This ebook does not convey nor is a substitute for professional medical, legal, or financial advice. You can use the ideas in this ebook to identify where you might need appropriate help and then seek it from a qualified professional.
本电子书并非传输或代替专业医学，法律和财政方面的意见。在此电子书中，你可以找出自己哪里需要适当的帮助，然后求助于资深的专业人士。
You can simplify your life[9]
Are you a "human doing"-- running from place to place, over-scheduled, over-committed, with your priorities lost in the trivia of life? If so, this ebook is for you. With it, you can adopt tactics to reduce the clutter of your life, the complications of your daily, and your living costs in terms of time, energy, and money.
Are you facing the need or desire to simplify your life? You might be newly laid off, retired, or a student, homemaker, or entrepreneur who has to make do with less. This ebook can help you restructure your life. Or perhaps you have decided that your current profession, although well paying, is unfulfilling. In this case, you could simplify your life so that you could pursue your more desired, but perhaps much lower paying, way of life.
This first section introduces you to the idea of simplicity by looking at case studies of complex lives. I will describe how the people in these case studies could simplify their lives. I'll then describe how you can start to use this ebook to simplify your own life.
你的生活
你能简化你的生活
是否你是一个大忙人？——从一个地方到一个地方不停奔波，日程满满的，任务永远做不完，迷失在现实的琐碎中理不出头绪。如果是的话，这本电子书正适合你。里面的一些策略你可以采纳，来理清生活的纷乱，困绕，及减少生存的代价：时间，精力和金钱。
是否你正面临简化生活的需要或愿望？可能你刚失业，退休，或是一名学生，主妇再或者一位企业家（）。这本电子书会帮你重构你的生活。或者你可能觉得现在的职业，虽然收入颇丰，但很乏味。这样的话，你应该简化生活来追求你更渴望的生活方式，那可能收入欠佳。
第一部分通过研究几个复杂生活的案例为你介绍简单的理念。我会描述在这些案例中这些人如何简化他们的生活。然后讲述如何开始利用这本电子书来简化你自己的生活。
你的生活十分复杂么？
Consider Kyle's situation:
CASE STUDY: Kyle is a single father raising his four-year-old daughter, Nicole.
想想K的处境：
案例学习：K是一个单身父亲，要抚养他四岁大的女儿Nicole.
He gets up at 6 am, dresses and feeds Nicole, and drives 30 minutes from his home on the west side of town to bring Nicole to the daycare center on the east side of town. Kyle then drives fifty minutes to the south side of town where he works as an engineer. Off work at 5 pm, he drives on Tuesdays and Thursdays directly to evening classes at the University on the north side of town. On those days, he doesn't pick up Nicole until 8 pm. On other days, Kyle does errands and shopping after work. On many days, they both don't get home until 9 pm. Then there's only enough time to eat, bathe Nicole, and put her to bed. Kyle sometimes stays up late to clean the house, but he finds that his energy and attention are so low he sometimes ends up watching TV. On the weekends, Kyle's ex-wife picks up Nicole for a visit until Sunday afternoon. But for Kyle, the weekends involve more driving around town to accomplish the shopping and errands he could not get done during the week.
他六点起床，给N穿衣、喂饭，然后从位于镇西边的家开车30分钟送N到镇东边的日托中心。再开车50分钟去镇南边从事工程师的工作。下午5点下班后，周二和周四他会直接去镇北边的夜校去上课。这些天他直到晚上8点才去接N。其他日子，K下班后要做一些杂务和采购。经常，他们直到晚上9点才能够到家。然后就只够吃吃饭，给N洗澡，哄她入睡。
有时候K收拾屋子要熬到很晚，然而他发现自己力不从心有时看电视时就睡着了。周末，K的前妻来接走N直到周日下午回来。但对K来说，周末还要绕镇跑更多的路来做一周里没能完成的采购和杂务。
Can you relate to Kyle's situation? Do you seem to drive around town a great deal but have little satisfaction? Is there anything Kyle can do to make his life easier?
