We all have the desire to grow into our best selves.
However, it’s very important that you approach personal growth in the right way. It’s one thing to feel like you have potential you want to grow into and it’s another thing to feel like you fall short of some ideal persona that society says is good.
When you’re trying to make a personal change that fits the media’s or other people’s standards, you can develop unhealthy habits. For example, today, upto 40% of millennials get into debt just to keep up with peers.
In this post, we’ll look at how you can become the kind of person you want to be. And the approach is to understand that we already have everything we need within us to experience happiness. It’s just about making empowering changes in your thinking to meet your potential.
Remove blocks
A lot of advice tells you to go after a certain goal. But have you ever felt like the more you try, the less progress you make? Or that when you’re on the brink of meeting your goal, you somehow sabotage your growth?
For example, you choose not to sleep on time on the night of an important interview. As a result, you wake up late and find yourself scrambling and end up having a bad meeting.
Or, you work hard at writing your book and building your blog, but just when you’re progressing, you start procrastinating and abandon your work.
Sometimes, it’s more useful to stay still and examine internal blocks rather than pushing towards a goal relentlessly. You may need to take a break and think about the unconscious blocks you may be holding.
Let’s consider a common experience that women deal with. Women who want to start a business or climb up the career ladder often feel guilty about doing so. They may internalize societal expectations and feel like they’re being selfish. And because of this, they don’t apply for a promotion or call a customer when they should.
If you can sit down and look at such internal blocks, you’ll be able to overcome them. And as a result, move forward in life much faster.
Avoid comparisons
Comparing your life and yourself with other people destroys our creative abilities. It’s important to recognize and embrace the fact that we’re all unique and have something different to offer to the world.
But when we indulge in comparisons against other people, we fail to see how we’re different and how our unique perspectives can create value.
One of the most important and practical steps you can take to avoid comparing yourself with others is to reduce your use of social media.
Remember that what you see on your social media feeds are filtered and curated and don’t reflect reality.
To ensure that you avoid social media, commit to visiting an app just once a day or on alternate days. Take up a hobby like reading to replace your frequent interactions with social media.
Keep your phone in another room when you’re spending time with your family or sleeping. The less you’re on social media, the more you’ll look within to find creative ideas and real inspiration.
Develop practical skills
One of the blessings of this modern world is that we have access to information on almost anything.
No matter what you want to change about yourself or what goal you have, there’s a book, a coach, or an online course that can help you.
To create personal growth in any area, look for books, thought leaders, and online courses that can educate you and help you create change. You can deliberately improve your confidence, build negotiation skills, learn how to manage difficult colleagues, become more creative, and much more.
As you work through material and connect with other people who have the same goals, you’ll find yourself making small but impactful advancements in your life.
Conclusion
It’s very important to remember that you are already the person you want to be. It’s just a matter of gaining the right insights and chiselling away blocks that hold you back from taking action.
The tips I’ve shared here are practical and effective. Give them a try and make small changes in your life to see growth.