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The art of being perfectly content

The art of being perfectly content

A couple in North Dakota unexpectedly became millionaires when oil was found on their property. Their reaction?

“We got enough now to buy new stuff,” Lorene said, “but we like our old stuff.”

I love that. We like our old stuff. I like MY old stuff too. Nothing saves money and generates contentment like liking your old stuff.

Maybe being perfectly happy with what you already have is an art, but it’s an art that anyone can learn. The key is appreciation. You can start out by deliberately practicing appreciation. Before you know it, it’ll happen unconsciously as well.

How do you practice appreciation?

Start by becoming aware of how you currently feel about things. Do you grumble when you get out of bed in the morning because you have to go to work? Once you are aware of that, try deliberately replacing those morning grumbles with “How great! I can walk! And I have a job!” I’m not kidding. From there you can move on to noticing and appreciating the things that you don’t grumble about.

The things we take for granted are usually the most important things. Our health and ability to earn an income are priceless. Once we realize that, and actually begin to be actively grateful for them, wanting other things just naturally becomes less important.

Did you know that there are two major definitions of “wanting”? From Dictionary.com, there’s “To desire greatly; wish for” and “lacking or absent”.

So when we want something, we’re experiencing a strong desire for something that we feel is lacking. We’re focusing on what we don’t have. And we feel empty and dissatisfied.

Focusing on what you already DO have, and really appreciating it and actively enjoying it, leaves you satisfied and happy instead of the reverse. You’ll gradually notice that there just isn’t much that you want (or lack for) at all.

View Comments (5)
  • This is a great post. We need to value and appreciate our spouses, partners, children, friends, and fmaily. There are so many wonderful people in our lives that we should focus our attention on, rather than on the things we don’t have. To me, contentment isn’t being satisfied with all the “stuff” we have, but in the happiness we bring to others and they bring to us.

  • Wonderful post. There are so many good things we can have in life without spending a lot of money. And there are many things we already have or have access to. I have lots of awesome leftover fabric from my quilts which is just perfect for little projects or crazy quilting. Or my couches are quite comfy without being new. There’s so much in our apartment which lets us be perfectly content without being rich or having that much. Thanks for the reminder.

  • Very nice, I couldn’t agree more. Appreciating what we do have is something that we often forget to do. Even something as simple has having a flushing toilet needs to be appreciated.

  • I dont like being perfectly content. I feel so null, i feel so lame, I feel so bleh! I can confidently say i wish how i used to be. Flawed, happy with the other things and not having it perfect. I filled myself with homilies, poems, insights, so much! i’m like a human fortune cookie when someone says something pessimistic. If someone said to me “oh i’m so upset my gf broke up with me” i could unleash a numerous amount of insights but i like to say “It’s not our position but our dispostion that makes us happy.” i can make everything not so bad anymore but i can’t un-do what i did to myself. I don’t like the way i feel. I strongly suggest to just accept who you are faults and all. you’ll begin to enjoy the things that go wrong because you know yourself so well. Don’t worry about being perfect. I don’t believe we’re made to be that way. Sometimes when a door closes behind us we’re so upset that the door has shut that we forget that new doors have opened in front of us.

    ~Allan
    aka Mental Origami

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