Turtles-Paradise

Minimalism is about simplicity, and simplicity is subjective. To one person, cooking a stir-fry with noodles is the height of simple food, taking them ten minutes to chop the vegetables and cook it all up. To someone else, that same meal is complex and they would rather heat some soup in a microwave for a simple meal.

For me, running my life online is simple. I pay my bills online, get my bank statements, enter my meter readings, track my phone usage. To someone who is less experienced with computers, the paper system will be simpler.

It’s about remembering to learn and practice. If you find it difficult and time-consuming to cook, practice some five or six meals until you are proficient. So much of what we think of as ‘easy’ is really just experience and practice. And so much of what we think of ‘complicated’ is really just lack of experience and practice.

There have been people preaching the value of simplicity, zen, non-attachment to material things, and the benefits of freedom since the beginning of human history.

All difficult things have their origin in that which is easy, and great things in that which is small.

– Lao Tzu

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I’d like to tell you a nasty little secret.

University – that’s college for any American readers – isn’t worth it.

Okay, I’ll qualify. University is absolutely brilliant for those who are passionate about a subject, can afford to take 3 years out of their lives to spend studying, and will take the most of every educational side-benefit offered. Most people who go to University aren’t like that though. They pay their money and expect a certificate at the end of the course. Most 18-19 year olds have no clue about what they want to do, or who they are, or what they like. Asking them to take out a £10,000 – 37,000 pound loan to fund a choice based mostly on guess work and social expectations is a little unfair.

Take that same £10k and volunteer in Africa, climb a mountain in Asia, road trip across Russia, and you’ll probably be a more interesting person at the end of the process.

Most people would be better served by not going to college. Learning a vocation is more practical. Become a master plumber or electrician. A lorry driver. You’ll earn about the same amount, but you’ll be earning quicker and you won’t be paying off your student loans. Travelling is more interesting, and can make for a better CV-builder. Or just wait, try a bunch of different things out as hobbies or adult ed courses until you realise that actually you really do want to spend 3 years reading ancient greek, or learning about clouds.

Most of the people I know that got a lot out of their degrees were older people – people who had made a choice to come, people who knew what they wanted from the course, people who were comfortable enough to speak out in class, ask questions, and reference abstract concepts to individual lives. They had already grasped the basics through self-education, and weren’t struggling to figure out how to learn independently.

Doctors, engineers, nuclear physicists - yes, you do need an education. But there’s no reason why a degree should be a standard requirement for almost any job above minimum wage, or why every teenager should attend a further few years of school before being given some responsibilities.

In short. Don’t go. Wait until you’re sure. Do some exploring, get a real job or an apprenticeship first. There’s plenty of time for college, and you will get a lot more out of it when you’re older.