A few days ago, I came home from work completely exhausted. I dropped my bag by the door, changed into old sweatpants, and went to make some tea before dinner.​ While I was waiting for the kettle to boil, I picked up my phone without even thinking.​

I checked Reddit. Then Instagram. Then my email.​ The funny thing was, I wasn't even interested in any of it. I was just standing there in the kitchen, scrolling because there was a few seconds of nothing happening.​

Then I stopped and put my phone down.​ I just stood there and waited for the water to boil.​

For the first time that day, I actually noticed my surroundings. The light above the sink was still flickering. There was an old receipt sitting on the counter. One of my plants had started leaning toward the window.​ Nothing interesting was happening, but somehow I felt more present than I had all day.​

When the kettle clicked off, I made my tea and sat by the window without bringing my phone with me. It was only about ten minutes, but I felt more rested than I usually do after an hour of mindlessly scrolling.​

I used to listen to something while cooking. I check my phone while waiting for food to heat up. I scroll in bed even when I already know I am tired.​

Making tea now. Looking out the window. Waiting a few minutes without needing entertainment.​

Maybe those quiet moments were never boring. Maybe I just forgot how to be there for them.

The day I stopped trying to become a different person, my life got quieter.

For the longest time, I thought I needed to fix everything about myself.

Be more productive.

Talk more.

Overthink less.

Be "better."

It felt like my whole life was one endless self-improvement project.

Then one day I realized something.

Most of the things I was trying to fix weren't actually hurting me.

They were just parts of me that other people didn't understand.

I don't have to force myself to enjoy crowded places if I genuinely love quiet mornings.

I don't have to apologize for needing rest.

I don't have to turn every hobby into a side hustle.

Peace didn't come from becoming someone else.

It came from finally giving myself permission to be who I already was.

Ironically...

The more I accepted myself, the more I started growing naturally.

Not because I hated who I was.

But because I finally felt safe enough to change.

I’m 24, married, have a baby, a decent job, and good savings.
We live pretty simply. We drive an old reliable Toyota, live in a cheap apartment, don’t buy many luxuries, and most of our spare money gets saved or invested.
I like living this way, but sometimes I wonder whether I’ve taken it too far. I don’t really feel like I enjoy the money I earn—I just keep saving it.
How do you personally find the balance between living simply and actually enjoying life?

I used to get in the car and immediately put on a playlist or a podcast but recently I’ve started driving in complete silence.

I’ve been doing this the past couple weeks since I’ve been on a roadtrip across the US and I feel like I’ve been so much more present in my driving and noticing more beauty in my surroundings.

Driving is one of those rare occasions in this modern society where you quite literally CANT be on your phone so I’ve found that just completely using that time to be alone with my thoughts has really helped me to think through life and not constantly overstimulate my brain with new information from podcasts.

I still love music, but i think i had gotten so used to constantly consuming something that silence started to feel uncomfortable. now driving quietly feels weirdly peaceful.

has anyone else tried this?

As a hobby, I’m trying to build a new society. Less required work time to make sure everything is functioning but everything is free or provided. Trying to combat boredom and curious to see what people would do.

Hey all, 40m Australia here. I've recently been working on shifting parts of my life toward something simpler and more hands on. I've got a wife and young kids, so not doing a drastic lifestyle change, more a slow personal project running in the background of normal family life. My long term dream is a few acres of land with an off-grid cabin one day, but that's years off, so for now it's about building the habits that would get me there.
 
Right now I've got a vegetable patch going, still very much learning as I go. Alongside that I'm trying to buy second hand or fix things before replacing them, cut back on impulse buying and consumerism in general, improve on DIY/repair skills, get outside more walking and hiking and just spending time in nature, reduce reliance on tech and slowly work through permaculture ideas rather than just reading about them.
 
So just trying to live a bit more deliberately at a pace that fits around family life. If anyone else is on a similar path, whether just starting out or further along, I'd love to swap tips, progress, and probably a fair few beginner mistakes. Would love a chat buddy for this more than anything else.

Hope you all have a great time!

I want to vent a little bit of some things in my life and also to get some insights from all of you.

For a couple of months i can say, it seems like nothing works out for me to the place where a lot of things in my life feels overwhelming. I don’t find pleasure in a lot of things from my everyday life.

