The Tao of Doing Less – Lent 2025: Day 23

"I should have pushed myself harder!"

And then what?

"With more discipline and drive, I could have achieved more!"

Again – and then what? I'd be in the same place as I am today, though with a fatter bank balance? Or surrounded by more material possessions? Would they make me happier?

What's the sense of pushing oneself harder, unless that push is driven by curiosity? [Wanting to learn, to discover, to understand – this I understand.] But pushing oneself harder so as to add an extra zero to your net worth? If it's at the expense of your health and mental wellbeing?

Do you seek to live a life acclaimed? And does it matter in the fullness of time? Why compare? Why benchmark oneself against others' achievements? If you think you're good, it's only because you're comparing yourself with the wrong people.

Is wealth the best measure of success? As inherited wealth becomes more common, how can you tell the self-made entrepreneur flaunting it from the grandchild of a rich person behaving likewise?

As soon as you can afford to do so, step back. Do less. Buy less. Consume less. Waste less. Eat less. Expect less (of the material stuff). Walk more. Think more. Do all the above, and you can expect more simplicity – and more joy – from life. 

Below: graffiti from a wall in Kraków, late November 2019. (Ulica Smocza 10 - indeed you can still see traces of it on Google Maps Street View. Someone, tasked to remove it, could only be arsed to paint over the lower half.) 

Today is three weeks after Dudesday (6 March), so a fittingly belated opportunity to mention Dudeism, also referred to as The Church of the Latter-Day Dude. This is a philosophy and lifestyle that promotes a relaxed, easygoing approach to life. Drawing from the character of 'The Dude' from the Coen brothers' film The Big Lebowski, Dudeism is the do-less way. Here's a distillation (with Google Gemini's assistance) of its central tenets:

Abiding: going with the flow, accepting what life throws your way, rather than constantly fighting against it.

Taking it easy: a laid-back attitude, prioritising simple pleasures and avoiding unnecessary stress.

Being Dudely: treating others with kindness and respect, promoting camaraderie and tolerance.

Emphasis on simplicity: Dudeism often critiques the modern emphasis on materialism and achievement, advocating for a simpler, more relaxed lifestyle.

Taoist influence: the concept of wu wei, or active inaction, acting in accordance with the natural flow of things.

Tolerance and acceptance: a tolerant and accepting attitude towards others; "that's just, like, your opinion, man."

Rejection of aggression and excess: Dudeism is a reaction to the agressive and excessive tendencies found in modern society.

It could be argued that Dudeism has its roots in the strand of Ancient Greek philosophy – ataraxia (a negation or absence of disturbance or trouble); 'imperturbability' or 'tranquility'. It is a lucid state of robust equanimity, characterised by ongoing freedom from distress and worry. 

One way or another, take it easy man; find peace in the simple things in life.

Lent 2024: Day 23
The True Self – The Individual vs the Collective

Lent 2023: Day 24
The Spirituality of Cosmic Life

Lent 2022: Day 23
Matter and materialism

Lent 2021: Day 23
Near-death experiences and the Afterlife

Lent 2020: Day 23
Refutation I