Hey, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, we're going to be talking about navigating the territory of contentment and complacency. So one of the big fears I hear from people, especially those who like to achieve a lot of things is that if I meditate, I'll become too happy and content, and then I'll just be complacent. I won't want to do anything. But being content does not mean you no longer wish to grow.

Being content means you understand that who you are and what you're worth is much greater and more substantial than anything you could possibly achieve. Often when we fear that we'll be complacent, if we're content, it usually means that our sense of self-love and self-worth is intimately and intricately tied to our goals and our achievements. And our actions are almost solely motivated by fear or anxiety and feeling unfulfilled as opposed to an excitement for growth and the opportunity to serve. And this is being more motivated by pain factors than inspiration. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

But if our growth and our desire to achieve stems, primarily from a neurotic drive to feel worthy, then I believe we're in a toxic relationship with achievement. There are other factors though, that can drive us to action. Love ,compassion, awe, and kindness. In fact, research by Robert Emmons shows that people who are more grateful, which could be a form of contentment, are more energized and likely to reach their goals. And it's coming from a place of feeling full and inspired and motivated.

When we're deeply content, there's a calmness in our hearts and it tends to enable us, enable us to grow in a way that does feel inspired, grow in a way that feels organic and grow in a way that feels free rather than pressured by a crippling anxiety to have to get more done or do more in order to be loved or worth something. So just notice what your relationship to the idea of contentment and complacency is. I know that as you continue on this journey, as you develop that inner fulfillment, yeah, it may start shifting some of those organizing variables that inspire a certain kind of action in the world. If you're primarily motivated by fear or anxiety or not feeling good enough, which is very common, that can start to shift with the meditation practice because we're, we're getting full from the inside out. But in my experience, and with working with many students that have experienced that themselves, there's a new kind of motivation that arises, a new kind of inspiration for action.

One inspired by, by gratitude, care, love, and wanting to do good in the world. So that's something I think we can trust. I'll talk to you in the meditation. Thank you for your practice and take care.