Tag: James Clear

Pine trees with the caption in white letters November 2022: '16 Rules for Living With Less' + Anti-Social Advent

November 2022: ’16 Rules for Living With Less’ + Anti-Social Advent

Posted on by Kelvey Vander Hart in L I F E

What were you grateful for this Thanksgiving? Here’s the monthly recap: 

Best Book I Read This Month 

My recommendation this month is a little different. I was recently introduced to the work of The Minimalists (their Patreon content is definitely worth the small cost), and they offer a free ebook that is a great short read. You can find 16 Rules for Living With Less for free here. 

Best Article I Read This Month

What time is it? Time for some shameless self-promotion! Really, I want to share this article with you all not because I wrote it but because I want people to have the information it contains. “A Consumer’s Quick Guide to Environmental Certifications” is available to read here. 

Tip + Trick of the Month

This one is short and snappy from Becoming Minimalist’s Joshua Becker: “The less you own, the easier organizing becomes.” 

Quote of the Month

“It only takes five minutes to break the cycle. Five minutes of exercise and you are back on the path. Five minutes of writing and the manuscript is moving forward again. Five minutes of conversation and the relationship is restored. It doesn’t take much to feel good again.” 

-James Clear, author of Atomic Habits 

Kelvey’s Thought for the Month

This Advent season, want to get anti-social with me? 

I’m not talking about ignoring your friends and family. (Although, depending on the person and the calendar, it might be worth taking time to do that too.) 

I’m talking about getting off social media. 

Advent is the second period of time when I typically take an extended social media break (with the first being Lent). Both of these seasons are times that encourage us to turn toward Christ. But Advent does this by prompting us to slow down, to turn off the noise, to wait. 

Now, I have to add some nuance here and tell you that I’ll still be on social media for work during the weekdays. Social media management is a huge part of my job, and maybe it is part of your job too. I think that’s a little different. 

Outside of work? I can add to the limits I already put on my social media by completely turning it off. I can step away from the frenzied pace, comparison game, and anger perpetuated on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

I can slow down. I can turn off the noise. I can wait. 

And maybe you will too. If you want to dial down the volume on the world this Advent season so that you can focus more on Christ our King, this may be a practice for you. 

And I’d love to hear if it is. Feel free to hit the reply button on your email or the comment button on Substack and let me know if you’re joining me this season. 

Just don’t tweet me. I won’t see it. 🙂 

Merry Christmas. I’ll catch you next month.

Your monthly recap from kelveyolivia.com is here.

March 2022: The Club + Shark Attack Documentaries

Posted on by Kelvey Vander Hart in L I F E

Happy Monday! I wanted to steer very clear of April Fools Day, so here’s a delayed monthly recap for your morning. 

Best Book I Read This Month 

The Club was one of those books I checked out on a whim but found myself recommending immediately after finishing. Plot twist after effortless plot twist. It has been a long time since I turned the final few pages of a book with truly no idea how it was going to end. Highly recommend it if you are needing a good piece of fiction. (Fair warning though, this is not for the kids.) 

Best Article I Read This Month

When picking my favorite article from each month, I automatically go look at the ones I have shared on Facebook – it’s a pretty good barometer for what I find interesting enough to share. There were so many good ones this month, but I think the most important story I could share is this profile on a high-risk pregnancy in prison. Devastating. The handling of prison pregnancies is a place where pro-lifers and criminal justice reformers (both of which I consider myself to be) should be teaming up to enact change. 

Tip + Trick of the Month

This comes from James Clear of Atomic Habits notoriety: 

“Nearly everything in life has a useful zone, a desired dose. Ten minutes in the sun can energize you. Ten hours in the sun can burn you. This concept applies to many things: work, relationships, hobbies, exercise, food. What is your desired dose? What do you need right now? A little bit more or a little bit less? 

Quote of the Month

“Libertarianism is the ‘diet and exercise’ of politics. No one wants to hear it. Implementing it will be painful sometimes. But it’s the only way to make our society healthy. There simply is no other option.” 

While the original quote is from @checkmatestate on Twitter, the addendum from Reason’s Nick Gillespie is worth considering. 

Kelvey’s Thought for the Month

I watch a lot of shark attack documentaries. It’s actually an absurd amount. As a result, I end up thinking about shark attacks potentially more than the average person, especially when I know I am visiting the ocean. (Imagine my relief when I discovered that my last seaside vacation spot had not had a documented shark attack over the last six decades.) 

I consume a lot of shark attack documentaries, so I think about shark attacks more. If you consume a lot of angry political Twitter or fearful news, what is going to slowly take over your thinking? We become what we consume, so consume well. 

Enjoy your April! I’ll see you next month.