Share
Pin6
Tweet
6 Shared
"Either you're dead or you're moving forward"
Mick Jagger
“Why degrade?!”, someone will be indignant. Because stability as such, in fact, does not exist - it is an illusion.
There is either progress, or regression, or development, or degradation. Everything that stands still automatically degrades.
Therefore, if a person does not develop, does not strive for more than he has and is capable of at the moment, he stops in place and gradually degrades.
Let's take nature: a lake in which there is no movement of water due to underground springs and springs gradually becomes a swamp and begins to bloom. A house in which no one lives for a long time begins to become overgrown with cobwebs and deteriorates.
Everything that doesn’t improve, doesn’t work on, doesn’t update, slowly dies. Body muscles that are not used for a long time gradually atrophy.
Our life is a journey. Whether this will be the path of development or degradation is up to everyone to decide for themselves.
Development is something different for everyone:
- for some, this is the path to financial freedom and success in society;
- for some - mastering new skills and abilities, for others - a career or achieving a goal;
- For some, development is the path to one’s true self, to understanding oneself, self-realization.
In a word, this is movement. This is what ultimately makes each of us happier.
What is the problem with 80% of people?
If everything is so clear and obvious, why then does 80% of the population experience Groundhog Day every day, spinning in the “work-home-work-no-joy” wheel, do not feel the colors of life and rather survive every day than live?
Why do thousands of people endure the wrong relationships, the wrong people nearby, live in the wrong place, with the wrong people and not the way they would like?
In fact, people don't become successful because they don't know how.
There is plenty of information in open sources; there are thousands of personal examples of outstanding personalities and their success stories. There are books and resources for self-development.
The problem is not that there is a lack of knowledge on this topic.
The problem is that most people either do not take any action at all in order to change their lives a little, or take some scattered periodic actions, chaotically and without any benefit in the final result.
How to deal with degradation
If degradation is not stopped in time, you can smoothly sink to the bottom of life, from which it can be very difficult to get out. Once the degradation has barely begun, you can stop it on your own and start the reverse process. But you won’t be able to cope with advanced degradation, especially aggravated by chemical addictions, on your own. You need the help of loved ones and qualified treatment.
read books
The simplest and most universal way to stop degradation is reading. But only if it has not reached an advanced stage.
Do you feel like you have stopped developing lately? Pick up a book immediately. Reading not only fills our memory with new information, but also develops important parts of the brain.
You just need to approach the choice of literature with all responsibility. Second-rate pulp novels, meaningless detective stories, and memoirs of pop stars are unlikely to help stop the regression; rather, on the contrary.
Russian and foreign classics, scientific works on philosophy, ethics, history, biographies of great and successful people, encyclopedias, and self-development books are perfect.
Tidy up your appearance
Appearance is the first to suffer when degraded. Therefore, it is best to start crawling out of the hole with him. Here is a checklist that will help you tidy up your appearance, which has suffered during the regression:
- Maintain good hygiene. Shower - daily, brush your teeth - twice a day, wash your hair - when dirty.
- Throw away clothes and shoes that have lost their appearance. These are things with stubborn stains, stretched knees, faded patterns, and holes. And also shoes that can no longer be repaired.
- Put in order those things that are left. Get rid of pellets, wash off stains, iron thoroughly. Clean your shoes and treat them with special products.
- Watch your nails. Trim and remove dirt promptly.
- Don't slouch. A hunched back reveals you as a person crushed by life.
Learn to think positively
Pessimists are more susceptible to degradation than optimists. Emotional distress leads to psychological and then physical distress. Therefore, you need to literally pull yourself out of despondency by the scruff of the neck. There is no one else to do this.
Luckily, positive thinking is just a habit that anyone can develop. You need to start with spring cleaning in your own mind. Uproot all negative attitudes that, like weeds, prevent beneficial seeds from sprouting.
“I won’t succeed”, “I won’t achieve anything”, “Life is pain” - you need to get rid of all this garbage.
Then you have to learn to control your thought flow. It's not easy, but the result will pleasantly surprise you. Every time some unpleasant thought appears in your mind, immediately block it, not allowing it to grow like a snowball. Gradually, such thoughts will become less and less, and they will be replaced by positive and constructive ones.
Observe moral standards
Moral guidelines have been formed over thousands of years and are deeply imprinted in the collective consciousness. Even if you try to deny them, your brain knows on an unconscious level what is right and wrong, and judges your every action according to these criteria.
Many consider any norms to be a relic of the past and a useless framework that limits individual freedom. In fact, all these rules, on the contrary, are designed to strengthen the personality and make a person stronger.
If you become seriously interested in ethics, you will find that moral standards are the same in all developed cultures. You can turn to any religion and take the fundamental principles as a model. For example, the idea of the seven deadly sins in Christianity.
Mind your manners
Move from ethics to etiquette. Start watching how and what you say, how you behave in public places. Get rid of swearing, filler words, jargon and other verbal garbage. Be polite, tactful, courteous, moderately restrained. Stop talking loudly and laughing, because this is a sign of bad taste.
Get rid of bad habits
Of course, if it was bad habits that led you to complete degradation, then this advice will be useless. But in cases where the degradation is not so advanced and you are able to control yourself, take a step towards a healthy lifestyle.
Give up cigarettes and alcohol, reduce your consumption of coffee and other stimulants. This will not only improve your health, but also increase your self-confidence. The realization that you yourself got rid of a destructive habit through an effort of will gives a tremendous boost to your self-esteem.
