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I Have Had Enough!
1 Realisation to Escape the Materialistic Mindset
Wisdom Made Easy
October 21, 2023
Hi there, Michael here!
In today’s newsletter, I share the 1 realisation that has helped me to escape my materialistic tendencies and become truly content, but first…
How do you like to get wiser?I get wiser by consuming a variety of content. What is your preferred form of wisdom? |
👞 If the Shoe Fits…
I haven’t bought any new footwear in over 3 years.
It’s not because I’m particularly fond of my Vivobarefoot trainers. It’s because I don’t need new trainers.
I have only 5 pairs of shoes, they’re all still in usable condition and they all serve a purpose.
I’m not sharing this with you because I want you to come to grips with your shoe addiction.
I want you to reflect on what you actually need.
⚰️ The Harsh Truth…
Over the course of your lifetime, you will accumulate stuff - lots and lots of stuff.
Don’t worry - we’re all guilty of this.
But whilst we’re collecting more and more, we fail to realise one thing:
You can’t take stuff with you.
I apologise if you find this point a bit morbid, but there’s certainly value in reflecting on death - especially when it helps inform how we should live.
Recognising that the accumulation of stuff is pointless in the grand scheme of things helps us to re-prioritise; to focus on what’s truly important.
I need to clarify that I’m not telling you to have no stuff. After all, I still have 5 pairs of shoes but only 1 set of feet, right?
Instead, I’m encouraging you to be conscious about what you have and what you need. Do these two align?
🫂 What Even is Enough?
How do you know what you actually need? What even is enough?
Ultimately, I cannot answer this question for you because this is subjective.
But here is an important principle that has helped me in my pursuit for enough.
“There are two ways to get enough. One is to continue to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less.”
- G. K. Chesterton
This piercing quote is something that we all have experience with, right?
Society tends to promote the idea of more.
More likes, more followers, more money, more success, more friends, more reps, more wins, more, more, more!
There is another way: be content with less.
It liberating when you stop chasing more and become comfortable with less.
Having less makes space for the more meaningful stuff like health, relationships, faith and more.
🪞 The Beauty of Enough
Allow me to leave you with a quote that is so powerful that I regularly recite it to myself in the mirror.
It comes from Sahil Bloom’s feature on Ali Abdaal’s Deep Dive podcast.
One of the last things that he leaves the listeners with is this:
“Never let your quest for more distract you from the beauty of enough.”
- Sahil Bloom
Ignore the distractions of more.
Discover the beauty of enough today.
To watch Sahil’s full feature on Ali’s podcast, click here.
✍️ Journal Prompts
• Are what you have and what you need the same?
• To get enough, do you strive for more or desire less?
• What does “enough” mean to you?
Consider journaling through the above questions yourself.
👍 Recommendations
Here’s a couple of things that we think will complement this week’s newsletter and will help you to get wiser:
1️⃣ This week’s first recommendations for additional content is The Minimalists’ documentary that you can watch for FREE on YouTube.
Not only is it a great resource for people considering living a more meaningful life with less, but it’s also a visual masterpiece given that it’s directed by Matt D’Avella.
You can watch it here:
2️⃣ My second recommendation for this week’s issue is The Minimalists’ book Love People, Use Things.
There are a handful of books that I revisit on an annual basis. This book is one of them.
It perfectly compliments today’s newsletter, so if any of today’s writing resonated with you, pick up your copy of Love People, Use Things here:
* Please note that these may be affiliate links. Purchasing through these links could support Wisdom Made Easy encourage more people to get wiser.
✍️ What I’m Working On
I’m busy working on a new view for the wisdommadeeasy.com website.
I’m hoping to give it a much-needed facelift in the coming days. Watch this space for an update.
Once I have done this, I will pivot my efforts to finishing a number of free resources that I have been working on for some time.
I’m looking forward to sharing these with you very soon!
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😊 Thank You!
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Catch you in the next issue!
Thanks,
Michael
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