Special thanks to Thea Westra of My Forward Steps for this guest post!

 

Life is a bunch of personal growth phases, some slow and others you move through super fast. You have a choice in moving your development along or going along with an organic flow. Whether we choose one or the other depends on the projects we create for ourselves, during our stay on this planet.

For some people the biggest game they play is survival, and your personal growth is reliant on what it is that you need each moment, to survive in your immediate environment. Some of us on the planet have incredible obstacles to face on a daily basis and for others it may simply be the daily challenge of getting in the shower and arriving at work on time.

There are many people I meet who say that they are searching for growth and they wade through a full range of the self help books and recordings. What could be missing is that they are not asking for the challenges. It is the act of getting yourself from one side of a goal to the other side of the set target, which will cause you to grow as a person.

You will not know which tools you will need until you are up to something in life. A lot of people are looking at the lovely, shiny new tools on display and even buying some to take home. They’ll just store them in the shed, in case they are needed one day.

If I can use myself as an example, I do not need to be writing a book or creating a newsletter each month, I do not need the Forward Steps web site and all those blogs. I could simply get up each day, go to the day job, save for the next holiday and do that till I am retirement age. Then watch hundreds of years of television till I die.

It wasn’t until I came to a roadblock with regard writing my book that I recognized I needed a few practices in place to support me, for moving through to another level in my own growth. I had been neglecting my spiritual work for quite some weeks, and I had become a doing machine!

A few things that I have since put into place are, daily visualizations to clarify my desired end result, and a meditation each day to be with me and to just notice what was going on internally. Setting a personal deadline for completion of the book and spending time each morning to create my day, so that I have a short range target toward the overall end result. Each evening before sleep, listing the six things to accomplish next day, so my mind then works on it during the night. Making certain requests of my accountability buddies and letting them know what I need from them to keep me moving forward, when the little voice in my head says to do something else instead. Using my calendar effectively to plan my work, and then working that plan. Listening to others on audio, people who have already been where I want to go.

Now, if I was living a survival lifestyle and the biggest game in my life was to get to my job on time so that I could pay the next bill that came to me, would I be looking at those kinds of tools to support me?

It is not until you create a game in life that will take you beyond your status quo and that will take you beyond where you have been before in your experiences, that you will start looking around for the tools you will need to do that job.

Think about it. When was the last time you needed a hammer? It just lies in that shed or toolbox until you have a picture to hang, and it is then that you go digging around for the right nail and your hammer? Have you ever joined a gym and attended for only a few weeks, then stopped? You simply did not have a big enough reason for going each day. You hadn’t decided on an end result for yourself.

The thing is, you will not find the tools you need until you are in there and playing a game, with an end result that you have personally decided to achieve, and by a set deadline. Create the need and the tools will show up!

 

Thea Westra lives in Perth, Australia and publishes a wealth of material for increased life power, self improvement, inspiration, personal success, online business, and internet know-how.

Thea is also the creator of the My Forward Steps Membership, a treasure trove, abundant with tips for enrichment, increased life power, self improvement, being inspired, success, plus online business and internet know-how.

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