Category Archives: Self-Reliance

Articles, commentary, and information on becoming more self reliant.

Online task lists

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I end up carrying around several notebooks with me at any given time, mainly because I grab whatever is near when I plan, and end up with task lists spread between several notebooks. I’ve been thinking that it’s time to consolidate somehow, and have been wondering if there isn’t some free tool out there to help me.

Today I did some checking (I finally looked at one of my task lists) online and ended up trying out two task list services. The first was Keeyoo. It’s okay, but not very feature-rich. For example, I didn’t see any obvious way to reorder my task categories, so they would always be in the same order I thought of them. Not necessarily a big problem, but I could see it making it harder for me to use the system down the road.

It also didn’t anticipate how I think. For example, if I created a task for which there was no appropriate category I’d have to leave the task uncategorized while I go create a category for it. I’d then have to go back and assign that category to that task. A lot of trouble, really, at least in the setting-up phase.

Pretty soon I found myself wanting to go try something else before I put too much more work into getting my task list on Keeyoo, just in case there was something better. There was. Its’ called Toodledo. This one is also free, but includes some premium features that you have to pay for. But right away I could see this one was much better thought through. Their task entry window has a “enter multiple tasks” setting where you can create multiple tasks in one go, so long as they are uncategorized or in a single category. Just enter a new task on each line in the window. Very slick.

Even better, I quickly found that when creating a task, if the category (they call them folders) you need doesn’t exist you can create one right then and there before you complete creating the task. Perfect. And whereas Keeyoo lumped all tasks into a single list, or required you to click a tab off to the side, Toodledoo can group tasks in the main list, and order them any way you want. You can also change the order of your folders to either a custom order or simply alphabetical.

Another biggie is the ability to create “contexts”. A context is just that–the context in which you will do that task. Is it something you can only do in front of your computer, or is it something outside in the yard? Do you need to be near a phone, or is it an errand that needs to be done while you’re away from home? You decide, and you can group your lists by context to help you remember more easily to do things when you’re in that context.

Hands down, Toodledoo is the better system. It does a lot, and yet I can already see myself using the paid features, like the ability to create chains of tasks in a common goal or project. The remaining question is whether or not I’ll use it any more or more effectively than I do my paper system. I find myself frequently at a computer, so the ability to have my list anywhere I am is great. But it may not be so great if I forget to add items that come up while I’m somewhere else, say in the car, out in the garden, or at church–or my personal font of inspiration, the shower.

Yes, it appears to sync to mobile devices quite easily. No, I don’t have one, and don’t really want one yet.

So anyway, wish me luck. I’m going to try Toodledoo for awhile and see how well it works for me. If I remember I’ll report back in a month or so.

Apologies to all

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It’s been far too long since I posted. It was not my intention to stop. It just happened. The good news is that my life got very busy because an investor came along willing to fund a business some friends and I have been working on slowly for awhile. In less than three months we leased a store space, outfitted it, bought inventory, and opened for business. In fact we’ve been open nearly a month and a half and are on target for profitability sometime the middle of next year.

The bad news, of course, is that I’ve been too busy to keep up on other, non-paying projects like this one. But things are starting to clear up, and I intend to resurrect Simple Self Reliance again. Bear with me. It may take a little time to get the crud out of the carburetor and get back to where I was. I’ve got a few ideas on where to take this site, but it will take some time. I hope to make it worth it.

The Wisdom of Crowds

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I mentioned before that I’m beginning a new business venture with some friends. Though certainly there are drawbacks to going into business with others, there are also some advantages. One of the biggest is the law of averages. On any given day one of us is bound to be panicked just a bit, but the other are able to keep us on an even keel. Without others to watch my back I’d probably have thrown my hands in the air and walked away a long time ago. Starting a business is stressful.

I believe it’s important to choose business partners you get along with and can have fun with. More importantly, however, you should be able to communicate. Every partner needs to feel valued and respected. If one partner is afraid to speak up you could be missing some valuable insights and ideas. At the same time, unless everyone can really handle it, it’s best to avoid a no-holds-barred, speak-whatever-enters-your-mind type situation as well. Group dynamics are important, but I suspect most groups fail to take the time to really build a cohesive group.

