What is Growth?

Growth is a relative term and can mean many different, but similar things. It can mean anything from physical growing to seeing an economic boom. Plus as humans, we tend to see ourselves grow as “humans” when we do something for the good of ourselves. I could sit here and go on with this malarkey, but let’s get to the meaty parts. We are talking about personal stages of growth here boys and girls. 

Honestly this is a weird one to write. I really had to look inside for examples because I kinda did want to add a personal taste to this draft. When I look inside however all that I can think is what is really the difference from teenager me, and the me I have become. So I guess we’ll talk about teenage me, and how those choices made the man I am today.

Let’s start with the fact that I was that edgy punk kid that got along with everyone, or at least tried to. You could always find me with my friend group, or I was probably off by myself. I like to think I was a great student, but I had my moments of getting into trouble with my friends. Being in the high-school band also had a big influence on my personality and being. These are just the kind of points I am going to be touching on.

Motivation through Music

Like I said before I was an edgy kid, I am heavily influenced by the music I listened to. I listened to everything in high-school as long as it was rock, metal, grunge, or punk. The music molded me honestly because I would get lost in a lot of the music I listen to; hell to this day I almost always have music playing around me. Not to sound like that cliche high school girl, but music got me through high-school. I used music for homework, to study for tests, and to help me further my musical interests (playing instruments, not singing in musicals). The point of this is that music is a big personality trait I have, and it grew because of the love and appreciation of it when I was growing up. 

Learning Development

Now me as a student is a bit different. I had those parents where all I had to make were C’s and they would be happy. So that is what I did. I did enough to get A’s and B’s then the occasional C when I did not like the teacher or class. But that changed when I entered 10th grade. My English teacher used reverse psychology on me. She realized what I was doing and convinced me to maximize my potential and because of that I started making all A’s after that point without working any harder, really. That is probably the first time I can say I felt personal growth as a person because she showed me I was a lot smarter than I let on. 

Stand Up for Yourself

The most recent sense of growth in me as a person though is when I had to tell my parents that I want to live my life. I had a serious talk with my mom about what I wanted from life. She was very understanding about it. Then there was my dad. Now all through my life my dad tried to “teach” me life lessons that I will teach my own kids when I have them, but he also still tries to control my life. He has done this since I was a teenager; he tries to impose his own views and make me live it. The hardest talk I had was telling him that even though I am still in school; I am bored of it.

I had to tell him that I have sunk all this time and money into something that I am tired of, not to mention that electrical engineering is an over-saturated job market right now. He would not have it; so I had to just rip the band-aid off, and tell him like it is. He was very upset with me, but I think he got the message. That I am living my life the way I want, I can make my own choices and I will stand by them even if I fail in the end. Life is about being happy and living your life, not someone else’s. That was a really difficult talk, but I feel I became a bigger person because I said it. 

Bigger Picture

The bigger picture is whatever you decide to paint. I felt as if I knew what had to be done to grow. Furthermore, I knew the only way I would enjoy what I was doing is if I chose to do it. Growth sometimes means falling down, but picking yourself back up and dusting yourself off.  Deciding to learn what means the most to you. Your decisions do not have to be vicariously chosen.. 

Be sure to comment your biggest milestones or stages of growth down below! Also, Check out our merch that displays your personality. Read Perseverance and Human Progression for another similar topic.

References: 

Ashiq, F. (2020, August 4). Personal Growth: A Definite Guide To Self Growth. Thrive Global. https://thriveglobal.com/stories/personal-growth-a-definite-guide-to-self-growth/