Personal growth: everything you need to know about it.

Issues discussed in the material:

Personal growth - what is it?
Psychology of personal growth
10 Signs of Personal Growth
Personal growth goals
Where to start your personal growth and self-development
What you need to know about personal growth trainings
Useful books on personal growth
How to find yourself and your business if you don’t know what to do
One-year program for successful personal growth
Finally, recommendations with examples on personal growth

Personal growth is an integral part of the life of a modern person. In order to be successful in such a rapidly changing world, you need to constantly challenge yourself and reach new heights. However, the very concept of self-development cannot be interpreted unambiguously, because existing schools give it completely different meanings. Let's try to figure out what personal growth is and why it is so important for business.

Personal growth - what is it?

Personal growth can be called a constant and continuous process of self-development, thanks to which a person upgrades himself, develops certain qualities, achieves his goals, and also increases the quality of life and the level of satisfaction with it. Realizing your own potential allows you to do what you love and live a bright, rich life.

By working on ourselves, we form a new world around us. But the whole path will definitely not be simple and cloudless.

Personal growth is a kind of challenge, a test of strength. You can overcome the difficulties that arise only thanks to your inner core and strength.

That is why self-development requires maximum time and diligence. And you shouldn’t think that once you reach a certain stage, you can stop. The world is changing, so in order to grow, you need to constantly upgrade yourself. It may seem like it's too complicated. But rest assured, your work will bring tangible results.

Laws of personality development

The psychology of personal growth is a rather complex process, and carries its own patterns and laws of personality development. Without them, it would be difficult to create educational programs for children and adolescents whose personalities are just forming. Also, the laws of personality development help qualified psychoanalysts better understand their patients and more effectively help them in the process of their formation and self-development.

The laws of personality development include:

The presence of psychological changes in an individual.
The relationship between different areas of development and their directions.
The emergence of specific developmental features.
Differences in development according to time frame and other criteria (different development between peers).
Formation of clear views and personal beliefs.
Development of certain psychological characteristics (sensitivity).
Processing and learning/awareness of different areas of life.
Plasticity of personality development (compensation for the development of one personality component by another).
Contradiction between the individual and the world around him.
Constant progress in personal development.

Psychology of personal growth

Modern psychology can give many definitions of personal development. However, no matter what it is called (growth, reaching a new level, pumping, etc.), the essence of such changes is the same. Self-development is a tangible and visible transformation of a person, increasing his potential, and unlocking internal resources.

You may not even know which path has been taken, but the metamorphoses that occur to a person are always visible to the naked eye. Personal development allows you to become a full-fledged master of your own life, it opens up new facets of personality, and literally enriches your inner world. The main characteristics of this process of change include its focus, activity and scale.

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The theme of personal growth is often explored in literary works. For example, the famous Russian psychologist V.L. Levi in the book “Where to Live. Man in the Chains of Freedom” said the following about this: “What is personal growth? If a person has more: interests - and therefore incentives to live, meaningful fulfillment of life; the ability to analyze - to distinguish one from another; the ability to synthesize—to see connections between events and phenomena; understanding people (including yourself) - and with that the ability to forgive; internal freedom and independence - responsibility taken on voluntarily; love for the world and people (including oneself), this means that a person grows personally. Synonyms: mentally, spiritually.”

To finally understand what self-development means, it is enough to analyze the personal growth courses and business trainings that are so popular today. The latter are aimed at acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary for business development. That is, participants receive and implement ideas that allow them to take their own business to a new level, but their personality does not change in any way. At a business training, a person learns how to increase sales, how to properly present a product, how to optimize processes within a company, etc. But this knowledge is unlikely to make you think about your own values, the meaning of life, relationships, etc. Such events improve professional skills , but do not in any way relate to issues of personal growth.

Self-development courses differ significantly from business training. First of all, growth trainings are aimed at transforming a person’s personality. As part of these events, the problems, fears, beliefs and views of the participants are explored. Moreover, the format of such meetings can be quite diverse. But ultimately, personal growth training allows you to get rid of existing complexes, psychological trauma, resentment and mental anguish.

Personal development courses focus on challenges and opportunities rather than problems. For example, instead of worrying about a situation, think about options for resolving it. If you are afraid, stop making up excuses and justifications - take responsibility for your life and find your own motivation for new achievements. Distrustful introverts need to learn to see the good in people and stop shutting them out. Those who want to live a bright and fulfilling life do not need to try to break patterns - just take a creative approach to solving daily problems.

As you can see, personal and professional growth are significantly different. People come to self-development trainings with completely different needs. But in the process of working on oneself comes awareness or rethinking of one’s own life views, values, and meanings.

