January 21, 2020


“Give and ye shall receive.” Luke 6:32

What is enough —money, clothes, objects, trips, on and on? Are you a spur of the moment shopper or do you plan? Is your budget in line or out of whack? What do you consider enough of anything?

Bestselling author, speaker, CEO and performance expert Tony Schwartz, in a recent Webinar, asked “what is enough?” Specifically talking about money in a poll, he asked “Do you have enough?” Two-thirds responded no.

Next question: How much would be enough? Answers varied from $250,000 to $10 million. Some who answered yes to the enough question, named a higher number than the amount they actually have.

Generally that is the case; what used to be enough is no longer. The message of society broadcasts that more is necessary.

Schwartz declares this idea of scarcity is often what drives us. This may drive deforestation, cheap labor, illegal actions or obscene salaries.

There is no evidence that more money makes us happier in the long term.

The happiness research, by Martin Seligman Director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, makes it clear that once our basic needs of food and shelter are met money matters little as far as happiness.  Thus when those basic needs are safely met, the implication is that’s enough.

Listen to people around you talking. During these unusual times, there’s often discussion about the poor and how they will eat, those who have lost their homes. The words are about the basic needs for family.

At my church, part of the ritual gives people an opportunity to express personal joys or sorrows. Message most always relate to people…birth, death, illness, visit, move, etc; occasionally it’s job related. It is never directly about money.

So do you have enough? Whatever your answer, it is not a fact but a point of view that includes your relationship with money.

Schwartz suggests thinking about how to explain to someone making minimum wage or without a job, or the starving in Africa, that you do not have enough. Many in our country need food stamps even when employed.

According to a news report on August 17, 25% of children in the United States live in poverty. Still even those struggling in this country, compared with the famine stricken in Africa, relatively speaking, are rich.

Yes money is important, essential for basic needs. Do you crave money? Does it dictate your thoughts? Craving and getting money over time can actually can trigger chemical reactions to our body that create a high similar to that from drugs.

The more inclusive questions are: what do you desire and what do you need for feeling better about yourself?

Seligman’s happiness research suggests happiness come from the satisfaction of being productively involved.

Consider your answer to this:
From the side of giving — what is “enough sharing” of time, energy and money for those that struggle just to eat?

Evidence indicates that it may be helpful for your own well-being to actively share (enough).



  1. Steve Wells LCSW, CADAC says

    Another interesting question to ponder would be, How does searching for what you do not have effect what you do have in front of you? How much mental, emotional and spiritual energy do we waste.
    I used to have a German Shepherd dog as a child that would at times see his tail out of the corner of his eye and chase his tail in circles for a moment until he became dizzy and exhausted, Are we not like my dog at times?