Living a simpler life happens one step at a time. 

1. Know where your food is from. From the store? That’s ok. And where did the store get it from? The closer to local that you can get your food, the better. The less travelling food has to do to get to the store means that it was picked riper and, in many cases, was covered in less pesticides for the journey. 
2. Buy in bulk and preserve it, if you have the space for storage. (Think empty spaces in your home, such as under beds and top shelves of closets.) Buying in bulk is cheaper, usually, and storing it for later helps us be prepared for life disruptions such as power outages. 
3. Along with buying in bulk, is buying in season. We have become so used to buying anything at any time of the year, accessing crops from around the world, that we have forgotten how to “live off the land, our land”.
4. Grab a cookbook or call a friend and find an old family recipe to make. Cook up a connection to the past, to those who came before us and who did live a homesteading life because that is all there was. 
5. Go barefoot on the grass or beach or soil. Hug a tree. Watch the clouds. Connect with nature. Feel the energy. 
6. Instead of buying something, try to make it yourself, whether it is a shelf, a pillow case, or a garden trellis. 
7. Repurpose something that you no longer use rather than throwing it away. Ex: turn an old sweater into a pillow. 
8. Conserve - use less water; turn off some lights; turn down the heat or the air conditioner; walk or bike instead of taking the car or bus. 
9. Choose products at the store with less packaging. 
10. Learn a new skill - mechanical, construction, baking, sewing. Add to your personal tool belt of abilities. 
11. Niche out: Reach out - teach out. Build your community of like-minded people 

Niche out: Reach out - teach out.