It’s easy to assume that because we’re all adults we should all be able to get along. But really, “adult” is such a broad category, that’s even less useful than saying all white people behave alike or all cats do such-n-such. People do not behave or think the way we think they do. We really only have ourselves to judge by, and chances are there are few people who think just the same way we do. And perhaps if you do find such a person, you should not go into business with them. You’ll both fail to see the same pitfalls.

We’ve probably all heard at one time or another about the four phases of group development: Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. There is no guarantee a group will ever get past Forming or Storming, really. With a group of friends they may never even realize that there is any storming going on, let alone really do anything to move beyond it. It’s too easy to take one another for granted.

I’m not sure where this is going, other than to emphasize the importance of social self reliance. We really do need to know how to get along with people if we are to succeed in life. It’s not the easiest ability to develop, but it can be critical in so many different situations. Unless, of course, you’re a hermit, which is not the brand of self reliance we preach here. 😉

Self reliance a step at a time

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Sorry posting has been nonexistent lately. I’ve been consumed with getting a business started. Or trying to, anyway. The actual business started nearly a year ago with a friend and I starting a modest joint venture. Recently we added another partner and an investor, and things suddenly got busy with fact-finding and data modeling. We’re neck-deep in trying to decide if we’re ready yet. It’s looking rather if-fy.

On the other hand, I’m having a blast–in a yikes-this-is-real-and-we-can’t-afford-mistakes sort of way. All of this analysis and modeling is the sort of thing I live for. I get to make intricate spreadsheets! This is scaring me to death, and I’m having the most fun I’ve had in years!

But chances are I won’t be posting much for awhile until we get things decided and commit to a plan of action–even if that plan of action is “Sit tight for a few more months while we raise more capital”.

Self reliance, humility, and charity

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As I’ve said before, I don’t think some people’s idea of self reliance can be achieved. I don’t think we will ever get to the point where we don’t need anyone else for anything. There are people who do it, to be sure, but I don’t think that’s really a goal for most of us. I have no intention of becoming a hermit just to be able to say I am completely self reliant.

There is another down side to taking self reliance too far. I believe the common term for this is “pride”. Knowing you should be able to do everything by and for yourself does not automatically bestow the ability to do everything yourself. At some point every one of us may and will need help. We will likely need to go ask for that help, no matter how hard that may be for us.

Asking for help can be easier when we have something to offer the other person in return. It’s another matter entirely when we have nothing the other person needs and it is unlikely we ever will. At that point we have little option but to rely on that person’s kindness. And that can be a very difficult thing to do, especially when you have been working toward, and perhaps even priding yourself on, self reliance. It can be so difficult that some people would rather just do without rather than ask for help, regardless of the consequences.

That is the point where self reliance becomes dangerous. When we sell ourselves so much on an ideal that we refuse to accept reality, we run a great risk.

Humility is the only antidote. We must realize that we cannot do everything ourselves. We can come close to that, but we have our limits. I can’t perform brain surgery on myself. I can’t rebuild an engine, even assuming I had the parts. I can’t control the weather. There will always be some aspect of my life that is beyond my control.

At some point we will need the help of someone else, or we will fail. Humility is what helps us put survival ahead of pride. It’s what helps us ask the help of someone who has no obligation to help us. And, incidentally, it is what will move that person to help you.

Just because you may not have anything to offer that person does not mean they are not aware of their own shortcomings. They may very well realize that they will likely need someone else’s help some day, even if that person has no need of help in return. A truly humble person recognizes their own faults and weaknesses. They will help someone simply because that person needs the help, not because it will bring them any direct reward, but because they know they may need help someday, too. They will help because they are hoping that is what the person they will need help from will do.

I’m not sure where this post comes from or where it’s going–or if I’m even making sense. I suppose it comes from the fact that even though I have a goal of self reliance, I’m still not making the progress I wish I were. I could very well be asking help from people who I can do very little for. It will not be easy. But I will need to do it all the same. Sometimes one needs to be more reliant before you can become self reliant, perhaps.

