After the release of the movie Syriana, Barbara Walters interviewed George Clooney. She asked why he chose to do a role like that when he could make more money as a leading man. “I have enough money,” said Clooney. “It’s about the quality of the work.”
Walter Isaacson, in his biography about Benjamin Franklin, said that Franklin didn’t patent his Franklin stove. He structured his finances so that his retirement was comfortable and he felt like his invention belonged to everyone. What I read into that was that Franklin knew that he had enough.
Both of these men knew what was important to them and when they had enough. It struck me because I’ve fallen into the trap of ‘not enough’ at times in my life. I wasted precious present moments concerned about what I didn’t have. I sometimes looked at others who had more with longing tinged with envy.
British Happiness expert Anthony Seldon said this in a BBC interview: ”One needs to have a certain level of income so that one can have one’s own material needs looked after and if not, than one is unhappy, but beyond a certain point, the increase in happiness doesn’t continue increasing along with an increase in income. What also is a potent source of unhappiness is comparison with other people. If we’re constantly looking over our shoulder and thinking this person has a bigger house or a better car or a higher standard of living than I do, than that’s going to make you unhappy.”
Knowing what ‘enough’ is avoids that trap of thinking more is better and contributes to our ability to be happy right now. The old tried and true habit of appreciation helps us focus on what we have rather than what we don’t have.
When I’m feeling in a place of ‘not enough’ and that life would be better if I just had ‘x’, I express gratitude for what I have. This gratitude list is long, from a loving husband, to my stepson coming back into our lives, to good health, to a safe and comfortable home in a wonderful neighborhood, to wonderful friends, to enough to eat, to indoor plumbing.
Indoor plumbing is one of my favorites. When I think about how many people in the world don’t have clean drinking water and I can just turn on the tap and have clean water whenever I want, not to mention the joys of a hot shower, I feel grateful.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting expansion in our lives. We live in an abundant universe and life is meant to be enjoyed. Yet if we’re always straining for more, we’re not enjoying the now.
Substituting ‘and’ for ‘but’ helps me keep focus what's working right now. Rather than "I’d be happier if I had ‘x’," I say "I’m grateful for what I have and I’m open to receiving more.”
How do you stay connected to knowing what enough is in your life?
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