Same Salad, Different Day

August 31, 2019 | Richard Meadows

Probably you’ve read articles about how Obama wears the same suit every day, or Mark Zuckerberg has seventeen identical grey t-shirts in his wardrobe. The idea is to deliberately eliminate inconsequential daily choices and free up mental bandwidth for more important decisions; like ordering extrajudicial killings or strip-mining billions of people’s private information to sell to advertisers.

I say this lifehack is is much more useful and wide-reaching than streamlining your wardrobe: you can automate the important things, too.

If you wear the same outfit over and over, nothing bad happens. Maybe you don’t get invited to Fashion Week. But what if you eat the same food every day?

Digital Minimalism review - cover image gazing into the abyss

Digital Minimalism Review: Gazing Into the Abyss

Last updated: July 3, 2020 | Published on February 12, 2019 | Richard Meadows

Maybe you hear a mischievous little voice in your head that whispers ‘jump!’ every time you walk across a bridge, or lean over a balcony. In a similar way, I have recurring fantasies of shutting down my social media profiles, deleting this website, and generally trying to erase my presence from the Internet.

And so, I need to read a book called Digital Minimalism like a depressed person needs a lecture on antinatalism. Of course, I read it anyway…

Tabah lot, Bali on the cheap cover image

Bali on a Budget: Living on Less Than $800 a Month

August 17, 2018 | Richard Meadows

Bali offers a delightfully low cost of living and high quality of life. This being my fourth trip in as many years, I figure I’ve got enough spending data to do a decent breakdown of my expenses.

I’ve tracked every last rupiah during my time here, and crunched the numbers on my spending. What follows is a full cost-of-living breakdown including all the nitty-gritty stuff (like insurance and bank fees) which most reports seem to forget or ignore.

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up is Batshit Crazy, and I Love it

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up is Utterly Deranged, and I Love It

April 23, 2018 | Richard Meadows

Marie Kondo—queen of decluttering, bestselling author, empire-builder—hears voices in her head. They spoke to her one fateful day, as she kneeled in supplication on her bedroom floor after another failed attempt at tidying up:

“Look more closely at what is there.”

Most people who start hearing strange voices might take it as a sign that maybe their obsession is getting a little bit out of hand. For Kondo, it was a divine epiphany. This event set her down the pathway to developing her famous ‘KonMari Method™’, which she has used to help thousands of clients organise their homes. Her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, has sold more than four million copies, propelled her into superstardom, and attracted admiring hordes of Konverts.

I’ve been meaning to read this classic of the genre ever since I first got interested in the minimalist lifestyle, and conducted a great big dreamy purge of my own possessions. Now that I’ve finally got around to reading it, let me tell you, it was… not what I expected. To be completely blunt, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up is certifiably, lock-’em-up-and-throw-away-the-key, batshit crazy…

A Minimalist Packing List for Female Travelers

March 25, 2018 | Richard Meadows

After I posted my ultralight packing list, I got a few queries about what a similar set-up might look like for female travelers. I was kind of curious myself, so I asked my friend Rebecca Da Silva – a long-term traveler and small businesswoman (seriously, she’s tiny) – to unpack her own bag and share some tips for the ladies.

What travel teaches you: sometimes you have to swallow dead rats

Life Lessons on the Road

March 8, 2018 | Richard Meadows

I can’t get a replacement ticket without selling my firstborn child. I fly to a border town instead, but the last bus just left. The airport WiFi isn’t working – an immutable law of the universe – so I have to try and wing it with one of those old-timey maps made out of dead trees. It’s one Hail Mary after another: Over 16 hours, I take two taxis, a crowded minivan, two planes, a train, a ferry, a motorbike, and do plenty of walking, often in circles. I’m pulled aside at the border for questioning. An ancient vending machine swallows my last banknote. It’s think-on-your-feet, sprint to catch the last train stuff; an accidental one-man homage to the Amazing Race.

