Spirit Mind Living: Is self improvement necessary?

Jeffrey Allen - Energy Healer, Author and Speaker

Spirit Mind Living: Is self improvement necessary?

5:06

 

Jeffrey explores the difference between self-improvement and self-love. Can we have one without the other?

[abbreviated transcript below]

I was reading a book on my Kindle & noticed some missing quotes. As I started to submit an error, “You missed a quote," I stopped myself. I realized that being in a perpetual mode of improving things can distract from enjoying the beauty of what's there. 

I'm reading this book to relax & enjoy the story. Why am I breaking that beautiful flow and focusing on such details? Maybe I can just let it go, maybe I could just let the small things be. 

I realized “Oh, this is a fun practice!" I can just let it be. 

Similarly, if I'm feeling something is off within, instead of constantly improving myself, I can say, "Oh, that's nice. I have a place where something's a bit strange, a bit funny.” then move on. Just let it be.

Earlier in my life, I thought I could improve myself to perfection. I don't know if it was a conscious idea, but I was constantly looking for improvements. I went full-time into correcting & healing mode.

Over the years, I've found that this high-adrenaline style of personal growth can be fun, but that it's not necessary. Our normal lives bring us enough opportunity to observe ourselves, to course correct if we want, and to change things within and around us.

The same is true at work. Instead of automatically correcting things at work, I've gotten in the habit of taking a little note instead. Interestingly, when I read the notes later, those things that seemed so important earlier now feel trivial, perhaps not worth mentioning at all. That bug in the software, those words that seemed out of place, or whatever caught my attention before… I'm so glad I didn't spend time fixing them. Letting them go helped me be more in the flow & enjoy my work in the moment.

I think this is the difference between self-improvement as a goal & self-realization, self-love, or self-actualization. All these other words are simply about being myself naturally - with and without my perceived flaws - because we're each a work in progress. And totally lovable.