The Simple Sophisticate - Intelligent Living Paired with Signature Style

"The moment being alone stops bothering you, your whole life levels up." —Uriel Maksumov With the holidays upon us, I have come to discover an unexpected gift of enjoying my own company during this time of year - the realization of what I most enjoy about the holidays. And here's the catch: when it is chosen, it is liberating. It's clarifying, and as the quote above acknowledges, it is life-elevating. This doesn't mean we are alone 24 hours a day, or even live alone. What solitude, regularly savored, gives us is the life we say we want, but either haven't yet realized or haven't yet trusted to be dependable in what it gives us. As we'll talk about further along in our post today, part of the reason those of us who already do enjoy our solitude, however much or little we have, may doubt the nourishment is because our culture doesn't value it or speak about it in as praising terms as it does social activities and living situations. Words are powerful. Propaganda, persuasive marketing, it all involves words, and how we speak about what is valued, when heard often enough, will influence our trust in what is possible, what we are willing to be brave enough to explore, even with all of the unknowns. "Solitude, which is one of the most agreeable sensations of the natural man, and it is one of the most painful and alarming sensations of the civilised man." ― William J. Dawson, The Quest of the Simple Life The value of solitude, regularly experienced, has the capacity to bring peace not only into our lives but also, consequently, expand more widely into a community of peaceful people. And what better time of year to talk about peace on earth, non? How can we bring about more peace? By finding true peace within ourselves. Where do we find what we have so far been unable to locate to experience this peace - in the companionship of ourselves. No, I am not saying you have to be single, but you can be. No, I am not saying you have to spend all day, all week alone, but you can. As you will discover below, the amount of solitude is as unique as each individual. The key lies in the ingredients of the solitude we partake in. Let's take a look at how to embrace solitude, what we gain from it, and how to change the narrative around solitude in our culture. "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone." —Blaise Pascal, a seventeenth-century French mathematician, inventor and philosopher Find the Show Notes for episode #416 on The Simply Luxurious Life blog - https://thesimplyluxuriouslife.com/podcast416

"Art is a language without words." —Kate Bryan, author of How to Art: Bringing a Fancy Subject Down to Earth Why art? Why bring it into our lives? Why spend our hard-earned money on it? We often hear about the skyrocketing headline-making prices of paintings being sold at auction, but what's the point of purchasing something if the entire reason is to accrue value to sell later? The primary objective, Bryan shares, in writing this book, is to remove the assumed 'closed doors' or air of snobbery about art that she admits the art world itself has constructed. But, and she makes a strong argument, art, seeing it, appreciating it, making it, is part of being human. And to cordon it off, to claim that it is only a pastime for those with oodles of money or interest to acquire art of the upper echelons is preposterous. You may be wondering, Why is Shannon talking about this subject? What does art have to do with living simply luxuriously? With living a life of true contentment? It is precisely because true contentment is grounded in presence, seeing, clearing, and appreciating the everyday that the choice to bring art into our homes helps us savor each and every moment even more. When we bring works of art into our homes, we bring in a moment in the artist's life as they saw it. Their capturing of this ordinary moment in time, however they depict it, is a reminder that there is "beauty and marvels in the everyday". Even if we cannot or do not want to even try to be a literal artist, by gazing at their art, having it be present in our daily lives, we are continually reminded to see the gift in each day - to consciously look for it, take note of it without taking it for granted, and to savor it. Today, I would like to encourage you to consider, if you haven't already, acquiring an art collection to display in your home. Of course, how and where you display it, most likely throughout your home, will be up to you. Conveying your tastes, interests, and values in what each work depicts reflects a collector who engages with life in the present and brings their self-knowledge and quiet confidence to what captures their eye. Find the Show Notes on The Simply Luxurious Life blog https://thesimplyluxuriouslife.com/podcast415

"The more you practice reflection and appreciation, the more you build a reservoir of evidence that you can draw from in difficult times. You start ot see patterns. You start to recognize that while life has its ups and downs, you have consistently found a way to navigate them. You start to trust yourself more deeply. And that trust—that bone-deep knowing that you can handle whatever comes—is the foundation of true inner peace." —Daniel Chidiac, author of Stop Letting Everything Affect You What if I told you that your inner compass knows the way to your most fulfilling way of living is as certain as the sun rising tomorrow? Your immediate reaction to that truth reveals the strength of your self-trust muscle. Since we will each never be able to live without unknowns, what we have to bring along with us on our life journey as companions are tools, each of which we must choose to learn, that will help us constructively navigate whatever may cross our path. For example, suppose we're taking a road trip that leads over a mountain pass during winter. In that case, we will want to ensure the vehicle's tires are suitable for the conditions we may encounter, that the car's supplies are stocked for safety should we need them, and that the shoes we are wearing are sufficient should we need to step outside, among other things. You get the idea. We may never use all of them, but we will need to utilize some of them as preventative measures for success: a full tank of gas/a full electric charge, all-wheel drive, headlights, and windshield wipers. We are the ones who choose the skills we carry with us on our journey. And if we choose to journey toward cultivating contentment so that we can enjoy the everydays and discover what ignites us, while also contributing to the world, self-trust is a must-have skill. Today, we're going to explore how to tap into this perhaps unawakened skill, understand how it communicates with us, and how to strengthen it. Let's get started. ~View the full Show Notes for this episode on The Simply Luxurious Life blog - https://thesimplyluxuriouslife.com/podcast414

