How I Live A Simple Life In A Stressed Out World

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Chapters

00:00 My Strategy
02:02 Why The Western Way of Life Is So Stressful
04:13 Getting Out Of The Western Mindset
06:49 Start Broadening Your Mind
10:09 Start Apply New Things In Life
12:21 Live Life As A Optimistic Critical Thinker

Living a simple life is hard when you live in a society that is so serious and stress is the norm. It's hard to slow down and relax when the rest of society is stressing you out; however, one thing I like to do when I feel stressed is think about the diversity of this world. It makes me realize that there isn't just one way of living in this world. And I think if we can open our mind to how other people live life, we can slow down and live a more simple life.

1. Why The Western Way of Life Is So Stressful

In the western world, we have these values where we like order, efficiency, and structure because we want certainty in life. We do not like it when things are chaotic and so we end up living these dull lives because we act like we can have complete control over our lives. This mindset, however, causes a bunch of stress in life because we get in a bunch of debt, we lose joy and curiosity being consumed by our careers, and live quiet lives of desperation due to repetition. Living a more simple life starts with accepting that uncertainty is a fact of life.

2. Getting Out Of The Western Mindset

When we are in our own bubble of the world, we don't realize how much us want certainty in life; however, this mindset leads to a lot of stress. In order to get out of this serious, stressful mindset, you must accept the uncertainty of life. You must accept that you don't have as much control as you think you do. And instead of stressing out when something becomes uncertain, learn to adjust to it.

3. Start Broadening Your Mind

When you have only seen your own culture, you don't have that much perspective to make changes in life. It is important to experience different forms of life to gain perspective so you can easier make changes. And you gain perspective by eating new foods, witnessing cultural traditions, and learning a language. I believe that leading a language is the best way to gain perspective because it gives you direct access to culture. But broadening your mind allows you to understand how you want to live your life.

4. Start Apply New Things In Life

Once you have perspective, you can start making positive changes in your life; however, it is important to remember that you have to conform to society to an extent. Instead of trying to make big changes, try to make small changes to live a less stressful life. And even if it is difficult and you keep falling back into your old ways, trying is better than not trying at all.

5. Live Life As A Optimistic Critical Thinker

It is important to know that there isn't just one way of living in this world. If you accept the uncertainty of life and have an open mind to different ways of living, you can live a more slow, simple life with less stress and worry. I consider myself a life long learner and will forever try to fight my own stress ways to strive for a more simple life.

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[CAGChannel]

After a chaotic childhood, all I wanted was calm, control, quiet adulthood. I’m old, and I don’t know anyone my age who wasn’ t seriously kicked in the ass by major, major unexpected life events many times. Instead of running from my chaotic childhood, it taught me to handle the major unexpected events in adulthood, and it took me decades to accept that and stop trying to create a life without chaos that doesn’ t exist anywhere.

[danicegewiss]

I leave my house and wonder what nightmare I walked into. People don't stop at stop signs. They race to get around me to slow down and other crazy things. I always thank God I arrived in one piece. I shop and chit chat with people who seem to appreciate the communication. When we head to Western PA we see horrible poverty...homes are in horrible shape...many have unreal clutter in them. Maintenance on these homes often is nonexistent. I am constantly reminded how blessed my husband and I are. My husband brings home a paycheck. I pay the bills and save for life insurance, senior care, unemployment, emergencies, etc. I want us to be prepared for the worst. I cant predict every bad thing so I have the emergencies category. We are cutting out modern conveniences and loving it.

[timothyswauger]

If you want to minimize stress, you have to start with cutting out the news.

[zeropat]

Oooh you got your first sponsor! Your moving up in the world! Great video by the way. I stumbled across your channel recently and resonate with how you talk about things. Your a hidden gem.

[marilyncobb]

Your content is so thought provoking keep it coming. 😊

[denisebranquinho]

I live in Brazil, i 've always been poor and never even care about career or sucess. I have never been anbitious or competitive. I have always lived a simple life, thinking about yoga and meditation... But, i will be honest... I am not happy because of the povert and misery that i have to live in ... So i think we need kind a balance. We must have both, peace and things, all we need. Is it possible?

