(3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)
Loading ...The Simple Life by Thom & Art Rainer
No, we’re not offering you the retrospective tell-all about Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie’s reality TV series – if such a thing even exists. This is even better: How-to-live by Southern Baptists!
Check thy prejudices at the door, pilgrim. The research and change methods that made Simple Church a multiawarded ministry best seller are now applied to everyday matters in Simple Life. Authors Thom S. Rainer and Art Rainer interviewed a cross-section of 1,077 individuals to confirm that most people feel their lives are overly stressful and misguided, not allowing enough time for what really counts. As they share these I-can-relate stories, the Rainers chart a simple path from joyless to joyful.
Breaking life down into four key sections (Time, Relationships, God, Money), the authors show how four key goals (Clarity, Movement, Alignment, Focus) can begin to foster a life that is more spiritual and less busy, a life rich in experiences with family and friends rather than double-booked to-do lists and late nights at the office. The book even lays out an easy-to-follow action plan that will move readers assuredly toward the simple life in just thirty days.
chadkmiller
What happens when you survey one thousand people about the complexity of their lives? You get real answers that you probably have heard before. Americans stay so busy as a general rule. We run ragged without much fruit. We all bought into a lie. Advertisers told us that the next material possession would change or fulfill us, but we were left wanting. Thom and Art Rainer, a father and son team, interviewed around a thousand people and heard a heartfelt cry for change. The problem is we all want a simpler life, but we don’t know where to start.
This book is laced with some Christian subculture, which I had to get past to the actual message. Thom Rainer is the president of LifeWay, so I was kind of expecting some cross promotion. Once I got beyond the references to Christian stuff ,I really was challenged by the book’s ideas. It is definitely one of the longer life change books I have read. There were some great topics about building better relationships, regaining your focus, and finances. I would definitely pick this book up, if you find yourself wanting a more meaningful life. We could all use more time with God, thanks and praying for all of us to slow down and find what is truly important.
Chad Miller
http://www.infinitexchange.com
Aug 21st, 2009
heatherpreckel
I read the Simple Life this past week for The Ooze Viral Bloggers and found it a good, but kind of long read, for the topic that has simple in the title. It was easy to read and I liked the life stories that were shared by the father/son team as they interviewed over a 1000 people for this book. I really liked the examples that they shared from the many people they interviewed and no matter how different people’s life seem to be that it can all be taken down to the simple fact that we all desire change in some way or another. And making life simpler is the answer to many people’s issues and this book gives some very practical ways just how to do that. It covers 4 key areas in our life that affect us all in different ways that are time, relationships, money and God. It is written by Thom Rainer and his son, Art. There is an interview on Lifeway site I linked about that is a good about this book.
For me personally, I can’t say that I learned anything new by reading this book, but I did finish it with the desire to take a good inventory of my life and to see what areas I could simplify things. So for that fact alone, I would recommend this book. I think anything that causes us to slow our busy pace so many of us have and to focus on the important things, is good; very good.
Sep 20th, 2009
J Gordon Duncan
“Simple Life” is the new book from Thom and Art Rainer, and it is definitely not about the exploits of Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. It continues the thought and application of the “Simple Church” book from Thom Rainer and Eric Gieger, but here the focus is on cleaning away the clutter of your personal life rather than your congregation’s. The book’s thesis is simple:
We were not created to have miserable joyless lives. We were created to have abundant and joyful lives. But for most of us, such a life is elusive at best and seemingly impossible at worst.
The book is an analysis of 41 questions asked to 1,077 people. The takeaway was that most people want to simplify their lives in 4 areas: time, relationships with others, money, and their relationship with God. The book’s prescription for the simple life is also in quantities of 4. They recommend clarity, movement, alignment, and focus.
Towards that end, and what I see as one of the most profound truths offered in the book, they say this:
What is true in many churches is true in many lives. Activities are replacing purpose. We are so busy doing activities that we are neglecting what really matters. And most of you don’t really need this book to address this reality. You already know it…Often activities replace the important matters that help relationships grow.
