And so, with a blog title that doesn’t sound very lean, or minimalist, I begin my blogging career.

Today, I have been overwhelmed.

On a lean journey in my working life for 19 years and on the minimalist path in some way for about 7, you could say that improvement is something that I am passionate about and normally more than enthusiastic.

Unfortunately, improvement is hard. It takes motivation and vision as well as a deep commitment to goals and values.

And some days, it’s just hard.

Today I realised, thanks in part to re-listening to a great podcast by The Minimalists themselves on the subject of Overwhelm, that maybe I needed to regroup and refocus. That maybe I might have to pull back a little on personal growth, improvement and simplification while I focus on my health and fitness, our almost complete renovations and paying off debt.

In short, I need to simplify the simplification process. I have gotten too busy working on achieving ‘un-busy’.

Ironically, part of this process has resulted in me finally starting the blog I have always wanted to write.

Looking back, I know that I am on great journey. I have already turned my life in the direction I want to go. I am living a simpler life than I did 3 years ago and even a year ago. I am healthier than I was 3 months ago. I am following a long and bumpy road that travels through places that I have always wanted to visit.

Sometimes, however, it is hard to remember that it’s the journey that’s important and not the destination.

Which is why the odd bowl of ice cream (or two) is just a bump in a rugged but otherwise very rewarding road.

Published by the lean minimalist

Donna Sherriff is a New Zealand based improvement and operations management specialist. Seeing a need for simple, no fuss, improvement advice she started The Lean Minimalist blog in 2017. Donna writes articles offering advice and tips for rapid and sustainable business improvement based on over 15 years in Senior Management roles. Passionate about sharing the lessons of over 20 years on the high performance track Donna offers coaching services to professionals. She also writes about her own personal improvement journey, minimalism, and her life long struggle against the tyranny of cookies and sugar which she overcame in 2020. These days, Donna is pursuing a journey to earn her black belt in Taekwondo after a long hiatus of 16 years away from training. On the side she is an amateur but passionate musician and poet. View all posts by the lean minimalist