Stop feeling sorry for yourself
When a person realizes that he has seriously neglected his life, he wants to feel sorry for himself, so small, weak and defenseless. You shouldn't do this. Complaining will only make the problem worse. On the contrary, you need to gather all your strength into a fist and start doing at least something to pull yourself out of the swamp.
When we feel sorry for ourselves, we personally acknowledge our weakness and worthlessness. And change can only be done from a position of strength.
Seek help from specialists
In the most advanced cases, it will not be possible to stop the destruction of personality on your own. This is especially true for degradation caused by alcohol addiction. You need to recognize your limitations and seek help from a doctor or psychotherapist.
What is the reason for inaction?
There is an explanation for this desire to be where you are.
Dynamic balance
In nature there is such a thing as “dynamic equilibrium”. When a lot of effort is put into staying in place. That is, maintain balance.
Externally, the object is motionless, but titanic work is being done inside it. But there is no strength to move forward.
This is one option: when a person seems to be rushing about, wanting something, rushing to extremes.
- He starts running in the morning and stops every other day because the weather is bad.
- Leaves an unloved partner, but returns a week later, “because what would he/she do without me.”
- He thinks about his own business, is tormented by this question, but sits in the office from 9 to 6, because “what if nothing works out?!”
When a person spends a lot of strength and energy on communicating with manipulators, on nurturing his own grievances, on “living in the past,” on everything that requires resources but does not bring anything positive. And there is no strength left to move forward.
Causes of degradation
Many people refuse to use the term “degradation,” especially in relation to personality. However, just because the phenomenon is called more softly and veiled, it will not cease to exist.
The reason lies in physiology
. The human body constantly strives to reduce total energy expenditure in order to ensure its safety. To do this, the brain creates special programs that force us to act according to a pattern, automatically.
From year to year we perform morning and evening rituals, we repeat some actions so often that we can perform them with our eyes closed. And, it would seem, beauty - our brain is resting, which means there is no need to be afraid of overwork. But there is something else to be afraid of here, namely, a decrease in brain plasticity.
In this understanding, one can compare the human mind to concrete. As long as it is stirred, it remains liquid. Once you stop external influences, the mass will harden, and changing its shape is extremely problematic. Likewise, our mind, without constant stimuli, “freezes” and loses the ability to adapt to changing conditions.
The reasons why the mixture in the head begins to slowly ossify can be different:
- All kinds of addictions, especially bad habits.
- Feeling guilty about an action that cannot be corrected.
- A traumatic incident.
- Achieving the main goal of life.
- A lot of free time and loneliness.
- Routine lifestyle: monotonous work, lack of emotions in personal life.
Many of these reasons can only be eliminated with the help of a psychologist, so deep-rooted degradation is a serious problem.
How to trick your brain and force yourself to do something?
For example, a person wants to improve their physical fitness and start running. But he can’t start right now, because there are a lot of reasons: he doesn’t have running shoes, he has them, but in the wrong color, the weather is bad, and so on.
As a result, he doesn't start at all. Running means straining. There is not enough motivation.
But if there is a beach season on the horizon, an affair with an interesting partner, some important event where you need to be in shape, motivation increases sharply. Because the difference between “want” and “have” has changed.
Examples of degradation from literature and cinema
Works of art help us understand what degradation means. I will again remember A.P. Chekhov and his novel “Ionych”. This is a story about a doctor, an educated and sensual man. He fell in love with a girl, but she refused him. Having a hard time experiencing a love trauma, this person began to degrade. He thought that no one in society needed his intelligence, love and education, so he became grumpy, gained weight, gambled and became a hoarder. And he shouted and hit his patients with a stick.
If you feel that love experiences discourage you from developing and moving on with your life, read the article on how to get over a breakup.
As a more modern example, I will give the series “Patrick Melrose”. This is the story of a man with addiction who deteriorates due to a very cruel father and an alcoholic mother. Such works clearly show why people degrade. To some extent, this is a defense mechanism of the psyche - it tries to protect us from strong emotional shocks.
What prevents a person from developing?
Fear of making mistakes
This is the disease of all perfectionists and high school students: “What if I do the wrong thing?”
In fact, mistakes are normal, without them nothing will work out at all.
Confirmation is the stories of outstanding personalities (remember Tesla, Ford, Jobs, Gates), for whom everything did not go smoothly and one failure followed another. But they did not give up - and still achieved their goal!
You can make mistakes, this is the only way to gain experience. The main thing is not to give up and try again. And don’t immediately set the bar too high for yourself, leaving no room for mistakes and imperfections. The path of development is a path of ups and downs.
Let's sum it up
Once, at a lecture on self-development, I learned about the Japanese wisdom of “Kaizen”, which means constant, continuous self-improvement. I remember the phrase: “If you don’t develop, you degrade.” This is what degradation is - a powerful rollback that, like a snowball rolling down a mountain, becomes increasingly difficult to stop over time.
Of course, if you are lying on the couch and are too lazy to wash the dishes, then you don’t have to worry that the process of degradation has begun. Most likely, you are just tired. But if you notice serious negative changes in someone close to you or in yourself, pull yourself together and start reading, exercising, or seeking professional help. Also watch the video, which hobbies will prevent you from degenerating.
Write in the comments, have you ever felt like you were degenerating? And have you struggled with this condition?
Let’s summarize: how to start developing
What success is, everyone determines for themselves. But development is what everyone should strive for so as not to degrade.
This is a continuous struggle, and first of all, with yourself, but rather with your weak qualities that prevent you from living the life of your dreams.
Everyone has a choice. You can sit and whine about what a bad boss, low salary and what a brute your husband is. Or you can tear your butt off the sofa and start doing something.
What choice are you making?
Did you like the article❤️? Save it to your Pinterest