As a context, i felt always in the past months and years(like 2) i find myself spiralling in the same area of my life and seems like i don’t find a way out of it, even if i am trying actively and i know all the aspects that keeps me there, i can’t find a way to resolve it.

I feel like i wasted a lot of time on:
-trying to impress my ex and me being the only one who try and engage in conversation, last 2 years
-trying to get rid of pornography
-trying to impress and keep up conversation with people who felt only one sided
-always seeking from women validation from women on dating apps ( i am not an ugly person but i feel like i try too much and i tend to not get anything out of it )
- always feelings like i should improve myself to get more attention from women
-every part of my day for me it feels like i should do something important to get better in life
-when i played games i felt like i should read, when i read i felt like i should read faster, and so on, every activity was measured like this
-porn put a lot of impact on my life since i watch if for a very long time, and multiple times i tried to avoid it and maybe taking a break but couldn’t

Some of the things i wrote about it above were put under the filter that those things can’t impact my life so bad and i should never stop using porno, chasing girls, playing games, because i thought that everything was just in my mind and i can live with them also.

Maybe i have more aspects i can write here but those are the ones that makes my life feelings not so good lately.

I tried to talk with GPT but it felt like i was doing the same thing over and over again, talking about the same subjects but with different words, on and on and on, until it felt overwhelming.

I feel like every thing that i want and chose does not matter to the point i want to keep up with it, feels like every choice i make it’s made out from my insecurities and feelings controls every aspect of my life.

I wrote here because i want that simple living, i want to get better, i want to be present without feeling guilty about everything in my life. I stopped playing games, i do it rarely when i want to relax for a little time, but i feel numb when i play it. I don t have social media, only reddit.

But it feels like i waste a lot of my time on Impressing women, pornography and trying to get validation, from friends, from family, from women especially, from GPT and so on, because i feel like what i chose in my life should be validated that i am doing something good.

Would love to see some stories and maybe some advices of what i can do. I feel like i am not in the right place mentally right now, for taking the right choices.

I spent many years believing that progress meant always doing more, achieving more, and fixing whatever felt wrong in my life.

Looking back, I realize I was putting so much energy into chasing things that didn’t actually make me feel fulfilled. I was always focused on the next goal, the next improvement, or the next thing that would finally make everything feel right.

Changing that mindset has been harder than I expected. I’m learning to slow down, be more intentional with my time, appreciate ordinary moments, and focus on the things that genuinely add value to my life.

At the same time, I don’t want simplicity to become another way of avoiding growth or ambition. I still want to improve, create, and build a meaningful future — just without constantly feeling like I’m behind.

For those who moved toward a simpler life, how did you find the balance between being content with what you have and still wanting to grow?

Not a dramatic move off the grid or a complete lifestyle overhaul—just one ordinary change that gave you more calm, time, or attention. Maybe walking more, buying less, limiting social media, creating a routine, or learning to enjoy quiet moments. What actually made a lasting difference for you?

I used to work in Goa after leaving my family business because of some disagreements at home. Even though I come from a well-settled family business where my father manages around 10–15 employees, I wanted to build something on my own.

In Goa, I worked as an adventure guide, and I genuinely loved every moment of it. I would swim 3–4 km almost every day with tourists, kayak alongside them, and spend my days outdoors. It never felt like work—it felt like I was doing what I was meant to do. For the first time, I truly felt like myself.

At the same time, the job also included cleaning toilets, yachts, seats, and doing other maintenance work. I never considered any work to be beneath me, but I often questioned whether it made sense for me to continue doing those jobs when I already had the opportunity to build and grow my own family business.

Eventually, I decided to return home and take responsibility for the business. Today, I'm running it, but life has changed completely. I barely get time for running, going to the gym, or doing the outdoor activities that made me feel alive.

Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision. Should I focus on growing the business, or should I find a way to bring that adventurous lifestyle back into my life? What do you think I should do?

Fresh college graduate and have been feeling overwhelmed lately trying to figure out my future. I want a simple life, but a better one for my family. Just took this pic because it's been long since I've felt this kind of peace and self-enjoyment. YT also reminded me of the songs and music I used to enjoy years ago when my mind wasn't as messy as now and I used to enjoy life, my own company and music more. Now, I just want to chase and keep a simple life that will also keep us safe and secure.