Having said all that, the book is pretty practical in helping people clear away the activities (even the good ones) that are making their life overly complicated. Each chapter ends with a task or checklist to help you find simplicity in each of the four prescripted areas. Included also are interviews and testimonials with some of the people who have walked the path of simplicity ahead of the reader. Their honesty is helpful.
However, the testimonials are one of two criticisms I have of the book. Many times, they are inserted without much of a warning. You will be reading the authors discussion of alignment or focus and then a testimony will begin. I generally think they are helpful, but sometimes it takes a second to figure who is speaking.
My other criticism is that the authors continually recommend 3 products: “The Love Dare,” “Fireproof,” and “Facing the Giants.” While the lessons from these products are relevant and applicable, at times, they feel like extended advertisements for products at Lifeway bookstores.
If a person were to read this book with a desire for real change, it could really help. Perhaps it could persuade someone to change, but like the authors said, you don’t really need this book to address that reality. But I cannot imagine if someone was willing to do all the work at the end of each chapter, it wouldn’t make a big difference.
If you want to pursue simplicity, read this book. You can find more information from the authors at http://thomrainer.com/.
Gordon Duncan: http://www.jgordonduncan.com
Sep 28th, 2009
mattjudkins
I just finished reading, The Simple Life: Time, Relationships, Money, God by Thom S. and Art Rainer. You may know Thom from books like Simple Church: Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples and Essential Church?: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts.
Based on a survey of 1,077 individuals, Thom and Art saw that an overwhelming number of people from all walks of life said they need greater simplicity in their lives in order to be more fulfilled. Specifically, they wanted more simplicity in the areas of time, relationships, money, and God.
So, in a nutshell, the authors applied the concepts from Simple Church to these four areas. These concepts are:
Clarity: knowing where you’re going
Movement: intentional, incremental steps
Alignment: making sure your life lines up with your goals
Focus: eliminating things outside of your goals, even if they are good things.
For whatever reason, it wasn’t simple for me to read this book. I think after I saw the basic concepts, I pretty much knew where everything was heading. Basically, the idea of the book is applying the concepts of clarity, movement, alignment, and focus to one’s personal life. So, no big surprises here.
As a pastor, I think focus is the hardest thing for me. It’s easy, for the most part, to say no to bad things. It’s difficult when you have to choose between two, or more, good things. A little clarity and alignment goes a long way in making those decisions in our lives.
So, in the end, cool cover, good ideas, borrow a copy from a friend or read Simple Church and apply those ideas to your life. However, if you’re a layperson who doesn’t want to read Simple Church, then Simple Life might be just what you’re looking for.
Matt Judkins: mattjudkins.com
Oct 2nd, 2009
chinchillas07
The subject of this book by Thom & Art Rainier is simply about making life simple…. a lot easier said than done. In fact, I have tried to pick up this book several times in the past month and find myself too busy (whether I actually am or whether I just perceive myself to be too busy) to read it. I am still in the middle of it, but I find myself fascinated by the ideals set forth… none of which are new or something we couldn’t figure out if we just took a few moments to sit back and relax instead of always being on the go!
“The Simple Life” breaks life up into four categories: time, relationships, God, and money. All of which are extremely important to all of us and are areas we also tend to make things more complicated than they actually are. Thom and Art Rainier give four goals (clarity, movement, alignment, and focus) and apply them to the four areas and give you a game plan for making life simpler.
As I said, I am still reading this book, but so far, it has really made me think about how complicated I have made things in my own life… and with a second child on the way, I really need some simplicity soon!
Oct 4th, 2009
jimmyd8466
I just finished reading Simple Life, and I highly recommend it for you if you feel like you are too busy, or if you are trying to find focus in your life. The authors surveyed over 1,000 people and kept hearing that people were busy, stressed, nervous, and without a clear direction. The areas that needed the most work in the survey respondents were time, relationships, money and God. The authors propose that with clarity, movement, alignment and focus you can achieve the Simple Life. This is good stuff. I definitely recommend this book.
Also, if you’re a church leadership type, get “Simple Church”. Also excellent.
http://culturedrivenlife.blogspot.com/
http://www.amazon.com/review/RM9IQ4A42K6R5/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm
Oct 4th, 2009
mhasty
We all long for simplicity. Our lives pull us in a million different directions. Somewhere in the midst of our work, home, and church lives we hope and long for something that is simple. Something to slow us down. We look for simplicity in how we design artwork and clothing. We want simplicity in how things function and work. We want simplicity in our lives.