Examples of principles

For example, almost everyone understands that stealing is bad, but being honest is good. But if you conduct a survey among people in the office and ask them if they have ever stolen? Many will say no. These people really think so.

Ask them if they consider themselves honest. Many will answer yes. But at the first opportunity, they will print out their personal documents and letters on office paper. Among these people there are many who will not buy a train or bus ticket at the first opportunity. There will also be those who will not return the incorrectly calculated change. Little things like this happen every day. So is it right to talk about honesty and the absence of theft in such cases?

Or another example. The girl wants to get married, but she signs up for courses for “chic women.” Where they teach how to promote a man with money. Where they teach how to manipulate, lie, how to get benefits, and get married by deception. Where they teach you to kindle sexual desire in a man, and then use it.

But will such trainings develop love, kindness, and the ability to understand another person? And does a person go to such training only for the purpose of obtaining personal gain, or is he really based on the principles of goodness and love?

Personal growth goals

Although personal growth is aimed at working out internal aspects, it is necessarily reflected in the outside world. One of the most striking signs of development is the realization by a person of his own plans. Mobilization of internal resources allows you to achieve your goals in an environmentally friendly way, without harming other people.

However, you can look at it from the other side. The process of personal growth cannot be imagined without setting appropriate goals. In fact, the desire to become better is already an independent intention. That is, following a certain goal ensures human development, and vice versa. But sometimes the plans outlined do not require the development of personal qualities. Then self-development acts as a basis that helps to achieve success in this matter.

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For example, if a person needs to improve the skill of persuasion, he does not need to develop any moral qualities. But in many trainings, learning this ability will be presented as personal growth. Depending on what is meant by development, improving this skill will or will not constitute personal growth.

If the ability to persuade is one of the conditions for the formation of an integral and harmonious personality, development must occur in accordance with certain principles. If a person defends his own point of view, resorting to manipulation, intimidation and pressure, this has nothing to do with self-improvement.

As already mentioned, personal growth is inextricably linked with the principle of environmental friendliness. In this context, the ends do not justify the means at all, especially if the methods used may harm others.

For example, if a person plans to open his own business, then his goal is to launch this project. It should be remembered that business is impossible without customers. This means that you need to pay attention not only to ways to promote the product, but also to its quality. The goal of a business should be to sell a truly necessary and high-quality product, and not simply make a profit. Personal growth in this case will be conducting honest and decent business activities. To do this, it is enough not to deceive your customers: sell products with a good shelf life, do not pass off a fake as an original, speak openly about all the characteristics of the product, etc.

And the very idea of a future business project should be environmentally friendly. It's no secret that today there are plenty of fly-by-night companies that disappear with the money of customers or partners. Yes, this is also a business, but it has nothing to do with moral development.

It turns out that personal growth must meet certain conditions. It is not enough to simply improve a skill; you must constantly work on your character and values.

Origin of the term

The term “personal growth” was originally formulated by American psychologists Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers. They are also the founders of humanistic psychology. A little later, the term “personal growth” began to be widely used by other psychological trends.

The original concept of personal growth was based on the assumption that every person has a positive inner nature. That is, under certain circumstances, any individual is able to develop and also demonstrate his positive qualities: kindness, honesty, compassion, mercy, and the like.

In the concept held by Maslow and Rogers, a person, under appropriate circumstances, will manifest those positive qualities that are already inherent in him. If the environment is not conducive to this, then personal growth may be difficult or will not occur to its full potential.

Some psychological movements view a person as an entity that does not possess initially positive qualities. That is, a person in such concepts is initially neutral, but in the process of personal growth he can acquire positive qualities.

Where to start your personal growth and self-development

Self-improvement is a labor-intensive process aimed at working out the weaknesses of the individual, realizing one’s own potential and normalizing health. To reach a new level, it is enough to follow simple but effective rules.

Know Yourself Self-knowledge is a prerequisite for personal growth.
To evaluate the results of your own work, you need to understand where you are starting from at the moment. It is important to accept your strengths and weaknesses, temperamental characteristics, values and guidelines. It is also worth paying attention to how you contact the outside world and react to its manifestations. There are several ways to get closer to understanding your essence. Meditation, journaling, working with mood - each of these methods is effective. But real transformation begins when you find what lights you up, what makes you happy. If you want serious changes, turn to your own desires and dreams. Ask what kind of life your actions today will lead to. Are you happy with your current reality? How do you want to be remembered by this world? Think about it seriously to formulate a list of true goals.
Take responsibility for your own life and actions
Almost every time when all plans collapse, we complain about fate and blame others for our failures. Even if the situation seems out of control, do not rush into victim mode. Of course, not everything in this world depends on us; the environment can really have a significant impact on our lives. However, it is worth remembering that the last word is always yours. If there is no option to change the situation, you can reconsider your attitude towards it. This is the secret of transforming your own personality.
Develop a Self-Improvement Strategy

