More or Less

Sometimes more just feels right. We yearn for more hours in a day. We want more time with the ones we love. We need more money in our pockets. We crave more sweetness on our tongues. We desire more shoes to fill our closets. We ache for more sleep in the morning. Sometimes it feels as if life would be so much better if there was simply "more".

But there's a counterpart to more that we often forget about when we proclaim that more will solve our conundrums, and that counterpart is less.

It may seem counter intuitive that less can fill the same needs as more. After all, any kindergartner well versed in opposites can tell you that more is to up as less is to down. But sometimes less provides us with the real solution when more is still but a dream.

We won't gain more hours in a day any time soon, but less commitments can provide us with the hours we yearn for. Less time spent planning for picture perfect memories (for example an ideal vacation), or working to save up for said memory producing events, can give us the time to recognize and appreciate the simple moments we have with those we love. Less money in our pockets may not be ideal, but it enables us to internalize that money and the various things we buy does not define who we are. Less sweetness, just like less saltiness or spiciness or tartness, will refine our palates and develop a finer and wider sense of culinary delights. Less clothing in our closets can remove the stress of deciding what to wear each day and help us to see that is it not just how we adorn ourselves that makes us beautiful. Less sleep... well okay less sleep is really no fun no matter which way you dice it.

There are times for more and times for less in all of our lives. Sometimes we turn to more because we need to feel filled from the moment we awake to the moment we drift to sleep. Lately I've been feeling the need for less, and it's filling me up in a way more rarely does.

Priorities, Part 3

Photo via Chris Bell Online

Over the past few days I've written about why prioritizing is an important tool in today's information age and how to take stock of where your personal resources are going. Today I am going to provide some guidance on aligning your priorities with your personal resource allocation. If you are not clear on what I mean by personal resources, check out Priorities, Parts 1 & 2.

Now that you've taken a clear look at where your time, energy, and funds are going and made note of what your priorities seem to be, it's time to sort out what you want your priorities to be and take action.

Carve out a good half hour to sit down and make a list of your priorities, what you want your priorities to be. What is important enough to warrant your precious time, your limited energy, and your hard-earned dollars? Don't censor yourself - jot down everything that comes to mind.

If you're having trouble getting started, imagine yourself the way you've always wanted to be. What do you see? Who do you spend your time with? How are your days spent? Where do you go? What does your living space, wardrobe, and community look like? I find this exercise really helpful for getting my creative juices flowing.

Once you've got a solid list of priorities, read through it a few times and see what really jumps out. Go ahead and start circling, starring, and crossing out as you wish. When you whittle it down a bit, it's time to take a second look at the personal resource log you made. How can you reallocate your resources to make the priorities you chose to focus on a reality? What activities are sucking up your time and energy now and preventing you from living the life you have imagined? Be bold, and if possible, cut them out of your life entirely. Now you can put your newly found resources to much better use - Towards the priorities you've deemed truly worthy of your time, energy, and funds. Towards the priorities that comprise your ideal life.

You might not have the time, energy, or funds to do everything you want, all the time. But by being honest about where your personal resources are going and prioritizing your desires for the future, you can be sure to make the most of your personal resources, and take a big step towards the life you've imagined.

Priorities, Part 2

Photo via Mental Health

Yesterday I wrote about priorities and why prioritizing is such an important tool in today's world of endless opportunities. So how can you make prioritizing work for you? And where do you begin?

For starters, taking time to set our priorities can help us take stock of where our time, energy, and funds - I refer to these as our personal resources - are going, and recognize where they could be better utilized. When we take the time to consciously prioritize our desires and commitments, we are giving ourselves the power to redirect where our life is headed. That's powerful stuff!

An easy way to take stock of what your current priorities are is to make a personal resources log. You can do this by creating a journal, chart, or spreadsheet where you log everything you do over the course of a week. Your log doesn't need to be too detailed, but it should include each activity, how much time you spent on it, whether it was energizing or energy zapping (this will vary for each of us), and the cash result (either inflow or outflow). Here's a couple examples:

Watched TV, 1.5 hours, energy zapping, $0 (you could prorate your cable bill here if you wanted)
Worked, 9 hours, energy zapping, $500 inflow
Dinner with a friend, 1 hour, energizing, ($40)
Played soccer, 2 hours, energizing, ($10) on a new team shirt
Showered, .5 hours, energizing, $0

Photo via Ask Miss A

The purpose of this log is to give you a snapshot of what your personal resource allocation looks like right now. Feel free to alter these categories or add more categories as you wish - maybe noting how you felt after each activity or who else was involved.

Once you have a week's worth of information in your log, it's time to tally up where your time, energy, and funds went. Take a look at which activities took up the most time. Recognize where the most money was spent, and earned. Note which activities zapped your energy and which revved you up. Finally, after looking at only your personal resource allocation, what do your priorities appear to be? Try to answer this question as analytically as you can, without letting your personal bias answer for you. You might realize that watching television or working overtime has become more of a priority than you'd like to admit, and that's important to be honest with ourselves about. Or perhaps you realize that where your personal resources are going is just where you want them, and that's important to see as well.

So what do you do now that you have an accurate picture of your personal resource allocation (and what your actions are telling you about your priorities)? It's time to reassess if your actions match you desires. Stop by next time to find out how.