Not long ago I had the privilege to play a concert with a band called The Cobalt Season. Their most recent album is called “In Search Of A Unified Theory”. Ryan explains that the majority of us compartmentalize our lives. We place things in boxes. We have our work life, in which we do work things, we have sets of morals and values that are exclusive to our work life. Then we have our home life with it’s own set of morals and values exclusive to it. Finally we have what we call our spiritual life. There are here exclusive morals and values as well. Ryan explains that “In Search Of A Unified Theory” is a set of songs where he is trying to combine these boxes of life. He is trying to mend the inconsistencies between his boxes. He’s trying to make his life line up into one single unit. He longs for simplicity.
In their book Simple Life Thom Rainer and his son Art begin to unpack what it means to have a simple life. They do this in four areas: Time, Relationships, Money, and God. In each of these four ares there are four ways to make them simple. Clarity, Movement, Alignment, and Focus.
Clarity means that you have a plan and that the plan clearly states were you want to go. Movement takes place when we remove the congestion in our lives. Congestion in life means you aren’t making progress. You can have a clear plan of where you want to go, clarity, but you aren’t moving toward the goal. Alignment is when we look at the bad habits and problems that are interfering with our movement then we eliminate some of those things. Focus is that process of eliminating those things.
The authors walk through this process with each area of life in order to help the reader simplify. There are application section to help the read put into practice what he or she is reading. Rather than just giving information the authors provide the reader with something to literally do. The book is well written and indeed simple.
Oct 11th, 2009
mhasty
Here’s a link to my post. http://thegreatrescue.blogspot.com/2009/10/simple-life-book-review.html
Oct 11th, 2009
Chris Enstad
Simple Life is a big book. That was my first impression. My second was this: those authors must have a sense of humor if they think I have the time to read this book on creating a Simple Life!
The reality is this, something is wrong with how people are living life and the Rainer’s (father and son) have not only put their finger on the problem, as many have, but, have even done research into the issue with a strong sample and a margin of error of %2.9.
Their research showed them four areas that people generally find themselves yearning for something simpler: Time, Relationships, Money, and God. The interesting thing about people who are mired in the morass of busyness is this: what of what they are doing can truly be called bad? Work do provide for family? Sports to stay healthy and active? Schoolwork to get good grades and get into college? These are the very issues that church pastors and leaders bump up against all the time… and your level of church involvement is not going to figure large into your future earnings or the school your child is going to get into… so what we are left with is a diagnosis that we hear all the time. We’re TOO BUSY! So, what to do about it?
Well, first thing, get this book and read it. Yes it is thick but it reads fast and even the analogies make sense and I’m sure a couple of them will show up in a future sermon or two.
The authors have four core ideas around which the four areas of simplification circle. The foundational key is to remember that this process is a *journey* and that in itself is a freeing idea!
The first idea is *clarity*. Clarity means we know where we are going. The authors challenge the readers to develop an actual plan, when one follows a plan change results. When we don’t the status quo reigns supreme.
The second idea is *movement*. Congestion is bad. A congested sinus will get infected. Congested traffic causes heart attacks. The authors show the readers how to use intentionality and incrementality to knock down the roadblocks to change and simplification. We all know that one big systemic change is way too tiring and scary to attempt and here is a way to get at real change in small, noticeable ways.
The third idea is *alignment*. Lives get out of alignment slowly and usually unnoticeably. Debt doesn’t just show up overnight just like my spare tire didn’t. You don’t get overbusy in one day either. Eliminating some of the GOOD STUFF is key to aligning our lives around what really matters to us!
The final idea is *focus*. Focus means that some things just don’t get done no matter how good they are.
The entire book is written about the dash. The dash. You know, that hash mark between your birth and death date that will appear on your grave marker one day? How are you going to live your life in that dash? And, when the sleep of blessed death comes to you one day, how will you be remembered? As one who was overbusy or one who learned how to life a life that mattered, a life that was lived according to why God created us in the first place?
