“I used to think that the words we say
simply represent our inner thoughts expressed.
Experience has taught me that it is also true
that the words we say create our thoughts
and our experience, and even our world.”
— Lynne Twist, The Soul of Money, p.208
In The Soul of Money, Lynne also observes, “We think we live in the world. We think we live in a set of circumstances, but we don’t. We live in our conversation about the world and our conversation about the circumstances.”
When our words contain fear, envy and comparison—us vs. them—then that is the world we inhabit. On the other hand, if our language is about possibility, about gratitude and appreciation, then that’s the world we live in.
This message is especially important today—with our 24-7 news cycle and ever-present social media—where the "negativity bias" amplifies fear-based, scarcity thinking and the "you-OR-me" paradigm.
Lynne continues, “Scarcity speaks in terms of never enough, emptiness, fear, mistrust, envy, greed, hoarding, competition, fragmentation, separateness, judgment, striving, entitlement, control, busy, survival, and outer riches.”
When that conversation dominates, we let money define us, rather than defining ourselves in a deeper way.
On the other hand:
“Sufficiency speaks in terms of gratitude,
fulfillment, love, trust, respect, contributing,
faith, compassion, integration, wholeness,
commitment, acceptance, partnership, responsibility,
resilience, and inner riches.
In the conversation for sufficiency, we acknowledge what is,
appreciate its value, and envision how to make a difference with it...
We center ourselves in integrity, possibility, and resourcefulness.
We define our money with our energy and intention.”
— The Soul of Money, p. 208-9
Now is a perfect time for us to reflect on how both our internal and external conversations affect our life experiences. As Lynne says, we can choose to steer those conversations toward a you-AND-me paradigm of sufficiency.
“The times call for honest conversation
and self-examination as we see the true costs
of our national consumer appetite...
We can take a stand, change the dream,
and shift the conversation to 'enough.' ”
— The Soul of Money, p. 216