Roughing it – or not

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Last year our kids developed an interest in camping, so we thought we’d try it–in the back yard. They had a blast. We vowed never again. Of course time heals all wounds, or soothes all stiff muscles, and we tried it again last week. My conclusion? We are not ready to rough it. Or rather, we’re not prepared to make roughing it less rough.

For one thing, all we really have is a tent. The kids, who are young and flexible, sleep on blankets. We tried using an air mattress this last time, but it leaked, so by morning we were sleeping on the ground and in a banana shape. And, to be honest, sleeping isn’t entirely accurate for the waking-up-every-half-an-hour I did all night.

We need decent sleeping bags at the least. We had quilts, and it didn’t colder than the 60’s, but we were all chilled in the morning. Sleeping bags would likely have provided more padding than our blankets and quilts, too.

We need the means to cook outside. We ate all our meals in the house and only slept outside. We need a cook stove or something at the very least.

We had a couple flashlights, but nothing more than that. And that was rough enough, as our dog loves to chase flashlight beams. The mere presence of flashlights made her crazy and try to jump all over sleeping people. I’m hoping a good lantern would provide much better light without making the dog nuts. That may be too much to hope for.

There are, of course, lots of other little items and amenities that we would need were we to try camping completely independently of our home. Even if we never try camping in the wilderness, even if we had to live in an evacuation camp we’d be in pretty bad shape. The fact that we can’t even camp comfortably in our own back yard is probably a good sign we’re not quite prepared in that area.

 

Long term storage: Non-food items

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Could this be the end?! Joan Crain’s Self Reliance Exchange series on long term storage seems to wrap up with a discussion of what non-food items to store.

I’m a big fan of this one. Whenever the prices are low on facial tissue we stock up. We’ve noticed in the past how every single box of kleenex in the house tends to run out about the same time. If we didn’t have our stockpile we’d be wiped out by the first cold to hit the family. Nothing is worse than having a runny nose and no kleenex around. Toilet paper just doesn’t cut it for long. And speaking of toilet paper, that’s another one you don’t want to run out of.

Cleaning products, on the other hand, is one we haven’t really considered. We get door-to-door salesmen through our neighborhood regularly, so we have a couple years supply of the latest and greatest all-purpose cleaner concentrates, but some of the others we really should keep a supply of on hand. Same goes for laundry detergent.

Of course all of this is great, but it all comes down to space. We don’t all have the space to store all the things we know we need to store. Finding a place to put it all where you can get at it easily and can rotate it conveniently–well, I can see why a lot of self reliance advocates want to build their own houses. It’s the only way to ensure you have the storage space you need.

 

The case for DIY

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And speaking of Self Reliance Exchange, there’s another excellent article there about gaining the knowledge to do many things yourself. The writer (DDFD) uses the example of his car, and how you can learn a lot about your car and how it works just doing some of the basic maintenance. He still leaves some of the more specialized tasks to professionals for safety reasons, but there are many maintenance tasks that can be done yourself.

This article hit home a bit for me, as this is one area I’ve given myself a pass on. While I know I could learn car maintenance, I’ve avoided it by promising that I’ll just learn some skills that mechanics need so I can barter. But DDFD’s argument that you can learn a lot about your car by working on it makes sense. I really should do more of that.

It’s not easy. I like my mechanic. I want to make sure he’s still around when I need him. But would it kill me (or him) if I did a few of things things myself at least a time or two? Probably not.

 

Long term fruit and vegetable storage

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Self Reliance Exchange continues their long term food storage series with Step 7: Fruits & Veggies. This is a big one. Grains, legumes, and so on are all good, but fruits and vegetables make those others more versatile and offer important nutrition. They recommend growing your own, but also point out that buying in bulk or buying pre-preserved are also viable options.

If you’re interested in home canning, check out my friend Tonya’s site, Country Home Canning. She’s got recipes and techniques, and can help set you up with everything you need.