Text and photo by Everett Bogue | Follow me on Twitter
I recently read Twyla Tharp’s Creative Habit, and she starts the book with this line: “I walk into a large white room.” She then explains how she’s expected to create something beautiful out of nothing.
All dancers have to do this, walk into a white room and create something out of nothing. There is no exception.
I haven’t mentioned this before, but I trained as a dancer in Chicago for four years, and in New York for three. I went to NYU on a dance scholarship, and trained with some of the foremost minds in the New York City scene.
Then I started working in magazines–because it was easier to sit at a computer and play with photos? Regardless of how my career progressed, the training in dance that I’ve received has had a profound effect on the way I interpret the world.
Dance is very hard. After reading Twyla’s book on creativity, it’s so apparent why her book gets so close to the root of where creative energy comes from. She’s writing it from the perspective of a creative person who has to engage on a daily level with one of the hardest creative mediums on the planet.
Every day is a challenge when you’re work is pulling art out of a group of people in a blank white space. But at least it’s a fresh and exciting challenge.
It’s impossible to create work in a cluttered space. This is why Twyla works in a blank white room. It’s hard to come up with any decent work to put on a dancer if you’re working in a room full of crap. They could trip and fall.
I think we could do well to apply this theory to every creative field, maybe to everyday life.
Ideas don’t appear in clutter. They don’t magically manifest in chaos. Ideas need space to first generate, and then be executed.
Why ideas need space.
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Written and photographed by Everett Bogue | Follow me on Twitter
We live in a reality that’s filled with deception. Every day when you step out on the street, when you log onto your computer, you’re being attacked.
You might not even be aware how often these assaults are happening, and I guarantee you that you’re encountering more danger than you’re even aware of.
What is this threat I speak of? Marketing and advertising. People getting you to buy stuff to fill up your life. This is the reason your life is so cluttered now, and it’s the reason you had a coffee this morning (and I had coffee this morning, they told me it’d make me think better!) When you’re reading that magazine story, you’d better bet a publicist called a journalist at some point down the line and gave access to the information you’re reading.
Somewhere along the way we lost the battle against the constant barrage of advertising impressions and ordered that Big Mac.
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Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Tammy Strobel of Rowdykittens. Follow her on Twitter. Photo by Everett Bogue (I’m driving to Seattle, so Tammy is covering today!)
Prior to my downsizing journey, I read a lot of fitness and health magazines. Most of the magazines and books advocated buying more stuff, joining an expensive gym or promoted diets that were not healthy. I walked away from those magazines feeling depressed and overwhelmed.
Discovering the simple living movement helped me reconnect to my body and start taking small steps toward my fitness goals. Unplugging my television and selling my car gave me the time to meet my goals. Within the last few years, I started swimming with a master’s team again, ran a marathon and developed many long lasting friendships.
I can’t offer one solution to fit all; but here are a few simple fitness tips and activities that have helped me get in shape without buying new stuff.
1. Pick an activity you enjoy.
Getting fit means you have to move your body. So it’s essential to pick an activity you enjoy. It could be running, walking or yoga, but you need to like it. If you don’t like the activity, odds are you won’t follow through.
Running, walking, riding a bike and yoga are all low cost activities. You probably already have a pair of walking/running shoes, a bike and maybe a yoga mat at home. If not, start checking out local shops for sales.
Micro-action: Brainstorm 4-5 activities that you love. What gives you joy?
2. Move your body.
Move your body as much as possible. This can be hard in the modern world, especially if you have a desk job. I sit in front of a computer all day, but I do sometime of physical activity before arriving at the office and either walk or ride my bike to work.
If you don’t have a lot of free time, I’d encourage you to move closer to your place of employment. Moving closer to work and walking or biking to the office are great ways to get moving and don’t cost a lot of money.
Micro-action: Find 30 minutes in your day and get active.
3. Eat fresh and real food.
Eating good, real food has become part of my simple fitness plan.
Last year, I read In Defense of Food and changed my diet dramatically. Rather than eating packaged foods, most of my produce comes from the local farmer’s market. Eating real food has increased my energy level and is actually a lot less expensive.
If you have a local farmer’s market in your city, take advantage of it. I used to think that fast food was quick and easy. But I’ve changed my perspective. Cooking food at home saves time, money and it really is healthier and simpler.
Micro-action: Does your city have a farmer’s market? If you don’t know, find out and take a trip to the market.
4. Make time.
Make time in your life for physical exercise. Everyone has at least 30 minutes a day to participate in some-type of physical activity. If you don’t have the time, consider reorganizing your priorities.
Other options include unplugging the television or selling your car. I did both and finally moved off the couch and went outside.
Micro-action: Schedule a physical activity everyday.
5. Be patient.
Reaching any type of fitness goal takes time, so be patient. Getting in shape won’t happen over night. For instance, I just started doing yoga and realized how weak my core is! I have a lot of work to do when it comes to strength training and I know it will take time.
