“It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you change, grow, and transform.” “She who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.” “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” These are a few personal growth quotes that contain the truth of why personal growth is important.
We hear much about personal growth, but what is it exactly? Do we need to start when we are young or can we start anytime in life? Do we need to be experts or is personal growth for everyone? Questions like these can prevent us from starting the exciting journey of personal growth.
Personal growth is important for everyone to reach their fullest potential and live a balanced life.
What is meant by personal growth?
Personal growth, also called personal development, is developing our skills, wisdom, and character. It’s not just about learning. It is about applying what we learn, so it becomes part of who we are. Personal growth is all about us, about ourselves. We invest in ourselves by working on our development.
Ultimately, personal growth leads to the highest form of human fulfillment. Sure, we need to breathe, eat, sleep and have a social network around to keep us sane and safe. But if we want to explore our God-given potential, we will need to explore beyond the normal boundaries.
Doing that will let us discover that self-actualization improves the way we enjoy all other aspects of our lives, too. Personal development can bring us closer to the life of our dreams.
How can we achieve self-improvement?
Personal growth does not come by itself. It needs effort, energy, and time. The most successful people make time for their personal development and growth. They don’t remain where they are, but keep investing in their growth.
We achieve personal growth by learning to understand ourselves and pushing ourselves to reach our highest potential. It means always asking ourselves whom we are becoming and how we plan to get there. It can involve working on new habits and hobbies, fostering new skills, and practicing new strategies to achieve our goals.
What is personal growth and why is it important?
Personal growth is the process of an individual realizing self in its entireness, followed by taking steps to address the behavior, attitudes, values, actions, and habits that they wish to change. The number one reason people hire a coach is personal growth.
In an ever-changing environment, personal development gives us the tools to thrive. It helps us become a better version of ourselves.
We can define personal development as improving our skills, knowledge, wisdom, habits, behavior, and personal qualities. Personal development ultimately helps us reach our full potential, be our best selves, and live our happiest, most successful lives.
Without working on our personal growth, we would be stationary in life, perform mediocre results, and not feel fulfilled.
Personal growth isn’t always easy, but the benefits will make the journey worthwhile.
What are the 5 areas of personal growth?
Personal development involves all aspects of our lives where we want to see personal growth. We can identify five different areas of personal growth. Different personal development goals can fall into different categories.
To become a well-balanced person, we need to pay attention to each of the five types of personal growth. It is then that we will reach our full potential for personal progress.
Mental
We need to exercise our brains and stay mentally fit if we want to achieve personal development. Our mental muscles need to remain flexible.
Mental development can be anything from reading non-fiction books, attending workshops or training sessions, exploring a new topic, or even just resting. Rest is just as important as mental exercise.
Mental exercise also includes positive thinking, anxiety control, visualization, goal setting, and attentional control.
And as your mental fitness improves, so does your resiliency, innovation, and self-awareness.
Social
Social connections and healthy relationships are also a must-have for any personal development. We are not alone in the world, and self-improvement is not an isolated pursuit. God created us as social creatures. We need a connection to learn and grow.
Social connections teach us important skills. For example, communication skills, problem-solving, relationship-building, and the ability to receive (and give) feedback. We also learn from those around us and their experiences.
Spiritual
Personal growth, whether you’re religious or not, can come through in spirituality. God created each of us with a deep need for connection with Him. Building this connection enhances our personal growth.
Our spiritual wellbeing plays a vital role in our total wellbeing. We cannot leave it out when working on our personal development.
Emotional
Emotional development involves learning what feelings and emotions are, understanding how and why they occur, recognizing our own feelings and those of others, and developing effective ways of managing those feelings.
It is vital to understand ourselves emotionally, as our sense of self is strongly influenced by our perception of ourselves. All experiences in our lives lend themselves to emotional development and help us in our pursuit of self-improvement.
Physical
A healthy body nourishes a healthy mind. There’s an intrinsic link between our physical, mental, and emotional well-being. When we take care of our physical health, we increase a part of our personal growth. We can think of things like nutrition, sleep, exercise, and movement.
When we don’t nourish our bodies, it’s likely our minds are affected. We can consider ways to build this area of personal development and note how our bodies and our minds feel.