Setting goals is one of the most important stages for upcoming changes.
But in order to implement your plans, you need to understand what path you will have to go through. The most obvious and simple solution in this case is to create a plan to achieve your goals. Analyze your own aspirations, break all the work into small stages and decide what steps and actions you need to take. For example, you want to build a successful career, but at the moment you are working in a job you don’t like. You can take it to the next level with these steps:
• First of all, understand in which direction you want to realize yourself.
• Having decided on a profession, clarify what knowledge and skills are necessary for this activity.
• Receive appropriate training.
• Create a new resume that presents you as a competent specialist.
• Check out existing vacancies and respond to the most interesting offers.
• Once you find a job, quit your previous job.
• Demonstrate and prove yourself in your new position.
• Improve yourself in your chosen field and climb the career ladder.
Expand the boundaries of your own comfort zone

The concept of “comfort zone,” as well as “personal growth,” is familiar to almost everyone. This is a certain way of life in which a person avoids risk and stressful situations by performing familiar and ordinary actions. This is not to say that this level is bad. From time to time we all need a quiet environment to relax and recharge.
Almost everyone says that leaving your comfort zone is useful for self-development. You need to challenge, take on your own fears, take risks, test your strength. Sometimes the thought of making such changes can be scary, let alone taking action.
The sooner you think about personal development, the easier it is to get out of your usual routine. As you age, it is more difficult to change yourself, which means taking new actions is much more scary.
Despite all calls, you should not leave your comfort zone. Try to gradually expand its boundaries. Try something new or change the way you approach your daily routine. Take small but confident steps towards your own goals.
Be prepared for the fact that you will begin to sabotage your own changes. People often convince themselves that nothing will work out without even trying. We are afraid and doubtful, forbidding ourselves in advance to even dream of a new life. If you encounter this, change your focus. Try to understand what exactly is stopping you, why you look at the situation only from this angle. After that, turn to what inspires you to achieve, and step by step move towards your goals.

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Form effective habits
For this rule, the following saying is more relevant than ever: “When you sow an action, you reap a habit.” If you sow a habit, you will reap a character. If you sow character, you will reap destiny.” Indeed, our habits shape the existing reality. Useful and correct patterns allow you to grow and develop; harmful customs, on the contrary, worsen the quality of life. Changing habits is quite difficult, because they take years to form. But, if you really want to reach a new level, mobilize all your internal resources and move forward with strong will.

To put all these rules into practice, do the following:

Keep a personal diary. Try to write down the brightest moments, significant events, interesting discoveries, thoughts and insights every day.
Create a bank of ideas. Good thoughts come and leave your head completely unexpectedly. Record everything that seems interesting to you, without evaluating the practical side of the idea that has arisen. Literally write everything down. After a while, refer to your storage, analyze the direction of your notes. Perhaps it is this area of life that needs to be worked on.
Enter into dialogue with yourself. You can call this practice meditative, since here the subconscious is involved in the work. Give yourself 15–20 minutes so that no one disturbs you and nothing distracts you from the exercise. Take a comfortable position, close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing, try to feel every inhalation and exhalation. When you are completely relaxed, ask yourself questions. What do I really want? What should I be like to achieve what I want? What should I do? Repeat the questions mentally, then again concentrate on your breathing and relax. As a rule, the subconscious mind joins the process after a few days. The brain begins to produce interesting ideas that are necessary in this situation. All that remains is to write down and rethink the information received.

The above practices allow you to reach a new level of personal development. By understanding and being aware of your desires, you can form true goals and think through ways to achieve them.

Stages of self-development: 5 steps to self-development

In general, there are no universal stages of self-development due to the individual characteristics of each individual person and his life. In each case, both the path itself and its segments along which a person moves will differ and have a lot of options. But there are still several steps that can be given as general recommendations. There are five steps in total:

Recognize the need for change
Find your shortcomings / determine the direction for development
Form an image of the desired future and set a goal
Find and choose appropriate ways to achieve the desired result
Start acting based on your goals and chosen methods

Let's look at each of these steps in more detail.

