'just enough' is the perfect amount
the swedes are onto something
Too much of anything is too much. Yes, even the good stuff.
Coffee is delicious, but too consuming many cups will leave you anxious over nothing. Chipping away at personal projects on a daily basis can be rewarding, but overdo it and you could fall victim to burnout. A glass of wine may ease your nerves at a networking event, but one too many will see you suffering from hangxiety the next day. You see my point.
“Everything in moderation” sounds easy enough, but it really isn’t when the societal pressure to achieve, accumulate, and impress has never been more intense. Pretty much everyone I know is in the habit of using their evenings and weekends to stay on top of work, and most of us are guilty of engaging in the financially and environmentally destructive habit of buying things we don’t need.
After more than a decade of widespread overconsumption – rather grossly coined ‘the age of indulgence’ – many of us are sick of this unsustainable obsession. Instead of continuing down the never-ending path of consumption, many of us have begun looking for ways to declutter our lives to create space for what really matters. People everywhere are starting to become more intentional with their behaviours, picking up on trends like underconsumption and de-influencing to rely less on ‘stuff’ for our own happiness.
With these trends touted as improving our wellbeing, many will find mindfulness and gratitude meditations useful for slowing down and noticing all we have to appreciate. Old habits die hard, though, and these methods will require diligent practice to be effective. Could there be a way to train our brains to recognise that true happiness stems from simply having what we need?
Allow me to introduce you to lagom, a Swedish concept and way of life. Translating to “just the right amount” the word lagom promotes a sense balance in life by finding satisfaction in what we already have, rather than constantly yearning for more. Unlike de-influencing and ‘underconsumption core,’ it isn’t framed as a fleeting trend, but a lifestyle.
Lagom encourages us to be mindful of our needs and how much is truly necessary to meet them. While these ideas aren’t exactly new – warnings against overindulgence can be found in ancient philosophical texts, the teachings of Buddhism, and in modern self-help books – it’s true that lagom feels especially relevant today.
Take work, for example. The idea that success is measured by the amount of time spent working or the number of hours logged at the office is deeply ingrained in modern hustle culture. By contrast, lagom tells us not to work harder, but smarter. Remember to take breaks, make time to step outside, and learn to value rest just as much as productivity. If you have any doubts about taking this advice, just know Sweden is ranked fourth on the global happiness index, and has long been praised for its excellent work-life balance.
Leaning into lagom could also help us shed our individualistic mindsets, because it stands to remind what we lose out when we promote our own success above all else. You’ve probably noticed young people’s desire to build in-person communities – most popularly through run clubs, book clubs, and supper clubs – where they can connect and share new experiences with other like-minded people. By prioritising community in the everyday, we’ve already started already engaging with a key component of the Swedish mentality: that our actions have a real impact others.
Lagom also goes hand in hand with sustainability, calling for fairness, sharing, and avoiding hoarding in order to create a world where there’s enough to go around. Whether it’s more possessions, more experiences, or more achievements, we often believe that accumulating more will bring us satisfaction. But in reality, and as lagom teaches, satisfaction comes from the simple pleasures of life – shared experiences. A walk in nature, a good conversation with a friend, and a warm meal are the things that bring us the most peace and contentment.
The good news is, large swathes of people are no longer buying into valuing excess. In this economy, we’re done spending our hard earned cash on the next trending product only to feel empty. We’ve evolved past letting social media trends and marketing companies define what makes our lives feel meaningful. Clearly, doing so just destroys nature, obliterates our attention spans, skews our dopamine receptors, and makes the rich richer.
It’s time to continue finding joy in the small, simple joys of life, and – more importantly – to know when enough is enough. Because nine times out of ten, the grass truly is greener where you water it. 🌱
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Until next time,
long live the swedes