Lets face it, inspiring quotes from a world expert on living a calm and simpler life will always be popular. And so, weve chosen the our top quotes from _Essentialism_ by Greg McKeown.

_Essentialism_ is about the **pursuit of less** and being more selective about what is **essential** in our lives. It's a timely post-pandemic discipline to adopt, as many of us find ourselves at full-throttle again.

We interviewed Greg on _Essentialism_ for our Growth Faculty Pass members - if you're a member you can [watch that interview here](https://library.growthfaculty.com/Play?pId=c82b3445-96ba-4c0e-9d95-f4b3c01afe7d1d).

For the key points of _Essentialism_ , read below for our **top three quotes** from Greg's book _Essentialism_ then our list of **dozens more great quotes** on decluttering our lives taken directly from his bestselling book.

Like living an Essentialist life, it's hard to be selective when faced with choices. But we've picked these as our top three essential quotes from _Essentialism -_ see if they inspire you too.

1. _The way of the Essentialist means living by design, not by default._

We like this quote because it inspires us to stop flip-flopping through life, beholden to other peoples plans and schedules. Greg McKeown challenges us to decide what we want to include in our day, our life, our world, and reject the rest.

2. _An Essentialist discerns more so he can do less._

This quote shows that thinking time is essential to the Essentialist. Instead of reacting immediately to requests, opportunities, invitations, challenges, the Essentialist takes a breath and thinks about how this latest request for his/her/their time fits with their goals. If it doesnt, the Essentialist says no.

3. _Essentialism is about creating a system for handling the wardrobe of our lives._

In this pithy quote Greg McKeown asks us to imagine a scenario where other people keep stuffing clothes into YOUR wardrobe  every day. He says that is analogous to people making demands on your time  do you want to give them that time \(cluttering your life wardrobe\)?

[ **Free Download** : 10 Leadership Qualities That Will Help Solve Challenges in 2023](https://thegrowthfaculty.ac-page.com/leadershipqualities)

Our Top 3 Quotes from Essentialism

Youve read our top three quotes, here are some more favourite quotes from Greg McKeowns book _Essentialism_.

_Weninger aber besser. English translation: Less but better._

_Only once you give yourself permission to stop trying to do it all, to stop saying yes to everyone, can you make your highest contribution towards the things that really matter._

_The way of the Essentialist is the relentless pursuit of less but better._

_There are far more activities and opportunities in the world than we have time and resources to invest in._

More inspiring quotes from Essentialism

_The way of the Essentialist rejects the idea that we can fit it all in._

_The way of the Essentialist is the path to being in control of our own choices._

Essentialism is not about how to get more things done; its about how to get the right things done.

_The pursuit of success can be a catalyst for failure._

_Success can distract us from focussing on the essential things that produce success in the first place._

_Today, technology has lowered the barrier for others to share their opinion about what we should be focusing on._

If you dont prioritise your life, someone else will.

_In the same way that our wardrobe gets cluttered as clothes we never wear accumulate, so do our lives get cluttered as well-intended commitments and activities weve said yes to pile up._

_Will this activity or effort make the highest possible contribution towards my goal?_

_Studies have found we tend to value things we already own more highly than they are worth and thus that we find them more difficult to get rid of._

_In the wardrobe of our lives, new clothes  new demands on our time  are coming at us constantly._

You can think of this book doing for your life and career what a professional organiser can do for your wardrobe.

Its about learning how to do less but better so you can achieve the highest possible return on every precious moment of your life.

_We can choose how to spend our energy and time._

_Almost everything is noise, and a very few things are exceptionally valuable._

_Ask three questions: What do I feel deeply inspired by? What am I particularly talented at? What meets a significant need in the world?_

_Many of us say yes to things because we are eager to please and make a difference._

_To eliminate non-essentials means saying no to someone._

_Everything changes when we give ourselves permission to be more selective in what we choose to do._

_There is tremendous freedom in learning that we can eliminate the non-essentials_

We cant have it all or do it all.

_I have a vision of people everywhere having the courage to live a life true to themselves instead of the lives others expect of them._

What if we stopped being oversold the value of having more and being undersold the value of having less?

_Choice is at the very core of what it means to be an Essentialist._

_To become an Essentialist requires a heightened awareness of our ability to choose._

_Non-essentialist: I have to. Essentialist: I choose to._

_Is there a point at which doing more does not produce more?_

_At a certain point, more effort causes our progress to plateau or even stall._

We often think of choice as a thing. But choice is not a thing. Our options may be things, but a choice is an action.

