Contentment Is Freedom
I saw a post in a biz coaching group that teaches people how to expand their practices in order to create freedom. Their advice was “Never be content!”
Oof. I very much disagree with this advice! In my opinion, discontent is the root of the soul sickness that is so pervasive in our culture. It’s this kind of thinking that simultaneously keeps us Chinese medicine folks in business and what burns out so many clinicians every year. Unfulfilled Desires = LV Depression Qi Stagnation.
Believing that in order to attain freedom you must expand your business is a fallacy. Thinking that if you have a team to delegate your current responsibilities to will free up time for yourself and your business will completely run itself is an illusion. Yes, expanding can make some things easier and take some of your current responsibilities off your hands, but it also introduces a new set of responsibilities that you now need to attend to. You trade on thing for another.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t expand your business to higher levels, but it’s important to be aware of your motives for doing so. If having a large clinic, high volume, staff, multiple disciplines, multiple locations, etc. has always been your dream and the journey of creating all of that completely lights you up then you should absolutely go for it! If you’re expanding your clinic so that you can finally escape and breathe then you’re setting yourself up for a long ride that will eventually lead to burn out.
People conflate being content with settling for less. Settling implies that you’re reluctantly going without or with less. Contentment means that you’re truly happy with what you have. IT’S ALREADY ENOUGH. You are open to more, but you know that more doesn’t bring more meaning or happiness to your life.
When you are content it means that any endeavors you make are fueled from a place of curiosity or passion instead of scarcity or external validation. You test what you’re capable of for the sake of seeing where it leads. If it fails and you’re back to square one, you’re still happy.
That is true freedom, folks.
✅Action Step:
Take a moment and mentally drop into a place of contentment. What actions are you taking and how are you showing up in the world? Compare it what you’re doing and how you’re showing up now. How are they different?