Awareness of the need for change

Understanding that change is needed is the first thing to do. The best way to do this is to critically evaluate yourself, your condition and your life. In most cases, you can focus on several indicators that can directly indicate that it is time to change and start developing:

"Distortion" of the world . Sometimes it happens that a person begins to notice that something has happened to the world around him, that people are doing incomprehensible and logical things, that some inexplicable events are happening. With a high degree of probability, this may indicate that the person himself is beginning to “fly off the rails.” The reason may be dissatisfaction with life, doing something that is not “your” business, routine, boredom, etc. This should be regarded as a signal of the need for change, and immediately begin to look for ways out of the current situation.
Feeling of degradation and standing still . In everyday life, you may begin to act in ways that were unacceptable to you just recently, feel that you are not moving anywhere, and that life is wasted. Another sign is the understanding that you have no goals and aspirations, that there is no desire to reach new heights and that you are mired in the drab everyday life and everyday trifles. Any of these manifestations should be an indicator of the need for change.
An inexplicable feeling of anxiety inside . It can arise for no reason, but can be expressed in a premonition of inevitable misfortunes or troubles, a feeling of heaviness from existing or expected problems, or depression. It is necessary to understand what causes this condition. Sometimes it is useful to consult a specialist, for example, a psychologist.
Procrastination. Simply put, this is endless procrastination of important things for later. At first glance, it may seem like a trifle, but in the end it can lead to the accumulation of unsolved problems, the emergence of life problems and painful psychological effects. If you notice that you have begun to regularly come up with something for yourself that is more important than what is actually important, it’s time to figure out what doesn’t suit you in life and set new, motivating goals for yourself.
The emergence of bad habits . No matter how strange it may sound, sometimes people start drinking or smoking (God forbid, taking drugs), biting their nails or lips, getting stuck on social networks and spending time aimlessly because they don’t know what to do. This serves as another signal that you need to start changing something in yourself and in life. Otherwise, you may end up at the very bottom.

Understanding that “something is wrong” is not always easy. Sometimes our consciousness deliberately builds barriers, saying that everything is normal, that this is temporary. Of course, if the above sensations occur to you once a year, then you should just rest or go on vacation for a couple of weeks. But still, take a look at your life from the outside - if these manifestations have already begun to resemble chronic ones, you need to pull yourself together and think about what to do next.

Finding your shortcomings and determining the direction for development

Finding and understanding what needs to be changed is the second step on the path to self-development. Everyone has disadvantages, but only your shortcomings should bother you, because... they can cause failures and defeats, as well as unsatisfactory life outcomes. What prevents you from opening up, what prevents you from enjoying life?

If you feel that you are not progressing at work, but want to, think about what qualities or skills you need to start cultivating in yourself. If your job is draining all your energy, think about what you would like to do and what it will take to do it. If you feel the need for internal support, it makes sense to turn to psychology, religion or esotericism. The most important thing is to identify the direction that requires change.

Forming an image of the desired future and setting goals

The third step on the path to starting self-development is goal setting. If the last stage outlines in general terms the picture of what and where it is, then the formation of the desired image of the future will allow you to outline the main guidelines on the path and understand where and what exactly you want to get to. But there is one trick here.

For many people, the goal setting stage is a stumbling block. This happens for the reason that most often people know what they don’t want and how they don’t want it, but they have no idea what they want and what will suit them. The result of this ignorance is a classic of the genre - complaints about life, blaming everyone and everything for one’s troubles and misfortunes, victim syndrome, self-pity, etc. And this is exactly what should not be allowed under any circumstances, because... There can be no talk of any self-development here.

You need to do it differently: choose a time, take a piece of paper and a pen, write down everything that doesn’t suit you and what the opposite picture looks like, and you will have a visual guide to action. Determine what exactly you want to change, what you want to learn, what you want to do, etc. Be honest with yourself - only this will help you understand what you really need and what direction to choose for self-development.

By the way, we have a special test to determine areas of self-development, after passing which you will receive a selection of materials suitable for you to read and study: articles, links to books and courses.

Finding suitable ways to achieve the desired result

The fourth stage is the search and determination of suitable ways of self-development. Everything is simple here - you need to consider all the options that will help you achieve your plans. We advise you to pay attention to books, films, trainings and courses on relevant topics. You can also ask for advice from more educated and experienced people, specialists and trainers.

Today on the Internet there is a huge amount of material on a variety of topics: from increasing reading speed to improving memory, from gaining muscle mass to training the brain, from learning foreign languages to spiritual development. But it is equally important to remember that when embarking on the path of self-development, you need to be very selective in your social circle. The “wrong” people will pull you back and tell you that you won’t succeed. You should strive to communicate with those who have already achieved what you want to achieve, who are stronger, smarter, better than you!

