Personal growth is not the same for everyone -- by its nature the path that you will take is personal to you, yet at the same time human beings are all part of the same species.We have so much more in common than the things that divide us and after many years of diligent research, scientists have finally cracked the hidden mystical coding of DNA that makes up our species.The human genome project, as it was called, is a bit like Google maps for biologists!So does this mean that all humans are basically the same? Does this mean that our uniqueness is under threat? The idea of being a human clone for most people is a terrifying thought.The idea that we are identical to somebody else could feel like our identity has been stolen or lost.The answer is no -- the complexity of DNA and the possible varieties that the different sequences provide gives rise to the enormous diversity of the human race.Biology then reassures us that we are individuals even though we have a common DNA structure.This is the best of both worlds surely? We are both individual and part of the community.Being part of a community gives us a certainty that we will be accepted at some level simply for being human.Yet at the same time being individual makes us feel unique, special and valuable.Being part of society is being part of the community of human beings which gives a certainty of acceptance.We cannot survive without it, nor would we want to.We all need to connect with other people and we can only do that if we trade off some of our individuality so that we can be part of the community.In more enlightened communities that individuality is welcomed, nourished, expanded and appreciated -- yet for nearly all of us there is pressure to conform.Typically, after we have spent some years trading off our individuality for acceptance by society, we begin to notice some dissatisfaction, particularly if we take the time to listen for it.If we do not listen for it can manifest itself in all sorts of ways later on, such as poor health and the much-discussed "midlife crisis".Part of this is quite simply a desire to return to those early childhood days of being ourselves and exploring our individuality.Ultimately I believe that that being more ourselves day by day is the true path to life of growth and fulfilment.So after a life of conformity how do we begin to re-establish ourselves and re-enter the journey of being more ourselves? If you were to look back at your life you might be able to spot the point where you started to meander off the path of being more yourself.Typically this is as you go to school and start to conform to society's norms.It is going back to some of those early years and remembering what we have now forgotten that will start to shed some light on who we truly are at our core.A practical exercise here is to go back year by year through your life looking at the things that you've done and the choices that you have made and the reasons that you've made them.When you get back to childhood look at the things that you enjoyed doing.What did you spend your time doing when you were not at school? Did you play sport, spend time by yourself read books, run around outside, help others or do creative art?There are many things that you will have done as a child but some you remember with fondness because they brought out something of your uniqueness, they struck a chord with you.Why is this relevant to you as an adult? Quite simply that it shows the sorts of things that you enjoyed before society gave you a list of expectations.You will not have changed so drastically that these parts of you are completely dead.In fact you'll probably see echoes of these interests through the years in the choices that you made in your adult life.This is your authentic self trying to drag you back to your natural unique path.The journey to wholeness is the journey of discovering ourselves and being more ourselves.It requires us to reconnect with our unique characteristics and it is one that lasts a lifetime as there are always new things to learn about ourselves.Enjoy the journey!
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Authentic Personal Growth - Discovering Your Uniqueness by Being More Yourself
Personal growth is not the same for everyone -- by its nature the path that you will take is personal to you, yet at the same time human beings are all part of the same species.We have so much more in common than the things that divide us and after many years of diligent research, scientists have finally cracked the hidden mystical coding of DNA that makes up our species.The human genome project, as it was called, is a bit like Google maps for biologists!So does this mean that all humans are basically the same? Does this mean that our uniqueness is under threat? The idea of being a human clone for most people is a terrifying thought.The idea that we are identical to somebody else could feel like our identity has been stolen or lost.The answer is no -- the complexity of DNA and the possible varieties that the different sequences provide gives rise to the enormous diversity of the human race.Biology then reassures us that we are individuals even though we have a common DNA structure.This is the best of both worlds surely? We are both individual and part of the community.Being part of a community gives us a certainty that we will be accepted at some level simply for being human.Yet at the same time being individual makes us feel unique, special and valuable.Being part of society is being part of the community of human beings which gives a certainty of acceptance.We cannot survive without it, nor would we want to.We all need to connect with other people and we can only do that if we trade off some of our individuality so that we can be part of the community.In more enlightened communities that individuality is welcomed, nourished, expanded and appreciated -- yet for nearly all of us there is pressure to conform.Typically, after we have spent some years trading off our individuality for acceptance by society, we begin to notice some dissatisfaction, particularly if we take the time to listen for it.If we do not listen for it can manifest itself in all sorts of ways later on, such as poor health and the much-discussed "midlife crisis".Part of this is quite simply a desire to return to those early childhood days of being ourselves and exploring our individuality.Ultimately I believe that that being more ourselves day by day is the true path to life of growth and fulfilment.So after a life of conformity how do we begin to re-establish ourselves and re-enter the journey of being more ourselves? If you were to look back at your life you might be able to spot the point where you started to meander off the path of being more yourself.Typically this is as you go to school and start to conform to society's norms.It is going back to some of those early years and remembering what we have now forgotten that will start to shed some light on who we truly are at our core.A practical exercise here is to go back year by year through your life looking at the things that you've done and the choices that you have made and the reasons that you've made them.When you get back to childhood look at the things that you enjoyed doing.What did you spend your time doing when you were not at school? Did you play sport, spend time by yourself read books, run around outside, help others or do creative art?There are many things that you will have done as a child but some you remember with fondness because they brought out something of your uniqueness, they struck a chord with you.Why is this relevant to you as an adult? Quite simply that it shows the sorts of things that you enjoyed before society gave you a list of expectations.You will not have changed so drastically that these parts of you are completely dead.In fact you'll probably see echoes of these interests through the years in the choices that you made in your adult life.This is your authentic self trying to drag you back to your natural unique path.The journey to wholeness is the journey of discovering ourselves and being more ourselves.It requires us to reconnect with our unique characteristics and it is one that lasts a lifetime as there are always new things to learn about ourselves.Enjoy the journey!
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