I was listening to an interview between Tim Ferris and Tony Robbins when Tony said we should change our attitude from one of entitlement to one of appreciation. In other words, we should stop focusing on the negatives (i.e. things we expect, yet don’t have) and instead, focus on the positives (i.e. things we possess, but may take for granted). This sounds obvious, but remains a good reminder in straightening out our mindset.
If you have expectations, the only 2 outcomes are that your expectations are met or not. In other words, your needs are merely satisfied or you are let down. This is a flat or downward slope. With an appreciation mindset, you express gratitude at all times. There are no expectations and everything given to you is nice bonus. You’re guaranteed a positive outcome with an appreciation mindset.
There’s another related saying that “comparison is the killer of happiness”, which I also find to be very true. There will always be someone more fortunate than us. Instead of feelings of envy, we should be happy and grateful for the things we already have. Additionally, instead of always striving for more, we should know when enough is enough. If you’ve already won the game, why keep playing?
Gratitude is one of many techniques in maintaining happiness and living with less stress