Personal Growth – Page 36

You Are Not Here to Judge

Truths applied to yourself result in growth. Truths applied to others result in judgement. If we want to help other people grow, we must find a way for them to discover their own truths. If we give them our truths, then we will only be judging them.

It is difficult to place ourselves in the shoes of another person, and view the world from their vantage point. It is not the natural way we think of the world. Yet everyone has a different unique view of the world. Everyone has their own inner voice that speaks for them.

If you are interested in helping someone else, here are three things that can help you avoid judging.

1. Help them discover their own truths. Engage in conversation that is thought provoking for them. Ask about their thoughts. Continue to delve deeper allowing them to really contemplate what they are telling you.

2. Stop giving advice. Instead of giving advice, ask about options. If you help them discover numerous options or alternative paths, they will have a chance to decide the correct course in their world.

3. Don’t be attached to an outcome. Most of the time we have a solution for people. We want them to reach a specific conclusion. We want to guide them to see things our way. You need to throw away that thought and allow people to develop their own solutions. Be supportive whatever the outcome.

Is there someone close to you that you have tried to direct, and it has resulted in a poor outcome? How can you adjust your relationship to be more supportive, and less judgmental?

Stretching Out of Your Comfort Zone

It was the psychologist Abraham Maslow that said, “If you plan on being anything less than you are capable of being, you will probably be unhappy all the days of your life.” Yet, forty-two percent of college graduates in the United States have never read another book after completing school.

I have reflected on the key changes in my life, and how I have stepped out of my comfort zone. I never made decisions to stretch myself and grow. I made decisions based on opportunity, and being aware of the opportunity at the right time.

I don’t think it is by coincidence that the experiences that gave me the most growth and personal reward are the experiences that were outside my comfort zone. This fact has made me start to examine how I can leave my comfort zone. For my own growth, not for a company, or someone else. I want it for myself, to stretch to my potential.

What about you? What experiences have shaped your life? How many of them required you to be out of your comfort zone? What actions should you be taking today to stretch yourself?

Stop Limiting Yourself

When do you let limitations control you? Peter McWilliams once said, “When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them.” To be successful, you must think of obstacles as opportunities. When you approach life with a positive attitude, the challenges you face will make you stronger.

Napoleon Hill has said, “There are no limitations to the mind except those we acknowledge.”

This week’s reflection exercise is to think about the limitations you have placed on yourself. Select the largest and determine how you can eliminate it from your thinking.