According to Websters online - discontent is defined as a "restless desire or craving for something one does not have", whereas dissatisfied simply means "not satisfied, not done". Now, the way that I have come to understand these in my own life is that being discontented is a very negative state. It usually comes down to focusing on something wrong or lacking in your life - I hate my car, I hate my job, I don't have enough money - this is just the start of the list for most people - but already you can feel the negative energy! When you fall into discontentment, you are introducing a wealth of negative energy into your life - which has to generate more negative things and more negative energy.

On the other hand, being dissatisfied, to me, means simply that you can see how things could be better. Now, instead of complaining about your existing car, you are talking about how your new car will be - about how great your next job will be, about how much money your latest venture will earn. Now you are in a completely different, positive area! Statements like these are inspiring, uplifting and they bring great positivity into your life - and they tend to attract all the things that you are talking about.

This all sounds great, but in practice it can be much harder than this to separate talking about how things will be from complaining about how things are. But you have to make that separation because complaining is an endless pursuit - if you can name one thing to complain about, you can be sure there will be more. For sure, you might just be describing how things appear to you - but arguing that you are just stating the facts is to completely miss the point. The point is to be empowered by what you focus on! The more you stay focused on things that upset you or annoy you, the more upset and annoyed you will become - which in turn upsets and annoys all those around you. Just how likely is it that great things will happen for you in that environment?

So, here's the trick: you have to become content with things as they are. Sure - they might not be as you would wish them to be, but they are as they are. No amount of complaining about them is likely to change them, but once you accept what is and start to focus on how you would like things to be - you might be surprised at just how quickly they can change.

The bottom line here is that being dissatisfied is great - that is the drive that creates empires and changes lives - the drive towards a better life, a bigger house, a nicer car - all the things that we know are out there for us and we will not rest until we achieve those. But behind that, you have to be at peace with the things that you have already, knowing that they will be transformed soon enough and being grateful that you have what you do. This is something that is much easier said than done, but like any other exercise, as you practise using your gratitude and contentment muscle, it will become easier - then you can stop wasting energy on complaining and get focused on the way you know life should be for you and your family!