Find contentment with what you have

photo by Muffet

Frugal people sometimes feel discontentment. There are times you might compare yourself to others and feel a twinge of envy. Some people are fortunate and can think about themselves in a confident way and let things go that are draining them. For other people, it takes making something happen or a change before the feeling subsides. What do you do to pull out of discontentment? Here are a few suggestions.

PICK-ME-UP: Stop peeking around the next corner. Live in the moment. Often, a small change, such as rearranging your furniture, bringing in fresh cut flowers or de-cluttering, can make you feel a lot better.

ACCEPT YOUR WEAKNESSES: Sometimes you are your own worst enemy. Not everyone can or should try to overcome a weakness. You can make friends with it. One reader, Mea from Illinois, shares: “I’ve accepted that things have changed in our lives (making less money but still employed), and I’ve tried to adapt to them. I’ve found it liberating to accept what is instead of fighting against it. This gave me the opportunity to look for solutions instead of feeling like a victim. I also remind myself constantly that some other people don’t have close to what I have, so I consider myself lucky. I can look back at my life and honestly say that whatever I considered hard or ‘bad’ in the past actually brought me to a place of greater happiness and self-understanding.”

TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF: Eat balanced, get plenty of rest, exercise and get outside with the sunshine and breathe in some fresh air. Nature is therapeutic. Taking time for yourself to drink in simple joys will allow you to recognize abundance.

UNPLUG: Take a break and shut off your television and computer. All the noise can make you feel worse. National Turnoff Week is April 19 to 25. Try it. Take time for yourself or connect with friends or family in person.

PRACTICE GRATITUDE: Start a gratitude journal by writing down things you are thankful for. You can look through it anytime you need a reminder of all the good that’s in your life. Michelle in Tennessee starts each morning thinking of five things to be thankful for before she even gets out of bed. “You’re allowing thankfulness into your heart and mind before anything else can set in for the day,” she says. “They can be very minute things, such as the early morning sun, the warmth of my bed, having healthy kids, etc. But I do this each and every morning, and it has given me a totally different outlook to my days.”

TAKE ACTION: Use your discontentment as a catalyst for change. Let it motivate you to take action. Keep learning and working on ways to make improvements. But your actions don’t have to be a goal of achieving your desires. It can be letting go of them, too. You have the power to change your negative thoughts and replace them with positive thoughts. Another reader, Donna from Louisiana, shares: “I find that desires breed desires. When I have some random desire and indulge it, another almost immediately pops up in its place, and if I indulge that, too, gradually I move into a psychological space where there is no end to them. On the other hand, when I resist that random desire, it’s easier to do it the next time, and gradually the space is one of contentment, with far fewer of those desires raising their heads to begin with.”

Posted by Sara Noel on April 9 2010. Filed under Frugal & simple living.
Sara Noel owns Frugal Village, LLC and is a nationally syndicated columnist with United Media. Bio, Follow me on Twitter, Join us on Facebook.