Actions, actions and more actions

Having set goals and selected suitable options for development, start taking action without delay. This step can be called the most important, because... it depends on whether you can achieve your goal. Activities will include reading books, watching videos, taking courses, searching for and learning new information, and putting into practice what you learn from selected sources.

Any change (and self-development is change in its purest form) requires labor. Therefore, you will have to work hard to start moving forward. This can be compared to how a rocket overcomes gravity to get off the ground and go into space. At first, maximum energy and fuel are used to rise upward, but as it rises, it becomes easier to fly, and as a result, all that remains is to correct the course. It’s the same with self-development - by overcoming laziness, the boundaries of your comfort zone and your “I don’t want” or “I can’t”, you overcome yourself to become stronger and better. And we need to boldly move forward. As a result, it will become easier, and in order to develop, you will just have to adjust the direction of movement from time to time.

And to make it easier to move, constantly remember why you started all this. When you achieve even the most insignificant results, compare them with those that were before you started self-development (this advice is especially suitable for beginners). The process of self-improvement is a continuous process, but the more effort you make, the easier it will be for you.

And, since we mentioned laziness, discomfort, reluctance and other things that can negatively affect self-development, it makes sense to more substantively touch upon the obstacles on this difficult but very interesting path. Anyone can encounter them.

What you need to know about personal growth trainings

Personal growth training is a fairly common thing in the life of a modern person. However, some people misunderstand the meaning of self-development courses and confuse them with psychotherapy. Of course, training allows you to solve certain psychological problems, for example, develop self-confidence and improve certain personal qualities. But the classes are aimed at working with mentally healthy people, and therefore do not relate to psychotherapy.

The main objectives of self-development training are to increase a person’s potential, identify and develop the facets of personality, which allows them to achieve success in various areas of life. In the process of working on oneself, the worldview changes, thanks to which the course participant acquires new qualities and habits, and forms an attitude towards what is happening.

There are two types of such trainings. Some stimulate natural, passive transformation, others are aimed at active personal growth. Let's consider each option in more detail.

Natural personal growth trainings allow you to strengthen your inner strengths and get rid of beliefs that limit a person’s qualitative growth. Participants in the training work through various situations without focusing on the actual fact of transformation. Natural changes occur in accordance with a person’s internal attitudes. In this format, the coach’s task is to create optimal conditions for personal development. The training can be aimed at working with both the past and the present. By attending classes, a person finds answers to pressing questions, forms a model of behavior for various situations, and learns to interact correctly with the outside world.

Transformational trainings are considered the best natural growth courses. They allow you to expand the boundaries of your worldview, achieve a kind of enlightenment, get rid of limiting beliefs and the negative influence of the environment. After undergoing transformational training, a person realizes his inner potential, focusing on new opportunities and goals.

During active personal growth trainings, personality transformation occurs at the level of self-identification. The process itself involves obtaining certain knowledge and developing the necessary skills. Such events include training aimed at developing leadership qualities, increasing professional effectiveness, educational training, etc.

Classes can be held online and offline. The result of any training is the activation of thinking, rethinking of one’s own values, beliefs and plans.

Principles: where to get it

Principles are the basis of personal growth. As you can see from the examples above, without having clear principles and understanding them, it is easy to go in the wrong direction.

Relationships, money, achievements, if they are created without taking these principles into account, then they will either be very difficult to create, or then they will not last.

Therefore, put principles at the basis of any undertaking. But sometimes, as with tickets or paper in the office, it is very difficult to notice the places where you deviate from your own principles, and personal growth stops.

This happens because the concepts of honesty, kindness, and lack of selfishness can vary greatly from person to person. Secular society does not set any strict standards for morality. There are laws, but they are not enough to develop humanity and have a moral core on which the personality rests.

What moral values are is well understood in all the major religions of the world. Where to start studying them?

To develop a moral core, you can study the materials of the closest religion, read books, listen to lectures, attend services.
Those who are completely uncomfortable with the thought of studying religious materials can read books on personal growth, for example, by Stephen Covey. They have a good discussion of human values, but there are no references to religion. This author took all the best from the major religions and was able to convey to the reader in a form in which even the most inveterate atheist can easily read everything in his books.

Useful books on personal growth

Thematic literature will be an additional help for successful work on yourself. We recommend that you pay attention to the following publications:

“Be afraid... but act! How to Turn Fear from an Enemy to an Ally" by Susan Jeffers. The book contains effective ways to get rid of limiting beliefs. The author explains how to take responsibility for your own life and stop succumbing to the manipulations of your environment.
“Think slow, decide fast” by Daniel Kahneman. The work examines the features of slow and fast thinking. Kahneman shares decision-making mechanisms, tells how to avoid rash actions and direct energy in the right direction.
“Project Happiness. Dreams. Plan. New Life" by Gretchen Rubin. The book is a step-by-step guide for personal development. After reading, you will be able to determine your true goals and desires, and also receive recommendations that will help you become better and more productive every day.

