I’ve often heard people say that it doesn’t matter if we’ve failed over and over again because we should be content with what we get in life. Quite honestly, this mentality drives me nuts.
Well of course you’re right, mate. We should be content with what we get in life, but here’s what you’re missing. We should be content with what we get in life - AFTER WE HAVE TRIED OUR BEST TO DO THE BEST WE COULD DO AS MANY TIMES AS WAS POSSIBLE WITH LIMITED RESOURCES THAT WE HAD AVAILABLE.
As a matter of fact, most of the people who keep whining about being content never fulfill these conditions in the first place.
Here’s what I think - If you’re trying something again and again, and you’re failing again and again then there is a great possibility that there might be something wrong with the way you are doing it. Why on Earth would someone want to be content with doing something the wrong way unless he’s too stubborn to admit his mistakes and put in some real effort? That’s it gentlemen! It’s what I call the ‘Defensive Contentment’. Such a person is not content because he’s tried every possible way to make a situation better. Instead, he’s content because he wants to perceive himself and be perceived as a victim of determinism without taking responsibility of his choices and actions.
The worst thing about this mentality is that it denies contentment the peace that it brings when it is experienced in a real way. One might never find peace in knowing that he tried the best he could. Rather he will always feel like the victim of his circumstances and situations.
Never settle for less in the name of contentment. Success is the peace of mind that comes with the knowledge that you tried the best of what you were capable of. This, and only this, is what you should be content with.