Starting out is the easy point, but sticking with your fitness goals is the hard part.
Micro-action: Connect to a support network or find a workout buddy to keep you focused.
Closing Thoughts…
Above all, do what you love and brings you joy. Your body will thank you.
Writing and photo by Everett Bogue | Follow me on Twitter
I’m going to get a little scientific on you, and let me tell you in advance that I’m no scientist, so forgive me if I have this all wrong. I was reading My Stroke of Insight this afternoon, which is a brilliant book about a woman who loses use of the left half of her brain because of a stroke and discovers oneness with the universe, she later regains use of that side of her brain and writes the book –anyway, I’d suggest reading it.
The author, Jill Bolte Taylor Ph.D., was explaining the difference between the left and the right hemispheres of the brain. The left hemisphere is the side that worries about things, thinks about the past and the future, it’s that little voice inside your head that’s always screaming at you that you’re doing things wrong. She was describing the right side of the brain as like the part of the brain which embraces the now, and can comprehend the big picture. The author lost use of the left side of her brain, hence finding Nirvana.
This got me thinking about how elegant minimalism is.
By adopting a minimalist approach to life you’re reducing things like…
- What kinds of food you eat
- How busy your schedule is
- How much money you spend
- The amount of stuff in your house
…You start to free up space in your brain to be creative, to look at the big picture, and just be open to what happens to you. It’s a very effective way of balancing the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
And this opens you up to an entire universe of understanding that just isn’t possible when you’re overwhelmed and overburdened by your life.
Pursuing this way of life can open you up to an entire new universe.
- You can begin focusing on the big picture. This is really important, without the ability to focus on the broad spectrum of existence, you’re trapped in a world of day-to-day monotony. Repetitive daily tasks and letting the little voice inside your head rule your life keep you from seeing what’s really possible.
- You can spend more time doing what’s important to you. You’ll be working less, and spending less time organizing, among tons of other things. So You can spend more time with your family, with people you love, talking about things like neuroscience!
- You can start making your dreams happen. Because you’re not spending as much money, you can work less and start investing in what you really want to do with your life. You can begin building your house, working towards the job you want to do, saving for retirement, or traveling…
…Which I’m going to be doing this weekend. I’m out for the rest of the week, because my girlfriend is town for a brief 5-day period and I’m going to spend every second with her! Because she’s awesome.
But be sure to check in. Tammy from Rowdy Kittens will be guest writing an exciting post tomorrow, and my minimalist roommate Anika will be posting on Friday. Don’t miss what they have to say by subscribing to our RSS feed.

Written and photographed by Everett Bogue | Follow me on Twitter
My minimalist roommate Anika just exclaimed “This life we lead is good, isn’t it?” It is, I say. She’s been living out of a backpack for awhile now, traveling from here to there, you’ll hear about her adventures and advice on Friday when she’ll be guest posting here. Tammy from Rowdy Kittens will be guest posting here on Thursday, which I’m incredibly excited about. Maybe subscribe to the RSS feed, so you don’t miss their posts!
I’ll be in Seattle for the end of the weekend with my girlfriend who’s visiting from NY, we’re seeing what that city is all about. If you know the area, let me know what to check out while we’re there.
How I made the decision to liberate myself.
I’ve always had very few possessions, but being a minimalist isn’t just about what you carry with you. It’s your entire engagement with the world. I spent the last three years in New York living with very few possessions, but I admittedly did spend a lot of money. New York is like that, it sucks you in and spits you out without your wallet.
There’s a moment when everything changes, when you can’t turn back.
I think there was a tipping point, when I figured out just how rewarding this life would be. Living day to day, place to place, consuming the minimum, existing a little bit on the fringes. Watching the busy people running around frantically trying to support their overextended lifestyles, smiling, and then going back home and writing a little. Trying to help spread a little more knowledge about where I’ve been, where you can go.
I think the moment when I couldn’t go back came when I started meeting people who were living this way, at the minimum, traveling from here and there making their living doing new and exciting things. I saw how they could get by with little, and I started to realize that I didn’t need to be making as much money (and spending as much money) as I was in New York. I hope by writing this I can help a few more people achieve this state of being.
I gradually began to stop consuming and started living.
Minimalism is like the secret room that no one wants you to know about, and how peaceful it is. We’re all bombarded by advertising every day, claiming that we need one more thing, that we’ll be happier if we just buy more. It’s not hard to understand how we’re conditioned to want to spend, but it’s hard reversing the work of (rough estimation) hundreds of billions of dollars of corporate spending to make us want just one more thing.
The rewards are infinite though. Freedom can’t be bought, it can only be found.
It’s sitting right here, you’ve just got to slowly work your way backwards from the grand buildup of possessions and spending and join us on the minimalist path.