A Book for What Matters

“We need a filter that allows us to craft a life focusing only on what matters to us, not on what everyone else says should matter.”  --Kendra Adachi, The Lazy Genius Way: Embrace What Matters, Ditch What Doesn’t, and Get Stuff Done

I’ve mentioned several times how much I love The Lazy Genius Podcast. Kendra Adachi’s tagline--”Be a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don’t”--has been an inspiration to me. She never insists that she has all the answers to any of the issues she discusses, but offers suggestions or ways to reflect on the life you want to live.

In a world where everyone seems to be competing for the air to express conflicting opinions, her podcast is refreshing, practical, and inspiring.

Her book, The Lazy Genius Way, is just the same.

I am a recovering perfectionist, and some days are really light on the “recovering” part. I’m hard on myself and often critical of others, even if only in my head. There are days when I look around my house and am positive that every decision I have made here is wrong and days when I am sure that everything about me is wrong. It’s really hard sometimes to push past that voice which constantly points out all my faults. 

Leaving perfectionism has been a slow process consisting of many books, sermons, prayers, and people that God has brought to my attention, and I’ll never be entirely over it, but Kendra’s work is one of the tools that has helped me change this way of thinking. Full of humor, kindness, and wisdom, The Lazy Genius Way encourages readers to decide what really matters to them--not to their neighbors or their parents or best friends--and then apply Lazy Genius principles to achieve what matters. It’s not a traditional self-help book because it doesn’t list a series of steps to reach a stated goal. It’s more about a lifestyle to help people reflect on how they actually want to live and what will help them get there.

For example: My husband and I spend a fair amount of time being frustrated with our house. We never really felt this way before we had kids, but now everything has started to feel tired, and it seems like there’s never enough space to put things. Last night as I was reading Kendra’s chapter on essentialism, I read a section out loud to him about choosing what matters, eliminating what gets in the way, and keeping the necessary things. We don’t want to change everything--we actually do love this place--but maybe there were little changes that would help us feel a shift, maybe something we’d been overlooking? 

Immediately Joe looked around at the sofa at the end of the book room, a breakfast nook that’s turned into our office and is a frequent source of my aggravation because it often feels sloppy. We decided to buy a slipcover for that sofa, which would let us get rid of the old blanket currently covering it, and when we did, the whole room immediately looked neater. I had not realized how much that sofa was influencing my feelings for the entire place. The simple step helped us reimagine the possibilities, and we moved on to the next room with a fresh approach and new imagination.  

I’m looking forward to using Kendra’s principles in other areas of my life outside my home. This is a book that can be applied to almost anything you’re looking to improve or to change, and it will encourage you at every step of the way, whether you’re a recovering perfectionist like me or someone who just wants new ideas. Either way, Kendra’s words will bring you some kindness, some grace, a smile, and a new way to look at your own very good life.

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