In Part One, we explored the first of the Four Great Truths: Interconnectedness—the understanding that we are not separate from nature but woven into its very fabric. If we truly accept this truth, it leads us naturally to the second: Sufficiency.

Because if we are all part of a deeply connected, living system, then the idea that there isn’t enough to go around simply doesn’t make sense.

Let’s start with a familiar example—your own body. Think about how the human body functions as a self-regulating, cooperative living system. Your heart doesn’t hoard blood. Your lungs don’t store oxygen for themselves. Nutrients, oxygen, and information circulate through the body—each part receiving exactly what it needs to thrive. When one part is out of balance or starts taking too much, the whole system suffers. But when everything works in harmony, there is enough for all. That’s sufficiency in action.

Yet, here we are—trapped in a system that runs on scarcity thinking. We are told that more is always better, that success is about accumulation (you know, the myth that the person with the most toys wins), that competition is the only way to survive. And what has this led to? Overconsumption, inequality, and environmental collapse.

But what if Sufficiency was not just a possibility, but the natural order of things? What if the real problem isn’t a lack of resources, but how we think about and distribute them?

The Truth of Sufficiency: There Is Enough When We Remember How to Share

The Earth is abundant. It provides everything we need to survive and thrive. Every day, the sun delivers more energy to the Earth than we could possibly use. Plants grow, water cycles, ecosystems regenerate.

Consider the Amazon rainforest—often called the lungs of the planet. It produces oxygen, absorbs carbon dioxide, and supports one of the richest webs of biodiversity on Earth. Or coral reefs, teeming with life, supporting species diversity and feeding millions. Nature has always known how to provide.

The problem isn’t the planet—it’s the way we’ve structured our systems.

Modern economic models are built on the assumption of infinite growth, which forces us into a mindset of constant scarcity. Gross National Product (GNP) is our primary measure of success. But GNP doesn’t tell us how healthy our ecosystems are, or how equitable our society is. It just tells us how fast we’re growing—often at the expense of everything else.

To keep the economy “growing,” we create debt—both financial and ecological. Globally, we’ve borrowed from future generations, amassing trillions in national debt and degrading the environment with the assumption that more production and more consumption will eventually fix everything. But it hasn’t. And it won’t.

Where We See This Truth in Action

If we look beyond the dominant economic model, we can see examples of sufficiency in action all around us—real people, real communities proving that we already have enough when we stop hoarding and start sharing.

The Buy Nothing Movement

The Buy Nothing Project began in 2013 when two friends, Rebecca Rockefeller and Liesl Clark, launched a simple experiment: What if people stopped buying new things and started sharing what they already had—locally, person-to-person?

From that seed of an idea, a global movement grew. Today, Buy Nothing groups exist in thousands of neighborhoods around the world, connecting people not through commerce, but through generosity and trust.

A few years ago, Ann and I decided it was time to begin reducing the amount of stuff we had accumulated over the years. We had seen firsthand how overwhelming it was for her and her siblings to sort through her mother’s belongings after she passed—and how much ended up in the landfill.

That’s when we discovered our local Buy Nothing Facebook group. Since then, as we continue our “purposeful purging,” we’ve become known in the group as a bit of a rockstar couple—for giving away really good stuff. And let me tell you, it feels great to know these items are going to someone who can use and appreciate them, rather than sitting unused or being thrown away.

Doughnut Economics: Redesigning the Economy Around Sufficiency

Economist Kate Raworth proposes a powerful visual model for redefining success: the Doughnut. The inner ring of the doughnut represents the minimum standards for a good life—things like clean water, food, education, health care, housing, and social equity. The outer ring represents the ecological ceiling—the boundaries we must not overshoot if we want to maintain a healthy planet.

Between those two rings is the “safe and just space for humanity.” That’s the sweet spot. Not too little, not too much. Just enough.

Doughnut Economics doesn’t just reject the growth-at-all-costs model—it offers an actionable alternative grounded in balance, sufficiency, and shared well-being.

Minimalism & The Slow Living Movement

All over the world, people are waking up to the realization that more stuff doesn’t equal more happiness. The Minimalist movement isn’t about deprivation; it’s about clarity. It’s about asking: What truly adds value to my life? And what can I let go of?

Slow Living takes that same spirit and expands it beyond possessions. It asks us to slow down—not just in what we consume, but in how we live. To be present with our food. To walk instead of rush. To savor a conversation. To choose quality over quantity.

A Lesson from the Wild

Zak and the team were hiking through a dry, rocky landscape when they arrived at a mountain village that seemed to be on the brink of crisis. The air was dusty, and the people moved slowly, gathering water from a cracked, shallow cistern that barely produced a trickle.

“They say the drought’s been going on for months,” Sampson reported. “They’re rationing everything.”

Zak watched as children carried heavy jugs for long distances. The desperation in the air was as palpable as the heat.

