Sarah Susanka and The Not So Big Life

I’ve loved Sarah Susanka’s Not So Big House books and her premise that living small(er) can be far more meaningful and fulfilling than chasing after the big house and all the stuff that goes in it.  Her books have inspired people across the US to downsize–and love every minute of it. 

 Now, Sarah has expanded(!) her perspective to include life in general.  In her newest book, The Not So Big Life, she talks about being intentional in order to choose the elements that take up the greatest space in our lives. 

I’m looking forward to interviewing Sarah next month on this blog, and I’ll be including some of her ideas in the next few weeks.  Here’s a taste:

The bigger-is-better idea that triggered the explosion of McMansions in home
design has spilled over to give us McLives. 

In her bestselling Not So Big House series, Sarah Susanka showed us how to
change the way we live by adjusting the physical space we inhabit.  Now, in
The Not So Big Life Susanka takes her revolutionary philosophy a giant step
further by showing us how to change the way we live by fully inhabiting each
moment of our lives.

The Not So Big Life reveals that form and function serve not only
architectural aims, but life goals as well.  Just as we can tear down
interior walls to open up space, The Not So Big Life shows us that we can
tear down our fears, assumptions and conditionings in a way that opens us up
to new possibilities so we can start engaging the things we long to do. 

Sarah, what is a Not So Big Life?
A Not So Big Life is one in which you learn to listen to what your heart
longs to do, and to integrate these passions into your everyday life.  By
making time for what you are truly passionate about, and by letting go of
old behavior patterns that cause you to keep feeling trapped by life, shifts
will occur that allow you to learn more about who you really are and to live
each experience as it comes, engaging it completely. 

A Not So Big Life begins a process of inner transformation.  It happens
simply because when you engage what you are truly passionate about, you are
automatically present in what you are doing – you are showing up completely
in your life and in each moment.  Life becomes a natural expression of what
you love to do – of your true nature.  Through this process, you’ll find
more meaningfulness, vitality and that sense of being “at home” in life that
so many people are searching for today.

A Not So Big Life gives you more room to breathe and to engage the things
you really love rather than living in the past or the future all the time,
dreading the next activity and feeling drained because you’re not even sure
why you’re doing it.  It shows us the way to become “human beings” rather
than “human doings.” 

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Maya here.   Watch this space for more on The Not So Big Life and how mindfulness is the most important skill you’ll need to create the life that fits–and fulfills–YOU.

Jennifer Aniston and Ellen Langer and Some Powerful Mindfulness

What do Jennifer Aniston and Ellen Langer have in common?  You might be surprised!

Last fall, Jennifer Aniston signed on to produce–and perhaps star in–a movie called “Counter Clockwise” which is based on a real-life study that Ellen Langer conducted at Harvard and wrote about in her book, Mindfulness.  Ellen worked with participants to alter their ideas about their age, and was able to actually reduce the effects of aging by manipulating what people thought.  Interesting, no?  Now that’s some powerful mindfulness! 

I couldn’t find any updates on production dates, but it would certainly stir up some mainstream mindfulness if it does all come together. 

Favorite Ellen Langer quote

 

Here’s a quote I love from Dr. Ellen Langer of Harvard University, mindfulness researcher and author of The Power of Mindful Learning and On Becoming An Artist:

 “It doesn’t matter whether what you notice is smart or silly because the process of actively drawing new distinctions produces that feeling of engagement we all seek. It’s much more available than you realize: all you need to do is actually notice new things. More than 30 years of research has shown that mindfulness is figuratively and literally enlivening. It’s the way you feel when you’re feeling passionate.”