Simpler Living: A Back to Basics Guide to Cleaning, Furnishing, Storing, Decluttering, Streamlining, Organizing, and More [Hardcover]

Jeff Davidson (Author), Mark Victor Hansen (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 30, 2010

The companion to Back to Basics and Homesteading: simple, practical, proven advice to reduce the stress of modern living.

Life moves too quickly these days, as technology, work, and personal commitments make it almost impossible to relax and enjoy life. Finding yourself stressed over the clutter in your kitchen or the mass of paper in front of your computer? Relax. This book will help. Filled with tips on how to uncomplicate your daily routine, eliminate stress at home and work, and more, this book will help you free up your time so you can once again enjoy doing the things you love. Author Jeff Davidson has compiled more than 1,500 ways that you can simplify your life.

Divided into sections for easy reference, this book will show you ways you can eliminate stress in your home, your personal life, and in your professional life. You will learn the six questions you should ask yourself before buying something new, the most efficient way to clean your pots and pans, the pay-ahead technique to get yourself out of debt, ways to make your commute more comfortable, and advice on hassle-free vacation planning for you and your family. This book is the guide you’ve been looking for to lead the peaceful, productive life you’ve always wanted. 1,000 color photographs

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jeff Davidson, MBA, CMC, is founder and director of BreathingSpace.com, an organization devoted to helping people live and work at a more comfortable pace. He is the author of 56 books, including 60-Second Organizer, 60-Second Self-Starter, and 60-Second Innovator, and the iPhone App "Making Life Simpler." He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 456 pages
• Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing (June 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160239976X
• ISBN-13: 978-1602399761
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 11 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (148 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #99,611 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

"Jeff Davidson can move an audience like few others. Jeff offers dynamic learning keynotes and seminar presentations. He combines outstanding content with humor, flair, and inspiration to help listeners manage information and communication overload. Jeff supercharges his audiences to take action. Frequently quoted or featured in USA Today, the New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times, and on 175 talk shows, more than 1,485,000 people have found Jeff's award-winning books (cumulatively selected by book clubs 36 times) audio-books, videos, keynote presentations, and executive seminars to be enlightening, entertaining, and transformational.

His ground-breaking book, Breathing Space, reveals how to avoid racing the clock and gain more control over each day. His book, The Joy of Simple Living, with a foreword by Mark Victor Hansen of Chicken Soup for the Soul, is the definitive work on simpler living offering nearly 2000 tips arranged by every aspect of life!

Another recent book, The 60-Second Organizer (Adams Media, 2008) is short, fun-filled, and power-packed, with 60 tips to get you back in control no matter how long it's been! Another title, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Things Done (Alpha/Penguin, 2006) over the course of twenty-seven bite-sized chapters, lays out exactly what it takes to be both more efficient and effective, to start regularly accomplishing tasks which you set out to do on a daily and weekly basis, and to feel good about the process.

Jeff's most recent work, Simpler Living (Skyhorse Publishing, hardcover, 456 pages), is a landmark book that takes a step-by-step approach -- room-by-room, closet-by-closet, and drawer-by-drawer -- a way for you to uncomplicate your life, de-clutter, and feel good about it.

Jeff's four CD audio program, Simplifying Your Work and Your Life, (SkillPath) co-recorded with Dr. Tony Alessandra, gives career professionals the tools and practical information they need in the face of an over-complicated society. Jeff's two CD program, Get a Life (Oasis Audio), offers ultra-busy professionals groundbreaking insights on how to reclaim their lives.
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Jeff is the past president of the NSA Carolinas Chapter and former national chair of the Public Relations Committee of the Institute of Management Consultants. He has also been a member of the board of directors of Washington Independent Writers, and for five years running, won the U.S. Small Business Administration's state "Media Advocate of the Year."
In 1995, Jeff launched the Breathing Space Institute, originated in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Breathing Space Institute is dedicated to helping organizations and individuals, through a variety of learning tools, keynote speeches, and seminar presentations.

Jeff believes that career professionals today in all industries have a responsibility to achieve their own sense of work-life balance, and he supports that quest through his websites www.BreathingSpace.com and www.Work-LifeBalance.net and through 24 iPhone Apps on the Breathing Space Institute's page in the iTunes App Store."

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 84 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The manual for living life in these hectic times... June 21, 2010

By Chris Jaronsky TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

This is a great coffee table book because there is so much content to be absorbed. It is billed as a "back to basics guide" and I think it does a great job there. Who doesn't want their life to be simpler and less hectic. Who doesn't want to cut down on stress? I know I want all of these. And so far this book seems like it can help.

This book called out to me because I had been doing some "Spring cleaning" and decided I had too much stuff. Yes, I know, its already Summer and I am just starting to do Spring cleaning. I can't help it, I procrastinate. Luckily this book covers procrastination and I have already started following its advice there.

This book is broken up into a number of parts. A "World Gone Complex" covers some general principles and talks about anticipating complexity. Makes sense, why not look for complexity and avoid it or control it before it gets out of hand?