Advice from a neuroscientist

The famous neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki (her book is on our RECOMMENDED page) suggests changing psychology by reinforcing it with physiology. To do this, she and her students engage in sports exercises during a lecture on neurobiology. For example, the following interesting conclusions can be drawn from her work:

Any physical exercise, and especially its repetition, increases the release of positive neurotransmitters (pleasure hormones in this case) in the head. These hormones immediately improve your mood, and last two hours after training, and even your reaction time improves. The same can be said about race walking at a speed of 4.5-5 km per hour.
Once you begin to exercise regularly and physically train your body, your memory improves and new neural connections appear. This means that the rest of your brain cells undergo these changes. Of course, treating Alzheimer's disease and memory loss is difficult. But it is possible to improve the consequences of senile dementia.
You don’t have to go to the gym; you can walk in the park at a sporting speed 3-4 times a week for just 30-40 minutes to train your heart muscle. In addition, if you add useful affirmations, your well-being will improve significantly.

And then you will definitely understand the difference between the word I want and the word I really feel. Summing up, in order to see changes when practicing self-development, you need to do everything consciously and physically, and then there will definitely be personal growth!

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How to find yourself and your business if you don’t know what to do

Each of us experiences periods of stagnation when we want to give up everything and run away from the outside world. This state does not bring much joy, but it can become a starting point for change, a moment of rethinking. Fatigue and blues are one of the signs that something is going wrong. Instead of struggling with depression and apathy, go on an exciting journey straight into your inner world. Try to remember what you want from life, what is the meaning of your life, what goals light you up. Once you find the answers to these questions, move on to decisive action. All you have to do is start doing what you like, and there will be no trace of depression left.

On the path of personal growth, many women and men face the problem of self-identification. Not everyone understands who they are, much less what they want to do. You can find the area of personal development in several ways:

Dedicate yourself to what you love. There is no need for unnecessary explanations here. When you do what you love, and vice versa, love what you do, you become happy.
Go through all the options

This trial and error method can be divided into several directions:

Spend time on things that interest you.

Almost every person has a hobby, but only a few know how to derive profit and benefit from it. Hobbies are always pushed into the background; it’s not as serious as, for example, work. Who might like what I do?

A striking example that breaks this pattern is blogging. Yes, at first it seemed strange, then the number of bloggers began to grow at incredible speed. Having shown themselves on social networks, such personalities become media figures. They are no longer just people on a smartphone screen - many bloggers appear on the radio, host TV shows and even act in films. Who at the beginning of their journey would have thought that their life would be interesting to at least someone? Almost no one can guarantee success in this matter. But if you take your hobbies seriously, you have a chance to make yourself known to the world.

Try to regularly devote time to upgrading the areas of your life that interest you. Gather a community, team up with like-minded people and constantly improve in what you love.

Don't be afraid to make mistakes

There are situations when there is no favorite activity that lights you up.
Something interesting, but nothing more than superficial. In this case, it's time to come up with a hobby. Just write down all the ideas related to your interests. What would you like to do full-time? Drawing, aircraft modeling, yoga, programming, design - feel free to capture everything that seems attractive. After analyzing the list, imagine how you implement each of the ideas. If your imagination paints pleasant pictures and you feel an emotional uplift, try learning a new activity. And even if you don’t like it, just move on to the next item on the list.

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You should not force yourself to do something for your own development. This path will not lead to anything good. At the very least, you will waste energy and strength in the wrong direction. Even worse, doing something you don’t like often becomes the reason for the development of complexes and various diseases.

Visualize

Remember the phrase “I think, therefore I am”? It means that personal growth begins with a change in thinking. Philosophy calls this way of thinking transcendental. That is, first you work with internal attitudes, and then move on to actions that lead to the desired results. Therefore, concentrate more often on your own development, think about plans and opportunities. This way you will understand in which direction you need to move.

Start doing

Of course, it is important to tune yourself to a certain wave. But the only thing that will bring real results is action. Everyone wants to be successful, beautiful and rich, but only a small part of people move from dream to business.

Don't forget that only you are responsible for your life, actions and environment. Stop worrying about what others think. You will always be criticized no matter what you do. Personal growth is not easy, but only by working on yourself can you become better.

Why don't people want to develop?

