Category: Uncategorized

“Keep your friends close, and keep your enemies ….. well ….. don’t keep your enemies.”

Not everyone that is blood to me do I consider family, and not everyone that I consider family to me is blood related.

Most important though. Much like the possessions in our lives, the people in our lives must add value to it. For starters this means that these people must be positive and uplifting; they must be encouraging and motivational.

To take this even further, I am going to assert that the people in our lives must be resourceful. What I mean is, the people in our lives must be giving enough to offer their resources in friendship to us. Even if that resource is something as simple as time. Or maybe just a helping hand. Sometimes it could even be just some insight, wisdom, or ideas. And sometimes, it’s just a comforting shoulder to cry on. All these things are small ……. but not really. In fact all these things are huge.

For me personally, everyone in my life that I spend more than an hour socializing with has a very specific and well defined purpose to me. I have only three categories that a person can fall into: family, co-worker (colleague), and stranger. I keep no acquaintances. To clarify, there are people that I know who are not family or colleagues to me, but I have not had more than an hours conversation with them. Meh, maybe two hours (one can spend as much as an hour talking about the weather). I don’t believe in “on again, off again” friendships, or “he’s good to be with when he (fill in the blank).”

FYI: The attached photo is me and a couple buds doing our best Zoolander look. I think it’s “Blue Steel,” maybe “La Tigra.”

 

 

One might think that the life of a minimalist is easier for the middle class, but for those who are “well to do,” it is too easy to get caught up in the life of money; that one might be forced into a lifestyle of excess by their profession, environment, and their peers. This may be true, but there are those that are able to transcend the excess of their chosen profession, and focus on the things that matter in life. There are many wealthy popular individuals that choose to focus their time and money on people and passion. As it turns out, there are many celebrities that have chosen the path of minimalism. Some that I am aware of are:

• Jennifer Lawrence – A very down to earth girl, and has only recently in the past couple of years purchased her own house. Until then she was living in a condo with her parents. She prefers to live very simply and refuses to to spend lavish amounts of money on very simple function items. Example: She shops for furniture at IKEA. Telegraph (article). E-Online (article)
• Steve Jobs – Despite being CEO of one of the worlds more profitable companies, he prefers a relatively simple life. While he has owned many properties during his career at Apple, they all served only as basically a place to sleep on location, and they were nearly completely unfurnished. He preferred to spend his time working at the Apple building, even on the weekends. This was until he decided to focus on family. All About Steve Jobs (article).
• Robert Pattinson – This actor ditched his mansion to live in a gated apartment community with only modest furnishings. The Hollywood Reporter (article).
• Keanu Reeves – The more I learn about this man, the more I love him. His entire life’s focus is on his passion for other people. He lives in an NYC apartment. He walks the streets and hangs out in the subway and central park just like everybody else. He donated all his earnings from the Matrix series on the special effects team for the movies. He spends the majority of his earnings from everything else on various charities including cancer patients. If we have the time, the tragic and humble life of Keanu reeves is quite touching: The Richest (article).

Some other honorable mentions are Christina Ricci, Taylor Lautner, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Leonardo DiCaprio.