Personal growth can help you make your life more enjoyable and fulfilling. However, if youÔÇÖre broke, overweight, donÔÇÖt have any friends, and lack goals, where do you begin? The key to beginning a personal growth journey is setting your priorities. ThereÔÇÖs a lot you can do in five years, but you canÔÇÖt do a whole lot in five months.
Spend your early efforts as effectively as possible:
1. Measure your current situation. Think about a typical day in your life. Then think about a typical weekend. Write down whatever comes to mind. A partial list might look like this:
- Get up for work. I hate getting up this early and I hate my job.
- In the shower ÔÇô thinking about how I canÔÇÖt pay my electric bill and still go out with my friends this weekend. I donÔÇÖt like my body.
- Driving to work- I love my car
- Get home. The dog peed on the carpet.
- Watch TV. I donÔÇÖt really like it, but I donÔÇÖt have anything else to do.
- And so on.
2. Rate each of these experiences. On a scale of 1-10, 10 being perfect, rate each thought. ItÔÇÖs the low-rated parts of your life that are dragging you down. Avoid spending your time on raising a 7 to a 10. ItÔÇÖs the 1s, 2s, and 3s that are wreaking havoc. Until youÔÇÖve raised everything up to at least a 5, stick with the lower-rated items on your list.
3. Create a 10. LetÔÇÖs suppose your weight is a big issue. You rate it a ÔÇ£2ÔÇØ, because it negatively impacts your confidence and self-esteem. ItÔÇÖs also becoming a health issue. You also believe that it hurts your social life. What is the perfect alternative? Write a little story.
- IÔÇÖm on the bathroom scale, and my weight is 170 pounds. This is the perfect weight for me. I look and feel good in my clothes. My doctor is pleased with my cholesterol and blood pressure numbers. Women are starting to notice me again. I have the confidence to ask out Mary for this weekend.
- Now you have an objective that clearly addresses a challenging part of your life.
4. Consider the people in your life. If you want to enhance any part of your life, there will be people that attempt to hold you back. They might not do it intentionally, but it will happen. ItÔÇÖs hard to kick your mom out of your life, but many other people are optional.
- You may need to add people to your life. Perhaps you need a personal trainer or a few friends that have successfully lost weight. A few friends at the gym would be helpful, too.
5. What do you need? A cookbook with healthy recipes? A gym membership? A jump rope? Compare your needs with your current resources. Can you bridge the gap?
6. Focus on your habits. Your current situation is result of years of less-than-great habits. Better habits provide better outcomes. Make small changes to your daily habits. Then itÔÇÖs just a matter of being compliant and patient.
7. Learn how to be uncomfortable. The faster you wish to change, the more discomfort youÔÇÖll face. YouÔÇÖll have to slow down or accept that discomfort is part of the deal. The ability to deal with uncomfortable feelings grows with practice.
ItÔÇÖs daunting to change every aspect of your life, so donÔÇÖt even try! Focus on the most negative parts of your life first. You can then turn your attention to the less-critical items. Beginning a personal growth journey is an exciting time. Good luck!
NOW that alarm is really beneficial. I send 60-90 minutes on my morning ritual now before facebook, email or surfing! and my 7:30 alarm is a very helpful reminder and anchor to change states. For me, it is when this alarm goes off that I shower and get dressed for work, I check social media and emails and get my head into the next phase of the day.
I am absolutely loving my evening and morning rituals! I invite you to share some of your own in the comments below and adopt any of these that might work for you!
