Work isn’t a small thing, I know. Making enough money to live, however one achieves that, is really important (and, yes, I include the people who can’t work and who need support in that. They need enough to live, and support should never be so little that they can’t feel safe) and gives a person meaning, purpose, power.

But if there’s a straight choice between ‘pays a ton of money but makes me feel awkward because of the industry or ethics’ and ‘pays enough (to live on well, and put some aside) without demanding every hour out of me and making me feel trapped’… I’ll take the just enough.

Proverbs 30:8 has a sentence that reads: “Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.” Enough. It’s a small word, but important. I want enough to eat, enough comfort to rest well, enough stimulation to keep my brain alert and my body fit. Tied up in that is having a job that can give me that enough.

I work for my husband, in his Solicitor and Notary Public practice. I like it. I have a great job title (Office Ninja) that I got to choose for myself. Because it’s a small firm, I get to do a whole range of things (copying out dictation, ringing and answering the phone, filing, supplies management, cleaning, office organisation) that would, in a bigger space, be shared out. I have a degree of autonomy within a layer of regulatory activity. We have some nice clientele, have helped a lot of people, have a good set up. We don’t make a lot, but we make enough. (We also offer 100% compensation on all personal injury cases that we win: part of the rationale in setting up the firm was that we didn’t think the 25% success fees being taken from compensation by bigger firms was fair: we don’t advertise, our offices are humble, our wages can fluctuate. But our consciences are clear, and we do our very best for every Client, because everyone deserves a lawyer that works hard)

And I get to be a Notary Clerk, meaning I proof read documents to check for errors and get to sew them up after signing. It’s such a Dickensian title, and I have to say there is something so Dickensian about riveting pages together and sewing them up securely using gold ribbon. And let’s not start on the fact I get to use a seal and wafers. I’m in paradise. Especially come the winter, when the office gets an eternally cold atmosphere and I very often sit warming my hands over the electric heater and wearing fingerless gloves.

Small details at work make a difference: my daily pot of coffee with the Boss, the freedom to visit elderly relatives mid-week without having to explain the circumstances to a manager lacking in empathy, time free to write a blog or do some research when my official employment is over. Even the mug I use (a Christmas present off the daughter) is a small touch that adds light in the work day. I know how lucky I am: I appreciate my good fortune, and I wish everyone could have employment (paid or not) that gives them the same sense of pride, enjoyment and achievement.

How to Hygge the British Way is my gift to the world. I don’t get paid for writing it, I’m not in it for the kudos, financial rewards, to become an influencer, work with brands or otherwise make any money from the blog. That’s why there are no ads, and any products I mention and recommend have either been gifted to me or bought by me with my everyday wages or donations from supporters. Every book I review has been bought and read by me, unless stated otherwise.

I do get a couple of pennies each time someone buys from the Amazon links on my page, as an Amazon Affiliate, but otherwise if you’d like to support me, I like to give something back in return. That’s why I write books. It always feels good if you get a book back in return for some money. You can find a full list of my books at my Author’s Page on Amazon, but especially recommended for this time of year are:

Cosy Happy Hygge: Setting up a rhythm to life and rituals to enjoy it to make for a more balanced life that handles waves and storms better. Lent is a season of rituals and resets. The book has small and easy ways to make your life flow with grace and happiness, which lead to more hygge.

Happier: Probably my most personal book, it’s the story of how I used hygge and the little things in life to help boost my happiness. I still go back and reread to remind myself what I need to do to be a happy human. And it’s always the little things.

Is it too early to think ahead? My Christmas books are always available: Have Yourself a Happy Hygge Christmas is a good place to start, on how to make the season cosier, happier. Celebrating a Contagious Christmas was written during covid year, but has useful advice on celebrating when times are hard anyway and Enjoying a Self-Care Christmas is a short e-book on keeping Christmas simpler, easier and better for you, your waistline and your budget. It even includes 25+ suggestions for self-care activities over Christmas, as simple as sipping tea, keeping a list journal or lighting a candle. Bigger is not always better for Christmas.

I’m currently working on two book projects: I have a hankering to rewrite 50 Ways to Hygge the British Way, so it’s not available at the moment, but even dearer to my heart and my next stated aim is to finish and publish my next book, Simple Plus Cosy = Hygge. It will be about homemaking and how the home we create shapes the hygge we have. Hopefully it will be finished by the end of summer/autumn/winter.

If you’d like to support me, but don’t want to buy a book, I have a Paypal.Me account as Hygge Jem. Every little helps, so even a few pence goes towards the books, goods and courses I use and recommend on the site. I’m grateful for every little bit that brings me closer to my dream of full-time writing, and I know I couldn’t still be writing if it weren’t for the support of many readers and friends out there. Thank you all for every little bit of support, emotional, physical and financial, you give me.

If you’ve enjoyed this article, don’t forget to share it or save it so others can enjoy reading, thinking about and living hygge as well.

The photo between post and promotions is by Arno Smit on Unsplash. I wish I had a garden shed like this one! I chose it because I love the colours of the windowframes, the tantalisingly inviting open door and the comfy chair within. Perfect spot for a cup of tea and a good book. And the header today is the office, complete with red files and red computer ready to go.