Self Help is a Crack Dealer

Taking action to grow emotionally is a good thing.

Reading a book or going to a seminar isn’t growth. It might be the seed to get you started.

But it’s not growth.

Worse, it becomes an addiction of its own.

Collecting every strategy for self-improvement thinking that’s the improvement itself is an easy trap to fall into.

It’s easy because it’s a cop-out. It’s your ego attempting to fool you into thinking you’re taking steps to grow without actually challenging it.

You’ll know you’re actually growing when you’re in a place of discomfort.

When your ego is pissed off.

It’s the dysfunction you’re in now that’s the warm bath.

How do you trick the ego into pursuing discomfort?

Two strategies off the top of my head… put the uncomfortable “growth” date on a calendar. When that day arrives, commit to the date. Mine? I’m forcing myself to learn swing dancing. It’s on the calendar. I don’t want to go. I bet I have a great time anyway.

Not a scheduler?

Try this. This is how I make sure I get on my rowing machine every day…

I bought some slip-on sneakers. I don’t wear them anywhere else. They sit next to my rower. I put them on when I row and I take them off when I’m done.

When the sneakers go on, my rowing muse appears.

The sneakers are a mask.

A mask to sneak past the ego.