One of the most powerful concepts to adopt is the notion “I am enough, exactly as I am”.
The mere idea can be quite shocking if your whole life has been predicated on the idea that ‘someday’ actually exists.
In my line of work, I often encounter people who believe that someday they will be successful, confident and happy but they need something else before they can achieve their dreams - another qualification, a partner, a bigger office, a quiet space, to lose weight or get that book written and published!
Taken individually, all these things are fine ideals to have, but considered as essential or as reasons/excuses for not getting on with living our lives, they serve only to reinforce our own inadequacies and limitations.
The same applies to the addiction to busyness. People who are driven to be busy all the time are often motivated by the idea that that have to do more and more to be valued and deserving of reward. The idea that “I do enough” is anathema to them. They can never do enough, in their own minds. So they work late and on weekends, run themselves ragged looking after everyone else’s needs and yet, sadly, are rarely, if ever, satisfied that they have done enough.
Then there’s our addiction to consumption. “I don’t have enough art, clothes, houses, food, fresh flowers, devices, gadgets, pets, hobbies, tools, rooms, jewellery.....” is so common I’m cringing with recognition as a write.
What is enough? How do we evaluate or measure it?
In fact, it’s a personal judgement that any of us can make at any moment in time. When enough is enough, we can simply declare it and be mindful about getting sucked back into the great delusion that we need to be more than we are, to do more than we do and to have more than we already have.
And to prove to myself that I have more than enough, I’m taking up the 2018 Declutter Challenge for the 31 days of January, starting tomorrow. (Google it!) The idea is to throw out 465 possessions in a month, one on the first day, two on the second and so on up to 31 things on the 31st January. I guess you can keep going if there’s more and you’re still having fun! You can recycle stuff, regift it, take it to a charity shop or to the tip.
I’ve also taken up Adam Ferrier’s suggestion in his article ‘From Mindless to Mindful Consumption: and black fingernails too’ to paint my fingernails black as a reminder to be mindful about what I consume.
So today, the final day of 2017, I have painted my fingernails black to remind myself not only to consume mindfully, but also as a reminder to declare:
I am enough. I do enough. I have enough.
Enough!
Happy new year!
The mere idea can be quite shocking if your whole life has been predicated on the idea that ‘someday’ actually exists.
In my line of work, I often encounter people who believe that someday they will be successful, confident and happy but they need something else before they can achieve their dreams - another qualification, a partner, a bigger office, a quiet space, to lose weight or get that book written and published!
Taken individually, all these things are fine ideals to have, but considered as essential or as reasons/excuses for not getting on with living our lives, they serve only to reinforce our own inadequacies and limitations.
The same applies to the addiction to busyness. People who are driven to be busy all the time are often motivated by the idea that that have to do more and more to be valued and deserving of reward. The idea that “I do enough” is anathema to them. They can never do enough, in their own minds. So they work late and on weekends, run themselves ragged looking after everyone else’s needs and yet, sadly, are rarely, if ever, satisfied that they have done enough.
Then there’s our addiction to consumption. “I don’t have enough art, clothes, houses, food, fresh flowers, devices, gadgets, pets, hobbies, tools, rooms, jewellery.....” is so common I’m cringing with recognition as a write.
What is enough? How do we evaluate or measure it?
In fact, it’s a personal judgement that any of us can make at any moment in time. When enough is enough, we can simply declare it and be mindful about getting sucked back into the great delusion that we need to be more than we are, to do more than we do and to have more than we already have.
And to prove to myself that I have more than enough, I’m taking up the 2018 Declutter Challenge for the 31 days of January, starting tomorrow. (Google it!) The idea is to throw out 465 possessions in a month, one on the first day, two on the second and so on up to 31 things on the 31st January. I guess you can keep going if there’s more and you’re still having fun! You can recycle stuff, regift it, take it to a charity shop or to the tip.
I’ve also taken up Adam Ferrier’s suggestion in his article ‘From Mindless to Mindful Consumption: and black fingernails too’ to paint my fingernails black as a reminder to be mindful about what I consume.
So today, the final day of 2017, I have painted my fingernails black to remind myself not only to consume mindfully, but also as a reminder to declare:
I am enough. I do enough. I have enough.
Enough!
Happy new year!
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