Finding Contentment In A Time Of Excess

The holidays are here and that means MORE MORE MORE!

More laughs, more food, more drinks, more parties, more presents.. you get the idea. We have heard the mentality that “it is better to give than receive” during the holidays, but we never really focus on the root of this season of excess, and how to find contentment throughout it.

I’ll be the first to tell you that being content is hard! As a person who wakes up with a laundry list of things I want and need to accomplish — stopping and smelling the roses is going to something I will always be working on.

I think the first step in finding joy and contentment is taking a second to pause and breathe.

Taking a moment to stop from running around at breakneck speed might let you enjoy all the wonderful things surrounding you. So stop where you are reading right now and close your eyes.

Inhale through the nose to the count of 4, hold your breath for 2 seconds and then exhale out the mouth to the count of 4. I find that things just make more sense when you have caught your breath. When I’m teaching my yoga classes, I constantly remind my students after flowing quickly to, “remember to breathe!”

9 out 10 times, you will hear everyone gasp for breath and then see a bunch of smiles.

After taking a breath, look around you and see your blessings.

Maybe you are at the mall waiting behind Susan So-and-So who is buying 1 million pairs of cat socks. You have a to-do list a mile long and are in a rush to buy your gifts and get the heck out of the mall!

STOP.

Take a breath, and then open your eyes. First off, you are blessed to be alive, so lets start there. You are blessed enough to have people in your life to buy presents for AND money in your account to purchase them a gift. I would call that having many blessings!

It might be like gritting your teeth do this at first, but once you remove yourself from your stressful situation, and start listing off a couple positives, you will see that there are so many more good things happening.

It is impossible to be content without gratitude! So change your mindset to being grateful for all of your blessings and see how fast you get to contentment.

Stay away from what makes you discontent.

I’ve seen this meme on Instagram going around that says, if it doesn’t bring you joy, then unfollow them. On that platform we see a highlight reel of these people, moments or this Photoshopped reality, and being completely honest, it can get hard to mentally detach. Just like online or IRL, you have the option to disconnect from things or people that don’t serve you in a positive way. It might be hard to come to that decision but in the end, protecting yourself and your inner happiness is the most important.

Help others.

This is a no-fail plan to finding contentment. Taking the light off of yourself and shining it on someone else will help get your mind on things that matter. A little note to your significant other, a text telling your friend that you are thinking about them, making a snack and giving it to the next homeless person you see, bringing some toys to the local animal shelter, etc.

Being kind is free and everyone wins when the priority is to be selfless.

I hope this post resonated with you today and that you can start finding YOUR contentment in this holiday season!