For Kyle, I suggest he try some tactics to simplify his daily routine. He can consolidate his shopping trips and see about rearranging his work schedule. He could start doing this with tactics in "Hone Your Routine." His choice of where he lives seems to lead to a great deal of driving. "Optimize Your Place" should help him re-evaluate his location. "Live Your Dream" could also help him re-think his priorities among working full-time, going to school, and raising a child. He should use "Tap into Resources" to reconsider the support (or lack of it) that he is getting from others. By simplifying his life, he might be able to spend more time with his daughter, complete his education faster, and probably be more satisfied with his life.
你符合K的这种境况么？你是否看起来绕镇兜了很多圈子而收郊甚微？K能做点什么来让使他的生活更轻松？
对K，我建议他尝试一些办法简化他的日常事务。他可以固定他的采购路线，考虑重新安排他的工作日程。他可以从“研究日常事务”的策略开始。他选择住的地方看来导致了太多的驾车时间。“优化居住地”应该帮他重估住所位置。“过你梦想的生活”应该也能帮他重新考虑在全职工作，上学和抚养孩子之间的优先选择。他可以用“”重新考虑他正从别处得到的支持（或）。通过简化他的生活，他能有更多的时间陪女儿，更快地完成他的学业，可能还会对自己的生活更满意。
Perhaps you, unlike Kyle, have routine things under control. However, you might find yourself in an unexpected change in your employment status. You may have been laid off or suddenly have less money than you had been counting on to live. Consider Maggie's situation:
CASE STUDY: Maggie's employer forced her to retire early.
也许你不像K，日常事务能够应付得来。但是，你可能发现自己工作中出现了一些很不愉快的变化。你可能失业了或者突然挣得维持不了自己的生活。参照M的处境：
案例学习：M的老板强制她提前退休。
Now Maggie will get less retirement income than she had originally planned. With her husband George, she owns a big house in the suburbs; their children are all grown. George had retired just the previous year but works as a groundskeeper at a nearby golf course. He enjoys the work, and it brings in extra money. They have paid off their house mortgage, but the property taxes have risen again, and they can barely meet these tax payments in addition to the rising maintenance costs for the house. Maggie is isolated all day in the house. George takes their car to the golf course. She tries to clean the house, but their lifetime accumulation of possessions fills the attic, basement, and garage. One spare room contains so many boxes of papers and old periodicals that guests can't stay there. Maggie grows more perturbed that George spends so much time at the golf course.
Maggie doesn't seem to have a complex life. In fact, she seems bored. But is there something Maggie and George could do to improve their lives? Their house in the suburbs is big, isolated, and full of things they probably don't want.
现在M得到的退休金比她原计划要少。她和丈夫乔治在市郊拥有一所大房子，孩子们都已长大。乔治就在前几年已经退休，又在附近的一个高尔夫球场作保洁工。他很喜欢这份工作，又能带来额外的收入。他们已经还清了住房贷款，但财产税又上涨了，除了应付不断上涨的生活费用他们勉强能支付这些税的开销。M整天与世隔绝似的呆在家里。乔治开车去高尔夫球队场上班。她忙着打扫屋子，但是他们这一辈子积攒的东西填满了阁楼，地下室及车库。一个闲置的房间里堆满了那么多装书本和旧期刊的箱子，客人们根本没法在这住。对乔治在高尔夫球场花那么时间M变得很烦躁。
看起来M的生活并不太复杂。实际上，她看起来很烦躁。但是M和乔治为改善他们的生活能做点什么呢？他们在市郊的房子又大又孤立，而且充满了他们可能并不想要的东西。
I suggest Maggie and George immediately use "Rule Your Stuff" to purge all the unwanted things they have in their home. Then, after reading "Live your dream" they should be able to state more clearly their hopes for their lives. Then they could revisit their choice of where they live in "Optimize Your Place." The rest of this ebook will help them simplify their daily routines and use of resources.
