Everything has a beginning. Living small really began with Mrs and I arguing. We were running late. Why did it take everyone so long to get ready to leave? Considering that I was the one taking the longest I started to look at exactly what happened every morning.
This is where living small starts. By understanding what you are doing, what is going on around you, and what really matters, you can begin to see what is too "big" and work to make it "small".
For me it was clothes. I had too many choices. What shirt matched what pants and which socks for the belt, except the socks didn't match the shirt right. The answer for me has been … wait for it … a uniform.
So I bought 5 casual, brown linen shirts, and 5 pairs of blue jeans. Every day I wore the same thing. Guess what? Out the door in less than 15 minutes for emergencies, but just as fully together as the times when I had hours to prepare. And no one noticed. I did this for a year when I realized that I hadn't bought and new clothes. Not only was I saving time, but I was saving money.
As my career has advanced I have had to adjust my uniform. I have updated to 10 Bill Blass black dress shirts, 10 black undershirts, 6 pairs khaki pants, with 10 pairs matching shorts and socks and a pair of Bostonian Crown Windsor loafers. This is my "every day" uniform. I get up, pick up the next shirt, pants, socks, undergarments and go. Still only 15 minutes from bed to door. I don't run late. And I buy in quantity saving money.
Believe it or not, I am the only one who does this. The rest of the family isn't willing to go this far, but they have made some changes. More on those next time.
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