Determining Satisfactions and Frustrations

Our lives can be seen as a series of personal satisfactions and frustrations. We all have our fair share of these in our personal lives and at work. Focusing on the satisfactions in life can increase our levels of optimism.

When optimism and satisfaction outweigh frustrations, people are motivated to solve their problems and achieve success. But when frustrations far outweigh satisfactions, we become demotivated and pessimistic. Helping people to see what satisfactions and frustrations are operating in their lives and how these are influencing them provides a useful basis for finding their own levels of optimism and how to achieve more, more often.

This exercise is designed for small groups. You will want a whiteboard or flip chart and markers.

How It Works:

1. Explain that people are often confused about their feelings and sometimes need to overcome this. One way in which they can be helped is to get them to examine the satisfactions and frustrations in their lives.

2. Ask participants to give examples of satisfactions and frustrations, and list them on a flipchart or whiteboard. Ensure that the following talking points are covered:

• Sufficient personal satisfactions are necessary to motivate people

• A certain amount of frustration can spur creativity and effort

• People need to find a balance between satisfactions and frustrations

• The satisfactions and frustrations in life change over time

• Satisfactions and frustrations come from different areas of our lives

• The meaning of satisfactions and frustrations can be highly individual

• Prolonged frustrations over satisfactions results in excessive stress

3. Now distribute a copy of the quadrant to each member and inform participants that the quadrant can be used to map out an individual’s personal satisfactions and frustrations as percentages, for both his/her work and home lives.

4. Divide participants into pairs and ask them to share and discuss their personal satisfactions and frustrations. Using the quadrant as a guide invite them to allocate percentages out of 100 percent to each of the cells in the quadrant. When it is added up, the total satisfactions and frustrations should come to 100 percent. Give them 10–15 minutes to complete this, Make sure they share and compare their findings.

5. Next, bring participants together again as a full group. Ask the participants to explain what they discovered about themselves using the quadrant of satisfactions and frustrations and how useful this approach can be in recognizing what can gain them more satisfaction and optimism. Record general themes and issues on the flipchart.

6. Feedback/summary: Personal satisfactions and frustrations form a large part of our lives. The satisfactions and frustrations from our home and work play a large part in how well-motivated people are and how healthy and creative they may be. Spending time mapping out the percentages of satisfactions and frustrations people experience and what it means to them helps them to overcome confusion and to consider the areas in their lives where they want to change and those they wish to maintain in the future.

Personal Satisfactions and Frustrations Quadrant