From Scarcity to Sufficiency

Money does not belong to us exclusively. It either belongs to all of us or to none of us. It is one of those great commons that has been created by man. Money, in fact is so much like water. In some people’s lives it flows gushing forth like a river and in others, it flows like a tiny trickle. But whether it flows like a river or a trickle, money brings opportunity. Opportunity to reallocate it for something good, for the people & for this world.

But is this happening, is the money being used for something good? Unfortunately not. Today, huge proportions of the world’s financial resources are going towards destruction, depletion, war, terrorism, weaponry and consumption. And who wants all this?, not me, not you, nobody wants it. All of us want money to move towards what we love, towards life, towards the affirmation of life, for the well being of our species and our planet and our habitat.

So what is stopping you and me from achieving this? It is our mindset of scarcity. All the time we think that things are not enough and so we end up in trying to accumulate more and more, just like tyrants. And when we become busy in scrambling for more and more, we fail to notice & appreciate and nourish what we already have. We have reduced ourselves from citizens to consumers. A consumer consumes, destroys, depletes. And a citizen is somebody who creates, who contributes, who gives. So how can we become citizens once again? It’s quite simple really. All you have to do is use your imagination. For a moment, imagine that there is no scarcity, there is enough for everyone and you will soon realize that actually it is true there is really no scarcity. Our needs are always met one way or the other, and often by ways that we never expected.

This journey from scarcity to sufficiency can be accomplished if you stop trying to get more and more of what you don’t really need. And when you stop this unnecessary accumulation, the result is that it frees up oceans of energy to make a difference with what you already have. When you make that difference, then whatever you do whether it is social work, volunteering, philantrophy, whatsoever little you do, it multiplies, expands, increases. In simple words, what you appreciate, appreciates.

There are 6 ways to begin this journey from scarcity to sufficiency.

1. Get the clutter out of your life.
2. Don’t buy unless you can let go of something.
3. Practice appreciation for what you already have.
4. Learn to value intangible gifts much more than tangible gifts.
5. Nourish your body instead of filling it.
6. Whenever you spend money, ask yourself how is it going to affect the world.

Remember - Scarcity breeds competition, sufficiency breeds collaboration. We all have a duty to perform. We have to carry out the sacred work of reallocating the world resources away from fear and greed and move them towards love and compassion. And the only way to do that is by changing our mindset. Changing it from scarcity to sufficiency.