During the month of September, we have spoken about sexual health and suicide. To hone things in on a lighter note, September is ALSO Self-Improvement month! A whole month dedicated to improving one’s self and realizing what they want to change in their life. Damn, if only there was a blog that would help me with my self-improvement…*wink*.
Self-improvement has always been put on the back burner of society because no one cares about how you feel. Sorry, it is just the harsh truth. No one cares about how you feel because:
- Everyone is innately selfish.
- People only worry about what they are dealing with in their world.
- People will always worry about their feelings first.
- Older generations have put emphasis on titles, work, and “getting ahead” as opposed to individuality, self-care, and community assistance.
Those bullet points are the exact reason why you hear people say:
- “I am too busy to deal with this right now.”
- “I’ll get to it when I can.”
- “Oh, that’s how you feel? Well, I have to [lists their responsibilities]. What have YOU done?”
- “I’m just so overwhelmed. I have too much on my plate.”
Don’t get me wrong, there are selfless people in this world, but as sad as it is to admit, we are always going to look out for ourselves first (under normal circumstances). That’s simply how humanity is built. Wow, that sounds very pessimistic. It is! But it is also true! This selfishness that we all have built down deep inside of us stems from a lack of self-improvement.
For the most part, we act and perceive our world based around how we feel, and create biased perspectives from those feelings (AKA emotions). If you are angry and someone approaches you, then you are more inclined to be angry with them before any interactions start. This is a form of displacement (taking out your true feelings on someone/something who didn’t deserve it/had nothing to do with your situation). Self-improvement would help this situation in that you would be able to realize your true feelings and how to handle them appropriately.
Self-improvement is not just about becoming enlightened, wiser, or smarter, it is also about taking care of all eight dimensions of your well-being (or wellness) that have an everyday impact on your happiness, health, and peace. This can also affect your relationships with people. There is an old saying that goes, “Every time you point one finger at someone else, you are pointing three back at yourself.” We must learn how to deal with our self before we deal with others. We must learn how to plant our own trees before planting others’ trees.
The Eight Dimensions of Well-Being
- Physical
- Mental
- Emotional
- Spiritual
- Financial
- Environment
- Social
- Occupational
To learn more about the Eight Dimensions of Well-Being, click on this website. (I will go more in depth about each dimensions this week, too).
Our self-improvement can be tied to our self-care, self-esteem, selfishness, and selflessness. (There is a reason why they all start with “self”). We must tend to ourselves before being able to tend to others and understand them. This is how we create and maintain meaningful relationships with those we love. If we can’t take care of ourselves first, what makes us think that we can take care of the people around us? Or the relationships? Or even our materialistic items? How you do one thing is how you do everything, so do everything consciously and with care.
Self-Reflecting,
E.
References: https://www.lifeofwellness.ca/8-dimensions-of-wellness/
#SelfImprovement #Relationships #EightDimensionsOfWellBeing #Selfish #Selfless #Happiness #Health #Peace #LifeOfWellness
thEEsmilE 
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