5 Ways to Decrease Entropy
How living in chaos can affect our level of happiness
I have always loved being organized.
For years I thought my strive for perfectionism was a shortcoming.
Now I embrace it, knowing that lowering entropy i.e. creating more order, is fundamental to living a fulfilled life.
If you are like me and you like things organized, always looking for a more efficient way of living, or have had trouble with this in the past and desperately want to reduce the chaos in your life, I am including five easy D.I.Y. ways to try out right away!
What Is Entropy?
The term entropy originated in the 1850s and was made popular by German physicist Rudolph Clausius. It was mainly used for the study of thermodynamics and in formulas that determine the stability of atomic systems and chemical reactions.
Today it is better known as the measure of disorder, uncertainty, and randomness in a closed atomic or molecular system.
Low Entropy Example
Low entropy, in simple terms, means less chaos or more organization. If the files on our Macs or PCs are organized, we have created a low entropy condition, where sufficient energy is put into the system to bring it to a state of order.
High Entropy Example
High entropy refers to less ordered or more random bits. A messy room is a classic example of a high entropy condition where less energy is put into the system, i.e. it is not being kept well.
Why Is It Relevant?
The purpose of life is to evolve positively. Striving for the better is our natural tendency, yet we are failing frequently, due to the poor choices we make.
Why not take a quick test to verify this information.
How do you feel when your local park is clean from trash? How does it look? How do the plants react? Can the flowers grow better without cigarette butts and plastics in their soil? Does the air smell fresher without trash everywhere? Are you more enticed to visit this clean park as opposed to a dirty one? Does it spark creativity within you? Imagine you want to come up with a new idea. Will you be less or more inspired by an organized, orderly environment?
A more organized environment produces better results.
To evolve positively we are required to work with the laws of the Universe, with Mother Nature. It thus makes logical sense to lower our entropy to live happily and efficiently.
“Everything that comes together falls apart. Everything. The chair I’m sitting on. It was built, and so it will fall apart. I’m gonna fall apart, probably before this chair. And you’re gonna fall apart. The cells and organs and systems that make you you — they came together, grew together, and so must fall apart. The Buddha knew one thing science didn’t prove for millennia after his death: Entropy increases. Things fall apart.” — John Green
5 D.I.Y. Ways to Lower Entropy
For best results, consistent practice is necessary.
- Make a mindmap of the four areas in your life you are most passionate about. You can do this by drawing four circles on an A4 page, connecting each with a line. Below each of these categories, write the five most efficient actions that will bring order to this specific category of your life. You can even go further and create timelines and goals for each. Have fun with this and be as creative as you want. Position your mindmap where you can look at it daily to be reminded of that which is a priority to you. Most importantly, take action on the identified points.
- Deal with things immediately. Do not put things off, unless it interferes with something which has previously been scheduled. For example, if you need to keep shopping receipts, do not keep them jammed up in your wallet or purse, or even worse, stuff the overflow into that top drawer. Talking of which, it is best to bid farewell your faithful friend Good Ol’ Mr. Top D. Give it a good empty and see how you feel.
- Use “I am” statements to retrain your mind. For example “I am organized. I deal with things immediately. I am efficient. I am getting better and better at being organized each day.”
- Simplify your life drastically. Have less stuff. Give away or sell what you do not need. Make quality over quantity in all things, a part of your lifestyle.
- Efficiency ought to be at the fore of your mind at all times. Over time, this will develop into a habit and you will notice opportunities to lower entropy EVERYWHERE.
Less chaos — more happiness
It is worth considering how our ability to lower entropy plays a role in our overall happiness in life.
However, it is up to us to take action toward a more orderly existence.
Once this has been achieved, both personally and collectively, the world we live in today will be a much happier and more sustainable place and we too will be happier.
*First published on 14 July 2021 Illumination Mirror
