We had friends over this weekend and they noticed one of the books on my coffee table was Purple Cow: TransformYour Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin.  It’s hard not to talk about Godin and use words like “genius” and “amazing.” And, those are the exact words we used. In fact, “genius” was said at least 10 times. Have you read his blog? Ah-may-zing.

There are many reasons I think Godin is fantastic. Here are a few Seth-isms you can apply to your life, especially if you’re trying to live more simply.

1. Seth is straight forward and to the point. Godin doesn’t dilly dally about. He gets right to it. He says what he has tosay without the fluff. Fluff can be complicated. Complicated ≠ simple. There are too many bends and curves with complicated. If your life or productivity systems are always bendy and curvy, that means too many steps to keep up with.

2. Seth appreciates brevity. This point is very connected to #1. If you’ve read his blog, you’ll notice that many of his posts consist of just 100 words. Including the title. Even so, the content is powerful and gets the message across as intended. If you’re trying to simplify, this is a great path to follow. Get rid of the fluff and include powerful bursts of activity. You don‘t need to spend hours upon hours decluttering and streamlining. A few minutes a day can have tremendous impact.

3. Seth asks questions. Scan through his blog posts and you’ll notice a few questions sprinkled in. Questions get you thinking. You may not have the answers straight away, but queries get your brain cells to exercise. What will you gain by living more simply? What changes do you have to make? Who will you have to delete from your regular, day-to-day life? Yep, I said “who.” Sometimes, people = clutter + complicated. Another essential Q: How will you sustain the changes you’re about to make?