You must’ve heard the usual comments these days which are ‘children today are so stubborn’, ‘children today don’t have manners’, ‘children today only want the screen’, etc. But have you ever wondered the root cause of the change in these ‘children today’?
Relationships are failing. Divorces are on the rise. Sicknesses have become common. Hospitals are full. Why?
This is because most of us have stopped wanting to improve ourselves for the better. Bettering ourselves for the betterment of the future seems to be absent from our vocabulary. Unless a skill is required to climb the ladder or make more money, self-improvement has sadly taken a backseat. Mostly.
Self-improvement is the ability to improve our personality, our attitude towards things and our response or reactions. Self-improvement is also called self-development or self-growth. It is basically the process of improving, progressing and gaining new or useful skills which could affect many areas of our lives positively.
There are several reasons why we should continuously keep improving ourselves; whether for the good of our family, the people around us or most importantly, ourselves. Only when we improve ourselves, can we expect others to improve, respect and love us wholeheartedly. Only when we improve ourselves, can we love and respect ourselves completely.
Let’s look at a few examples of why self-improvement is important.
When we understand how to attain inner peace, we earn a certain type of respect that lets us feel fulfilled and content around people. When we are respected, we automatically respect others. Besides mutual respect, we are also able to take on challenges, overcome obstacles and keep unwanted things away with a calm mind.
Also, when we learn how to handle our emotions, our family, our partners and the people (friends, acquaintances, colleagues) around us are able to smile and be comfortable with us. Discussions become more constructive than resulting in a cold war. Relationships become stronger. But, living in harmony becomes possible only when each of the parties involved puts in the effort to improve themselves.
When we learn to manage our time, we can make time for ourselves and our passions. Taking a nap, indulging in our passions, doing what makes us feel good, eating healthy, etc. are a few things that are good for our mental health, too.
In a life full of responsibilities, we forget to prioritize important things just because we are told to do or feel the need to do everything. But, we should sit down and prioritize our time, ourselves and the relationships that are important to us. Only if we understand, adjust and improve certain facets of our lives, can we be happy from within and enjoy living.
When we put in an effort to balance our work, personal life and other responsibilities, life becomes much easier to go by. There are many ways to finding this balance. We can adjust timings, create a timetable, make sure we leave work on time, spend quality time with our family, delegate chores, etc.
Balance is the key to having a good life. By making a few adjustments, we can spend time with our kids, nourish our mind and body, say hello to a friend, exercise, etc.
When we take care of ourselves, we tend to inspire our children to do the same. Children copy us; our words, our actions, our eating habits, and sometimes even our expressions.
For example, when we consciously correct ourselves after blurting out a foul word, our children may tend to do the same. Correct themselves. But, if we use foul language at home and only refrain from using cuss words in public, our children may behave just like us or maybe worse, especially in public. And, the same concept applies to bad habits, too. So, are we only correcting our children, or are we correcting ourselves first?
When parents fight at home, it disrupts the development of their kids. Healthy discussions without abuse (verbally or physically) could help our kids learn to discuss instead of raising their fists to make a point. Are we on the same page here?
Some parents are not able to handle their children. They are not able to understand them. They are not able to control them. They are not able to protect them from themselves or others. These kids are probably a menace around other people. And, perhaps looked at as a reason for stress at home. But, how do they become this way?
It is because of us. We, as parents, tend to give time to everything else before our kids’ emotional health. Instead of taking time to talk to them and understand them, we keep ourselves busy with everything else like their extra-curricular activities, academic marks, achieving milestones, showing off their talents, etc. What our kids need is us. They need our time, they need us to talk to them, they need us to tell them why they should do something, they need us to correct them when they are wrong and they need us to guide them. They need us to help them understand their emotions.
Kids are the future. And, if they need our time, we need to give it to them, so that they can develop better and become strong human beings. When we sit and talk to them calmly, ask them about their day, suggest solutions for their problems, cuddle with them, etc. their emotional quotient improves. In turn, they may also be able to help others improve.
By citing some of the examples above, it hereby proves that self-improvement is important. Even if we cannot improve in every facet of our lives, we must try our best to improve our skills, reactions, behaviour and lifestyle that matter and that help the next generation become better individuals.
If we, especially parents, want a brighter tomorrow, we must improve ourselves first, before expecting others to ‘do the right thing’, ‘behave’, ‘eat right’ or ‘get off the screen’. Only if we concentrate on self-discipline, improving our willpower and patience, getting rid of bad or weakening habits, strengthening our focus and concentration, etc. can we handle our emotions, our relationships and our children in a better way. Only then can we have a brighter tomorrow. Don’t you think?
Self-improvement is important. What are your thoughts? What steps have you taken to get rid of a bad habit or improve yourself in some way?
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3 Comments
Self-improvement is always very very important in every sense. the day we will start ignoring the thought of self-improvement for sure that will be the day from which we will stop growing and if we stop growing…. rest I believe I don’t need to explain. The reasons are very valid that you shared in this post and thank you so much for sharing.
I like how you categorize the benefits as per the age groups. As they say change is the only constant and good change always brings along self-improvement of some kind, right?
True.