"The best use of money is a tool to leverage who you are, but never to define who you are."—Morgan Housel, author of The Art of Spending Money If you ever want to know what a culture values, what a country values, look at their tax laws. I will never forget the wisdom shared by Martin Ginsberg, a tax attorney and the husband of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, on how a country's subsidies reveal the guiding values of its populace through tax breaks or credits. I share this because, simply because it is the law, but that doesn't mean it needs to be the law that guides your life principles. Similarly, we see titles for the Richest person under 30, or a list of the world's billionaires on the cover of countless magazines each year, and again, they wouldn't create the list and place it on the cover if it didn't sell. Yet again, the bustling culture projected in the media supports the culture they need to stay in business or to remain in office. This doesn't answer the question of what it means to live a fulfilling life—a life of contentment. I start with this point because it would be understandable to mistakenly think that having more money, having the latest trend of décor, clothing, [fill in the blank for the latest trend of anything seen or discussed on social media, television, publications, etc.] is the path to a better life. But the truth is, there is no concrete formula, and your most successful approach to financial freedom, once you have learned the basics of money management, will be unique to your life journey and the lifestyle that nourishes you. And there in lies the art of spending money. As we know there are countless books on financial guidance, and having read many of them over the decades, there are constant contradictions, alongside worthwhile bits of wisdom and expertise. Often in the same book. In today's episode/post, I am going to be pulling quotes from a recent book that was published, The Art of Spending Money by Morgan Housel, however, this books falls into that category I just mentioned. And my approach to extrapolating useful insights follows his own advice, have a strong filter. We'll talk about that more later the final point on this list, but essentially, apply critical thinking skills to any book you read, bringing to the table your previous experience and knowledge, so you can know with clarity what is worth grabbing and applying to your life and what is not. Overarchingly, Housel offers an abundance of wisdom, much of which aligns with living a life of contentment, and that is why I wanted to bring you this list of how to finesse the art of spending. "Money itself doesn't buy happiness, but it can help you find independence and purpose—both key ingredients for a happier life if you cultivate them." —Morgan Housel How we choose to spend our money is personal, it is something we must make with an independent mind that is wise in knowing when we don't know something about our finances and to find experts in the fields we need to better understand. With sound money management skills – budgeting, savings, retirement – topics that have each been discussed at length in the many posts found in TSLL's Money Archived posts, we can now explore how to best spend our money to live the life that supports, nourishes and brings us peace of mind. Let's explore 13 ways to do just that. ~Find the Show Notes for this episode on The Simply Luxurious Life blog - https://thesimplyluxuriouslife.com/podcast413

"You live a new life for every language you speak. If you know only one language, you live only once." ―Czech proverb Did you know that 92% of students in Europe learn another language in school, and nearly a quarter of Canadians can hold a conversation in both English and French. Roughly one out of every two people on the planet knows at least two languages, and three out of four humans don't speak English. (source: ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) That may sound hyperbolic or pie-in-the-sky, but take a moment and consider what a democracy rests upon: civility, acceptance of differences, even if the majority rules, minority's rights are protected, along with a educated populous in vast fields of knowledge. These benefits, as we will talk about in more detail at the end of today's post, not only benefit the individual in the career and life pursuits, they also benefit the social and economic security of a democracy. "Growth in the number of people speaking languages in addition to English creates new opportunities for greater cross-cultural understanding, and integrates different ideas and perspectives in ways that will improve democratic discourse." —The Century Foundation As we get older, the argument is that it becomes more difficult to acquire a new language, and while that can be true, it depends more heavily upon the individual, their cognitive strength, the type of language they are learning (what Group level is it), as well as their awareness about what it takes to learn a new language. Yes, there will be challenges. Yes, you will be required to set aside your ego, and yes, it will take dedicated and consistent effort for at least 500 hours of learning to gain basic proficiency in a Grade I language (French and Spanish are included in this category). But the temporary stress is worth it for all that is gained. "A man who is ignorant of foreign languages is also ignorant of his own language." ― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Let's take a look four truths that are revealed about someone who chooses to learn a new language. Each worthwhile attributes that not coincidentally play fundamental roles in living a life of contentment. Find the Show Notes for this episode on The Simply Luxurious Life blog - https://thesimplyluxuriouslife.com/podcast412