Essentialism

Welcome to another mid-week edition of The Resilience Brief. We spend these mid-week newsletters looking at an idea to help us finish the week strong. This week we’re diving into the art of discerning what is truly important in order to spend our time and energy on that. If you enjoy it, please pass along to someone who might appreciate some tips on trimming the distractions.

I recently discovered the “20-Slot Rule”

Imagine we are only given the opportunity to make 20 major decisions in our lifetime. That’s it! Twenty chances to shape our career, relationships, and impact on the world. Would we still say “yes” to every opportunity? Or would we get hyper-focused on only the stuff that really mattered?

This is the philosophy behind Warren Buffett’s “20-Slot Rule.” The idea comes from a presentation he gave to a group of students surmising that, if the students were limited to only 20 investments in their entire life, they would be forced to choose carefully, focus deeply, and ignore distractions. He emphasized that the same principle applies to our life and work: if we treat our time and energy as a limited resource, we naturally focus on what matters most and eliminate the rest.

Warren Buffet is the master of essentialism. He lives a life of disciplined decision-making and avoiding excess. Just look at the Berkshire Hathaway homepage to see how basic and simple it is. He made a conscious decision that his homepage didn’t need to be fancy. And he’s right! He’s too busy growing the portfolios of his clients to care about the homepage.

I’ll admit that I’ve been guilty of taking on too much at times, trying to juggle multiple priorities. And unfortunately it led me close to burnout and hyper stress. So when I discovered a book entitled “Essentialism” I just had to dive right in.

This is the art of ‘Essentialism’

The book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, suggests that in a world of infinite choices, we need to be ruthless in cutting out the non-essential.

The essentialist doesn’t do more; they do less, better.

The essentialist forces themselves to say “no” more often, so that they can “yes” to what truly matters.

The essentialist believes in protecting the asset.

It’s extremely difficult in today’s world though - we’ve been conditioned to believe that more is better. That if we just get the next car/promotion/target then we will be happy. But it doesn’t work like that. In fact, it works the opposite. But the extra burden with this line of thinking is that this constant craving for more often leads to overwhelm, burnout, and mediocrity. Essentialism challenges this by asking us: what is truly essential?

In our professional lives, it’s easy to be swept up in busyness, mistaking motion for progress. Emails, Slack messages, and back-to-back meetings somehow tend to make us think we’re being productive, but are we really moving the needle?

We’re living in a time of immense change. In times like these, essentialism can be an X-factor. The key isn’t to do more but to focus on what’s timeless and enduring amidst the chaos. Here’s what it means:

• Filter the noise. The world bombards us with information. Essentialism helps us tune out the unimportant and focus on what’s relevant.

• Adapt without distraction. Change is inevitable, but chasing every new trend isn’t sustainable. Essentialism helps us respond with clarity rather than react impulsively.

• Protect our energy. Burnout is a real threat. By focusing only on high-impact activities, we sustain energy for the long game.

How to apply Essentialism today:

To take the concept of essentialism and apply it to our daily work.

1. “If I could only focus on one thing, what would it be?” Start with this simple question. It forces us to seek clarity and helps eliminate distractions.

2. Embrace the power of “no.” Time is literally our most valuable resource. If we see it as more valuable (even more than money) we will politely decline low-impact requests.

3. Create space for deep work. Block time in our schedule for focused, uninterrupted effort on what truly matters.

4. Limit our daily to-do list. Instead of an overwhelming list, write down only the top three tasks that will drive the biggest results.

5. Reduce digital clutter. Unsubscribe from unnecessary emails, turn off non-essential notifications, and limit our time on social channels.

6. Take intentional breaks. This one is last but not least. Mindful, intentional breaks help us maintain focused intensity and proper recovery.

On top of all of the above, the essentialist approach is not about being rigid, but rather about being hyper-aware of what is truly important. Resilience helps with this flexibility too. If essentialism is about focusing on the right things, resilience is about sticking with those things despite obstacles. Sometimes it requires immense adaptability, empathy for others around us, and also letting go… and all of those skills are the nature of resilience.

So today, let’s do less, but better.

Until next time friends, stay resilient.

Carre @ Resilient Minds