Instant Gratification Part II: Instants and Ideals

In the previous article we talked about instant gratification and how it manifested into an epidemic. We also discussed the psyche and how it is affected by things that try to satisfy long-term problems with short-term solutions. Now we'll dive a bit deeper, and examine the two different types of instant gratification, and why it's important to recognize them.

There are tons of different scams on the Internet. From easy ways to make tons of money quick, to getting rock hard six pack abs, all of these intellectual scams expose one very powerful human weakness. They expose our inner chimpanzee of only wanting to get and take, rather than contribute something. We purposely let our minds trick us into deception; we want to believe that it is possible to make a hundred thousand dollars without any previous knowledge in a month. But the guy in the shady sales video said it would work!

Instant gratification stems from wanting to take. These are moments that most experience on a daily basis; they look for instants. Instants generally thrive in the form of wants, not needs. We create an intense desire to get our wants met quickly and this can lead to implications. Sometimes instants can turn into situations in which a human being will disregard himself or other humans for the purpose of satisfying their own intention. Whatever that intention may be, it is certainly not a smart route to take. How could you ever build fulfilling long-term results if you disregard your mind or body, not to mention those of the people around you?

Most people want to live, and live for a long time. Instant gratification is the opposite of that. Longevity combined with prosperity is built through wholesome connections and acts. Cheating yourself through instant gratification won't give you either of those.

Those who take the instants route always end up in pain, because there is a lack of substance and value, or you could say authenticity. Relying on instants also create habits that are unenjoyable to be around. Intense compulsive wants can result from a lack of patience. And with compulsiveness comes aggression, because you can't always get what you want instantly.

Don't fall prey, build up your goals instead. Find your equilibrium with patience and reward, and you will both consciously and unconsciously start building your foundation for fruition. Meaning, you don't have to end up in disappointment anymore. From now on, you are creating solid structures both mentally and physically, over time. Don't rush your goals; learn, examine and imagine a more innovative [whatever you have in mind].

Mountains

We are discussing something giant. Instants will interfere with your daily life, for some more than others. But if instants are like taking the absurdly hard way up the mountain, then ideals are like getting trapped in an avalanche. Ideals are dangerous because they take a bad habit, and turn it into a lifestyle.

Anyone can fall into an ideal illusion. Because that is exactly what it is, an illusion. It starts out with wanting something greater. When you see yourself lacking something, or you have a pain you want to get rid of, you create an image in your head that shows you what it would be like to live in that ideal situation. For those who want it badly enough, the next step they take is action, as they strive to get what they're looking for.

But some people get stuck in their perfect mindset. It is comfortable to live there, because no one can judge you inside of your mind, except you. When you foreshadow your potential, your mind becomes deceptive as it starts to live inside of that moment. After a while, friction will form in your mind, as your personalities start to argue over what is real and what isn’t. Unfortunately, deception often wins (think procrastination).

Do you know anyone who lives in an illusion? Anyone can fall victim to ideals, because we all create an ideal vision to propel ourselves forward. It's a double-edged sword, or it might even be better described as a paradox. When you start on your path to change, you first have to pass a stage that can make you stuck forever.

We often don't realize the amount of self-deception we can create for ourselves. We live in a society which tries to portray idealism; in other words, we try to be perfect. Our minds are heavily focused on being the best, and while there is nothing wrong with striving for a greater state, we try to cut as many corners as we think is "fair". We justify the amount of effort we put in by trying to automate as much as we can. This tends to happen when we first start a new venture or set a goal for ourselves. We might try a couple of times legitimately, but then by the third or fourth we start to look for ways we can cheat the system. There is nothing wrong with that, we are curious beings after all and discovering is learning. But the problem is we want to put in minimal effort while getting rewarded greatly for it. We forget about setting a foundation for our success, and we immediately want to get to the payoff or ideal vision we've created in our mind's eye.

This is important to address. Your self-awareness is built on what you take in through your senses. Learning about instants and ideals, your mind molds new senses that will actively protect you against instant gratification’s seduction, but only if you let it. It’s time to re-imagine your goals. Instead of constantly focusing on where you need to get to, try and look back for a moment to see how far you’ve already come from where you first started. That might sound counter-intuitive, but it is a way to relax discouragement, when something isn’t working out right. Prosperity doesn’t come overnight, but you have the chance right now to take your first step in the right direction.