Back in August of 2015, I announced that I would be creating an online simple-living course. Then everybody created one. Now the idea feels uncreative. The plan was to start the course in January of 2016. But I needed a larger following and more time to prepare. So I postponed the project and projected the start date to January, 2017. Now I’ve decided to postpone the online course indefinitely. Read on to find out why:
Some Things Feel Uncreative To Me
I’m a creative person. I love to create stuff: blogs, books, songs, stories, and more. But let’s face it. The Internet is overflowing with online courses. Do we really need another one? It’s beginning to feel uncreative to me. If you want to take a course on simple living, there are plenty of options. Here are a few sites that offer those kinds of courses:
- Zen Habits
- Becoming Minimalist
- Be More With Less
I see no point in reinventing the wheel. I’d rather invent a hovercraft. But this feeling that another online simple-living course is uncreative isn’t the only reason I’ve decided not create the course for 2017.
We Need To Pick And Choose Our Battles
I’m a busy guy. I’m a single dad. I work full-time as a college professor. I operate this blog and The Creative Side. I write songs and novels. I make a point to exercise, spend time in nature, and eat right. I have to measure priorities. That means I have to know when enough is enough. Recently, I created a list of the top-10 priorities in my life. Creating an online course didn’t make it onto the list.
My Top-Ten Priorities For 2016
- Family: My daughter comes first. As a single dad it takes a lot of time and energy to keep things in order. I also have an aging mother and several siblings that I want to spend time with. Family comes first.
- Spiritual Life: I believe that part of living simply is having peace in our lives. For me, getting in tune with nature and God brings peace. Prayer and meditation have been lifesavers, but sometimes I get so busy that I forget to be thankful and breathe.
- Health and Exercise: A few years ago, I made a conscious choice to put health and exercise above my other hobbies. I haven’t always succeeded at this, but I continue to keep health at the top of my list. Without good health I wouldn’t be able to do all the other stuff.
- Writing: I’m a writer. I can’t fight it. But I prefer creative writing over uncreative ventures. I love writing helpful blog posts and ebooks for Hip Diggs, but my greater passion is in writing fictional works with important social messages. See The Cult Trilogy.
- Music: I’ve been playing music and writing songs since I was waist high. I’ve studied the great American songwriters and I’ve worked to hone my craft to become one of them. I may not reach that level, but it’s still a passion, and it’s therapeutical.
- Home Improvement: When you own your own home, you want it to be attractive and comfortable. Since buying my first house in 2014, I’ve grown to love home improvement projects. This summer I’ll be working on gardening and painting.
- Career: I develop courses for my job as a college professor, I don’t want to spend my evenings developing more courses. I love creating and teaching courses, but we need balance in life.
- Travel: If I go too long without traveling I begin to feel uncreative. Travel helps us find new energy and motivation. Although I’ve cut back on travel the last couple years, I still want to explore more of the world in the future.
- Reading and Education: Before I started blogging, I read 40-50 books a year. Since I started blogging I’m lucky to read 10 books in a year. I need to make more time for reading and education before starting another project.
- Less: I want to do less, not more. I don’t really care about making loads of money or becoming a famous author, musician, or blogger. I practice these things because I love them. I’ve had as many as seven blogs in the past. I’ve narrowed that down to two. I play a dozen musical instruments. I want to pick a couple and work on mastering them. I’ve written three novels. I found the third the most enjoyable to write because I took my time. Less is more. Your work is better when you take a breath and focus.
What’s This Mean For The Future Of Hip Diggs?
Don’t worry. I’m going to keep writing at Hip Diggs. You can expect at least two articles a week for the remainder of 2016. I might slow down a little next year, but I believe the topic of simple living is important. I want to share the message of minimalism with the world. And these posts may help me as much as they help others.
I haven’t ruled an online course out forever. It’s just that I have more important things to do in the near future. Besides, why would you pay for a course when I offer much of my writing and ideas for free?
Dan Erickson
