At times you may think that your communication performance was not stellar, but it was good enough. When you assess your communication competence as sufficient or acceptable, you feel a sense of self-adequacy, which is less intensely positive than self-actualization. Feelings of self-adequacy can lead you in two directions: toward contentment or toward a desire for self-improvement.

Suppose that Phil has been working hard to improve his public speaking abilities and does a satisfactory job when he speaks to his fraternity about its goals for charitable work in the coming year. He might feel very satisfied about his speech, but he realizes that with a little more effort and practice, he could have been even more persuasive. In this case, Phil’s reaction is one of self-improvement. He tells himself that he wants to be more competent in his communication, regardless of his current level.

Although self-improvement is a good motivation, in some circumstances being satisfied or content with your self-adequacy is sufficient. For example, Lilia has a long history of communication difficulties with her mother. Their relationship is characterized by sarcastic and unkind comments and interactions. But during her last visit home, Lilia and her mother managed to not get into an argument. So Lilia felt good about her communication with her mom. The two didn’t become best friends or resolve all their old problems, but Lilia thought she communicated well under the circumstances. She was content with her self-adequacy.