This 3-step method to simplify your life starts with your obituary

Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz encourage readers to contemplate their own obituaries. By envisioning how they would describe themselves in death, they believe it helps prioritize what truly matters. VandeHei aims to be remembered as a devoted father, son, sibling, and husband, passionate about his work and generous in the workplace.

To achieve this, he emphasizes simplifying one's life to make those memories ring true. The trio wrote a book titled "Simplify" to guide readers through this process. They argue that simplicity isn't about productivity, but clarity, freedom, and spending finite days doing meaningful things with loved ones. VandeHei, Allen, and Schwartz cofounded Axios, a successful media company, and later developed software to help businesses streamline their communications.

The book "Simplify" is concise, providing practical tools to declutter lives. The first tool, "Confront," involves taking a moment to assess daily activities and question their necessity or happiness. Axios employees were encouraged to confront their jobs, focusing on impactful tasks and eliminating waste. VandeHei applied this approach to Axios, resulting in fewer tasks, better results, and happier employees.

The second tool, "Delete," teaches readers to say "no" and eliminate unnecessary things—physical possessions, social obligations, or meetings. VandeHei considers "no" an efficient way to reduce complexity, and encourages employees to use it constructively. The final tool, "Amplify," focuses on maximizing the remaining time and energy for meaningful activities, relationships, and enjoyment.