4 Easy Methods of Personal Growth
The future of therapy is self-therapy, the future of psychological healing is self-healing. Because we each have all the information about a situation, our needs and unique solutions already inside, we ourselves are in the best position to consciously correct. The job of therapists, counselors and healers is shifting to teaching us how to use our self-healing system.
We are all recovering from something that life brings, always learning to rebound from challenge and change. So in this new partnership between you and those who help, the responsibility is shifted to you, and with it, all the power to access the answers unique to you. Training is still needed. Teachers can help you obtain the four things you will need on your journey: Information, Practice, Support, and Inspiration.
Information: Until we are all trained from birth to trust ourselves and use our intuitive knowing, we need to know what others have discovered through their own journey, trial and error. "Learn through time, or learn through a teacher." They come in many forms: Self- Improvement books, spiritual books ancient and modern, classes, the vast Web. Your upbringing, even the best environments, brought you a narrow and biased slice of reality. Sometimes just one powerful quote opens the doors.
Practice: Once you find some truth, you have to use it, apply it, make it come alive in you as direct experience. That gym membership card in your wallet, and great books on your shelf can't do the work. Putting your focus and effort over time to polish away the cloudiness and pain, build resilience and strength... it's a workout. Assets like Will, Discipline, Willingness are needed. But Courage, Love and Compassion may be more your avenue. Some of both are best. A regular, rhythmic personal practice is part of every path to skill and mastery. Don Juan said there are many different paths; find a path with heart, and follow it to the very end.
The job of therapists, counselors and healers is shifting to teaching us how to use our self-healing system
Support: Steady constant development can be a challenge until a healthy habit is set. We all need structure, just like the timbers that hold up a house. You need to find the support that makes it all work and keep on working for you. Your own commitment is the foundation. That can come from pain or a driving desire for something good, or a simple knowing that something is right and must be done. Then you need clear actions, that actual "to do's". Next comes the time and place to do it. How do you fit it into your day? Sometimes hard choices are required to prioritize your well-being investments. To keep it all together you need outside support too: people who get you and what you are doing, who practice with you or cheer you on, who recognize your efforts and can see your gains. All of these elements can be found together in classes, courses and meetings whether private with a buddy, in local live groups, or virtual and recorded formats. Support groups are one of the best self-improvement tools discovered in the last century and are now in the web. Find what works for you, then work it!
Inspiration: Some spark will have started all of this for you, and you will need to renew your motivation if you are to reach your self-promised land. The hero's journey has many low moments that can derail the entire thing, or serve to refresh and renew. Inspiration can come from internal and external sources. At times your progress inspires and energizes, and sometimes you need some outside encouragement to keep up. You can have these known and ready in ample supply so you know where to go when you are low.Information, Practice, Support and Inspiration...They are constantly interwoven and may ebb and flow in changing proportion.
Which of these 4 are strong in your life, and which are needed in greater measure? Assess where you are and how you are going to grow. When these are in place and working,you will see your self-healing power flourish.