It's not that simple at all. Therefore, people who spend a lot of time reading literature, or endlessly attend trainings, but do nothing on their own, or do not study personally with a coach, remain in their original positions. What are the reasons for all this:

Lack of willpower

Procrastination or constant putting things off, or simple laziness, prevent a person from moving towards his goals. In some families, parents raised willpower in their children, while in others they did not. But this does not mean at all that you cannot raise her yourself. It's like a muscle, the longer you train, the better the results.

There are two approaches to training willpower: Do OR Don't. Our body will find thousands of reasons not to do it, since it does not want to leave the “comfort zone”. But as we wrote earlier, “if you do everything as always, then you will get the same result as always.”

Start training yourself with daily, constant actions: exercise, church fasts, daily 40-minute walks, maintaining a family budget, monitoring expenses and your free time. You need to make plans and carry them out. Otherwise there will never be a result.

Willpower is a spiritual quality, and it is cultivated by people with very high awareness.

Just by developing this quality you can achieve dramatic changes in your life.

Lack of motivation

A person needs a very strong desire to motivate himself to change. And as a rule, our inner voice often tells us: “Well, why do you need this? And so good!” And everything remains in the same place. Therefore, a person will never lose his extra 20 kg. Because you need to seriously deny yourself something, spend time on sports, count calories. To limit yourself means to deprive yourself of “sweets”. Who, the one who loves him, would bring himself to this?

In order to have motivation, you need to set the right goals, clearly see and visualize the result of what you want. And only then with willpower and overcoming yourself can you get results. The proverb: “Without labor, you can’t catch a fish out of a pond”... that’s what it’s about!

Lack of time management

This is another reason that slows people down on the path to their goals. There are plans, but there is no exact time when they will begin to be implemented. And this is a big mistake. Many people try to start “on Monday”, “on New Year”, etc. and they never start. Time is the most valuable resource. So years pass, but “things are still there.”

It’s not enough to plan, it’s also worth tracking the implementation, and giving yourself pluses for completing it, and be sure to encourage yourself.

Lack of discipline

Here you only need to write one thing: if you have started, then for at least 21 days you should do it every day, without days off, and without excuses. The body “will not help you in any way”; it will even “invent” a disease. But you still try and do it. This is the only way to get results.

One-year program for successful personal growth

We have already said more than once that personal growth must occur according to a certain plan. If you break down big goals into small tasks, achieving big goals won't seem so daunting. The strategy does not have to be designed for any long period. There are both short-term and open-ended goals.

We advise you to take a closer look at the annual personal growth plan. The following program will help you improve all areas of your life in just 12 months:

January

The beginning of the year should be devoted to the issue of self-confidence. Work through existing fears, complexes, grievances, etc. It is impossible to gain heights without freeing yourself from excess.

February

During this period, it is worth taking care of finding a purpose. Think about what you want and outline a vector of personal development.

March

The beginning of spring is the time to set bold and ambitious goals. Try to eat the elephant one piece at a time: break big tasks into simple steps and make a plan for upcoming changes.

April

Schedule your time according to your schedule. Check your diary periodically to stay on track.

May

This is a wonderful time when nature literally comes to life. Start transforming along with the world around you! It's time to take the first steps towards your dream! To maintain a positive attitude and motivation, keep a success diary and record any, no matter how small, victories.

June

In the first month of summer, it is worth paying attention to mental health and relaxation. You have already done a lot of work and received the first results of your own transformation. It's time to learn to relax, to find a balance between active action and rest. For example, incorporate meditation into your daily routine.

July

At this time, it is worth taking care of your relationships with your environment. Perhaps you got too carried away with “achievement” and forgot about the people you really care about. Pay attention to your family and friends, because there will always be a lot of worries, and lost time cannot be returned.

August

Devote yourself to creativity. Creativity and ingenuity are integral companions to personal growth. Figure out how to add variety to your usual daily activities, and, conversely, find new hobbies. Yoga, artistic modeling courses, vocal master classes - express yourself and discover new facets of your personality.

September

The beginning of autumn is always a moment of assessment and rethinking. Analyze the path you have taken and outline new horizons. Perhaps you should learn a new profession or attend thematic courses. It's time to bring unrealized plans and desires to life.

October

Finding a new environment is an essential stage of personal growth. Visit unusual places, make acquaintances, develop business connections. Be prepared for a little discomfort: other people, unusual topics of conversation - it can be scary. But as you grow personally, you will improve your communication skills and take a worthy position in the new community.

November

It's time to monetize your hobbies and passions. Think about how you can benefit people in exchange for a decent monetary incentive. Develop a strategy for promoting your own products and services.

December

As you close out the year, take stock of your progress. Remember the brightest moments, all significant achievements, evaluate your own success. This will help formulate plans and objectives for the next 12 months.

