Good Life Project – “The Year of Enough”
Host: Jonathan Fields
Date: January 8, 2026

Episode Overview

In “The Year of Enough,” Jonathan Fields explores the concept of “enoughness” and how our relentless pursuit of “more” can leave us perpetually dissatisfied—even in seasons of achievement. In this gently contrarian and deeply practical solo episode, Jonathan dismantles the “I’ll be happy when…” trap and proposes a radical, quietly rebellious intention for the new year: to experiment with the idea that who we are and what we have—right now—could be a worthy starting point for a good life. Listeners are offered reflections, small practices, and a three-part experiment to ground enoughness in daily reality.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The “I’ll Be Happy When…” Trap

[00:00 – 10:40]

• Jonathan paints a familiar scene: achieving a big milestone—career, money, fitness—only to find the expected happiness fleeting. The goalpost moves, and “enough” always feels out of reach.
• Quote:

  “The highs fade faster than you expected… and almost without thinking, your mind starts reaching for the next milestone. Okay, I mean, this is great, you think to yourself, but if I can just get there, somewhere out there, then I’ll really be good.” (00:36)

• This cycle—called the “hedonic treadmill” in psychology—creates a persistent sense of not-enoughness, keeping the nervous system in a low-level hum of pursuit and anxiety.
• Jonathan clarifies: “It’s not a character flaw. It’s an operating system that many of us are handed.” (10:00)

2. Redefining “Enough”

[10:41 – 18:00]

• Many associate “enough” with settling, giving up, or shrinking. Jonathan counters: "Enough is not the enemy of growth. Enough is about where you’re starting from, not whether you’re allowed to move." (11:55)
• Working Definition:

  "Enough is the internal sense that who I am and what I have in this moment is a worthy, valid starting point for my life, not a mistake that needs to be fixed before I’m allowed to feel okay." (12:46)

• Enough doesn’t mean never wanting change, improvement, or justice—but challenges the belief that only reaching an external endpoint brings worth or joy.
• “You can hold onto two truths at once. I have genuine longings and dreams that matter. And right now, in this breath, I’m allowed to feel some measure of okayness, even before any of those come to fruition.” (14:18)
• Jonathan introduces the concept of "grateful yearning": balancing ambition with present sufficiency.

3. Practices to Build the Enoughness Muscle

[18:01 – 33:56] Jonathan shares three pragmatic, down-to-earth exercises:

• Practice 1: The ‘Already List’
  Once a week, list what is already present in your life that you once longed for or worked towards.

  • “It’s a gentle invitation to notice what has come into your life and stayed, that your brain may have stopped counting.” (19:55)

• Practice 2: One Good Moment a Day
  Instead of abstract gratitude, pinpoint a specific, concrete moment today where things felt “even a tiny bit okay—maybe even good.”

  • “When something is abstract, your brain doesn’t fully feel it.” (28:15)
  • Replay it in your mind, engaging the senses, to help your nervous system register sufficiency.
  • “In that sliver of time, something was enough.” (29:20)

• Practice 3: The ‘What’s Not Wrong?’ Check-in
  At a stressful point in your day, pause to ask: “Right now, in this exact moment, what’s not wrong?”

  • “This isn’t spiritual bypass; it’s a way of letting your system register that alongside the struggle, there’s usually some thread of basic okayness.” (31:00)

4. The Anxiety of Acquisition and Minimalism of the Spirit

[33:57 – 41:50]

• We often try to buy, acquire, or optimize our way out of lack—believing the next gadget, program, or opportunity will grant enoughness.
• “Each more that you bring in, it asks for something back: time, money, mental bandwidth, emotional energy…” (36:25)
• Sometimes, the pursuit of more is less about utility and more about identity.
• Jonathan reframes minimalism—not as sterile empty spaces—but as clarity and spaciousness in both external life (things and commitments) and internal life (stories and beliefs).

5. The Three-Part Enoughness Inventory

[41:51 – 45:00] Jonathan guides listeners through an inventory to gently reveal where “more” is draining them:

• Things: Is there a physical item you’re only keeping out of guilt or inertia?
• Commitments: Is there a recurring obligation that now drains you and no longer fits the person you are becoming?
• Stories: What internal belief about “being enough” feels heavy or outdated?

