Be a person with insight, act with skill.

Author: Wu Xuegang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: Contentment is the source of happiness
Don't think that scores, reputation, status, or money can bring much happiness. The amount or level of these things has nothing to do with happiness. The key lies in whether you are content with what you have. Set a good position for yourself, and contentment is also the driving force of happiness. Contentment and arrogance are not contradictory. To have a good mindset, you need to be more "perceptive" and organically combine the two. Once you achieve your current goals, you can aim for the next, but don't be greedy. Both of us have seen people who, in public, look up with their eyes high and faces full of arrogance, acting as if they are above everyone else. There are also those who fear that no one knows how brilliant they are. No matter where they go, after a few sentences, they start to promote themselves. Even when they pretend to be modest, it is a tactic to gain an advantage, without sincerity. Such people must have extraordinary qualities, but their excellence and wisdom are certainly not the highest—because they fail to realize that there are people wiser than them and that the world is vast, learning is endless, and "three people walking together can teach me something." They suffer from being too narrow-minded and arrogant, which is hard to bear.
There is also a type of person whose eyes and expression radiate peace, who often smile and speak with wit. They are carefree and uncomplaining—these are the contented and happy ones. Arrogance and contentment may seem, from a literal perspective, to be reactions of satisfaction with oneself. In reality, however, the inner motivation and outward expression create vastly different feelings, with a world of difference in their level. Fundamentally, whether content or arrogant, it is not necessarily related to external objective conditions. When a person lives to this degree of self-awareness, it doesn't mean their life is truly flawless or perfect in every way. It mainly means they can assess their abilities, face their objective circumstances, have no unrealistic ambitions or desires, and avoid comparing themselves to others. They can approach life with a tolerant and open heart, shielding their lives from external influences and distractions, and pass through life peacefully in harmony with fate.
Are those proud people truly as confident and arrogant as they seem, completely satisfied with themselves and believing they are superior? If you analyze carefully, you might be surprised to find the opposite is true. According to psychological perspectives, those who always want to show their superiority, afraid that no one knows how outstanding and glorious they are, and cannot help but present themselves with arrogance are often those who lack a sense of security, satisfaction, or suffer from narcissism. Due to the lack of security and satisfaction, they lose confidence and thus desperately seek validation from the praise or amazement of others, proving that they are indeed as extraordinary as they hope and imagine. Arrogance, self-satisfaction, and disdain for others are driven by abnormal psychology, not only giving a very bad impression but also being a deeply pitiful state of illness.
Contented and happy people may also give the wrong impression. For example, in today's society, competition is everywhere—fame, profit, and power are never enough. Those who succeed are arrogant; those who fail or succeed only partially are resentful and discouraged. But you neither compete nor resent.