"Simplify Your Castle" touches on every room and area of your house. I am already making some plans to change a few things in my pantry because this book gave me some great ideas. There are also a few changes we are making in our kids rooms. We normally rotate their toys, storing some in the basement and then swapping them out every so often. it works great because when the toy gets rotated back into the line-up the kids are all over it like its a new toy, or because it holds some great memories. One of the changes we are making is to limit the number of toys and collections. Like DVDs for instance, we are putting a 25 DVD limit on the kids. They now have to choose which ones to keep, and which ones get donated to the library. They also have to figure out which toys they are going to donate to some of the local good-will charities.... I think its a positive change for them because they will get into the habit of keeping and accumulating less, plus they will realize that they can help make someone elses life better by giving away items.

"Streamline Home Paperwork" is a topic that I really need. I am currently in the process of fixing my home office. Yes, I am a piler. I have piles of papers and mail all over my desk. I justified it by saying it was just my sorting system. But the book talks about how those piles create stress in my life, and they are absolutely right. Sure I feel good when I process a pile, but many times I look at a pile and think that I will handle it tomorrow. But it does not get done, it just continues to grow, and then it becomes overwhelming and I start to avoid it. Which only makes my stress levels rise because I know sooner or later I need to tackle it. The book talks about a few ways to deal with this. I will get this part of my life under control. Now.

"Simplify Your Professional Life" covers topics at work. Since I work out of my house and do not have an office to check into, I have not spent much time in that section of the book yet. But after skimming through it a few topics jumped out at me and I think there is a lot of good information there for me.

"The Personal Touch" covers relationships, nutrition, exercise, and leisure time. There is a lot of great information there too.

This book now sits on my coffee table and I pick it up and read from it every time I am in the room. I have also noticed my wife and kids reading it. Hopefully we will all start some new, good habits because of this book. I am sure we will because the book states there are 1,500 ideas inside. I know we won't use or need all of them, but I have always felt that even a few changes made now, continue out and have a positive affect on our lives for years to come. And who's life is so perfect they do not need a few changes? Read more ›

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Life Where I Am In Control October 7, 2010

By Robert Bookman

Format:Hardcover

It is not that often that I am inspired to post a review about a book, but this one merits such treatment. Simpler Living explores territory books have tread. He takes the reader on a room-by-room visit in describing what one can do to truly simplify one's home and life Then he proceeds to other aspects of one's life such as getting to work in the morning, watching what you eat, staying fit, and having better leisure experiences.

Jeff Davidson has given me the precious gift of time for those things I really enjoy doing and for living a healthier, less cluttered life. The author's writing style is very comfortable. He makes his points well with outstanding examples and a vigor that makes it difficult to put the book down.

Bob Bookman

Simpler Living: A Back to Basics Guide to Cleaning, Furnishing, Storing, Decluttering, Streamlining, Organizing, and MoreSimpler Living: A Back to Basics Guide to Cleaning, Furnishing, Storing, Decluttering, Streamlining, Organizing, and More

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful! August 20, 2010

By Dr. Janet Lapp

Format:Hardcover

This is probably the most comprehensive and certainly the best-looking resource on how to not just simplify your life but - of course, change it for the better. Jeff Davidson covers it all too, from home to paperwork, to the office to leisure time ... I picked only three random pages at the beginning and the suggestions in those alone could save a ton of money and even more time.

This is a really beautiful book with returns on the small cost of the book that are priceless. Love it!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully helpful and easy to read October 20, 2010

By DeChristo

Format:Hardcover

The promise of Simpler Living intrigued me from the get-go. Could one book,
however, really make a difference in my life? I think that Simpler Living
can. It appears to have cut a wide swath through all of the typical areas of
domestic living where complexity arises.

Simpler Living takes a highly methodical approach, but you don't have to
read it from the first chapter to the last. I started with the kitchen,
because that's where my biggest mess is. You could start there, or at any
one of 23 other chapters, and you'll be just fine. If you don't feel like
reading that much, the pictures alone will sustain you. Overall, I don't
think you can go wrong.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Tips for Less Stress and Clutter August 5, 2010

By Sima R. Dahl

Format:Hardcover

I saw this book in a display at the front of a bookstore and while I wasn't really in the market for anything like this, when I picked it up and started to look through it, I couldn't put it down. You could call it an impulse buy, but it was a smart impulse! There are tons of tips for de-cluttering your home and getting organized, something my home office badly needs! It's perfect for a few of my friends who have birthdays coming up and I think it'll make a great holiday gift too. I'm confident that anybody who reads this will find tips they can put into practice immediately to start living a more stress-free life. It's a rare gem of a book that is as practical and useful as this one - highly recommend.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a process July 28, 2010

By Phil Buckley

Format:Hardcover

The thing I liked best about this book is that it's all actionable. Ideas that you can implement at your own pace so you never get overwhelmed.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Simpler Living Means a Simpler Life February 10, 2011

By A. OConnor

Format:Hardcover

The devil is is the details and the opportunity to change your circumstances is in the details. To have a practical guide that allows you to go through every room, step by step, picture by picture, is really PRACTICAL.

Before writing this I asked my wife to use the book and guide to do some of this. It's amazing the clutter we have. I also like a lot of the interludes and tips that focus on healthy habits. I am not ready to make the kind of changes that all these infomercials promise and promote but I am excited about making a lot of little shifts, changes, and solve small issues within our house and our mind.

This book is a quietly nice influence on our household. It also makes you realize that a you have a lot more control over the overwhelming circumstances of today...step by step.