The Courage to Cut

Addition is comforting. It creates the illusion of progress—more habits, more roles, more connections. But when life feels heavy, it’s not because something’s missing. It’s because there’s too much.

I started 2025 with subtraction. Not as a trend, but as a way to breathe again. To return to clarity.

Take walking, for instance. Long walks were once sacred. But they consumed my best hours—5:30 a.m., 6:30 p.m.—and didn’t move the needle on my health. I let them go. Now I move in short, focused bursts. No more dragging rituals. Just rhythm.

In wealth, I ditched complexity. I stopped playing safe with scattered investments and poured everything into a single strategy. Simpler. Sharper. More alive with intention.

In design, I trimmed away the wide canvas—no more business design, no more trying to cover it all. I’ve narrowed my work to what matters most to me: life design and product design, especially in the emerging AI context. The rest is noise.

Even in my not-for-profit efforts, I stripped it down. Betterment, belonging, creativity—all beautiful ideas. But only one felt timeless. Betterment stayed. The rest were lovingly let go.

Relationships were the most painful cut. Some people felt like oxygen. Subtraction taught me something vital—I don’t need everyone I once thought I did. I let go. I grieved. On the other side there is energy, peace and focus.

Now, what’s left is lean, essential, true.

Subtraction isn’t about having less. It’s about holding only what matters.

If life feels crowded, don’t add more. Start subtracting. And make space for what really counts.