With exactly one sen (0.3c) to my name, I trudge the final stretch to my lodgings. It’s 11pm, and everything that could go wrong, has gone wrong. I’m soaked in sweat, desperate for the loo, starving, and absolutely knackered.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way…

Ultralight Travel Packing List: 10 Countries, One 7kg Bag

Last updated: July 29, 2019 | Published on January 27, 2018 | Richard Meadows

I’ve been bouncing around Asia and the Indian subcontinent for almost two years now, with a pack that weighs in at 15 pounds (7kg). This minimalist travel setup has served me well through monsoon season, snow and ice, storms, jungles, mountains and deserts alike.

The Best Things in Life Really Are Free

Last updated: February 29, 2020 | Published on October 20, 2017 | Richard Meadows

In my former life, I enjoyed a great deal of schmoozing. There were many long lunches at fine restaurants, champagne in business class served by the CEO of the airline, and corporate boxes at the sportsball. I’ve also spent weeks barely moving my carcass from a tropical island hammock except to skin up a joint or get another bottle of wine. I would be lying if I denied that all of these things are tremendous fun. On the other hand, they don’t tend to lead to much lasting satisfaction, losing their flavour as quickly as an over-chewed piece of gum. The best things in life really are free…

Throw Away Your Television

Last updated: September 15, 2018 | Published on June 11, 2017 | Richard Meadows

The only thing more banal than rappers spitting rhymes about their new 50” plasma screen is smug hipsters who won’t shut up about the fact that they don’t even own a TV, man. I apologise in advance for the sanctimony you are about to receive. Like so many clichés, if you dig deep enough, there’s a lustrous pearl of truth nestled amongst the old shellfish guts. So, here goes: I haven’t ‘watched TV’, in the conventional sense, for about five years…

Cheap Chiang Mai: Frugal living guide and spending breakdown

Chiang Mai on the Cheap: Living on Less Than $500 a Month

Last updated: July 29, 2019 | Published on May 11, 2017 | Richard Meadows

The first time I visited Thailand, I couldn’t get over how cheap Chiang Mai was. In my Day in the Life post, I guesstimated my monthly expenses might come in as low as ~US$500, and committed to tracking every last baht to find out the actual figure. Finally, the deed is done! After spending a cumulative six months in this city across three separate visits, I’ve crunched the numbers on all my spending. What follows is a full breakdown of costs across every category, including all the strategies I’ve used to save money.

The Portable Travel Gym that Fits in Your Pocket

Last updated: April 17, 2020 | Published on April 6, 2017 | Richard Meadows

Staying fit on the road is a challenge, especially when your entire life has to fit into a 22 litre day pack. While I stretch the carry-on limit pretty far, I suspect the cabin crew would object to me stuffing an Olympic barbell and a couple hundred kg of plates into the overhead lockers. Fortunately, I’ve found a way to cram an entire gymnasium into my pocket…

Cheerful, cheap Chiang Mai - a day in the life

What Does $8 Buy You in Thailand? A Day in the Life

Last updated: August 10, 2017 | Published on January 5, 2017 | Richard Meadows

The northern Thai city of Chiang Mai is becoming my home base in between adventures. It’s charming, it’s beautiful, and it’s cheap as chips. Here’s what a typical day might look like for me, including a daily cost breakdown to show how far western dollars stretch over here.

Getting rid of all your stuff: an essay about why I want to get rid of everything

Getting Rid of All Your Stuff Feels Like Taking a Big, Dreamy Dump

Last updated: November 19, 2019 | Published on December 8, 2016 | Richard Meadows

Taking a big dreamy dump is the best way I can describe how it feels to get rid of your possessions. See also: Rasping the dead skin off your feet, taking a tactical chunder during a big night out, or achieving inbox zero. It’s the same sense of deep satisfaction. The deadweight is gone, leaving you feeling all shiny and streamlined. That’s why culling my entire life’s belongings down to the contents of a 22 litre day pack felt really fucking good.

Slash your spending and unleash a cash tsunami image

100+ Money Saving Tips to Slash Your Spending

Last updated: November 15, 2019 | Published on October 7, 2016 | Richard Meadows

These are the exact strategies I used to save $100,000 by age 25 – with a few bonus extras thrown in for good measure. Over the years, I’ve written more than 300 columns and feature articles about money. Now I’ve crunched all that research down into a summary of the very best saving tips, which will help you free up a tidal wave of cash…

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All Life is an Experiment

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