Robie Rogge is a New York City-based packager who has created many successful guided journals and novelty products for Clarkson Potter and the Museum of Modern Art.

Dian G. Smith is a freelance writer and reading specialist.

Simplicity is light, carefree, neat, and loving—not a self-punishing ascetic trip.

—Gary Snyder


Simplicity is a balance, tricky but attainable. In Do One Thing Every Day to Simplify Your Life, inspiring quotes, practical advice, and challenging prompts will steer you toward this happy way of being and away from the pitfalls of strict self-denial.

Simplicity is “light,” Snyder writes. Look to the words about nature and language inside this book and to the features that urge you to explore your senses, such as Simple Sounds and Simple Sights. The entries under Simple Tips and K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid) will make everyday life more “carefree.” They offer systems to clear your physical space, from your inbox to your backpack, and specific efficiencies for unmatched socks, chaotic linens, and lost bills. The entries under Simple Mind-set will help to clear your mind.

For advice on being “neat,” read the words of nineteenth century designer William Morris and today’s tidying guru Marie Kondo. Also consult the feature Back to Basics to reduce your oversupply of tools, clothing, and other possessions by identifying the essentials. Finally, simplicity, according to Snyder, means “loving” yourself, others, and the world around you. Look for quotes and prompts throughout this book that elicit self-understanding and gratitude and the feature Simple Gifts, with suggestions of small treasures to give to someone dear.

Guiding you on this journey to simplify your physical and mental life are writers, philosophers, chefs, politicians, musicians, scientists, artists, and celebrities, from ancient times to the present, who have dropped the excess baggage from their own lives while gathering extra joy.

Where should you start? The unnumbered pages of this book are meant to be flipped through and sampled according to your mood with two exceptions. Begin by marking your place on the meter below. Then rate yourself again, on the meter at the end of the book, after a year of doing one thing every day to simplify your life.