zen habits: The Essential Zen Habits of 2011

Post written by:

 Leo Babauta.

It has been a year of contentment for me, and Zen Habits.

Zen Habits has just finished its 5th year of existence, and every year has been better than the last. This year has been no exception.

Zen Habits grew from 200,000 to more than 230,000 subscribers, had more than 12 million unique visitors, and was named by TIME magazine as one of the Top 50 websites in the world.

But beyond those numbers, it was an amazing year for me, personally and professionally:

• I publicly wrote, and then published, my new book The Effortless Life.
• I also wrote and published The Little Guide to Un-Procrastination.
• I co-created, along with Katie Tallo and Barrie Davenport, The Habit Course.
• I co-created, along with Courtney Carver, the Clutterfree ebook and course.
• I became fitter than ever in my life, with a simple vegan diet and the habit of daily exercise.
• I completed a half marathon, won my age division in a 6.7-mile race, completed the Urbanathlon, and finished the Goruck Challenge.
• I traveled to London & Paris for the first time with my wife Eva, spent a month on the beautiful island of Guam, spent 10 days in New York City for the first time with my daughter Chloe, spoke at the World Domination Summit in beautiful Portland.
• Moved to a sunnier part of San Francisco, while exploring the city by foot and fork.
• Continued to enjoy a car-free life.
• My other blog, mnmlist, grew to 15,000 readers.
• I created an entirely new design for Zen Habits by hand, stripping away all but the essentials.

I did this mostly without goals, without copyright, and with contentment.

Most of all, I have to thank you, my dear readers. You have made my job fun, my work rewarding, and my life full of joy. Thank you for everything.

The Best Zen Habits Posts of 2011

Without further ado, these were the best posts from Zen Habits in 2011, as judged by me:

1. How I Changed My Life, In Four Lines
2. Best Procrastination Tip Ever
3. 38 Life Lessons I’ve Learned in 38 Years
4. Joyfear
5. How to Start
6. How to Finish
7. Create.
8. Finding Your Voice
9. The Half Step That Will Change Your Life
10. Breaking Free From Consumerist Chains
11. How to Read More: A Lover’s Guide

And more

For more best of Zen Habits:

• Best of Zen Habits in 2007.
• The Essential Zen Habits of 2008.
• The Essential Zen Habits of 2009.
• The Essential Zen Habits of 2010.
• The Beginner’s Guide to Zen Habits – A Guided Tour.