I GO! Edition 35: Mitfreude - Abundance as Sovereignty

This week, still resonating with the wave of positivity and energy that filled the Women’s Forum, I found myself reflecting on Mitfreude - the capacity to feel joy in another’s joy, a key component of an ‘abundance mindset’. In a culture built on striving and competition - the very architecture of capitalism - such an attitude feels almost contrarian. It goes against our primal instincts. However, dismissing an “abundance mindset” as naïve optimism or new-age fluff misses the point. Mitfreude is not denial; it is clarity - the calm acceptance that there will always be someone better, richer, more intelligent, more “successful,” and the conscious refusal to measure yourself against them. Because comparison is depleting. The real competition is internal - you must beat your own angst, insecurities, self-doubt, and feelings of inadequacy. That’s the hard, painful graft. An abundance mindset, in its truest form, is generative. It multiplies joy, radiates inward and outward, and anchors you in sovereignty. It’s a discipline of perception - a practice capable of rewiring the emotional architecture of your life.

Rejoicing in another’s happiness

Our world can feel relentlessly competitive. Most of us believe that success, love, beauty, recognition, and comfort are finite, so someone else’s win or assets can feel like a loss, or we need to perfect ourselves to be or have more than we are/do to “win”. But when you can truly be pleased for another person’s good fortune, you declare that their rise does not threaten your possibilities. In fact, you realise it somehow opens them.

Derived from the German mit (“with”) and Freude (“joy”), the Nietzschean concept of Mitfreude describes a rare and refined human capacity: the opposite of envy. It is the art of “rejoicing in the joy of others,” a form of grace that expands the spirit rather than contracts it. While scarcity breeds jealousy, envy, inadequacy, abundance gives you control back - psychologically, relationally, spiritually.

Scarcity is instinct.
Abundance is intention.
Scarcity contracts.
Abundance expands.
Scarcity is competition.
Abundance is completeness.
Scarcity is more.
Abundance is enough.

Shared joy has many benefits. Science proves that it releases oxytocin, the “love hormone”, strengthening trust, connection, and wellbeing [oxytocin is the hormone mothers produce when breastfeeding, to strengthen the bond with their babies - loved those moments of intimacy, calm and tenderness with mine…].

The more you practice mitfreude, the greater your capacity for joy - your own and others’. By ‘big-ing people up’ you literally become a grander, greater person. A deep knowing that you are enough. A sense that there is sufficient resources for all to enjoy, that in fact, that they can multiply.

‘I’ against ‘I’

People, opportunities, situations come and go. They choose others, not you. Some have what you don’t. But what you do have is - you.

Your unique character. Your journey. Your skills. Your energy. Your presence. Your dreams and desire. Of course, someone else can always do what you do. But no one can do it your way. Your way, on your own path. In your own time, and with the means you have.

A truly secure person, anchored in their uniqueness, aware of their originality, will not feel “replaced”, less than, or inadequate. They do not believe in “competition” against others, but accept they are not for everyone, and not good at everything. They understand there is only one enemy or rival – themselves. They will understand that life is made of beginnings and endings, that roles shift and opportunities ebb and flow. They do not desperately cling on to them or ruminate for too long.

Abundance is acceptance. Maturity. Adulthood.

Plus, Mitfreude doesn’t just make you kind - it makes you ‘lucky’

Consider this: people are drawn to those who can hold space for their joy without insecurity. In a world full of schadenfreude, confelicity is rare - and therefore unforgettable. But when you celebrate others, you create a virtuous circle. Synchronicities appear. Doors open. People reciprocate. Your world grows warmer, wider, more abundant. Mitfreude multiplies joy.

And you can only feel it when you’re anchored in your own worth. “I come as I am. This is it. Your shine does not dim mine.” That is pure emotional sovereignty – when you graduate into proper self-possession.

Because you’re no longer fighting the universe; you’re flowing with it. Abundance protects your spirit, keeps creativity open, and lets you stay in your trajectory - without bitterness.

It is one of the most spiritually advanced emotions humans can cultivate - not instinctive, but intentional. It takes awareness, work, and practice. It’s incredibly hard at times, and not every person is worthy of your mitfreude.

But it’s about mastering your ego, so it becomes soul.

With best efforts,

Charlotte