One of the loudest debates within the personal development and self-help communities is whether or not devoting time to your development is a selfish, self-centered activity. I have addressed this in other posts over the last few years, yet I was recently drawn into conversations with several different people on several different topics, so I decided it was time – yet again – to share my thoughts.
I have written that I devote a lot of uncompensated business time to promoting the use of books to aid and continue an individual’s personal development. You will notice I wrote ‘uncompensated’ business time. That is because at the core of my teachings is not some new profound learning, but the insistence that I and everyone around me move from realizing something about ourselves to making the learning real in our lives.
Two of the easiest areas for others to notice whether or not you are taking care of yourself is weight management and drinking.
At the base of personal development and self-help is the assumption that you care for your body and mind in a way that only helps to bring your spirit alive and keep it connected to your values and beliefs. How you take care of your body is a direct reflection of how you are taking care of yourself. Just think about what you said the last time you saw a friend who had put on a lot of excess body weight or who was drunk when everyone else was just enjoying their alcohol. I would put money that you whispered something like:
“Something must be wrong. He’s not taking care of himself.”
“She has ‘let herself go.’
“That is ‘not like her’ to get drunk when we go out.”
These statements are not moral condemnations but vocal recognitions of something to be concerned about.
Of course, just because you realize a friend or loved one is not taking care of themselves, or you know it about yourself, does not mean they or you are ready to make real the awareness so healing can begin.
That is where the debate about needing to put yourself first before you can begin to take care of anyone else comes full circle. If I don’t care for myself, how can I care for you? If I don’t care for myself and insist that you take better care of yourself, can you really trust my judgment? And if you can’t trust my judgment on something so supposedly unimportant will you every be able to trust me as a life partner, or business partner, or community leader?
Dr. Success Challenge: On a scale of 1 – 10 (10 being the best), rate how well you tend to your personal development. For the next 7 days put your mind, body and spirit first on your daily list of things to do. At the end of the 7 day period, using the same scale of 1 – 10, rate how well you tended to your personal development. Which score was higher? Which one make you feel better about yourself as a person?
Thank you,
Andrea T. Goeglein, PhD
1 866 975 3777
DrSuccess@ServingSuccess.com
http://www.YouTube.com/user/ServingSuccess
www.Facebook.com/DrSuccessPhD
A special note of thanks to author Katherine Saux for her July 12, 2010 daily guide which seeded this blog content.