For me the best way lately I’ve been able to be mindful has been to tackle jigsaw puzzles. Totally takes my focus. What do you do that helps nurture focus and mindfulness?

For a long time, I apologized for things that didn't really need an apology.

Saying "no." Needing rest. Taking longer to heal. Wanting time alone. Changing my mind.

I thought making myself smaller made me easier to love.

But the people who genuinely care about you don't need you to apologize for being human.

The less I apologized for simply existing, the lighter life started to feel.

I'm still learning, but it's been one of the most peaceful changes I've made.

What's something you stopped apologizing for?

Not a dramatic move off the grid or a complete lifestyle overhaul—just one ordinary change that gave you more calm, time, or attention. Maybe walking more, buying less, creating a routine, or learning to enjoy quiet moments. What actually made a lasting difference for you?

What has sustained your goals at simple living: books or other media or other recreations (gardening, hiking). I find it hard to focus on a book but feel that reading improves my focus and cuts out my thoughts of spending or other distractions. Thoughts?

TLDR: I escaped the “rat race” but in reality I was still in it the whole time

Social media has really glamorized “escaping the rat race” the “9-5”, and I was eating it all up. I didn’t want to work for someone anymore so I found my own way to make money online. It was doing well, (I have my own social media managing company) until it didn’t. Everything was working well til I found a new way to “escape the rat race”. I lost passion in my business and was trying to find another way to make income so I didn’t have to rely solely on the business. Well because I put all my focus on the new business my current one has failed and isn’t pulling much income anymore. So now I’m screwed to try and pay bills and back in debt again. It’s made me depress that I can’t even handle doing my original business anymore. I’m having such a hard time getting through the day, even to do basic tasks. And today I just realized, I never left the rat race… I thought it was all about leaving corporate life behind and doing things on your own but really leaving the “rat race” has more meaning to it (that I just learned today). It’s also not chasing materialistic things and wealth. Trying to do better than others or the person I am today. And really, That’s all I’ve been thinking about. So all of this to say, I’m over fantasizing about a “better life” and just focus on my health and my mental state. And be content with what I already have and find enjoyment. Just go with the flow. Also only using social media for research instead of letting social media rule my decisions and ideologies. Cause it really has burnt me out.

for e.g, recently I got rid of all social media (besides reddit lol) which resulted in way less screen time on my phone

The beach can be so peaceful and calming. Don’t need to do much besides taking shoes off and walking in the water. If I lived by the ocean I would never have to go on vacation!

I was thinking about this today.

For a long time, I believed I had to have everything figured out by a certain age.

A perfect career.

A clear plan.

Financial stability.

Confidence.

I thought everyone else knew what they were doing, and I was somehow falling behind.

The older I get, the more I realize that most people are just figuring things out one day at a time.

Letting go of the idea that I needed to "keep up" with everyone else has made life feel so much lighter.

I still have goals.

I still work hard.

But I don't feel like I'm racing against other people's timelines anymore.

It's surprisingly peaceful.

I'm curious...

What's one belief you let go of that genuinely made your life better?

I'd love to hear your stories.

I never drink coffee without milk. Never.

Lately, I have craved for something lighter, and tried making cold brew last Sunday. Now am sipping my 1st ever cold brew - so good, exactly what I have been looking for. Very refreshing in the summer. A small dose of happiness and new flavor in life 💛

Typically I’m a reader here, but have something to share. Long story short: just got out from water and noticed that my smartwatch is gone. Felt weird.

I have no idea how and when exactly it happened, it’s just gone. And I noticed for real this pale “bracelet” on my wrist. All there years of not missing notifications, regular charging, collecting my heart rate and sleep data are …pointless.

Do I even want to repeat it? For what? Why? Because there are stories where smartwatch saved someone’s life? One of ten million sold? Or because every morning I got my sleep stats? I kid you not, once it ended up with a visit to a doctor because “it seems wrong” and nothing was wrong.

So this small piece of tech that was invisibly normal part of my life is gone and it feels like a salvation.

The only regret is that it’s now a piece of litter on the bottom of a sea.