That night, Ra-Kit stirred Zak from his sleep and beckoned him to follow. She led him beyond the edge of the village, into a quiet grove nestled against a rock wall.

“Do you see it?” she asked, pointing to a patch of moss glistening faintly under the moonlight.

Zak squinted. “Moss?”

“Dig,” she said gently.

He did. Just a few inches down, the soil turned damp—and then, suddenly, water bubbled up from beneath the surface.

His eyes widened. “There’s water here! Why didn’t they know?”

Ra-Kit’s voice was quiet. “Because they stopped listening. They forgot how to look for what they already have.”

The next morning, with Zak and Ra-Kit’s guidance, the villagers began to explore the land with fresh eyes—following signs from the earth, planting moss near other shaded groves, and uncovering more hidden springs.

Together, they designed a new water system—not one of hoarding and fear, but one built on access and sharing. The cistern was repurposed into a gathering spot, not a point of scarcity but a symbol of cooperation.

Zak stood at the edge of one of the new communal springs, watching children play and elders fill their jugs with ease. A quiet sense of reverence settled in.

“They were never without,” he said to Ra-Kit. “They just forgot how to see.”

Ra-Kit nodded. “That’s the real drought we’re facing—not of water, but of awareness.”

And in that moment, Zak understood: Sufficiency isn’t something we acquire. It’s something we remember.

How We Can Live This Truth

Understanding sufficiency isn’t just about changing policies—it’s about changing our own mindset and behaviors. Here are some ways to shift from scarcity thinking to a mindset of sufficiency:

* Shift from accumulation to gratitude. Instead of always seeking more, ask: What do I already have that is enough?

* Support local sharing economies. Buy Nothing groups, tool libraries, and community gardens are powerful ways to create abundance without overconsumption. Repair Cafes like the ones my wife has started in our area are also a great way to both create community and keep clothes, tools, and appliances in use and out of the landfill.

* Break free from the consumer mindset. Before buying something new, pause. Do you really need it? Could you borrow it? Repurpose something you already have?

The Obstacle Becomes the Way

We’ve been trained to believe that scarcity is a fact of life—that we must compete for limited resources, that more is always better, that only through constant expansion can we survive. But what if this obstacle—the belief in scarcity—is actually the key to unlocking sufficiency?

The Stoics teach that the challenges we face are not barriers, but pathways forward. The very struggle against scarcity can teach us what true wealth is. Every moment we feel the pull toward more, we have an opportunity to pause and ask: What if I already have enough? What if sufficiency is a skill, a practice, a way of seeing?

Let me share a small but meaningful example from my own life.

It was time to prepare our gardens, which meant pulling out my trusty Leaf Hog to mulch the leaves scattered around our property. But when I went to fire it up, I discovered the on/off switch had a short. The whole thing wouldn’t turn on. My first impulse? Order a new one. After all, that’s the world we live in, right? Replace, not repair. More, not enough.

But for some reason, the online order didn’t go through. A minor frustration at the time—but in hindsight, a gift. Those extra couple of days gave me just enough space to reconsider.

Instead of giving up on the tool, I opened it up. A few screws, a bit of patient tinkering, and maybe an hour or two later—I had found the problem. And fixed it.

Not only did I save a couple hundred dollars and keep another piece of plastic and metal out of the landfill, but I experienced a level of satisfaction that’s hard to describe. A kind of quiet confidence. A return to resourcefulness.

Because here’s the deeper truth: sufficiency isn’t just about external resources. It’s about internal alignment—with gratitude, with creativity, with a deeper trust that life, in its essence, is already abundant. Sometimes, we don’t need more. We just need to look again.

Closing Reflection

What if you already had everything you needed? How would that change the way you live?

The Four Great Truths challenge us to see differently, to live differently. They ask us to remember that the way forward is not about accumulation, but about circulation. Not about hoarding, but about sharing. Not about infinite growth, but about enough.

In Part Three, we’ll take a deep dive into Great Truth #3: Reciprocity—exploring how giving back is the key to creating a thriving future for all.

For now, take a moment. Reflect. And if this resonates, share your thoughts. Because this shift isn’t just about theory—it’s about living it.

What does sufficiency look like in your life? Where have you seen it in action? Let’s talk. Share your thoughts, reflections, or experiences in the comments—let’s build this conversation together.

We are not just learning about a new paradigm—we are living it, co-creating it, embodying it. This is the shift. And you are part of it. Share this Substack today and subscribe!

Mark your calendar for Monday, April 7

I will be joined here on Substack Live at 2 PM EDT as I interview Teresa Romain of Access Abundance as we do a deep dive into the Great Truth #2 - Sufficiency.

Teresa Romain has been an Abundance Coach and Advocate for more than 27 years. She’s on a mission to revolutionize the scarcity-based relationship with money that dominates our world. One that is the cause of so many of the problems we face today – individually and collectively. Join us as we explore a new game Teresa has created: “a chair for everyone.”

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