“Whenever I go on a ride, I’m always thinking of what’s wrong with the thing and how it can be improved.”
Walt Disney
Attention to detail and a drive for constant improvement undoubtedly worked well for Mr Disney. In this one short sentence, he is teaching us to:
- Be curious: observe the world, learn from it, retain a childlike wonder.
- Be humble: without humility there is no progress possible. It takes humility to acknowledge that we have not achieved perfection.
- Seek change: change can be nerve wrecking. It stretches us outside of our comfort zone which can be painful but it also takes us to wonderful new places. The absence of change causes stagnation at best, atrophy at worst.
Desire for change is the seed that brings forth creativity and innovation. It’s what’s made the world keep going and getting better, but does that mean we can never simply be content? Is there not a danger to seeking this permanent state of dissatisfaction for the sake of transformation?
Indeed, it can be tricky to balance the tugging of discontent with the practice of thankfulness. There is definite merit to being on a quest for better and more yet it’s also important to train ourselves to feel gratitude for what is no matter how flawed, to be thankful for what we have no matter how little.
Discontent and gratitude. Both are necessary. The former propels us toward the future. The latter grounds us in the present. Both are beneficial when used properly.
Gratitude can be life sustaining but it can make us complacent or stagnant and keep us stuck.
Discontent can bring forth creativity but it can cause apathy, or worse, make us spin into despair.
These two opposites make up the frame within which we exist and must learn to thrive. Yin and Yang. Up and Down. Light and darkness. We are, most of us, novice acrobats, teetering between the two on an invisible line, seeking an incredibly difficult to achieve balance.
Practically speaking, what does this look like in our everyday life?
Look within:
Do you live closer to either one end of that line?
Do you most often feel gratitude or discontent? Does what you feel have a positive impact on you and those around you? Is your satisfaction causing you to feel joy or has it become quicksand? Are you pretending to be “just fine” because you are afraid to do something different?
Conversely, do you tend to believe that “the grass is greener everywhere else but where you are?” How is that working for you? Is that perspective motivating you? Do the people in your life enjoy spending time with you?
Be introspective and honest. Determine your natural bend. Assess whether or not you’re leaning too closely towards one end and dangerously close to falling over.
Take a step in the other direction:
What can you do to equalize?
If you’re naturally content but want to take things up a notch, here are a few suggestions:
- Let yourself dream and make a bucket list.
- Decide to do one uncomfortable thing every day. Maybe that’s paying a compliment to a stranger or deciding to sign up at a gym.
- Set a goal you think you cannot achieve and work at it daily.
If dissatisfaction comes easily to you but is not steering you towards excellence try this:
- Write a few things you are grateful for first thing in the morning.
- Make a list of affirmations you can repeat several times daily to encourage you.
- Add fun into your life: join a sports team, buy a new board game, watch a stand up comic routine.
Rinse and repeat:
Life is a merry go round between introspection and taking action. Sometimes it feels pointless. Sometimes it feels like we’re going nowhere. Often the improvements are so small, they remain invisible for so long, we can get discouraged. Trust in the process.
Be consistent. Be persistent…
…Fall down 7 times, stand up 8.
I used to embrace discontent but, with a disciplined practice of thankfulness, I was able to achieve a good balance. How about you? On which end do you lean? What have you done to walk towards the middle? Leave a comment below.