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Taking the Mystery Out of Self-Improvement?

Guest post by: Jacque Small

Article Overview: I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I started doing personal development work in 2001 after leaving my corporate position. I wasn't even aware how important it was to ask myself the question "Am I happy?" I have come a long way since then and want to clear up some of the mysteries around personal development and self-improvement. In this two article series I will summarize what personal development is and the perspective from which we can best undertake this work. In the second article I will examine the benefits of personal development in the work place.

Taking the Mystery Out of Self-Improvement?

I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I started doing personal development work in 2001 after leaving my corporate position. I wasn't even aware how important it was to ask myself the question "Am I happy?" I have come a long way since then and want to clear up some of the mysteries around personal development and self-improvement.

In this two article series I will summarize what personal development is and the perspective from which we can best undertake this work. In the second article I will examine the benefits of personal development in the work place.

What is Personal Development?

Personal development can be broken down into three simple aspects:

1. Being self-aware.

2. Taking 100% responsibility for everything that is occurring in your life.

3. Being resourceful and responding appropriately to a given situation.

Being self-aware is the ability to be aware of your thinking, feelings and actions. Being aware of thinking is noticing that you are thinking and what your internal conversations are. These one-sided conversations are going on constantly. Feelings are physical sensations which occur in your body and they contain information, about what is working or not working for you. For me, the challenge was to become aware of these feelings. I had done an excellent job of suppressing the gentle and persistent messages that were telling me all was not well. Our actions are in response to our thinking and feelings. If you are not feeling calm and well grounded, nor thinking clearly it is likely your reactions could impact others negatively.

Taking 100% responsibility for everything in your life, requires self-awareness. Taking responsibility means you are no longer a victim who blames others for what is occurring. Standing in your own power, you fully accept your choice for what occurs in life. Currently, I am only carrying a partial client coaching load. I could blame the down turn in the economy or how my recent divorce distracted me from seeking and retaining new clients. In taking 100% responsibility, I recognize the truth is I have chosen to take time to learn a new coaching technique which has also supported my recovery from the divorce.

Being resourceful is being able to respond to situations rather than reacting to them. From a centered and calm place you are able to respond appropriately to the given situation. Given my reduced income, I could be reacting and worrying about finances and undertake a flurry of activity to rebuild clientele. Instead I took time to get really clear about the next direction for my business. Working with business owners and managers to improve their businesses is what I love, and yet I've recognized in bringing my relationship to a close in a peaceful manner, I had achieved something special. My experience could be highly valuable to share with others. From a centered place I chose to write a book which has become my first priority.

Fixing versus Growing

You could look at personal development as fixing what you don't like about yourself. This perspective assumes that there is something in you that is broken. It is a perspective that comes from a place of being critical and judgemental. The primary judgement is: the way you are is not good enough. For me it was not a question of not being good enough or broken, the question I asked was, "Am I happy?" The answer was NO. You may also want to ask yourself, "Am I feeling the way I want to feel?" If the answer is NO, then you may want to engage in self-discovery through personal development.

A more useful perspective is to come from a place of inspired growth instead of needing fixing. This involves setting an intention for how you would like to be as life unfolds and how you would like to feel. My intention was to have a fun, vibrant life and a thrilling business. Life is an adventure and I undertake growth in a way that's feels fun and do it with a sense of vibrancy. There is nothing wrong with me. However, by continuing to grow I have an opportunity to thrive and live the life I fully desire.

Wishing you an inspired life;

Jacque

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Article Tags: personal development, perspective, selfimprovement



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