My Daily Mantra: Embracing Contentment

Those of you who follow me on Twitter know that inspirational aphorisms are more of my thing than boasting of my most recent accomplishments. There’s some of that but in small doses.

I usually post issues and thoughts I’m wrestling with, using Twitter as the medium through which I work them out.

My most recent madra addresses contentment.

Goes something like this:

Everything I have all that I’ll ever have; everything I have is all I’ll ever need.

Now, what does this all mean?

I came up with this after someone expressed to me they felt I should be doing more as far as festivals and things of that nature. I simply told them I did not know if those things are in the cards for me--at least in great abundance. And that’s ok. Not that I won’t continue trying.

I see it like this: Anybody can get booked on a gig. But not everybody is out here doing work that’s making a difference. I’m not sure if I am either. But in aiming to do so, I’m more likely to than not. 

Some may even ask, what defines making a difference? The best definition of making a difference came from Seth Godin, who said that making a difference is doing work that if you stopped doing it, it would be missed.

I’d like to think that there’s a small but appreciative audience who would be saddened if all of a sudden, I stopped my experimental endeavors and began pursuing a more conservative path.

But back to my original mantra:

Everything I have is all that I’ll ever have; everything I have is all I’ll ever need.

At its core, this means two things: 1) being content with where you’re at in life, and 2) embracing a musical value system that’s more about better than more. More simply put, quality over quantity.

Regarding the latter, I do long tones because I want to play better notes, not more notes. I associate with only certain folks because I want to have better colleagues, not more colleagues. I’m selective about bookings because I want to play better gigs, not more gigs. You see my point. I’ve simply taken greed out of the equation and replaced it with satisfaction.

And besides, contentment is not easy. It’s difficult aiming for things while being ok with not realizing them. The two can seem at odds. What helps me is to be focused more on the process than the result. Becoming more focused on the giving, rather than the receiving. Or as I like to say: The life lessons earned, not the pocket money earned.

Everything I have is all that I’ll ever have; everything I have is all I’ll ever need.

Say it until you believe it. Say it until you begin to live it.