“Living simply is not about shrinking your life — it’s about refining it. Choosing peace over pressure, presence over performance, and a life that actually feels like yours.”
In a world that often equates more with better, there’s a quiet revolution happening — a shift toward simplicity. It’s not always glamorous, and it doesn’t always trend, but the art of living a simple life is a radical act of peace in a chaotic world.
I’ve come to realize that living simply doesn’t mean living less. It means living well — with intention, clarity, and freedom from the constant noise that tells us we need to do more, buy more, travel more, and be more in order to matter.
Let’s talk about what this looks like in everyday life, and why embracing a simple lifestyle might be the most powerful decision you ever make.
Growing up, I always loved the art of simplicity, I didn’t know it then, but reflecting on who I was as a child growing into my teen years, I recognize a pattern that had long since buried itself in my adulthood.
As an adolescent, I was the only introvert of my other 7 siblings. I hung out in my room in the peaceful quiet of alone, when the others were outside and off in some other parts of the neighborhood. I had my comfort items: my music, my books and my magazines. I remember buying a particular issue of Better Homes and Gardens that featured the Chesapeake Bay, the photo itself was enough to pull at my heartstrings, and I wanted nothing more than the quaintness that the photo offered.
I also had Bob Ross, This old house and Martha Stewart every Saturday morning starting at noon on the public access channel.
I was a peculiar child. Simplicity in a world of noise was my preference and I would rather sit in solitude planning my peaceful future endeavors than to have friends that treated me unfairly or interact with siblings that I had nothing in common with. Simplicity was my safe space. Childhood had a sort of simplicity of its own, but adult life was different than I had first imagined.
My adult life ushered in the age of social media. The pressure to always be seen, to post, to perform, to be “on” is relentless. Being caught up in that whirlwind wasn’t ideal to the life that my childhood self imagined. Constantly performing for attention, and trying to convince people to like, and to accept me was exhausting. Some of those moments were not my proudest.
I found that my biggest source of angst was social media. I understood that I needed to take a step back and reevaluate my interaction with it. It was only then that I could take a deep dive into how to make my life less depressing, less anxiety riddled and less competitive. Reducing the stressor or social media was one thing, but I didn’t expect my childhood dreams of a simple-life structure to emerge from that decision. It was a seamless and automatic process.
Taking a step back from the performance allowed me to go back to my roots: the joy of simplicity. I began to purge certain things, people and thought processes. Living simply allowed me to step back — to live off camera, without feeling like I had to prove my worth online.
The reward? Real moments. Quiet mornings. Coffee without the urge to post it. Peace that isn’t curated — just lived. Scaling back on social media allowed me to thrive and actually flow with myself. I didn’t feel the need to shop and post, to eat and post, to travel and post, to love and post just for likes. I felt light and free, simple and joyous. Finally it was ok to just be. Here are the things that I learned:
Shopping Simply: The Joy of Less
Shopping simple is not about denying myself nice things — it’s about choosing what truly aligns with my values and lifestyle. It’s curating a closet of pieces that I actually wear, rather than constantly chasing trends.
Capsule wardrobes, discount department store treasures, and quality over quantity not only ease decision fatigue, but also help us step out of the consumerism loop. The benefit? You get to express yourself authentically without being controlled by fast fashion or ever-changing fads.
Budgeting as Self-Care
There’s something deeply comforting about knowing where my money is going. Budgeting isn’t just about pinching pennies — it’s a self-honoring practice. When we spend intentionally, we begin to build lives that support our peace (and our bank accounts), rather than drain it.
Simple living teaches us to invest in what nourishes us — nourishing meals, meaningful experiences, and the occasional well-deserved treat — without the constant anxiety of overextension. In addition, having a stable savings account is stellar and provides mental stability.
Hobbies Over Hustle
We often feel pressured to monetize everything we enjoy. But what happened to doing things just for joy?
Whether it’s painting, gardening, journaling, or strumming a guitar on a quiet afternoon, hobbies anchor us in the present moment. They offer a sacred space where we don’t need to perform or compete — we just get to be.
Simple living gives us permission to reclaim that joy — not for likes, not for money, just because it feels good to create. In my opinion, that is the best form of living out loud.
The Quiet Social Life
Social media often makes it seem like everyone is out living their “best life” 24/7 — parties, travel, constant socializing. But for some of us, true connection thrives in small, consistent moments. For those of us that crave time alone, social media makes us feel as if we are living a mediocre life, but in actuality there is beauty in a quiet social life: intentional friendships, long walks with people who get you, slow dinners with someone you trust. When we stop performing and start connecting, we discover that depth matters far more than visibility.
The Benefits of Living a Quiet, Quaint, Simple Life
- Mental clarity from reduced noise and fewer decisions
- Financial freedom through intentional spending
- Deeper relationships built on quality over quantity
- Time for self-care, creativity, and rest
- Joy from the present, not constant chasing
- Confidence in who you are, without external validation
If you’ve been craving slower mornings, smaller circles, and a life that actually feels like yours — you’re not alone. You’re just finally coming home to yourself, it’s such a peaceful place to exist.
Self Cultivation 
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