Personal growth and development is really based on the evolutionary imperative that demands that we keep expanding beyond who we have been. In a flourishing life, this growth is continuous and covers all parts of us, from our skill sets to our emotional intelligence. We enter the world with a certain set of understandings, talents, abilities, and inclinations. Our charge is to continually nurture and expand upon what we’ve been given. In other words, personal growth and development is all about change.
As John F. Kennedy said, “The only unchangeable certainty in life is that nothing is unchangeable or certain.” Personal growth is about embracing change and growth, not waiting for it to happen to you.
Many people assume that the main learning in life is in our youth. We dutifully go through school to acquire basic knowledge. We hone our personas so we can navigate our relationships. We learn a trade or profession so we can support ourselves. But after that, except for some on-the-job training, many of us figure the learning process is done. By our mid-twenties, many of us no longer seek to stretch and explore. We figure that we’re fully developed adults, no longer works in progress. We’ve arrived.
But staying within that box is not what a flourishing life is about. In nature, once you stop growing, you start dying. And with life expectancies in this country becoming longer, 60 plus years of dying is much too long! To truly flourish and find fulfillment, we must become life-long learners, constantly pursuing opportunities to expand our horizons, grow in our intellectual understandings, and deepen our emotional capacity.
Learning is not necessarily about pursuing degrees or credentials.
This may be a natural result of life-long growth, but it isn’t the goal. Letters after your name will not bring lasting satisfaction. It’s the learning that those letters represent that is important, and that learning can act as a launch pad for further discoveries and expansion.
It’s also not necessarily about chasing down gurus or seminars. Experiences designed to encourage your growth are an important part of the picture. But running from workshop to workshop is not where the real expansion happens. It’s in doing the internal work that these workshops and trainers teach. True growth happens when you apply your learnings to your life.
When you do this, you find that life itself provides plenty of opportunities for growth and expanded awareness. And if your environment doesn’t encourage that growth, you may need to change environments. Download my book, What is Your Roadblock to Fulfillment today!