That question—when is enough, enough?—was a prevalent question during my years as a financial life planner. I mean, how do you quantify enough when faced with a society that worships more and more?
The conversations always circled back to the issue of one’s values. Enough to not outlive resources, given a particular lifestyle. Enough to provide college for grandchildren. Enough to benefit others through charitable donations.
In Chapter X, the question takes on a different twist. The other day, a friend who is struggling with his decision to slow down and retire told me that he wasn’t sure he could come up with enough to do.
I thought about this for a minute and asked a clarifying question: “Are you trying to build a life with the same level of activity as you have right now, working 60-hour weeks?”
I left him to think about it.
One of the gifts of this life stage is having the freedom to decide how you fill your day, what’s important to you, and what is enough.
For me, I don’t want to be “busy” for 10 hours per day. I want activities and involvements to flow with what draws me. If I’m tired, I want to take it easy. If I’m energized, I want to explore that and make my day as full and productive as possible.
Old habits and patterns need to be examined and modified to fit your life. The FEAR of boredom is just that: fear. The FEAR of not finding interesting or meaningful endeavors is just that: fear.
Maybe it’s time to ask the bigger questions, like “How might I explore this next chapter with courage, faith, integrity, excitement, and love for myself and others?”
That’s enough.
