlue]

I need to have peace and silence to concentrate, sleep well and be happy.
I need to have a lot of interaction and socialization to be happy.
I need to have novelty, innovation and change to feel joy.
I need to have rules, structure and order to feel joy.
I need to make logical, reasonable decision.
I need to make decisions that feel right.

We become the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.
The longer we tell a particular story, the stronger the needs become.

We become *identified with* the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.
The solution here is not to tell better stories.
It is to let go of story.
The needs will take care of themselves (so to speak)

[Frita]

We become *identified with* the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.
The solution here is not to tell better stories.
It is to let go of story.
The needs will take care of themselves (so to speak)

Yes and two more thoughts:
1) Many “needs” are actually “preferences.”
2) Identifying either, along with emotions and values, can help one to choose a more skillful way (i.e., examine the story without attachment and from alternate viewpoints).

[white belt]

Fewer belongings make moving / travelling easier. If you can pack everything into a few suitcases, or even one bag, imagine how simple moving house is. Also travel is more comfortable because you can take most of what you own with you, so you don't feel like you're missing anything.

Smaller dwelling means less maintenance and more socialisation. Usually cheaper. Also less cleaning, less repair, less rebuilding in case of a disaster. Also if you live in a shared dwelling or in a dense neighbourhood, there are more people to socialise with, or to call upon in an emergency.

Less car usage is safer and more relaxing. Driving is one of the riskiest things one can do in the modern age. It can also be stressful with unexpected traffic, difficulty finding a park and possibility of breakdown. Public transport, cycling and walking are all usually cheaper, safer and/or more relaxing.

I think overall the list is a good starting point for the average western consumer. But here in ERE land, I do have some quibbles about the specific points.

Fewer belongings makes traveling easier but also self-sufficiency much harder. If you DIY everything, you will quickly find you need a lot of tools. Of course, Jacob would say something about a master craftsmen actually needing very few tools, but I will contend that it's impossible obtain expert competency in everything related to maintenance. You're just not going to be a master plumber, electrician, carpenter, auto mechanic, etc even if you do have competency in all of those area, so you are going to need some tools. Yes, I know there are a million ways to remove a stuck oil filter, but at the end of the day I'm just going to save myself a lot of headache by using a regular filter wrench. If you don't have that competency and access to tools/equipment to conduct such maintenance, then it usually means you are outsourcing everything to someone else. See YouTube for a million videos about minimalist van lifers who outsource all of their daily functions so they can show off how unencumbered they are, when rather they are just tethered to a fragile system of gyms, auto mechanics, public grounds, restaurants, libraries, and so on.

I understand the urbanist perspective that shared dwelling/density = more resiliency, but I will counter that in my experience the smallest dwellings are micro-apartments with outsourced maintenance. They are also occupied by transient renters, which leads to very little sense of community. How many urban dwellers actually talk or even know the majority of their neighbors? How many of those neighbors are not just salaryman consumers also outsourcing every aspect of maintenance? Cities are expensive and most people live there to earn higher wages. No one has tools these days; it's easier/faster to just buy a replacement than try to fix something. Compare that to rural residents who likely know their neighbors very well and who also have to be self-sufficient because they can't rely on Mr. Maintenance Man or overnight shipping from Amazon to bail them out of a conundrum. My preferred housing area is somewhere in the middle; streetcar suburbs with density and highish home ownership rates.

I was once a diehard transit/car-free devotee. Your perspective about public transit reveals you probably don't live in the USA. In the major metro areas I've lived that have public transportation, since COVID it's mostly been used as a combination psychiatric ward and homeless shelter. Stations and vehicles smell of urine, public drug use is common, and so on. I would not describe taking it as safer or more relaxing than alternative methods. I think most people would rather sit in a car in traffic listening to their music/podcasts then have to contend with that everyday, and falling ridership metrics show that. Maybe this is just unique to my region but that has been the pattern I've seen in two large USA east coast metro areas known for having good public transit.

[chenda]

My preferred housing area is somewhere in the middle; streetcar suburbs with density and highish home ownership rates.

I was once a diehard transit/car-free devotee. Your perspective about public transit reveals you probably don't live in the USA. In the major metro areas I've lived that have public transportation, since COVID it's mostly been used as a combination psychiatric ward and homeless shelter. Stations and vehicles smell of urine, public drug use is common, and so on.

That's a shame to hear. But I agree, the easiest and more resilient way to live car-free/car-light is to live somewhere where you can walk or cycle to all your amenities. Home ownership and less transient residents does tend to improve the quality of the area.

[conwy]

Not necessarily disagree, but with regard to housing, if you are inclined towards introversion, more people and pressurized socialization blows a gypsy caravan of donkey balls.

Agree, though I noticed quite a number of share house ads these days are stating "prefer quiet people who keep to themselves" or words to that effect; apparently I'm not the only introvert in town.

Australia's rental market unfortunately is saturated with over-sized dwellings. 1-3 bedrooms or unnecessarily large rooms. It's unusual to find my preferred kind of dwelling which is a very tiny studio with built-in kitchenette. They do exist though in inner-city areas and I'm gradually seeing new property companies emerge to try and fill the void, e.g. https://www.livmirvac.com.

Researching area demographics might help. Student or urban touristy areas may feature more forced socialisation, whereas quiet suburban or retiree areas may feature people who value peace & quiet and privacy.

[Henry]

retiree areas may feature people who value peace & quiet and privacy.

You might want to read my upcoming article in the Spring 2024 issue of Elderly Ethnography "Semi-Old Amongst The Really Old: My Life With The Flat Assed" which challenges this assumption.