2 Weeks In Paradise, No Possessions
Multiple vehicles, more electronic devices than I can keep track of and a handful of ridiculous problems that any local living on this island wishes they had.
It's not until you get away from it all that you can finally harness the perspective and laser focus that comes as a result of not having to deal with all of that bullshit.
I've spent the last 2 weeks ferrying between the 3 Gili Islands, a short 2 hour boat ride off of the coast of Bali, a popular holiday destination located in Indonesia.
A week before departing I acquired the smallest suitcase I could and packed only the essentials.
Clothes, money, my passport, diary, journal, jump rope and a handful of books.
Once I'd finished jamming the few possessions I could fit in my miniscule suitcase I started to have regrets.
"Fuck, I should've got a case a few sizes bigger, I'm gonna regret this when I get there"
Having just returned I can tell you that ideology was far from the case, here's the 5 things I've learned from living on a small island for the past 2 and a bit weeks with minimal possessions.
You Discover Your True Values
When you've got a free schedule, a pocket full of cash and an island of opportunity your thought process will quickly direct you to what actually matters to you.
Fitness and healthy living.
I want to feel and look great.
As such I continued to train hard and eat clean, sticking to a regular morning habit stack.
You Realize How Unimportant All The Shit You Own Actually Is
Having to store multiple vehicles and decide upon what electronics I did and didn't want to take was far more stressful than it should be.
Spending months tracking down, meticulously building and servicing two cars that I have come to discover I don't actually care about when it comes down to it.
As I said, values shine through.
I don't identify with my car.
I identify with how I feel, strong and productive.
All the other shit, be it the car or the second laptop, they just get in the way and create distractions and trap my time.
You Think Clearer, Laser-Like Focus Comes Easy
Writing, reading, focusing on planning and whatever it is you have on your mind is easy.
You don't have the subconscious mind running through, processing and worrying about all of the extremely minute details that're going on in various other aspects of your life.
Be it what day the floors are getting polished, how much petrol is left in your car's fuel tank or whether you've purchased the UFC pay per view event that's coming up next weekend.
You Make The Most Of What You Have
I really didn't pack much at all.
One small bag.
Funnily enough, I had exactly what I needed because I made the most of things.
I can guarantee you if the bag I took was smaller or four times as big I would've come to the exact same conclusion.
Consumerism will tell you that you never have enough, that you need the new coffee machine, or the new car, or the new car with a built in coffee machine.
You don't.
Make do with what you have, it's enough. You know it is. External parties will do their best to try and convince you otherwise - that has and always will be the truth.