Stages of Personal Growth: Warrior Mind Podcast #370

Over four years and going strong!  With over 500,000 downloads from over 9 countries and 5 continents’…. this is the Warrior Mind Podcast.

In this episode of the Warrior Mind Podcast I’m going to discuss the 4 stages of personal growth, how to identify them and move through them.

Zig Ziglar, who was a highly regarded motivational speaker, once said the following: “Our problem is that we make the mistake of comparing ourselves with other people. You are not inferior or superior to any human being…. you do not determine your success by comparing yourself to others; rather you determine your success by comparing your accomplishments to your capabilities. You are “number one” when you do the best you can with what you have”.

Once we fully appreciate the fact that the journey towards our destination is just as significant as our destination itself, then personal growth can become an incredibly enjoyable and rewarding experience. If we only focus on the destination, our journey quickly becomes a chore; a chore which we would rather be rid of. The journey has such a great deal to offer, but sadly, many people miss out on these offerings because they are only concerned about reaching their destination.

For many people, the journey to wholeness is fraught with difficulties and challenges, and it is important that these should be seen in the proper perspective. After all, from great difficulty comes great learning, providing you are will to embrace it. However, most people have a deep-rooted dislike for difficulties, and this prevents them from seeing the many benefits which can be had from such times.

Growth is not something that happens overnight. Instead, it is a long process, and one which we can actually enjoy providing that we can alter the way in which we view difficulty. We need to focus also on all the benefits we can gain from our journey to our destination, rather than only focusing on our destination alone.

If we can nurture this sort of mindset, we will be better equipped to deal with difficulty in a way which is constructive; it will help us to view difficulties as challenges which can be overcome. Let’s now take a brief look at the four stages that can help you to have a better understanding of the process of personal growth. By having a better understanding of this, you will also find that is becomes easier for you to determine where about you are on the path of progress.

Trying to be the best you possibly can be presents you with many challenges, and having a better appreciation of the four stages will make if a whole lot easier for you to meet and overcome those challenges. It is also important to constantly remind yourself that in order for you to progress from one stage to the next, you need to keep the wheels turning, because only then will you be able to benefit from your personal growth.

Enjoy this podcast on the stages of personal growth

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Resistance and Self-Doubt

This is the first stage of the personal growth process. It is where virtually everyone has to begin their journey. However, it is also the stage where many people give up due to a lack of support, and because they don’t have a solid understanding of the actual growth process. At this stage, many people will feel as though they are not actually achieving anything. For them, it feels as though there is no forward movement, but this feeling is almost always due to resistance caused by the subconscious mind.

When your conscious mind presents something which differs to what is stored in your subconscious mind, the conflict inevitable occurs. In other words, if new trains of thought and new experiences put forward by the conscious mind don’t match the trains of thought and experiences that are stored in the subconscious mind, then conflict arises.

Fortunately, the truth of the matter is that this “conflict” response is perfectly normal and healthy. Think of the subconscious mind as being a hard drive. Before you download a program and save it to your hard drive, you want to be sure that the program is in fact safe to download, and that it is a download with genuine value. This is exactly what your subconscious mind is doing when it makes you start doubting yourself. Basically, it is trying to force you to make absolutely certain that your train of thought is the train of thought which you want it to save.

Duality and Reduced Conflict

This is the second stage, and while there is still resistance and doubt, you will discover that belief in your new train of thought is starting to gain momentum now. This period of duality is a time when you will at times have a great of belief in the new path you have chosen, while at other times you will once again have doubts. In this respect, duality can be likened to a game of tug of war between doubt and belief.

As you continue persevering through this stage, the tide increasingly begins flowing in the direction of belief, and the periods of resistance you experience become shorter and less and less significant. One could say that your subconscious mind is beginning to place far more trust in your conscious mind, and it is therefore offering less resistance.

Acceptance and the Death of Resistance

In this third stage, you can expect to encounter almost no resistance at all. There will be occasions when you run into some resistance, but it will be weak and easy to overcome. Any resistance at this point is like a last desperate attempt to revert you back to your old way and your old habits, but by now, the resistance has been sapped of virtually all its strength.

At this point, you no longer need to recite positive affirmations; you no longer have to remind yourself that you are doing the right thing, because by now you already believe in yourself and in the decisions you make. Now, when you have some still-time, you will no longer spend that time doubting yourself, but instead, you will spend your still-time thinking about all the wonderful things you now know you can achieve.

Infinity of Self-Realization

Finally, you reach the fourth and final stage, the stage that never ends because by now your shackles have been completely removed and you are free to continue your journey for as long as you wish. All resistance has evaporated, and you are free to move forward unhindered. The force of productivity is now so abundant that it overflows into all areas and all aspects of your life. Now there are no more barriers, and any challenges that surface are simply taken in your stride. If you have reached this fourth and final stage, self-love and self-belief will remain with you forever.

Not only will your own life have improved, but the blinding radiance of positivity that emanates from you will have a positive impact on others as well. Now you do not only have the power to realize your own dreams, but you also have the power to help others realize their dreams but inspiring them.

The road to complete self-empowerment (Stage 4) can be extremely challenging, and if you let your guard down, resistance can easily get the better of you. The only way to reach stage four is the perseverance and self-determination, both of which can be strengthened with the help of self-empowering activities.

So, as you navigate your way along the journey towards self-empowerment, think not only about your destination, but take pause to enjoy all the beautiful scenery along the way as you pass through each wonderful stage.

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