[HaloReachMaster]

You have given me my ‘Food for Thought’ for today. My family moved to a different state about 1 1/2 years ago and I have struggled horribly, I do not have the security I had previously, it has caused me A LOT of stress, anxiety, and health problems. This new place is exactly what you said, you can plan, but stuff just happens to you. You have reminded me of a forgotten rule of life for myself, If I am unable to change my situation, I must change my thinking around that situation.
Thank you.

[darkelf]

I like your slow living videos. Be stoic

[marcusfieldfield]

50k subscribers congratulations I remember when you were in the single digits last year !

[padmeasmr]

I so agree with the "go with the flow" thing. I now tink myself as water, just going through obstacles and imprevedibility. I used to be so upset by sudden change of plans. But now I'm much different and also more resilient. We have not everything under controlo that's why it's important to learn how to control those tiny decisions that impact our lives just as much, such as how to use our time, how we eat etc.

[travelknighterrant]

Travel and immersion combo without bashing & judging the people/place/culture one is in is such a life blessing. Best education ever outside of the regular classroom setting. Love your content.

[schuylergeery-zink]

I had such a wonderful opportunity to study abroad in Nantes, France in college for a semester. My written French was decent but this really gave me the skills to listen and speak bc hardly anyone in Nantes spoke English at all or well.

I learned a lot of about French culture first-hand and other European cultures (esp Netherlands when I visited a friend there) — about how to slow down to appreciate each day. There’s good reason to have a large lunch break every day and a whole month for vacation 😌

Then in law school I got to do a 6 week summer program at Cambridge, UK and got to explore London, Ireland, and the English countryside and cathedral/castle (bc I would not get a rental vehicle but someone did so I just piggy backed off him and got to see things a lot of tourists wouldn’t if you use public transportation — including driving to the hills of Dover and taking a ferry to France, driving through northern France and Belgium to the Netherlands 😂 and back; driving to Scotland taking a ferry to Northern Ireland and driving down to Dublin; taking a ferry back to England). It was wild… that was more just fun.

I meet a lot of young people who are somewhat disillusioned and I highly recommend traveling.

[Luncheon]

Love your consistency in producing new videos! The quality of graphics is improving day by day. Above all it's the content that matters and in that you have succeeded immensely 😊😊

[_Feed_Me]

I liked your coffee analogy. When I was in Colombia, people seemed to “stop” to drink coffee, and in the States people grab coffee on the run.

[MichaelAnthonyRuns]

One of the realist YouTubers out there. Keep making these videos bro✊🏽

[katherinepace]

Great observations, Austin! I'm in a bit of a rut and need to try something new so your advice resonates with me. Have a great weekend!

[zelg]

I love your videos because there are no cuts 😃

[plappin]

Well done, Austin. I think many non-western cultures also seek certainty which is, after all, the purpose of most religious rituals -- appeasing the gods through prayer and sacrifice to assure a bountiful harvest, that sort of thing. But in the west, particularly the USA, many of us have lost the traditions and values of our cultures-of-origin and have substituted the values of capitalism. We seek certainty through productivity and profit: our values are the values of consumerism. In more traditional cultures people feel connected to each other, they share histories, geography, dialects, etc. Many Americans don't have those connections to others. If we don't feel connected, but rather feel isolated, if we live in places without a sense of rootedness or shared culture (which describes nearly every American suburb), of course we're going to want to control, as we lack the sense of safety and comfort that community provides. Thought-provoking video as always and congratulations on your first sponsor!

[MrsPeel]

I just needed this. My father (80) is in hospital, we have to transform my parents house, so that he can live there, when he comes back. The future is uncertain, but it will get hard and my mother (75) still suffers from the loss of her little sister (burned herself in May, depression runs in our family). Everything seems to break and I could cry all the time.

[lynn]

You also have to grow very thick skin to deal with the trolls on You Tube. Don't let them get to you.