“You don’t have to declutter your whole life overnight. This is about gently becoming more conscious of what’s filling your days, mind, and heart.” (44:44)

6. The “Inverse Resolution”—Choosing Subtraction

[45:01 – 47:42]

• Instead of a traditional New Year’s resolution (what to add), Jonathan proposes identifying one thing to stop doing, in the service of joy, peace, or well-being.
  • This could be behavioral (e.g., checking email in bed), relational (e.g., spending time in a relationship that drains you), or internal (e.g., letting a number dictate your mood).
  • “This isn’t about perfection. It’s just choosing a direction.” (46:40)
  • Treat it as an experiment: “For the next month, I’m going to experiment with not doing X and just see what happens.” (47:30)

7. The “Year of Enough” Experiment

[47:43 – 49:58] Jonathan synthesizes everything into a practical, three-part challenge:

• Part 1: Draft a “Year of Enough” intention.

  “This year, I’m exploring what it means to feel enough in the area of _______.” (48:07)

• Part 2: Choose one inverse resolution to stop or reduce over 7–30 days.
• Part 3: Pick one daily enoughness check-in or micro-practice (from earlier).

“You don’t have to write essays. A word or a sentence is plenty.” (49:27)

8. Looking Back, Looking Forward

[49:59 – End]

• Jonathan reflects on the three-part New Year series:
  1. The Myth of the Clean Slate: carry your whole self into the new year
  2. The Unresolution: treat growth as flexible experiments
  3. The Year of Enough: begin from belonging, not perpetual striving
• Honest encouragement:

  “There will be days when not enough is loud—when that feeling is screaming at you… and that is okay. The point isn’t to become some Zen master of enoughness. The point is just to shift even slightly the way you relate to your own life.” (50:18)

• He closes with an invitation to make this practice quiet and personal: write your intention, choose your inverse resolution, pick a daily prompt—and notice as threads of enoughness become more visible, more embodied.

Notable Quotes

• On the “I’ll be happy when…” trap:

  “Arrival is always somewhere else. And there’s an emotional and psychological and physiological cost to that.” (08:30)

• Defining Enough:

  “Enough is about where you’re starting from, not whether you’re allowed to move.” (11:55)

• On grateful yearning:

  “Enough isn’t about shrinking your life. It’s about changing the fuel… instead of being driven by panic, you’re moved by alignment.” (15:02)

• On releasing commitments:

  “The thing is, every commitment has a cost… if you have too many, even good ones, your days can become so overfull that you never actually feel your life.” (41:36)

• On subtraction:

  “An inverse resolution in the spirit of the Year of Enough asks, what will you intentionally stop doing this year because it actively diminishes your joy, your peace, or your wellbeing?” (45:21)

• On imperfect practice:

  “You won’t get this perfect. I won’t. Nobody will… the point is just to shift even slightly the way you relate to your own life.” (50:31)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:00] — The “I’ll be happy when…” scenario and the moving goalpost of enoughness
• [10:41] — Reframing “enough,” definition and misconceptions
• [18:01] — Three core practices to cultivate enoughness (Already List, Good Moment, What’s Not Wrong)
• [33:57] — The “anxiety of acquisition” and minimalist mindsets
• [41:51] — Inventory: things, commitments, and stories to release
• [45:01] — Inverse resolution: the power of one subtraction
• [47:43] — How to run your own “Year of Enough” experiment
• [49:59] — Series recap and encouragement to experiment with enoughness

Tone & Style

Jonathan’s tone is warm, inclusive, slightly playful, and deeply human. He gently prompts reflection, invites imperfection, and uses real-life questions to encourage practical change. The episode is both philosophical and down-to-earth, blending neuroscience, psychology, and simple daily practices.

Takeaway

Rather than striving endlessly for more, Jonathan invites listeners to embrace a quietly radical experiment: to live this year as an exploration of “enough”—not by giving up dreams, but by starting from a place of sufficiency and letting change and growth flow from there.

For More:
Download Jonathan’s free one-page PDF (link in episode show notes) to guide your Year of Enough experiment.
Follow the “Good Life Project” on your podcast player to continue the New Year series.