I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of, so they can see that it’s not the answer. – Jim Carrey. ”Always be content with what you have” they say, but oftentimes it’s not as easy as it sounds. Contentment is really a great deal; it takes a conscious effort to be content with whatever you might have achieved. Perhaps you want to ask; why be content when you can actually achieve more? Why settle for less?
Key Takeaways
- Contentment is not excitement, it’s not winning that contract you’ve always prayed for, it’s not making a pile of money, it is a mental state of self-satisfaction with what one possesses.
- The path to contentment is working on trusting yourself and learning not to judge ourselves and compare ourselves to others.
- Contentment results in happiness, a healthy lifestyle, and peace of mind.
What Is Contentment?
Let’s try to understand what it really means to be content. Contentment is a mental state of self-satisfaction with what one possesses. It is not excitement, it’s not winning that contract you’ve always prayed for, it’s not making a pile of money, it’s not buying a new car, it’s not going on a desired vacation, and it’s not even finding love. It is self-satisfaction with what you already have. The big question now is; how easy can it be for a person to be happy with things you already possess without craving for more?
Oftentimes we use the phrase “I will be happy when…”. Meanwhile in truth, if there is always a next big thing one might never find true happiness. More than 50 percent of the world population today strive, hustle, and work tirelessly to make a living, get rich and famous, get a comfortable life, have world-recognized careers or probably conquer the world as the case may be. What do you think they are looking forward to achieving? Happiness or contentment? And will they ever have it when there is no limit to what they can actually achieve?
Contentment might sound a little like laziness but it’s not, it is simply setting attainable goals and enjoying the process of reaching the goals while appreciating what you have already achieved. So basically, reaching the goal is not a do-or-die affair.
What Contentment Means to Different People
I was having a conversation with a friend (a scriptwriter) and he said something that left me speechless and showed contentment at its peak. He said ”I really don’t see myself changing the world or creating anything extraordinary, I plan to serve Jesus, make my family happy, and die in a cinema chair”.
It’s funny how a 15-year-old in college worries that he still collects money from his parents because he feels his mates are buying cars and living in a well-furnished apartment in school. And he gets depressed over the fact that he thinks he isn’t where he is supposed to be. Well, this is so far from living a contented life because the process of being 15 wasn’t enjoyed.
He probably spent it being unappreciative of what he already has. Living a contented life could be that; I appreciate my parents for being able to pay my bills, I appreciate the love from family and friends, and I appreciate that I am doing well in school. And since I can’t live a luxurious life at the moment, I could focus on my studies and try to learn some skills.
The Path of Contentment
We start out in life thinking we’re amazing. We can dance in public like 5-year-olds without caring what people think of us. By the time we reach adulthood, friends, parents, the media, and embarrassing situations have driven that out of us.
As adults, we doubt ourselves. We judge ourselves badly. We are critical of our bodies, ourselves as individuals, our lack of discipline, and all of our flaws. We do not like our lives.
As a result, we want to fix our deficient self, to become better because we suck so much. On the other hand, we doubt our ability to improve and are quite miserable. Or we sabotage our attempts to change because we don’t feel we can do it.
This self-dislike leads to bad relationships, a stagnant career, unhappiness with life, complaints about everything, and often destructive habits such as eating junk food, drinking too much alcohol, not exercising, shopping excessively, and being addicted to video games or the Internet.
So, what is the path to contentment with yourself and your life?
The first problem arises when you lack trust in yourself. That is an important area to work on.
Your relationship with yourself is the same as your relationship with any other person. If you have a friend who is consistently late and breaks his word by not showing up when he says he will, you will eventually lose trust in that relationship. This also applies to yourself. It’s difficult to like someone you don’t trust, and it’s much harder to like yourself if you don’t trust yourself.
So, work on trusting yourself. Increase it gradually, and you’ll eventually trust yourself to be amazing.
The second problem is that you judge yourself badly. You compare yourself to an unrealistic ideal in all areas. You want to have the body of a stunning model. You desire to reach certain personal and professional goals. You want to travel the world, learn languages, play a musical instrument, be a talented chef, have a fantastic social life, have the perfect marriage and children, do incredible things, and be the fittest person on earth. Of course, those are entirely attainable ideals, right?
When we have these ideals, we compare ourselves to them and constantly come up short.
The path to contentment, thus, is to stop comparing ourselves to these ideals. Stop judging ourselves. Let go of ideals. And gradually learn to trust ourselves.
How to Become Contented
If you think being content is great, then here are a few ways to start;
Being Content Is a Choice
As I pointed out it’s a state of mind. So creating that state of mind takes some decisions and changes of usual practices to enable you to create a contempt state of mind. It also involves being aware of your thoughts and actions.
Practice Gratitude
Learn to appreciate the little things you have and the people that love you. Learn to focus on the things that make you happy and the good things that have happened to you.
Be in Control of Your Attitude
Always remember that happiness is a choice and you choose what to be happy about and whatnot, so make that decision wisely. Let your happiness not be in the acquisition of possession but rather in enjoying the process.
Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
This is a major key in self-contempt. People will always appear better and more successful. It’s a good thing to know your life is different and what matters the most is your happiness. The comparison makes finding contentment a lot harder.
Being Content Doesn’t Mean You Should Stop Growing
Be happy with the progress you have made so far and keep growing. Remember contentment is different from complacency.
Setting Long-Term Goals
I had another conversation with another friend and he said ”I want more out of life than chasing money all the time, I want to find love, have a spiritual and beautiful marriage, raise good kids that will become good people, retire early, go somewhere quiet live a long life with the love of my life and die in God”. Yes, easier said than done.
This actually requires proper planning. Planning your life in such a way that you will live it doing the things you love. You have to set goals on how you would want your life to turn out a good example is a retirement plan. Having a retirement plan shows some level of contentment, some people may never plan to retire.
Benefits of Living a Contented Life
- Contentment makes you happy.
- Makes you live a healthy life.
- Gives peace of mind.
- Gives a better room for growth.
- Stronger and better relationships with others
Frequently Asked Questions About Contentment
What Are the Three Importance of Contentment?
Contentment promotes happiness, spiritual growth, and societal harmony.
What Are the Keys to Contentment?
5 Keys to Contentment
- Remember that contentment is a choice. How you live is truly a choice – a choice based on who you want to be, not on what you have.
- Acknowledge it doesn’t belong to you.
- Delay gratification.
- Live on less than you make.
- Choose role models carefully.
What Is the Secret to Contentment?
Contentment does not come from achieving our goals, having tremendous financial or career success, owning the dream house or vacation home, or having the body we desire. It is quite simple. Contentment stems from connecting with God, family, and friends.
Question: Would you rather live a life of contentment?
My conversations with Jubilee (the scriptwriter) and Jeremy ( another friend) inspired me to write this, I appreciate you both for always having my time.
“Happiness will never come to those who fail to appreciate what they already have.” -Bilal Zahoor
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