_Essentialists see trade-offs as an inherent part of life, not as an inherently negative part of life._

_Essentialists spend as much time as possible exploring, listening, debating, questioning, and thinking._

_When did you last take time out of your busy day simply to sit and think?_

A non-essentialist thinks almost everything is essential. An Essentialist thinks almost everything is non-essential.

_In every set of facts, something essential is hidden._

_Essentialists are powerful observers and listeners._

_A non-essentialist thinks play is trivial. An Essentialist knows play is essential._

The faster and busier things get, the more we need to build thinking time into our schedule.

_Sleep will enhance your ability to explore, make connections, and do less but better through your waking hours._

_A non-essentialist says yes to almost every request or opportunity. An Essentialist says yes to only the top 10% of opportunities._

_Making our criteria both selective and explicit affords us a systematic tool for discerning what is essential_

Play doesnt just help us to explore what is essential. It is essential in and of itself.

_When there is a serious lack of clarity about what the team stands for and what their goals and roles are, people experience confusion, stress, and frustration._

_A non-essentialist has a vague, general vision or mission statement. An Essentialist has a strategy that is concrete and inspirational._

Once you have sufficiently explored your optionsask the essential question: What will I say no to?

_Anyone can talk about the importance of focusing on the things that matter most  and many people do  but to see people who dare to live it is rare._

_Non-essentialists say yes because of feelings of social awkwardness and pressure._

The deeper I have looked at the subject of Essentialism the more clearly I have seen courage as key to the process of elimination.

_Essentialists accept they cannot be popular with everyone all of the time._

_Remember Essentialists dont say no just occasionally. It is part of their regular repertoire._

_An Essentialist has the courage and confidence to admit his or her mistakes and uncommit, no matter the sunk costs._

_The tendency to continue doing something simply because we have always done it is sometimes called the status quo bias._

A true Essentialist, Peter Drucker believed that people are effective because they say no.

Greg McKeown is author of _Essentialism_

_Before the words That sounds great, Id love to fly out of your mouth, ask yourself Is this essential?_

_In life, disciplined editing can help add to your level of contribution._

_The Latin root of the word decision  cis or cid  literally means to cut or to kill._

_When I ask executives to identify their boundaries they can rarely do it._

Essentialists see boundaries as empowering. They recognise that boundaries protect their time from being hijacked.

_If you have an hour set aside for a conference call, block off an additional 30 minutes._

_Essentialistsbuild in buffers to reduce the friction caused by the unexpected._

_Essentialists dont default to Band-Aid solutionsThey ask What is getting in the way of achieving what is essential?_

_An Essentialist produces more  brings forth more  by removing more instead of doing more._

_The way of the non-essentialist is to go big on everything; to try to do it all, have it all, fit it all in._

The Essentialist looks ahead. She plans. She prepares for different contingencies. She expects the unexpected.

_Research has shown that of all forms of human motivation the most effective one is progress._

_The Essentialist designs a routine that makes achieving what you have identified as essential to the default position._

_Our ability to execute the essential improves with practice, just like any other ability._

_Many of our non-essential routines are deep and emotional._

Instead of trying to accomplish it allthe Essentialist starts small and celebrates progress.

_The way of the Essentialist is to tune into the present._

_Multi-tasking itself is not the enemy of Essentialism; pretending we can multi-focus is._

_When faced with so many tasks and obligations that you cant figure out which to tackle first, stop. Take a deep breath. Get present in the moment_

_Getting the future out of your head enables you to more fully focus on what is important now._

Only in the here and now can we actually execute on the things that really matter.

_The way of the Essentialist isnt just about success; its about living a life of meaning and purpose._

_Once you become an Essentialist, you will find that you arent like everybody else._

_In many ways, to live as an Essentialist in our too-many-things-all-the-time society is an act of quiet revolution._

_An Essentialist is something I am steadily becoming._

_As the Dalai Lama, another true Essentialist, has said: If ones life is simple, contentment has to come. Simplicity is extremely important for happiness._

There are two ways of thinking about Essentialistm. The first is to think of it as something you do occasionally. The second is to think of it as something you are.

_I hope you will remember this: whatever decision or challenge or crossroads you face in your life, simply ask yourself, What is essential? Eliminate everything else._

Further reading: [WHAT IF THIS COULD BE EASY? ESSENTIALISM AUTHOR'S NEW BOOK EFFORTLESS](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/essentialismauthornewbookeffortless)

The life of an Essentialist is a life lived without regret.

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