That short phrase is one of the most powerful I can think of. So powerful that I used it as the title of my new book. Yet, I wonder if you’ve ever really thought about what it means to simply…be enough.
Society places a great deal of importance on outward success – success in the form of possessions, a big bank balance, perfect relationships, glowing, radiant health, and a secure, high-paying job. Yet, even those that have outwardly achieved immense levels of success still feel as if there is something missing from their lives. They feel as if they ARE their possessions. Their profession is their identity. They depend on their bank balance for validation.
These feelings of emptiness, dissatisfaction, and sadness occur because those external things can never take the place of your authentic self. In fact, all of the external trappings of success are actually examples of what “you are enough” does NOT mean.
You are far more than your external accomplishments, my dear friends. But from the moment you were born, you have been conditioned to be a unit of production. You’ve been separated from your emotions, been told that you’re too sensitive, that you shouldn’t become angry, that you have no reason to be sad. Your humanity has been denied and you learned that your worth is based on what you can provide. “Work hard!” they said and all will be well. In following that advice, your emotions were disregarded, and you were, essentially, mechanized.
We live in an age of consumption and not just of physical objects, but of information as well. This constant consumption reinforces the idea that a solution to all our problems lies outside of us somewhere.
We look for external, surface-level answers. We go to retreats, seminars, read books, seek out articles online, but nothing really changes.
That’s because the solution isn’t external. It can’t be consumed because the real answer already lives inside every one of us. The time has come to discover our true intrinsic worth.
You have been conditioned to believe that you are the problem. You are not and never have been the problem. You are not broken. You do not need fixing. All you need to do is begin to look inside yourself and become empowered as your own solution. There is always an internal resolution for anything that’s happening in your life externally. This naturally occurs when you bring resonance and harmony to an area of dissonance where you have been conditioned to deny and reject an aspect of yourself.
Hello Panache. YOU GOT THIS! Bottom line is that “We live in an age of consumption and not just of physical objects, but of information as well. This constant consumption reinforces the idea that a solution to all our problems lies outside of us somewhere.” I have spent years reading EVERYTHING I could, thinking that the NEXT book or article or insight would be the enlightening one I was seeking. When I turned 74, I wrote a book, Decades of Gratitude, Gusto, Grit & Grace, which is all about the AHA! moments we all have when we get quiet enough to allow our wisdom to surface. Thanks for sharing.
Minx, love your book title: Decades of Gratitude, Gusto, Grit & Grace! Maybe we have to live long enough to learn these lessons? Or can generations after us, learn from our AHA moments!
“Yet, I wonder if you’ve ever really thought about what it means to simply…be enough.”
Panache, this is meaningful for me to read as I’m in the middle of a re-launch of my book, “Simply Enough: Create Space for What Matters” which goes through the layers of ‘enoughness’ (physical, mental, emotional) to get to the underlying reasons we seem to NEED so much. I don’t know if our books are at all similar, but thank you for being on the topic of helping people believe: “…the solution isn’t external. It can’t be consumed because the real answer already lives inside every one of us. The time has come to discover our true intrinsic worth.” So agree!!!
Sora, congratulations on the relaunch of your book “Simply Enough: Create Space for What Matters”! This topic may be similar but we all continue to learn from each perspective. And you are so right – The time has come to discover our true intrinsic worth.
Frank, great insight here. You are so right when you say: “smart leaders know how to recognize, honor and defuse the heightened emotions in the workplace.” This is not always easy – but critical.
Great article Panache,
I tried for years to keep my personal and professional lives separate by removing emotions professionally. It was a complete and total disaster. I think Kimberly Davis says it well in her book Brave Leadership: While messy and inconvenient, we human beings can’t truly “leave our emotions at the door” and smart leaders know how to recognize, honor and defuse the heightened emotions in the workplace. They lead through the lens of humanity. I finally learned that I am OK and my emotions and those of my staff make us better.