Discussion»Questions»Human Behavior» Some folks have 90% of the apple but always focus on the 10% they do not have. So they never appreciate. Why are some folks like that?
I thought so too -- only pretends to be a grumpy curmudgeon. Keep the human species in their proper place - serving tasty treats and providing nice shelter in all weathers.
I don't follow you MrB. Apologies. I've always been grateful for/appreciative of what I have. I don't dwell on what others have that I do not. I never have and I never will. That is my point. If you are always focusing on what you lack when do you focus on what you have and enjoy it? Thank you for your reply and Happy Wednesday to thee! :)
The pessimist can actually be quite productive when left to their own devices. While their outlook isn't always tasty to the rest of us, their dogged pursuit of that lacking 10% is the catalyst for a set of end-results that can be quite expansive. I've known a few. They kept reaching for completeness long after I'd begun to doubt the existence of such. Two were successful and content, or so they would say.
Consider that we live in a society which constantly tells us: "You deserve* to be happy, never settle for less" yet those same voices scold us for doing just that. In this context, is pessimism such a crime? I would like to understand how these two things can coexist, you know?
This post was edited by ForkNdaRoad at December 29, 2016 3:56 AM MST
Here's the point I'm trying to make FNR and I guess I didn't make it very well. I think you should be grateful for and appreciative of what you have. If you are always seeking MORE then when do you have time to appreciate the now? That is all you have in life you know. Now. You can't backtrack to yesterday and tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone. I feel sorry for those who never have enough..who yearn for what else there is they don't have and feel deprived until they get it. That is not the kind of life I would choose to live. Never content. Never satisfied. Never at peace. Thank you for your reply and Happy Wednesday! :)
I understood fine, wasn't trying to redirect your point, it's just something I've been pondering lately. We as a society tend to hold competing, albeit well-meaning, principles on topics like this. There must be a resolve somewhere, I think.
But yes, being truly ungrateful is akin to worry in the sense that it punishes a person twice.
I've always thought that those who don't appreciate what they have might have it taken away and given to someone who WILL appreciate it. I mean otherwise it's wasted isn't it? Happy Thursday FNR! :)
I can't figure it out Tom. I've always been grateful for and appreciative of what I have. It has been enough for me to make me content. By others' standards it isn't a lot in terms of monetary success. I've done well enough all things considered and have lived a happy life. I don't seek more. I don't need it. I'm too busy focusing on the life I live and getting joy from it. Some folks know when they have enough. I'm one of them. Some never have enough. What a sad life that must be..feeling deprived, needing MORE and seeking it to fill some empty hole inside that grows ever larger. Thank you for your reply! :)
Depends on the context. The why's are probably as diverse as the people who fret over that 10%. For most Westerners, 90% is probably more than enough, so the reason is more likely to be a psychological attitude, perhaps pessimism, or perhaps ambition or greed. But if you live in Rwanda or somewhere equally challenged, that 10% might make the difference between survival and death.
Thank you for your reply hartfire. I'm not sure that it is possible to actually have 100% of anything. Perhaps it is. I wouldn't know. I never have. :)
For me, the "100%" is no more than what we need to live a healthy, well-balanced life: the physical needs without which life is impossible, but also the social, emotional, psychological and mental needs which help us to attain feelings of fulfilment and contentment. Our life here is pretty simple and basic - we are poor by Australian standards, and yet I think we have a little more than we need. I'm immensely grateful for and appreciate what we do have. In Western lifestyles, many of us often get over-ruled by the commercial pushing of materialistic lifestyles - pressures like debts and compound variable interest tend to reinforce the stress.
Very often there are solutions to problems, but we are unlikely to find those solutions if we don't examine them.
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at December 29, 2016 12:28 PM MST
Wisdom speaks. That's so true. In Rwanada 10% is probably more appreciated than 90% in America. I try to keep this in mind when things aren't working out the way I'd like and I've made this a parallel with my boy as well... helps keep things in perspective.
I am very content in my life and don't feel like I have to have every new gadget that comes out, or a new car every year. I bought my first new car in 2007 and still drive it. Nothing gets replaced unless it wears out or gets broken. People who only see what they don't have will never be happy and wouldn't be even if they ever got that 10% they don't have now.
Precisely Lulu'sMom. There are those who appreciate/are grateful and those who never will be. I feel pity for the latter since they are doomed to live an incomplete life. Always needing/wanting more and THEN they will be happy. Only the more keeps growing and growing and is never-ending. Thank you for your reply and Happy Thursday! :)
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