Oct 14th, 2009
ian.eastman
Simple Life is a steady rather than spectacular guide to self-improvement. That is more of an observation than a criticism. The authors, Thom S. Rainer & Art Rainer, work off of the premise that “We were not created to have miserable and joyless lives. We were created to have abundant and joyful lives.” Based on feedback from a LifeWay Research survey, they identified four areas for self-improvement: time, relationships, money, and God. The reader is guided to make changes in each area through a four step process: Clarity (“a plan [that] clearly states where you want to go”), Movement (making intentional and incremental progress on your plan), Alignment (eliminating “bad habits and problems that are interfering with your progress”), and Focus (eliminating “too many good intentions” and getting back to clarity). Readers simply looking to be inspired will come away disappointed by this book, however, readers willing to put some work into the process and suggested exercises will make some progress in self-improvement. Simple Life might be a good read for a small group where encouragement from others and a timeline could enhance the goals of the book.
http://www.kilnfolk.org/2009/10/simple-life.html
Oct 17th, 2009
TatPriest
“The Simple Life” certainly lives up to its title … with shallow advice and weak testimonies this book will neither inspire you nor lead you on any life changing quest. The authors, who seem to be publishing on the strength of the names (?), leave you wanting more about each of the topics they cover. Certainly their advice to “just pray about it,” when talking about making tough decisions has little practical application and has been written thousands of times before.
Scott Ziegler
http://tattooedpriest.blogspot.com
Oct 18th, 2009
JC Thompson
Well I’m excited and nervous about my first book review. Why? Well I know that it took alot of work to write a book, just like it takes alot of work to write a good blog piece. But in all of these reviews I plan to be honest and forthcoming in my critique.
Anyway let’s get started. I was originally drawn to this book because of my experience with Simple Church. Great book for me mainly because I was trying to figure out some basic church philosophies and methodology on ministry. It was written by Thom Rainer who is also co-author of Simple Life. So that is why I was interested in this title.
Over 1,000 people surveyed confirmed that their lives are really stressful and lack focus. The Rainers intend to give insight on how simplifying your life can lead to joy and meaning. This book lays out a plan for simplicity in people’s lives.. Why simplicity? Well because we get bogged down by things that aren’t necessarily what we would call priorities. They show you four areas to key in on: Time, Relationships, Money, & God. Then for each area they guide you through a process consisting of four steps.
* Clarity-defining a goal
* Movement-doing something about it
* Alignment-making sure what you are doing is matching up
* Focus-final push to move from bogged down busyness to a renewed Spiritual walk.
My Thoughts:
Practical Plan with Effective Guidance
They give you a simple plan. They give you encouragement to get it done. Effective and short. May a little more detail but I believe they accomplished their purpose.
Spiritual Perspective
It’s nice to hear how to focus your daily tasks on life changing behaviors. I think they do a great job by showing the need to focus on the things that matter most. Our relationship with God, family, and other people.
Geared Towards an Older Crowd
I thought that providing everyone with a plan for creating a more meaningful, goal oriented push in their daily lives is an encouraging thing. I quickly realized however that this book seemed to be geared toward a bit of an older crowd. I don’t have kids, a house, or overwhelming amounts of extracurricular activities so later in life this book could have a more meaningful place. But for now alot of the situations didn’t apply to me.
Commercials
Don’t get me wrong I don’t have a problem with an author pushing their other resources, however, a break would be nice. It was a little bit uninspiring to hear about the Love Dare and Facing the Giants so much.
Lack of Statistical Analysis
Now forgive me because I am a stats guy personally so the lack of statistical analysis is something that I really missed. However, most people as they clearly state in the book probably aren’t interested.
Overall an ok book. Again alot of the stuff I felt didn’t really apply to me and my current life situation, however stuff to remain in my mind when the time comes. It you’ve got kids and you just feel like a plate spinner hoping it doesn’t come crashing down, then this is a must read for you.
For more info on Simple Life, check out Thom Rainer’s site or pick up the book on Amazon.
J.C. Thompson
http://jcisonline.com
Oct 19th, 2009
jonathaneverette
Be honest. Your life is too complicated. You don’t have enough time to do what you need to do. Urgent things trump important things. You long for simplicity, right?
