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Personal growth: The permanent vs the non-permanent June 17, 2014

Posted by Dennis Mellersh in Concept of personal growth, Personal Development Potential.
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In choosing to follow the path of a self-improvement program, you have essentially made the significant and ultimately rewarding choice of a philosophy of living that leans towards the permanent as opposed to the transitory.

This choice can be a strong foundation of inner strength that will act as a buffer when you encounter the inevitable bumps, roadblocks, and detours that inevitably occur throughout an active life.

The values and principles of your program will help to enable you to develop a variety of personal qualities or characteristics that will remain with you regardless of the status of your material world.

Money, employment, and material possessions can come and go; but what is in our hearts and minds – the qualities we strive to foster through realizing our personal development potential – will remain with us.

Qualities such as: generosity, empathy, understanding, tolerance, acceptance, gratitude, patience, moderation, honesty, and eventually, wisdom.

In speaking of the world of impermanent things, the Analects of Confucius offer the following:

“Standing beside a river, the Master said: ‘Everything passes away like this, day and night, never resting.'”(1)

(1) Confucius, The Analects, as translated by David Hinton in his book, The Four Chinese Classics

Personal growth: The first step to self-awareness May 29, 2014

Posted by Dennis Mellersh in Concept of personal growth, Personal Development Potential.
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If one of the goals in your plan for your personal growth and development program is that of increasing your self-awareness or self-knowledge, you have already taken an important foundational step towards accomplishing that goal.

How so?

Because you have already demonstrated that you possess self-awareness in realizing that some aspects of your intellectual and emotional personal makeup require improvement.

Generally people with a low level self-awareness do not realize this, nor do they make a decision to take the necessary actions necessary for improving their lives.

Additionally, by deciding to engage in a regimen of self-improvement, you are also showing that your decision to achieve greater self-actualization is more than just wishful thinking on your part; it is an action-oriented decision.

So I won’t insult your intelligence by offering you something like “7 little-known ways to increase your self-awareness.”

Increasing your perception of your identity is not something that you can accomplish in quick and easy steps. There is no formula; e.g. : a + b + x + y = self-awareness.

Rather, your perception of your true interior self will occur gradually and naturally on its own accord, almost as a by-product of your overall personal growth program.