As I sat quietly in the kitchen this morning, I decided to take 10 minutes to myself and read…for pleasure. And, I am really glad I did….because, it helped set a different tone for the day.
The author of this book discusses the cultural phenomenon of scarcity and how it cultivates feelings of “NOT ENOUGH”. You know….the persistent thoughts that whittle away at us day in and day out of not having enough or not being enough. We live in a culture where the fear of being ordinary overtakes our lives. We are constantly trying to do more and be more. We compare and compete with those around us, most of the time unconsciously, but sometimes knowingly.
Then, we sit back at the end of the day and wonder why we constantly feel like what we did was just NOT ENOUGH.
Myself included.
But, then I read the excerpt below in the book this morning.
Such fantastic food for thought….
It reads:
“For me, and for many of us, our first waking thought of the day is ‘I didn’t get enough sleep.’ The next one is ‘I don’t have enough time.’ Whether true or not, that thought of not enough occurs to us automatically before we even think to question or examine it. We spend most of the hours and the days of our lives hearing, explaining, complaining, or worrying about what we don’t have enough of. Before we even sit up in bed, before our feet touch the floor, we’re already inadequate, already behind, already losing, already lacking something. And by the time we go to bed at night, our minds are racing with a litany of what we didn’t get, or didn’t get done, that day. We go to sleep burdened by those thoughts and wake up to that reverie of lack.
This internal condition of scarcity, this mind-set of scarcity, lives at the very heart of our jealousies, our greed, our prejudice, and our arguments with life.”
I recommend the book. It is called Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. Worth your time, as are many of the others she has written, such as The Gifts of Imperfection. Check them out!
The “Not Enough” problem affects us all, whether we admit it or not. From family life, to our profession, to relationships….it is something we all experience or feel. This type of thinking has been engrained in us through every media outlet imaginable…no wonder it is such a battle.
With the help of my little guy flashing smiles like this each day….I think I can become more aware of my “NOT ENOUGH” thoughts and make sure this phenomenon no longer manifests itself in my life!
It’s a mental shift. It takes time and awareness. But, it’s worth the effort….to know that being ordinary is enough. We don’t always have to strive to have more or be more.
Enjoy your weekend!
(Visited 51 times, 1 visits today)