I would agree with what I just wrote, and so would the authors of Simple Life. This was a simple and practical book that walks you through the process of moving from a complicated life to a simple life.
Based on a survey of over 1000 Americans, the book talks about four areas of our lives where we long for simplicity, and how to get there: Time, Relationship, Money and God.
Basically, their prescription for simplicity involves a four step process. 1) Decide what you want to change by creating a doable mission statement. 2) Get rid of all the bad stuff that gets in the way of you getting to where you want to go. 3) Make sure your plan aligns with who you are, your personality and your giftedness. 4) Saying no to good things so that you’ll only have great things in your life.
So would you like a life that’s a bit less complicated? Are you not sure how to get from where you are now to where you’d like to be? This book could be a great help to you. It was for me.
This book was provided courtesy of The Ooze Viral Bloggers.
Oct 20th, 2009
aconard1
Simple Life: Time, Relationships, Money, God by Thom S. and Art Rainer is a follow up to Simple Church: Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples with the focus shifting from church to one’s personal life. Rainer and Rainer suggest moving through action steps of clarity, movement, alignment and focus in the areas of time, relationships, money and connecting with God. Common sense principles are mixed in with interview from individuals who were experiencing stress in these areas.
I appreciate the idea of simplifying one’s life. Simple Life offers practical steps to moving forward. However, I experienced the content as a bit fluffy. The meat of the content could have been produced in a book half the length. This book would have been more effective if the authors would have taken on the challenge of editing to a more concise length.
The connection to the successful book, Simple Church, seems contrived and a mechanism to market a nominally effective book. I recommend http://unclutterer.com over Simple Life for simplifying one’s life.
Oct 22nd, 2009
onetyme18
I have lived in both the Western world and the Eastern world. Perhaps the starkest contrast I experienced culturally between the two revolved around the topics outlined in this book: how life is experienced through the categories of time, relationships, money, and God.
Thom and Art Rainer tackle some pretty hefty subjects within this book about western culture that need to be addressed. My own life in the West is often characterized by being pressed to do more, to do it faster, and to do it better. And this pressure seeps through essentially every aspect of my life. I mean, when did it become ok to start thinking I was wasting time because I was doing something non-strategic or not adding to the “bottom line”? When did it become ok to make life so complex that God is pushed out of the equation? When did it become ok for me to get to the end of the week and realize I have spent almost no energy on the things that truly matter to me, and tons of energy pursuing things that “moth and rust will destroy”? Frankly, this is the world we live inhabit in the West and a life most of us experience. A world and life that tells us if we just do more, or do it better, or try harder that we will become successful (whatever that means!!). Of course, the heart of this message is in complete contrast to the message of Jesus. It takes a concerted effort to simplify and prioritize our lives from the complex web of independence and “try harder” attitude that pervades American culture.
It would be nice to find a “silver bullet” on this topic. Rainer and Rainer do not offer that, however, I don’t think God would be glorified if there was a template for simplicity. What the Rainers do give in this book is a thoughtful, story-filled, practical guide to help individuals begin to think about how to prioritize their lives in a way that more accurately reflects their values. Perhaps the most riveting part of this book for me was the examples these men gave of people struggling in all of these areas. Of course, knowing that others struggle gives us the hope we are not all alone. And if we engage those other people properly, it give us the ability to find community, accountability, and fellowship to pursue simplicity and lives that reflect our values and what truly matters to us. So, if your values and priorities are to make as much money as possible and stay as busy as needed to do it in order to build yourself “treasures on earth”, then this book is not for you. If you value your relationship with God and community foremost and want to know steps to take to get you untangled from the devious western web of deceitful lies, then this book is for you.
Oct 23rd, 2009
MicahMin
Rainer and Rainer provide healthy biblical insights into those elements of life that are sometimes difficult to manage: time, relationships, money, and God. The authors accomplish their task by using the guide words clarity, movement, alignment, and focus and seek to lead the reader to a more bountiful/joyful existence.