Working on all the types of personal growth will enable us to grow into well-balanced people. Strong. Resilient. Happy in life. We will transform into the persons God designed us to be.
Where do I start my personal growth journey?
Working on personal growth can mean a lot of things, from taking a class, reading a book, starting a healthy diet or go to the gym, to working on a mindset change. It all starts with the desire to change and then the decision to do it. Wishing to grow isn’t enough. We need to put it into action.
Step 1: set goals
The best way to start is by setting goals. Goals benefit our personal growth process. Review past goals (if you ever made them): ask yourself the honest but tough questions about whether you’re achieving them in every area of your life. If you haven’t set goals before, now is the time to start. Goals work best if you write them done.
Don’t know where to start with your goals? Do a personal check of your life: is it well balanced? A perfect tool for this is the Wheel of Life. The Wheel of Life can show you which area(s) of your life need improvement to get in balance with the rest of your life. Do the Wheel of Life assessment and pick one area to work on your personal development.
Coaching on life balance can also help explore ways to get more satisfaction out of your life and to create true life balance to live with more peace, passion, and fulfillment. As a Confidence Coach, I use the Wheel of Life worksheet as a coaching assessment tool to help my clients get a grip on life and increase in confidence.
Here is a free Wheel of Life Coaching Template Pdf, with explanation and an example.
Step 2: determine the gap
Then, look at your current state in that area and what the gap is between the ‘now’ and the full achievement of your goals. Have a good look at where you want to be. Write it down, make it visible. Having a clear picture in mind helps you walk the journey of personal growth.
Clarity about the end goal helps you stick to your plan and prevents following sidetracks.
Step 3: how to get there
Next is to determine what you need to do for yourself to get there. What do you need to do to achieve the results you desire? Can you do it at home? Outdoors? Alone or with someone else? IN a group? Online or in class? Do you need to study or exercise every day?
Ask yourself what will get you to the desired end? Write it down, make a plan to achieve it.
Step 4: support
Do you need people around you to motivate you on the way? Have a look at your family and friends: who can you confide to and ask to support you? Or perhaps you can be your own top fan?
How are your finances? Do you need to invest in the journey? Do you need to do some temporary overtime to generate income? Do you need help? Or do you have what it takes, or is money not relevant for this area of your personal growth?
Do you need to set time apart to work on your personal development? Do you need to reduce your hours of sleep to have enough time to fulfill all your responsibilities and still engage in your personal growth journey? It is vital to schedule time instead of randomly working on it.
Do you need tools or equipment? Do you need to create a dedicated space in your home? Etc. Depending on what you want to work on, you may want to determine what you need to support yourself to get the best results.
Step 5: accountability
It can be of great help to have an accountability partner for your growth-journey. That partner can be you yourself or someone else. Even if it is someone else, you need to take responsibility for your goals, actions, and growth.
Accountability is crucial to personal growth. When you take responsibility for your actions rather than blaming others, it gives you the opportunity to learn, grow, and problem-solve together. Accountability about your personal development increases your ability to confront issues head-on.
Using an accountability partner, such as your spouse, a trusted friend, or a coach. You establish an ongoing, reciprocal relationship with that person. Both commit to achieving the goals and to be held accountable for the progress. This relationship helps you to stick to your commitment to personal growth.
Conclusion, personal growth is….
Personal growth and self-improvement are a big part of being successful in life. Don’t take it for granted. Working on every type of personal growth will propel you into being a well-balanced, peaceful, happy person. It will give you the confidence you need to face life every day.
If you’re not sure where to start, or have struggled with this in the past, coaching can help you get started with your goals, define the path to achieve them, and realize them. A coach can hold you accountable to yourself and your own development. It is just a lot easier when you don’t have to do it alone.
As certified Strengths Coach and Confidence Coach, I would be more than happy to start, continue, or finish this journey of personal growth with you. You can reach out to me by booking a FREE enquiry call, approaching me by social media, or completing the contact form.
Christel Owoo is a professional Life Coach with ACC-credentials from ICF.
She is passionate about helping women gain confidence.
Do you want to gain confidence in life and live fully in your God-given potential?
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