Not sweating the small stuff always helps me in general.

It may not actually make life any easier, but I feel better equipped to handle each day when I take the time to have a cup of coffee, a cigarette, and read a little (or do a crossword puzzle) before getting dressed.

I've found that making a serious attempt to change the way I look at things has helped a lot. I mean, in the last year or two, I fundamentally tried to alter how I responded to the world, mainly by saying yes to opportunity. Previously, I generally assumed I DIDN'T want to do x, then talked myself into it if I felt I should do x.

Now...I'm starting out the opposite way. I think this small change has really altered the way I'm looking at the world, more welcoming and WAY more patient. I actually had a person, someone who's only got to know me in the last few months, accuse me of being "freakishly optimistic" which, I don't think I am...but the notion of anyone accusing me of THAT 2 years ago? Impossible.

Anyway, I would say that this small change has had a huge impact on my enjoyment of my life.

I actually think getting older does make life easier, in a lot of ways. It can give you a lot more perspective.

A former yoga teacher once talked about a yogic idea whose actual Sanskrit name I forgot, the gist of which is that it's important to differentiate between the actions and thoughts that feel good in the moment but don't contribute to long-term happiness (e.g., sleeping late and skipping yoga), and the actions and thoughts that feel difficult in the moment but do contribute to long-term happiness (e.g., getting up and going to yoga class). I'm still working on this one, but I think there's something to be said for avoiding shortcuts, sometimes.

Also, relevant wisdom from my box of ginger pastilles: "Focus is the key to all results. Results require that you concentrate all your efforts on the smallest number of activities that will produce the largest amount of productivity." -- Gary Ryan Blair

Self-sifting catbox liners.

Remembering that most of the things I take for granted -- plenty of food, comfortable home, big screen TV, a job, health care, security, electricity, plumbing, the internet -- are out of reach for most of the world. I forget sometimes and consider myself quite spoiled at those moments.

Also, drawstring garbage bags are handy. And autopay bills. Take-out's great, too, especially here in NYC where you can get just about any kind of food anytime of day or night delivered to your door. Nice. The spoiled thing aside, I would love a washer/dryer and an easier commute.

Having the right (good) for the job. Everything from writing an email to mowing the grass is easier if you can focus on the task without the tool constantly interrupting you. Also: cheap, fast, good - recognizing that you only have two choices and then living with the results of your choice without regret.

but I think there's something to be said for avoiding shortcuts, sometimes.

Yes. Most definitely. I'm working on this, too. I'm guilty of doing the easier thing most of the time lately (eating another cookie, lazing at home instead of going to yoga) and wallow in misery when I've gained 10 pounds and can't fit into anything.

I am copying your post and tacking it somewhere prominent, occhiblu. I love it.

A housekeeper definitely makes life easier. Maybe not so much fun but I think limited choices make life easier. My sister thinks paper plates make life easier.

pips, on first read I thought you had said autopsy bills. Oh dear. :-)

EVERYTHING HAS A PLACE and everything in its place.

Omg, this is a rule my mom told me to follow, and when I lived alone in small apartments I had a bit of my own organized mess, but now in a large house with kids I neeeeeeeeeeed to follow this rule and I try and it's not happened because we're in perma-renovation mode - but every so often I clean out a room and declare it "The unmessy zone - nothing stays here if it doesn't belong here". However I am fighting a grown child and a small child. yes I just called my SO a grown child

A nice corn starch based body powder as it's been a very sticky summer.

Living within my means - not being in debt (apart from the mortgage) gives me peace of mind.

Also, pretty much what pips said, except I am lucky enough to have both a washer/dryer and a dishwasher and appreciate beyond measure how easy they make my life.

For me preparation is the key to an easier life - I have my clothes for the next day laid out the night before, my lunch made and in the fridge, with a post-it saying 'lunch' stuck on the front door. The bag I need to take to work is packed and by the door, and I make sure I have enough change for the car park if I need to drive to the station.

I also use my online calendar and set myself reminders for appointments and birthdays.

It's easier if you fight with it less. Unless you enjoy a good fight, in which case cucumber vodka makes it easier.

I second Senyar's preparation. I'll write myself detailed lists of things that I may need for various events. If it's possible, I take the time to go drive by wherever it is that I might need to do (since I find it super stressful trying to drive to unfamiliar locations) and scope out things like parking, neighborhood traffic, etc.

Also, if I pick something up, I do not set it down until it is in it's proper place. (And also, things have locations where they belong. My purse is always on top of my filing cabinet, my NARA badge is hanging on my desk, bills to go out sit next to the lamp, etc.)

Plus, I try and keep my place fairly tidy. (I'm not obsessive about it, but I try to do things like keep books in the bookcase or makeup on the vanity.) A tidier place lets me see when something is away from its post.

Wanting/having fewer things.

Be nice to people. No guarantee, but it's easier for them to be nice to you back, and life is often more interesting.

Buy fewer things of higher quality.

Along the lines of the shortcuts thing above: know the right way to do something, even if you don't always do it that way. I love the book Home Comforts, and it's really nice to know that if I ever decide to get my rear in gear and make something GENUINELY CLEAN (instead of just wiping it off with a paper towel), I know how to do it.

Buy fewer things of higher quality.

As the queen of vintage clothing all I can say OMG eff yes to that.

The high quality things I have spent on (in some cases not expensive, like coats in vintage shoppes), have stayed with me. My entire-wall bookshelf that I thought was hella pricy (in reality, it was a steal), is the most beautiful piece of furniture I have ever owned. It's quality and has cured me from Ikea forever.

It took me four years to find it though -> it's this Poul Cadovius system. I gotta clean out the livingroom and show y'all one day.

seriously, every time I walk in to the living room now I let out a small sigh of looooorve. and then I sigh again because the So has taken it as his junk room and it pisses me right off

Get a Roomba.

Don't do anything that I do.

I have a second hamper in my closet for clothes that don't fit anymore. If something starts stretching out/I've grown too fat for it, or whatever - in the hamper. When the hamper gets full, it goes to the Salvation Army.

This has made my closet much easier to deal with since I tend to cycle through a lot of cheap clothes (especially tshirts) that wear out/stretch easily. (Being a nanny means no, no way am I ever going to pay more than $20 for an item of clothing because chances are just as good that it will get ruined before I can wear it out.) They're no longer fitting well enough for me to use them, but someone slightly smaller could still get plenty of use out of them.

'moonMan has this thing where his clothes have to be *pristine* or he won't wear them, so a lot of his froo-froo tshirts get passed on this way too. Plenty of people will find a *slightly worn* Guess tshirt to be the find of the decade, even if he's not going to wear it anymore.

Anyhow. The second hamper for clothes to give away means that the clothes that are *in* my closet are all clothes that I actually wear all the time and that also all fit correctly.

That's a great idea, grapefruitmoon.