71: How to Live Simply and Put People Before Stuff (with Tsh Oxenreider)

Ever wish you had less stuff? Wanting more time for what's important? In this episode Tsh Oxenreider shares her story of learning to have less “stuff” so she could have more time for living her purpose, which includes helping people and traveling.

Tsh Oxenreider is the author of several books, including her new one, At Home in the World. She's the founder of the community blog The Art of Simple and the top-ranked podcaster of The Simple Show, where she encourages big-hearted people to live simple, unconventional lives. Tsh currently lives in Austin, Texas with her 3 kids and husband, and eats tacos several times a week. She's equally happy snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef as she is puttering around in her backyard.

Nuggets of Wisdom from Tsh:

“Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.” – Parker Palmer

“Vocation: The word means calling. it's the idea of ‘What you are made to do and what your life speaks.'

“Listen to your life because it says something!”

“What made [living in Turkey] truly great were a lot of these smaller life lessons and family togetherness and even the hard stuff that we pushed through to make us a better people and a better family unit.”

“Home is where you know and are known. For me, that equals people. Home equals a tangible place. I think there's something important about it being in a place.”

“There's this foundational idea that you have to know: your vocation is how your life speaks.”

“We would rather put our money toward experiences over things.”

“Simple living for me is living holistically with your life's purpose.”

“Your life's purpose is your vocation.”

Some of Tsh's Favorite Things:

Personal habit: ” Bullet journaling. It's this way of journaling your day that just keeps your thoughts in a more organized fashion. I feel so much more in control of my time.”

Easy meal: “I love chicken tortilla soup in slow cooker from Pioneer Woman.” (get the recipe here)

Favorite kitchen gadget: “Ice cream maker”

Tsh's Favorite Books: “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver”

Best advice received: “Taking action and making things happen.” (from Tsh's husband)

Tsh's Happiness Formula:

“Travel is a huge part of my happiness. I am more who I am whenever I spend time traveling. And yet, it is coupled with staying home a lot. It's a combination of exploring the world and being at home – embracing where I am, getting to know my neighbors, spending time in my community and getting involved. It is a blend of being a citizen of the world and a citizen of my community.”

A Challenge from Tsh:

“Plan a trip on the horizon -even if that means a day trip into the closest city where you live. If you haven't planned a trip in a long time, plan something where you actually leave your house and you go do something pretty different from what you normally do. You might want to explore some small town nearby that you have always wanted to do. You might check out a museum. You might try out a new restaurant, or you could actually get on a plane and or get on a website, see what cheap flights in your area are and go do something like that. I think so much of our life is routine, which is good, but we need to appreciate that routine whenever we shake it up a bit and interact with the outside world around us.”

Resources

The Art of Simple (Tsh's Website)

The Simple Show (Tsh's Podcast)

At Home in the World: Reflections on Belonging While Wandering the Globe (Tsh's Book)

Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver

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