growth, improving yourself
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1) What are ways to grow as a person?
Growth means the ability to know yourself and recognize areas in which you can strive to be a better human. Oftentimes, what moves or pushes people to grow is when they are being to see that their life might not be moving in the direction they want it to go. Being able to admit this to yourself is the first step in growing. I often say in therapy “come for the crisis, stay for the growth.”
Growth can come in many forms.
Recognizing where you need to grow
One of the first steps in growing is recognizing in what areas you might need to grow. Do you struggle with your relationships? Maybe you need to look at your role in those relationships. Do you feel always taken advantage of, Maybe it would be helpful to examine setting more boundaries.
But, if you aren’t quite ready to do deeper work, there are simple ways to start to grow was well.
Contribute to your community
Find ways where you can make a difference. You might always be looking for ways to make an impact and this can often be done in the smallest of ways. There are likely places right outside your doorstep that could use your help, whether it be time, money, clothes, books. Giving back often gives you a feeling of pride and appreciation for what you have.
Step out of your comfort zone
There is no better way to grow than to do something that makes you uncomfortable. Regardless of what happens, there will be learning that occurs. It is a great way to try new things, perhaps travel somewhere new, or learn a new hobby. Once you take that risk once, it gets easier and easier each subsequent time.
Be curious
In the same way you might step out of your comfort zone, you can also grow by following your own curiosity. What were the things you loved to do as a kid that perhaps you have stopped doing because you thought it was silly or didn’t make much sense to do as an adult? Follow that curiosity in the same way a child follow their curiosity and if and you decide after a little while you know longer are interested, give it up and try something new.
Pay attention to how you feel with others
If you leave an interaction feeling terrible about yourself, maybe it is time to move away from that relationship. It is important to be able to notice how you feel when you are with others. What relationships fill you up vs. what relationships drain you. Taking steps to move away from those who drain you is a big step towards growth.
2) What traits might make someone a "bad" person? This will be conscious language focused, not to worry.
It is very rare that people are inherently “bad people” but there are a lot of people who make bad choices or do bad things based on their upbringing and experiences that they have suffered in there lives. Sometimes these people lack empathy, will say and do hurtful things and manipulate others. Oftentimes, we label people with this behavior as bad, but in therapy, when you dig a bit deeper, you find that oftentimes people who behave in ways that are considered “bad” by societal standards may have never experienced love, have suffered severe physical or psychological trauma and their current actions are a response to that. While that does not excuse their behavior, it is important to understand and explain why the behavior developed and where it came from.
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