我建议M和乔治立即采用“管理你的物品”把他们房子里一切不想要的东西都清除。然后，读过“过你梦想的生活”后他们应能够清楚地说出生活的愿望。接下来他们会依“优化你的住处”重新考虑他们居住地的选择。这本电子书的其余部分能帮你简化你的日常事务和各种资源的用处。
Perhaps unlike the previous examples, your life is less complicated by particular things or where you live. Perhaps you seem to just experience a disappointing daily routine. Consider Kevin:
CASE STUDY: Kevin gets up on Saturday, reads the newspaper and has coffee.
也许与之前的例子不同，你的生活并不是被某件事物或住的位置搞得复杂。可能你像是做一件无精打彩的日常琐事。参照K：
案例学习：K周六起床，读报，喝咖啡。
At 11am, he feels like he should do something, so goes to the grocery store, which is full of people. He stands in line for 45 minutes to check out his groceries. He drives home and decides to do his laundry. The laundry room is very busy--all the washers and dryers are being used. Finally, he drives to a restaurant, eats, and comes home by 4 pm. He wants to work on his hobby of photography, but his equipment is all in the storage room in his apartment building. He can't find the chemicals he needs to do the developing even though he drove to four stores in town. Rather than call friends and enjoy some social time, he does nothing for the rest of the evening except watch TV until late at night. He feels he accomplished nothing, and sleeps in until 1 pm on Sunday.
上午11点，他觉得应该做点什么，于是就去了百货商店，那里挤满了人。他排了45分钟等待结帐。开车回家并决定洗那些脏衣服。干洗房很忙——所有的水洗机和干洗机都用着。最后，他开车去饭店吃饭，到家就下午4点了。他想玩自己的爱好摄影，可是他的设备都在公寓的储藏室里。尽管他开车在市里找了四家店也没找到用来冲洗照片的化学药剂。那天晚上没有给朋友打电话或者出去玩，他除了看电视到很晚什么也没做。他觉得什么事也没做成，一直睡到周日下午1点钟。
Is there something Kevin could do to improve his routine? He could look at his choice of timing, his habits, and most importantly his dreams. Kevin could start right away with improving his daily routines in "Hone Your Routine." He needs to get rid of his habit of going to places at peak times. Then, he could find out and state his personal goals using "Live Your Dream." "Tap into Resources" should help him get the materials he needs for his photography and "Rule Your Stuff" should help him get those materials organized. Despite what you might think, Kevin does have a life. It is just on hold.
K有什么办法改善他的日常惯例么？他可以观察一下他选择的时间安排，他的爱好，最重要的是他的梦想。K可以按照“研究你的日常事务”立即开始改善他现在的日常琐事。他需要改掉在高峰时出门的习惯。还有，他可以用“过你梦想的生活”来发现并说出个人的目标。“借助资源”能帮他得到他摄影所需要的东西，“管理你的物品”能帮他组织好这些东西。不管你会怎么想，K确实拥有生活，尽在掌握中。
Perhaps unlike Kevin, your life is definitely off hold--you have a life full of activities. You might be a busy young person starting in education or a new career. Consider Denielle's situation:
CASE STUDY: Denielle is a graduate student at a State University.
或许与K不同，你的生活完全失去掌控——生活是挤满了各式各样的事情。可能你是一个在学业上刚开始或是刚进入一个新的职业的忙碌的年轻人。参考D的状况：
案例学习：D是一名国立大学的毕业生。
She works as a teaching assistant and is taking graduate courses. She lives in an apartment with four other roommates. On a typical day, she takes a bus into campus at 7 am, teaches, holds office hours, has lunch with other teaching assistants, and then attends her own classes. She spends some time at the library studying until she meets up with one of her roommates at 9 pm to get a ride back to the apartment. At the apartment, it is too noisy to do any work--the TV is usually on and loud, and her roommates and their boyfriends are coming and going until late at night. Denielle doesn't sleep well in the cramped bedroom she has, and she is mad at her roommates because she found out they are not passing along phone messages to her. Denielle also has a hard time paying her bills at the end of the month. She resents having to ask her roommates for rides to the store and laundromat. She feels isolated from campus life and no peace at the apartment.
