Personal Growth Tips

Personal growth is something every conscientious human being thinks about at some point in their lives. From the time we're born to the day we pass, the opportunities for self-betterment are overwhelmingly abundant, but it's up to us to recognize them and turn them into advantageous experiences. When we're small, personal growth often happens by proxy, due to the fact that we don't have a lot of control over what happens to us or when. When we're older however, our positive or negative perspective is the key, and coupled with the life choices we make, we have a perfect opportunity to become better versions of ourselves. When we feel better about ourselves and act better towards others, we're much more easily able to attract the kinds of friendships and romantic relationships that will help our lives resemble what we desire them to be.

Personal Growth Tips

1. Focus on One Area. You may have a few things you'd like to improve on, but trying to tackle them all at once can be daunting and overwhelming. Often it helps to identify and start with the area of your life that's causing the most stress and unhappiness. Whether it's your dysfunctional relationship with a family member, that you'd like to quit smoking, or that you're unhappy in your job, admitting that that part of your life isn't working as well as you'd like it to is the first step. Once you've identified the problem, you can begin to take steps to change it.

2. Patience. Western culture is very much about instant gratification, but personal growth takes time! It takes perseverance and dedication to make lasting changes in our lives, so if you're expecting to see changes overnight - you're setting yourself up for disappointment. There will be setbacks, and moments where you're frustrated and feel you can't do the work - but those are the times you must access your inner strength. Be proud that you're even trying to make a change - many people go through their lives not even conscious about personal growth.

3. Listen to Yourself. Everyone has an inner voice, and part of personal growth is learning to trust that voice to guide you towards the kind of life you desire. We're not talking about the recordings in your head which may tell you you're not good enough or smart enough to make changes, we're talking about your gut. Pay attention to your emotional instincts and what choices make you feel good or bad. Your ego may tell you something is impossible, but generally you create your life and you also create your perception of it.

4. Try to Be Less Afraid of Change. You may be hanging on to a certain relationship or career because you are fearful of change. In the long-run, this solves nothing, and only postpones the inevitable. Life is full of changes, and it's often not the change itself we fear, but we fear the unknown. Once you've made a change, there's nothing to fear anymore because you're living it.

5. Encourage and Support Yourself. We are our own worst critics, which is completely counter-productive to personal growth. Check in with yourself on a regular basis. Be objective about your progress and congratulate yourself for being strong and courageous enough to initiate change. You'll start to notice when one area of your life feels better, it spills over into all the other areas you'd like to see improve.