Signature Style: Maria Kerner

Photo via The Sartorialist

I admit, my current wardrobe is what you might expect of an unemployed recent college graduate: jeans and tees, a wide selection of hooded sweatshirts, and a mix of semi-professional separates that don't really match with anything else in the closet. But I really admire people who have created a wardrobe that makes a single, cohesive statement: when each and every outfit they step out in exudes a unique personal style.

One such signature stylista is Maria Kerner, an accessories buyer and frequent muse on the street style blog The Sartorialist. I have yet to find a photo of her looking anything but stunning and put-together. Her personal style is very feminine, somewhat monochromatic, and altogether classic. Whose style makes you swoon?

Photo via The Sartorialist

Photo via The Sartorialist

Valuable Investments: Quality Wardrobe Staples 2

Here are two completely different takes (created by yours truly) on investing in a quality dress and purse. By following the guidelines in yesterday's post, you can stretch these two staple items throughout every season with style.

Valuable Investments: Library Card

Photo via CAPS Library

I am kicking off day one of Valuable Investments week at Apartment 303 with a simple and free service we should all be utilizing: our local public libraries.  If you cannot remember the last time you saw the inside of your own town library, now is time to dust off that long-forgotten membership card.  For those whose wallets are without this priceless piece of plastic, there is no time like the present to head over to your closest bibliophile haunt and sign up.  Public libraries are a tremendous source of value for our selves, our communities, and our planet; a literal trifecta of value!

Value for Our Selves

Public libraries are a wonderful way to enrich our lives and minds through reading; one of the most time-tested forms of entertainment and knowledge sharing.  I do not need to explain the many reasons why it is important to spend less time in front of the television and more time engaged in a book that challenges our assumptions and helps us to see the world in a new light.  If it has been a while since your last visit, you may have forgotten the many services Librarians provide as well (after all, they do have a Masters in Library Science). These services include research help, book recommendations, locating old newspaper and journal articles, and ordering in books from affiliate libraries for your convenience.   In an era where each of us considers our Wikipedia and Google search skills to be sufficient, it is remarkable how efficient and effective the aid of a Librarian is. 

Your library card is your ticket to unlimited free entertainment and knowledge, and not just through books.  Libraries also stock DVD collections, journal and magazine subscriptions, books on CD, music scores, online news subscriptions, and free Internet access.  That’s right, all of this for free*!  *tax dollars notwithstanding 

Value for Our Community

Public Libraries serve a vital role in any community and are a great place to find out about upcoming events, local history, and all different types of community organizations.  Most libraries offer various book clubs, free or low cost lectures and classes, and children’s programs to boot.  So if you are looking for a way to get more involved in your community, or if you are new to an area and don’t quite know how to find your niche, start with your local library.

Value for Our Environment

Since the publishing industry is such a major polluter, it seems counterintuitive that hitting up your local library is good for the environment.  However, borrowing a book will always be greener than buying your own personal hardback copy…which is likely to be quickly tossed on your bookshelf where it will promptly begin gathering dust for next 25 years.  The concept of sharing resources in the same manner as libraries can also be applied to many other goods and services in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way (think the bicycle sharing program in many European cities, or the popularity of the Freecycle Network). Many libraries also allow you to access e-versions of books they carry – a convenient and entirely paper-free way to read. 

Given all of the value public libraries provide, it is amazing to think that so few people take advantage of their services.  So this week, pay your closest library a visit.  The investment of your time will reap major dividends, all around.  

True Value

Photo via Doctor2008

It seems since we’ve entered the recession everyone and their mother is sharing new tricks for saving a quarter here and a dime there.  “I take the toiletries offered at hotels”, boasts one commercial.  “I save on tea by using each bag twice”, claims my friend.  I would not be surprised if someone is advocating turning your dried sweat into table salt. Times are tough for everyone right now, but that does not mean we should suddenly demote ourselves to using low quality goods (or eating our own by-products). Rather, economic downturns can be a great time to reassess what true value is... and I'm not talking about True Value hardware store here. To me, value is not just getting more items for your dollar, despite what the Wal-Mart commercials may lead you to believe. True value is investing in goods or services that yield long-term increases to your quality of your life.

This belief is why I choose organic and natural foods for my kitchen, a high quality day planner with all of the features I need, and a properly fitted and well-padded Swiss backpack. Each time I eat a healthful homemade meal I know I am setting my body up for a long and active life. Everyday when I consult my planner and can quickly locate my to-do list, my monthly calendar, and the business card I need, I have the confidence to tackle everything I want to accomplish in the short 24 hours I’m given. And as I pack my bag to the brim with ten pound text books I sigh with relief, knowing that I invested in a back-pack that will not dig into my shoulders or misalign my spine.  Notice how each investment is not only providing me with quality service now, but it is ensuring that my quality of life continues to improve. After all, that’s what an investment is, right?

This week I will be blogging about some of my most recommended, high value investments.  Some are more expensive, and some won’t cost you a penny.  Some are goods or services, and others are personal commitments.  All of them are great examples of true value.  I also hope that if you have not left a comment on my blog before you give it a try! I would love to hear your feedback and I hope you will share some of your own everyday investment ideas.