她作为一名助教，同时也在上毕业班的课程。和另外四个舍友同住一个宿舍。经常，她早7点乘公交车去学校，教学，办公，与其他的助教们一起吃午饭，然后去听课。她在图书馆学习到晚上9点然后和她的一个舍友一起乘车回公寓。在宿舍里，吵得没法工作——电视经常大声地开着，她的那些舍友和她们的男友们一直到很晚还进进出出。D在她这个拥挤的宿舍里睡不好，一想到她的舍友们从不给她发发机短信她就要疯掉。D在月底的日子也不好过，还要应付那些帐单。她特讨厌不得不叫上舍友搭车去百货商店和公共洗衣店。她感觉被校园的生活孤立，在宿舍也没有安静的空间。
Could Denielle simplify her life? While she seems very motivated on her academic goals, she works less efficiently than she could in other areas. She could look at "Optimize Your Place" and "Hone Your Routine" to get suggestions for picking a better place to live and using her time better. In the long term, she could gain a stronger focus on her work by stating her personal goals using "Live Your Dream."
D能简化她的生活么？虽然看起来她在学业上非常努力，但她并没有发挥她实际的工作效率。她可以参照“优化你的住所”和“研究你的日常惯例”来得到一些建议：找一个更适合的地方居住并更好地利用时间。长远来看，她通过“过你梦想的生活”说出自己的理想，从而在工作中集中更大的精力。
Do you find yourself sharing some of the problems of the characters in these case studies? Do you seem to be driving around all day like Kyle? Are you like Maggie and George, stuck living in the suburbs? Do you share with Kevin a feeling of not being able to get something done? Like Denielle, do you wonder how you can make your life and routine more enjoyable?
在这些案例学习中，你是否发现自己也和他们有同样的困惑？你是否像K一样看起来在整天开车兜圈子？是否像M和乔治那样，在市郊呆板地生活？是否与K有同感，觉得一事无成？像D一样，是否你也困惑如何让自己的生活和琐事变得更加愉快？
The good news is that you need not spend energy for results that don't matter to you. If you recognize yourself in these examples, it is time to simplify.
Live Simple Use this ebook to simplify your life[10]
庆幸的是你不必为与你无关的结果花费精力。如果在这些例子中发现了你自己，那么简化生活的时刻到了。
利用这本电子书简化你的生活过简单的生活。
Simplicity is all about streamlining your life. Simplicity involves freeing your time, money, and energy so that you can pay more attention to what is important to you.
This ebook gives you practical (and sometimes radical) ideas to simplify your life. These ideas will help you manage your possessions, choose and arrange the place where you live, streamline your daily routine, support your dreams, and use resources to support your life's goals. Simplicity offers you savings in time, money, and energy. Most importantly, simplicity is fun because you get more time for your passions.
简化就是使你的生活合理化。包括节省你的时间，金钱和精力来让你更多地关注那些最重要的事。
这本电子书给了你一些可行的（有时是过激的）办法来简化你的生活。这些办法会帮你管理你的财产，选择和安排你的住所，理顺你的日常事务，张扬你的梦想，使用能协助实现生活理想的资源。简化会教你节省时间，金钱和精力。最重要的是，简化会很愉快，因为那样你会有更多时间做喜欢做的事。
This ebook is not a quick fix, nor will it solve all your problems. I assume that you are ready and willing to make changes in your life and that you are willing to do some work and change your habits in order to benefit from the suggestions.
Not everything listed here will be for you. Think of it as a catalog of possible tactics you can use to simplify your life. I don't think that you will use every tactic, but I hope that you find many tactics in this ebook that genuinely simplify your life.
This ebook is for anyone who wants a simpler life
这本电子书并不是一个急救器，也不见得会解决你所有的问题。我猜你已准备好并乐意在你的生活中做一些改变，做一些事情并改变你的习惯希望从这些建议中见到成效。
这里列举的并非所有都适合你。把它视为一个提供可能性建议的目录利用它来简化你的生活。我认为你不必每个建议都用上，只希望你能找到其中最能简化你的生活的那些建议。
这本电子书适合那些希望拥有简单生活的人。
【本文翻译仅为外语学习及阅读目的，原文作者个人观点与译者及译言网无关】
