Abhi's Mirror

Satisfaction: I define it as ‘Getting what you expect from life which makes you feel complete as an individual’. I find that it is like salvation, easy to find but hard to keep.

For Example, I wanted to write more as I was not satisfied with what I had shared with you yet. As a matter of fact, the list of things that I am not satisfied with is pretty lengthy.

What about you , what are you not satisfied with – Too small a home? Too much of work load? Too much traffic? Too bad politics going around? Too little space for yourself? Too many responsibilities? Everything is excessively expensive? Too many questions?

So, why am I talking to you about all of this?

I am just going to share what I feel about satisfaction, how I manage to keep myself content and happy and leave the rest up for you to figure out.

My Perspective: Achievement = Expectation; and just like most mathematical calculations that gets difficult due to an ever changing variable. This one too, has a twist.The variable is your ‘expectation’. It changes and grows and doubles itself faster than any stock on the NSE!

Simply put , you want a better house, a better car and better group of people to socialize with. As all of this does not come cheap, so you want more money – to get which you either need a better job , a better salary or an all new business expansion.

Imagine if life was a see-saw (like the one you played on as a kid) you will be on one side and your expectations on the other. What could happe

Scenario 1: You are heavier than your expectations – How long can a monkey chase a car when he knows there isn’t anything that he will get from there?

Whenever my expectations, goals, targets or whatever you may call it, has been low or too easy to get, I have without fail lost the urge to do a great job at it.

If our expectations are lighter than us, our talent, our skills and our capabilities, they will not create enough thrust, pain or pleasure for us to act. We will be complacent as life will be easy. Thus, low satisfaction.

Scenario 2: Your expectations are heavier than you – For how long can a donkey live if he pulls more weight than his worth?

There is a Japanese term ‘Karoshi’ which means death by overwork. Too many expectations often lead to Karoshi. You must understand that death here is a relative term which could wither refers to the end of life or the end of a cause, a person who suffers a breakdown or gives up.

If Our expectations are heavier than we are , we could either be pulled down by it or be crushed under it. Thus, low satisfaction. In rare cases, they are met too.

The question that stays is – is it worth the risk to expect more and more?

Scenario 3: You and your expectations are balanced – The healthiest option while eating is to eat as much as the hunger is. Eat less and you will have to fight hunger, eat more and you will have to fight obesity!

Think about it, practically, was it ever easy to balance the see-saw? What did it take to balance? The answer is ‘ Constant effort’. If we are able to balance our skill sets with our expectations we have the right party mix that leads to bliss and satisfaction.

Back to mathematics: Achievement = Talent (Skills and Capability) + Effort (Hard Work) that meets expectations and gets tangible results.

We can infer that if we constantly make an effort to manage our expectations and keep them logical, satisfaction will come our way.

The resolve

Step 1: Set expectations – Make a list of things that you expect to happen in the next three months

Step 2: Validate Expectations – Make a list of skill sets and resources that you need to meet Your expectations

Step 3: Create a plan of action with the three things in it –

1. Defined tasks to be done one at a time in order to meet your expectation.

2. Time lines: Start and End date for each task.

3. Check points: Review your progress on the action plan every week.

Moreover, you can have as many actions plans running together as you like. I would suggest starting with one or two at a time.

Sounds Simple? Trust me that it is not easy because commitment is a rare commodity these days. I hope you apply this tool become satisfied. I use it and it works!

If you were looking for something quicker, easier and the ‘one time fix’ kind to manage your expectations, let me assert that there is no tool like that! Expecting too much again, huh?

The only solution to get satisfaction is to make constant effort towards keeping your expectations in check

Since I am expecting a large Cheeze burst pizza in the next 5 minutes, I will sign off.