Where to start with personal-development?
“In any given moment we have two options; to step forward into growth or to step back into safety” – Abraham Maslow.
Personal development is sold to us as something we really should be investing time and money into for our future, our wellbeing, and our overall happiness; so why does something so beneficial to us feel so overwhelming?
Firstly, we are not programmed to see time spent on ourselves as worthwhile, we are encouraged to simply hustle harder for happiness and prone to gargantuan pangs of guilt for hitting a pause on life and seeking out opportunities to progress mentally or physically.
There are also an enormous amount of opportunities for personal development available to us. Retreats and expeditions, books and podcasts, one-to-one therapy sessions, and team sports; what really works?
What should we be doing to ensure the greatest of outcomes?
Is it any wonder that some of us have no idea of where to start with personal -development?
Initially, it’s worth starting at the end; what do you want to get out of your activity?
Are you looking to progress professionally? Is there a passion project you’d like to pursue? Do you want to feel physically stronger?
You see, personal development is just that; personal. Only you know where you would like to end up and what you would like to achieve. Maybe your journey of personal development will simply be seeking out help to decide exactly what it is that you want to achieve.
Once you have established your end goal you can start to look at how you will reach it.
Do you need help? A class or group to attend?
Do you need equipment or access to training?
Do you need to be strict with time management and ensure that you make time available for whatever it may be?
So you have identified how the development would look to you and how you can take action to achieve it, now it’s time to do.
Just start.
Change can feel scary and unknown because it is, but what is even scarier is the known that if you do not allow yourself to progress you will stay exactly where you are. You will never realise your full potential. You will never overcome adversity and stand triumphantly knowing you did things on your terms.
There are no rules as to how long your path of development should take or how it will be perceived in the world around you; it’s personal remember. It’s all about your goals and aspirations, your growth and mindset.
Personal development can feel like just another thing on a to-do list, a whimsical luxury not meant for everyday folk or an unnecessary dream yet, when considered logically, when benefits are perused and a plan of action is broken down into teeny tiny steps you no longer feel overwhelmed with the why and how to make start, you just do.
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