Growth Spurt
“Whatever makes you uncomfortable is your biggest opportunity for growth.”
For those of you who have been seeing my posts on social media, you will know that I have been appearing as a podcast guest on several podcasts. It’s a great way for me to share my message as an introvert. I just need to do the recordings with the podcast hosts and most times, it’s like a casual one-to-one conversation. My message is heard by the show’s listeners. It’s a perfect growth area for me as an introvert! However, last year, when one of my clients suggested to me about doing a podcast, I cringed. I told her that I am more of a “words” person, that I love writing and am very uncomfortable to hear my voice or even see my face out there on video! Fast forward to today, I’m speaking on podcasts and yes, some of them have posted my interview videos on their YouTube channels. My kids find the idea of me being on YouTube hilarious since they can’t imagine Mum being out there!
It is not easy putting yourself in a place of discomfort, moving outside your comfort zone. What has been your experience on your growth as a person, whether professionally or personally? What has been your greatest challenge in this area? Are you growing? Do you want to grow? “Low, grouchy, fed-up and bored” - are these words in your current vocabulary that aptly describes how you are feeling right now? It is perfectly fine to feel this way as we all have our off-days.
However, what happens when you get a whole string of those off-days, maybe lasting weeks, months or even years? Too many of us say that we’re in a rut, feel stuck, fed-up, or bored and admit that we don’t want things to be that way, but we don’t know what to do to change. That’s the problem, when you’re in a rut, you don’t have the energy or motivation to change things for the better, and it may be tough to find the insight or resources you need to take that step out and start growing.
“Everything will work out exactly how and when it is supposed to, regardless of how and when you may want it to. Let your faith in the journey be stronger than your doubts and fears. Be patient with yourself and your growth, knowing that good things always take time. Give yourself time and space to try things and explore different paths. You will get there one day so don’t forget to enjoy the journey too.
- Nikki Banas, American author
Experiment with these perspectives to see if they increase your inclination and motivation towards growth:
Do Something Differently
Life tends to run smoothly when we establish systems and routines for things, but the problem comes when things run too smoothly and we become blinded to any ideas or choices that sit outside of our routine. All the stuff we do every day becomes the norm, running on auto-pilot, and it becomes our whole world.
Start with making one or two simple changes to your day - be it at breakfast time, your daily work routines or what you would do to wind down in the evenings. Don’t worry about what the changes are or whether they’re right or wrong, just implement a few simple choices and see how they feel.
Doing something differently or changing parts of your routine, instantly takes you out of the norm and allows you to shake off the things that make you feel confined. Step out of your routine and you’ll be in a position where you’re able to make different choices, see things differently and get a different result.
Use your Intuition
Your intuition is a powerful ally, and we all have it even though you might not recognize it. Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without recourse to conscious reasoning.
One of the best friends you'll ever have in life is your intuition, and tuning into it and learning to trust it is something that can have some truly remarkable effects. Accessing your intuition is a bit like working and developing a muscle, but unfortunately it can be harder to locate than a bicep or quadricep, which tend to stay in the same place.
Here are some quick tips for accessing and trusting it:
Practice maintaining a curious and non-judgmental attitude. This is the most fertile ground to tap into your intuition. Look at things and situations that you are familiar with curiosity, as though you’re an investigator or explorer seeing it for the first time.
Practice making wild guesses in your everyday life. Guess what a salesperson's name is, what a new person or place will look like or who's calling on the phone. Don't worry about getting it wrong, you're just working that muscle.
Try a few simple observation exercises in your daily life. Whether you're in a restaurant, on a train, in a bar, or out shopping, practice noticing non-verbal behaviour in others. Look for shifts in posture, eye movements, vocal tone or tempo, etc. Guess how they're feeling or what they're talking about.
These exercises also help you stay in the present moment and allow you to appreciate the current events as they unfold before you rather than mulling about the past or trying hard to work out your plans for the future.
Commit to Learning Something New Daily
It doesn’t have to be something big. You don’t have to sign up for a diploma or take on a masters program (but if you are keen to do so, by all means, go ahead!). I’m encouraging you to see the learning opportunities that each day presents. For example, I was watching a YouTube video with my daughters the other day and learnt how to make a dragonfly using a piece of string. It was challenging at first (the video showed us that it could be done in 5 minutes! but I took 20 minutes to complete it) but we were all thrilled when I completed it. It gave us the motivation to learn more craft skills using string! You could explore learning a new word each day. Perhaps, it can be completing your learning and development modules assigned to you at work. Instead of looking at it as a mandatory task which must be done, adopt the approach of wanting to do it and seeing the possible benefits that it gives you. Remember to have fun as you commit to learning and growing!
I would love to hear your experiences on exploring these ways to stimulate your motivation towards growth. If you feel that you want more support in this area, please reach out to me here to schedule a complimentary 30-minutes discovery call to see how I can work with you towards your growth!