Many in this forum have commented on the contents of this volume (which, generally, I find to be good). Therefore, for the sake of balance, I will comment on the organization. The book is divided into four sections with four chapters each, making it an ideal four-unit study for a church group. The practical application sections with fill-in-the-blank responses make the book feel like a soft-cover workbook for a low-brow seminary teaching lab. In tough economic times, I wonder if it might have been better for the publisher to reduce the font size of the copy, bind it cheaply, and send it to market at a much lower price point.
Nov 16th, 2009
spiritofburning
Simple Life by Thom and Art Rainer is a good read. If you’re looking for to help you get your life, schedule, and priorities under control, you should check this title out.
The book is focused on the “big four,” four major areas where readers should simplify their lives: God, money, time, and relationships.
The father and son duo team up to provide practical guidance for adding purpose and vision to your life.
Nov 18th, 2009
Chad Estes
The Simple Life is a new book by the writing tandem of Thom Rainer and his son Art. Although it shares the same title as the popular television show by the ditzy duo Nichole Richie and Paris Hilton, the premise is a bit different. While the (un)reality show displayed the two girls struggling with jobs, relationships and money in various, fabricated settings, the Rainers’ book discusses time, relationships, money and God in real ones.
The two men start their project by interviewing over 1000 people across the country. The stats and the stories are used frequently throughout the book to show how people are unorganized, unfocused, and over-committed. Although I felt the stories often led credence to their claims, I was disappointed the way they handled some numbers that didn’t fit their expectations. They admit that they were surprised when only 4 out of 10 Christians in their survey felt it was important to have their children in a weekly worship service. One of the reasons they give is that “some of the self-described Christians are not Christians at all.” If they discredit their own study base with this question, then it also should be reflected throughout the book where they do tout the answers of their Christian respondents.
The Rainers’ goal is to provide a framework for people to find more freedom and success. They divide their book by each of these four troubled spots (time, relationships, money and God) and write a systematic plan of attack with a chapter each about clarity, movement, alignment and focus. Every chapter ends with application questions and blank lines for the reader to write their own strategy and put it in to action. If the reader skips this section the book becomes just another “how to” manual; but if actually put into action, this book could be a helpful tool. My suggestion would be to use this book in a small group of people where a chapter could be read a week, each person could share their own story. Then they could develop individual plans and have the relationships for accountability to their goals from week to week.
The strength of this book is that they have kept it simple. The Rainers have tackled four big topics and suggested a framework for improvement. My issue with this book is that it can come across as formulaic; again I think these issues may need the atmosphere of relationships for true growth to take place. I was also unimpressed with the section on how to get close to God–setting a plan, praying more, getting realigned (reading the Bible, going to church, etc) and cutting distractions out of your life. We’ve been reading those instructions for years and hearing it every weekend. “Nearly seven out of ten said that they needed to spend more time on spiritual matters. Most of the Christians say that they need to simplify their lives so that they have more time for God.” Could it be that they are reacting to expectations that they’ve been taught and responding to religious guilt? Maybe learning to be loved by God and loving him back in response is even simpler than that.
Nov 21st, 2009
Loffers
“Simple Life” by Thom & Art Rainer
This has once again been a book that has left me with mixed feelings, but for a very different reason. It is not that there is significant content with which I disagreed. Rather, it is the sort of book that at one level seems almost banally simplistic yet from another perspective can impact you as potentially life changing. I suspect the answer is that it is the kind of work that you get out what you put in. You certainly cannot afford to approach with a critical mindset that will be quickly irritated but the variable quality of writing or degree of repetition. Whether that really bothers you or not is probably dependent on how much you participate with the interactive exercises and so make the content personal and cumulatively relevant.
Let me confess from the start that, having received this book later than hoped and with my life being over busy at present (which is ironically why the book is so relevant to my life), I did not spend the time completing the exercises. Rather I read through as quickly as possible so as to get a good overview of the book and understand the key messages. It was always my intention to go back through this work and complete the exercises, but now I have finished reading this work I realise it would have helped my enjoyment of the text a great deal (as so much of the other content is dependent on your perspective following that input).
So, what can I usefully share at this stage? As promised on the cover, this workbook/study aid is made up of sections dealing with simplifying your time management (how to make your time count), relationships (how to create and keep healthy relationships), money management (how to simplify and build healthy finances) and your spiritual life (how to get closer to God). It is a very tidy, structured book, which I suppose reflects an application of simplicity principles. Each of the above 4 sections is made of chapters on setting goals (clarity), making a start (movement), clearing obstacles out (alignment) and even stopping good things (focus).
