Description
We all want to be satisfied, even though we know some people who will never be that way, and others who see satisfaction as a foreign emotion that they can’t hope to ever feel. However, whenever it comes to being content and living a life free from want and worry, it’s actually much easier to do so than you think.
Even though our wants and desires are physical, the life of contentment we seek starts in our minds.
By using strategies such as taming our inner critic who always seems to push us towards lack, to learning to love yourself by controlling what goes in your heads and hearts, there are a wide variety of mental strategies that can help you become more content, and be satisfied with where you are.
Now, this does bear repeating as it is one of the main themes of the book: Satisfaction does not equal stagnation, and it is perfectly healthy to be content, and still have the desire and the means for growth. But you can never build abundance out of lack and discomfort, so in order to properly grow, we need to reach the middle ground of being satisfied with where we are.
Along the way, this book contains exercises and examples to help get you into a life of contentment, so you can start living that style of life right away without any issues. If you keep an open mind and understand what this book is trying to tell you, then you will be 100% ready to become more content, regardless of what your situation might be.
Chapter One: Understand Satisfaction Is A Mindset
Have you ever met someone with an insane desire to succeed with something? They might strive to get perfect grades in every single class, might want to get a perfect body, or go on dozens upon dozens of dates just to find ‘the one.’ These people seem to have it all, and yet for every victory they gain, they want to climb another mountain. For every step forward their feet take, their minds are already three steps ahead into the future.
You also might have met people who aren’t growing but still have a desire. They want the dream body, amazing grades, and the perfect romance, and if the world would just give it to them they could make the most of it! These are the people who want to be satisfied and want their lives to improve, as long as someone else does the work for them and simply hands them the result. They live ten steps in the future while their feet haven’t moved an inch.
Still, you probably have met people with no desire to succeed more than they already have. They have their life and while it might not be perfect or everything the world tells us we should want, it’s good enough. They might strive for small goals or want to make tiny improvements, but they really don’t care either way. If things go well, then they go well, and if things dip a bit, then they are just thankful the pendulum didn’t swing too far in the wrong direction.
All three of these types of people have one thing in common driving how they behave in life. It isn’t wealth, education, opportunity, their home life, or the hand that life ended up dealing them. It actually isn’t anything physical at all, it’s their level of satisfaction, how they use it, and their mindset around it. What Does It Mean To Be Satisfied?
The dictionary defines satisfaction as “the fulfillment of one’s wishes, expectations, or needs, or the pleasure derived from this.” All of us are satisfied every single day, especially when it comes to basic needs. When we are hungry, thirsty, or tired, we eat, drink, and sleep until we don’t need anymore. Too little of these needs and we feel bad and act badly towards others, while too much of these needs can throw our bodies off.
However, whenever we get just enough to where we don’t need anymore, we can be satisfied and go about our day. Satisfaction is something that keeps us content, where we are fine with where we are and we don’t need to have any more. But the level of satisfaction isn’t the same for everyone, and in fact, it is a mindset that is different for each person.
What satisfies one person might not be enough or might be too much for someone else. That’s why people with a growth mindset for example are almost never content to rest on their laurels and want to seek out the newest challenges. However, people without a growth mindset would be satisfied with any one of the things a high achiever could do and likely wouldn’t feel the need to do anymore.
Since satisfaction is a mindset, that means you can choose to be satisfied right here and now. You don’t need anything special, but of course, that is easier said than done. Still, the idea that you can choose to be satisfied and content about anything, should be empowering to you. The situation that you are in doesn’t get to determine your level of happiness anymore, instead, that job falls into your mind and your mindset.
