Maria Popova Assignment #1

        In Tim Ferriss’s podcast Episode 92, Maria Popova spoke of her love and satisfaction of reading. One quote from her that I must agree with is “there’s a fine line between contentment and self satisfaction”. In my mind contentment is a happiness, not quite a satisfaction. It’s about being ok with who you are and where you are and not necessarily wanting or craving more. By definition contentment is “a state of happiness and satisfaction”. A state is just a temporary mindset. Therefore I believe contentment may lead to self satisfaction. In my mind self satisfaction is an immense amount of satisfaction of achievements that makes you feel almost superior to others. However this is not always a temporary state like contentment. To me this could be compared to a manic episode commonly seen in people who are bipolar. Maria then goes on to say “the key is to be content with who you at and where you are at any given moment”. This I feel shows more of a self satisfaction rather than a contentment. If you are content no matter what’s going on in your life whenever, it then becomes an enduring feeling it situation rather than a temporary state of happiness. Therefore, I would have to agree with Maria’s statement that there is intact a line between contentment and self satisfaction.