Some of this structure I found helpful and pleasing, but some lead to an over repetitive feel as similar messages were repeated and a common approach taken which began to feel more & more formulaic. On the positive side, I liked the fact that this approach to prioritisation faced up honestly to the need to start small and not be unrealistic. It was good to have it based on actual research, but as I find with most books published in the US, it was frustrating that this left a rather myopic USA-only feel to the application and comments (it would have been good to know how answers would have differed across Brits, Europeans, Australasia, Japan, BRIC economies etc). It was also good to see the focus on the need to stop even the ‘good’ in order to achieve the degree focus on the ‘best’ needed.
Thom and Art open up during the book and the generational difference (father & son) helps to make their comments more relevant across a wider age range of readers. However, despite some valiant efforts to the contrary, I did find their good lives and suburban America outlooks a bit wearing after a while. It made one long for someone more wayward or just downright alternative to chime in with their perspective (plus it would have helped to hear from a female and non-white perspective – beyond the research content which read more like patients in a therapy session). I also ended up regretting that some sections were so blatantly evangelical in message – I think much of this work and the need it is seeking to address is applicable to the majority of adults and I fear this narrow perspective on spirituality & truth will alienate some readers from content that might otherwise alienate them.
All that said, even when I was at my most frustrated with this book – wanting to decry it as twee or trite – I kept being brought back to the downright honesty of its challenge and the crying need for the over-busyness of our lives to be addressed. Plus I had a nagging doubt that God wanted to challenge me through much of the material (so I will be going back through it and doing the exercises). So, even though I could end with more criticism (including the times it can sound more like yet another self help book or popular time management paperback), I want to end with praise.
Despite its flaws, I commend this much-needed book; that is built on a sound idea (of using research & a simple structure to help people think through what they should do). I encourage others to buy it and engage with it as a great opportunity to face up to what you need to change to be living a simple life that makes a difference.
Nov 25th, 2009
Pam Hogeweide
Not my fave book. In fact, I quickly dropped out from reading it too carefully. The promise of the book seemed to me to be about simplifying one’s life, yet the messengers did not convince me that they have distilled their own lives to simplicity. This is perhaps my own biased view on what I think simplicity ought to look like.
It was also ironic to me that a book on simplicity was over written and repetitive, taking too long to make a simple point. I hate to say this, but it felt like a book put together to keep up the momentum of their first book, which I have not read. This is perhaps an unfair assessment, but it is what my perception was.
Feb 8th, 2010
rahijada
http://rahijada.blogspot.com/2010/02/simple-life-review.html
I recently had the opportunity to read the book “Simple Life” by Thom S. Rainer and Art Rainer. I was initially excited about the book as I tend to be on a quest for simplicity in my own life. Upon receiving the book I opened it up and got started reading it. What was supposed to take me 30 days to read, ended up taking me 4.5 months.
I had a really hard time getting into this book. The content was decent, and worth reading, but it was hard to really dig into it. There were four main areas that the book went into details on how to simplify your life: time, relationships, money, and God.
The structure of each of the four sections followed this pattern. Clarity – Define your goals and how you want to change. Movement – Making progress toward your goals. Alignment – Changing to make your goals more attainable. Focus – Keeping focused on your goals.
The areas are supposed to be defined based upon a large survey that they conducted with many people form across America. I feel like most of these areas I already have a fairly simplified life, don’t get me wrong, I’m not claiming to be perfect, or to not need to make some changes here and there, but I do feel like I already have a fairly simplified life, and therefore it was hard to really feel like I could apply much of what the book had to offer. However, if you are someone who feels your life is always busy, and you never have the time to focus on the things that are important to you, then this book just may be what you’re looking for. It does provide simple steps on how to make changes, as well as a worksheet style section at the end of each chapter where you can help to achieve these changes.
Feb 15th, 2010
for “The Simple Life by Thom & Art Rainer”
You must be logged in as a VIRAL BLOGGER to post a review.