Book Review: Life Styled

LifeStyled: Your Guide to a More Organized & Intentional Life by Shira Gill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a practical guide to intentional living—making deliberate decisions and taking actions that align with your core values. The author’s background in minimalism provides a straightforward, organized way to reduce physical, digital, and mental clutter, create systems to support goals, and develop sustainable habits. She applies these tools as a framework across five key areas: health and wellness, home and environment, relationships and community, career and finance, and personal development. Specific prompts and strategies are included to help implement improvements.

The book is designed so that you can revisit individual chapters at any time to recalibrate as your values and priorities change and evolve.

The book provides incremental steps and plenty of client examples. The “try it,” “quick wins,” and “bottom line” are helpful for reflecting, taking notes, and taking action.

The Health and Wellness chapter describes how to improve your physical and mental health with simple, effective habits that deliver strong results. It highlights five health helpers: (1) identify your fuel foods; (2) eat your veggies; (3) stay hydrated; (4) get moving; and (5) prioritize sleep. It also covers nine mental health boosters that include strategies like going outdoors, trusting your feelings, practicing self-care, seeking support, and more.

The suggestions for setting up smart systems are doable. For example, make standing wellness appointments. “Be proactive, invest in your health, and book your preventive care in advance, automating repeat appointments as you are able” (p. 94). Another example is her three-step method for eating healthfully: plan ahead, stock up on fueling foods, and prep in advance so they are visible and ready to eat.

Most people will not see these concepts as new or innovative. It may be overwhelming to read it cover-to-cover and go through every prompt, tip, and actionable baby step. Instead, the author recommends identifying the major life area where you want to make strides and start there.

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