“Enough” has been my favourite experiment so far.
It may be because it’s been the first one to get me making after maternity leave, or it might be because it not only shifted how I was thinking about my relationship to making, but also infiltrated so many other parts of my life.
What excited me about the Making, Again series when I started it was the idea of it being an experiment for our community, as well as for me as a maker and business owner.
What this experiment has done for me, though, is made me stop thinking in these independent buckets: the maker, the business owner, the mother, the friend, the person. It’s made me realise how interconnected these things are, and the knock-on effect that tending to one area can have on the others.
For example, I thought lowering my standards around what making meant in this season was just about my creative life. But the more I followed the “enough” approach, the more it started showing up in my day-to-day life.
Accepting that I’d done enough in a given day and leaving the laundry piled up without being folded before bed. Listening to my body when it said it was tired. Using kind words with myself when I felt snappy towards my preschooler, and using the tools I have to get us both out of the funk.
What I realised was that “enough” creates room around things. It gives room to breathe and allows space to exhale.
Making doesn’t need to be a finished object. It can just be a line of stitches and the calming feeling of needle in cloth. Finding the rhythm of the stitches without a plan in mind.
My business doesn’t need an immediate plan for what comes next. I don’t need to know exactly what it will look like in six months or how I will make everything work. I can give myself some room to wonder about it, to notice what I’m interested in, to try things and to change my mind.
What this experiment has allowed me to do is loosen my grip and make room for the unexpected. For curiosity, trial and error and play.
I’m realising now that this space between where I am and where I want to be is actually the fun part. Not something I need to rush through, but something I can savour and enjoy.
I’d love to know how you’ve moved through this experiment, and whether you found the themes showing up in other areas of your life too.
Before we finish up…
Take a moment to look back over the past few weeks. You don’t need to have completed anything, or even feel like you properly participated. Just notice what comes up.
What did Enough make possible for you?
Did anything become easier once you lowered the bar or let go of how you thought it should look?What counted that you might not have counted before?
A few stitches, some thinking, pulling out an old project, resting, deciding not to make something at all?Where did you notice yourself wanting more?
More time, more materials, more energy, more progress. Did you ever discover that what you had was enough to begin?Was there anything you gave yourself permission to let go of?
An unfinished project, an expectation, a plan, a deadline, or simply the feeling that you should be doing more?What would you like to carry forward?
Is there one small idea, practice or permission from Enough that you’d like to keep with you after the experiment ends?
A little note on timings (and practicing enough): As I was writing this, I realised I’d miscounted. I thought this was the final essay of our six-week Enough experiment, but it turns out it’s only week five. For a moment, I started scrambling for something else to write this week so I could hold this post back for next week. Then I looked at what life is asking of me right now and realised that perhaps this is where I get to practise what I’ve spent the past few weeks writing about. So I’m going to let this be enough. Five weeks of writing about Enough, and one final week of actually practising it.