Temperament

Temperament is a type of nervous system, an innate characteristic. This is a set of psychophysical properties of a person that determines the specifics of performing an activity. Rhythm, speed, intensity of reactions - all this depends on temperament. Let's take a closer look at the types of temperaments, and then their properties.

Types of temperament according to Hippocrates

Hippocrates was the first to talk about temperaments. He identified four personality types based on which fluid predominates in a person:

Holi (bile). These are active and sometimes fussy people. They are characterized by sudden mood swings and sociability, turning into obsession.
Phlegm (mucus). These are calm, reasonable, slow people.
Melan holi (black bile). These are pessimists, in a state of decline and characterized by indecision.
Sangwa (blood). These are active and persistent people who always achieve their goals. Born leaders.

Since then, many studies have been carried out, different classifications of temperaments have appeared, but this typology is still taken as a basis. True, no one talks about the predominance of liquids anymore, and the names have changed a little. The study of temperaments is conducted around the reactions of excitation and inhibition. And the main person in this theory is considered to be I.P. Pavlov.

Temperament in modern psychology

In modern psychology, the following classification of temperaments is used:

Choleric. Strong, agile, unbalanced type. They say about these people: “Starts with half a kick.” True, the choleric person cools down just as quickly. Moreover, he not only cools down, but forgets the reason for the quarrel, the unpleasant fact itself. Therefore, it is difficult to resolve disagreements with choleric people. Cholerics have leadership qualities, but lack of restraint and emotionality prevent them from achieving a stable result in life.
Sanguine. Agile, balanced, strong type. The processes of excitation and inhibition occur quickly, but this does not affect the mood as clearly as in a melancholic person. Sanguine people are more into humor. They can be called easy-going. They are distinguished by high adaptive abilities, flexibility, and sociability. These are positive and active people who know how to find an approach to every person and have leadership characteristics. A sanguine person does not tolerate boredom and monotony. It is characterized by high speed and strength in performing activities.
Phlegmatic person. Strong, balanced, motionless type. The arousal reaction is weak. Phlegmatic people are distinguished by restraint and prudence, which sometimes turn into tediousness. These are the executive and most responsible workers, but living with a phlegmatic person is difficult. He is stingy with emotions, does not know how to empathize, is cautious and passive. Does not like surprises, experiments, novelty. His restraint, resistance to stress and composure are sometimes mistaken by others for indifference. Phlegmatic people do not like changes in activity.
Melancholic. Weak, unbalanced, mobile type. Like a choleric person, his mood constantly fluctuates, but negative connotations predominate. This is a passive, insecure, vulnerable type. Gets tired quickly and does not adapt well to changes. At the same time, these are the most sincere and empathetic people with a rich and interesting inner world.

Psychologists note that not a single temperament occurs in its pure form. That is, more often a person has 2 or 3 types mixed.

In addition, modern psychology relies on the typology of temperaments by K.G. Cabin boy. He identified two types: extroverts and introverts. The former direct their energy to the outer world, the latter to the inner world. Extroverts have a more acute need for social contacts and group work than introverts. The latter are prone to solitude. This is due to the fact that introverts have a higher sensitivity to external stimuli. Extroverts are more stable, so they need strong emotional influences to be aroused.

Interesting! There are other typologies of temperaments, for example, Galen’s classification, the theory of E. Kretschmer.

Properties

Balance, mobility, strength are properties of temperament. We have already mentioned this, but there are other properties. Let's look at them in more detail:

sensitivity (sensitivity) – reaction to minimal exposure to a stimulus;
reactivity - the strength of the emotional reaction to stimuli;
activity – activity in interpersonal relationships, when performing activities;
pace of reactions - speed of movements, speech, thinking, performance of activities;
mobility (plasticity/rigidity) – speed of adaptation to changing conditions.

Let’s imagine portraits of temperaments through a table, where “+” is a high level, and “–” is a low level of some property.

Sensitivity	Reactivity	Activity	Rate of reactions	Mobility
Choleric	–	+	+	+	+
Sanguine	–	+	+	+	+
Phlegmatic person	–	–	+	–	–
Melancholic	+	–	–	–	–

In addition, when considering temperaments, it is customary to study concentration. Choleric people have slow concentration (distractable type), sanguine people have fast concentration, phlegmatic people have slow concentration, melancholic people have unstable attention (they get tired quickly, are distracted a lot).

Important! Characteristics of temperament must be taken into account during the learning process, during employment and when building relationships with others. The psychological climate in the family, work team, class, group depends on the compatibility of temperaments.