Are you Contented or Satisfied?

Being Contented without being Satisfied is the key to happiness and success.  

Satisfaction is getting what you want and Contentment is being happy with what you already have. To be content is not the same as to be satisfied.

Satisfaction is a state of body and mind.            

Satisfaction derives from the past. Satisfaction is conditional and is achieved with meeting the desired goal/desires. It is the result of bargaining to reach an acceptable point of closure in the dealing. Satisfaction applies when you are expecting something and if it occurs, you are satisfied.

To be satisfied would be lacking ambition – never wanting more.

However, to be satisfied, we should recognize that it is okay to want more – more money, a bigger house, etc… However, we need to find our PURPOSE OF LIFE. Develop an ultimate goal for our self that will make us happy. Establish smaller, bite-size goals to put you on the path to the ultimate goal.

Contentment is a state of soul and spirit. 

Contentment applies to the present. Contentment is unconditional. A pause to acknowledge that at this time one is happy to be in the place they are.

However, when we say - I'm content with my life, it does not necessarily imply "happiness" or "satisfaction" - it means that we are at peace with the circumstances.

To be content is to appreciate what you have and strive for more, but understanding it is a process to get there (you have to EARN it). If we are content, it doesn’t mean that we have accepted our circumstances. We can have peace in the midst of the storm but we certainly want to be out of the storm.

We can be contented, if we are thankful to “HIM” for providing us with the basics necessities like food, shelter, family, friends, health, etc… and realize that many lack these basic needs. We should volunteer to help those who are less fortunate.

A criminal who has spent many years in prison could, conceivably, be "content" with prison life. He has accepted his circumstances and does not have any major grievances. This doesn't mean that he's happy or satisfied.

Many successful people are never content. If we are never satisfied, we will strive to achieve more and be successful. But if we are never content, we will never attain happiness.
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The Joy of Giving

Giving expands and satisfies us. Taking leaves us ultimately feeling empty.

It feels great to receive a gift from someone. However, the greatest satisfaction comes from Giving to others and knowing that you have made someone feel happier or made a positive contribution in some way to their life.
There is something very nourishing to our soul when we give and help others. It provides us with an intrinsic reward that far outweighs what we give.
Altruism and Generosity makes us healthier and happier.

That's why parents usually get more pleasure from their children, than children do from their parents - even though the children 'receive' much more.

Why do we hesitate/fear to Give?

We are misled into believing that by giving, we somehow lose out. If I give to someone else, there is surely less for me. It's true, but only in the short term. In the long term, giving gives us back so much more than we gave.

Why would someone want to do something for anyone if there was no gain for him/her? And most of the time, we are correct and that’s the reason our society becomes suspicious, when someone wants to do something for anyone. Shameful, isn’t!

How does Giving Help?

Giving helps to take our mind of our own worries and challenges. When we are focused on how you can give to others we are less likely to consume our whole focus on our own concerns and challenges. It provides us with an opportunity to escape from our own world and see the bigger picture.

Our worries and challenges may not seem that significant when we compare them to other people’s situations.

Ways of Giving

As we can see most of the ways that we can give to others does not necessarily have to involve money. They are many ways that we can give to others for free; yet what we give can be priceless to the person/s that we are giving to.

Give a smile to brighten up another person’s day;

Give someone a hug;

Give of yourself by sharing with others;

Give more time to your family and friends;

Give your attention to listen to someone;

Give a helping hand;

Give a donation;

Volunteer to give up some of your time to help out at your children’s school;

Help someone with directions to where they needed to go;

Give up some of your time to help others out;

And the list is endless…

Try Giving!   

I’ve already started by giving you this blog – Your time starts now!!!
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