The 4 Pillars of Growth are about the steps that YOU can take to put yourself in the driver’s seat of your own life. Millions of people spend days, years, and even lifetimes in a state of unawareness. They are not aware of their own strengths, weaknesses, and emotional triggers. They are merely going in whichever direction the wind blows.
Each pillar symbolizes a level of self-awareness that must be understood in order to create growth. Some of the pros of using the 4 Pillars of Growth to your advantage including being able to:
- Heal emotional wounds
- Make the right choices
- Find flow and motivation in your everyday life
- Be yourself, believe in your abilities, and boost your self-esteem
- Maneuver obstacles and develop resilience
- Stop feeding destructive behaviors
- Take complete control and ownership of your life
- And much more…
The 4 Pillars of Growth allow you to compose the life you want and pave the way for unlimited abundance. This post is for you who has the courage to look inside and face your demons; for you who is willing to peel off your ego’s protective layers in the search of the strength, happiness, and love that resides in your true self.
Inside all of us, there’s good, bad, and everything in between. The 4 Pillars of Growth teach you how to consciously minimize the bad and maximize the good. But… Easier said than done. Let’s take a look at how YOU can accomplish this.
Pillar 1: Self-Honesty
The First Pillar of Growth could also be called the pillar of self-criticality. It is CRUCIAL that you are critical to your own thoughts and behavioral patterns. How could you change for the better if you’re unaware of the parts of you that are screaming for help? This is a tendency we see in narcissists who have convinced themselves that they are completely flawless (learn more about detecting narcissism here).
Knowing your flaws is a blessing and to grow, you must have the courage to be vulnerable. Take a good look in the mirror, and ask: “What are my problems in life? What are my insecurities? What are my emotional triggers?”
If you are mindlessly reacting to situations that trigger your emotional wounds, you are not really living. You are not in control of your own life because you are being REACTIVE instead of PROACTIVE . If you are not aware of the bad inside you, then you are not the master of your own life. Therefore, to become the master of your life, you must look INWARDS .
It is in the ugly, painful truths that you’ll learn the most about yourself. It is HERE that you find your inner strength and maybe even your purpose. This growth process is a beautiful journey that embodies the idea of making the most out of the precious years we walk this Earth.
Being honest with your true self is the FOUNDATION of growth; without this foundation you would be absolutely powerless. Spiritual stagnation is the term for this phenomenon where people, whether they realize it or not, choose to avoid painful truths in exchange for blinding comfort. They are dishonest with themselves and cannot grow.
Self-honesty gives you the ability to look at your life objectively and determine what aspects is calling for change. This is the foundation of human growth.
Pillar 2: Self-Observation
The Second Pillar of Growth guides you towards self-awareness. In this step, you monitor your thoughts and reactions in triggering situations. Whenever uneasiness arises, pay VERY close attention to your feelings. In situations where you feel even slightly angry, sad, jealous, stressed, or hateful, know that these negative emotions are not yours to keep. They are, however, your responsibility to release.
Ask yourself: “Why is this triggering me?” At times, the answer will lie right in front of you while other times, it lies subsequent to introspection and meditation. Either way, what really matters is that you acknowledge the presence of the negative emotion without judgement and realize that it doesn’t serve your highest self — the person that your soul aspires to become.
It’s essential that you accept your negative emotions (even if you don’t like or understand them). Although they may be painful, they are there to teach you an important lesson if only you are willing to listen. In that way, you can become a student of your struggles and learn SO MUCH about yourself which can be used to your advantage in every aspect of your life. Just like anything else, prime growth occurs OUTSIDE of your comfort zone.
When going about your daily routines, pay close attention to your actions and reactions, like a fly on the wall, and stay critical to your ego. Question your behaviors and examine why you suddenly felt a need to react in a certain way, and know that you are in the master of EVERY SINGLE tiny choice you make. You become the monarch of your own behavior if you transform your REACTIONS into ACTIONS . This is an empowering exercise in self-empowerment and claiming control. Nobody/nothing has the power to make you respond in a way that isn’t in alignment with who you want to be; our dear friend Eleanor Roosevelt would certainly agree with that statement.
“Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
Pillar 3: Self-Realization
So, what is self-realization? Glad you asked. Self-realization is defined as fulfillment of one’s own potential. In other words, it is the process of realizing the power of the self — the power of YOU. You’ve now taken ownership of your habits, and you’re aware of what they are, so how do you proceed?
The Third Pillar of Growth is where you do your inner work. It is the hardest part of growth, because self-realization takes time, it can be confusing, and in all honesty, it probably is not as fun as it may sound. It is HARD WORK.
During a growth process, it is only human that there will be ups and downs; you can count on that. The key to handling these ups and downs is CONSISTENCY. When you get used to coping with your emotional triggers, you may not notice a radical change inside you as you did in the beginning. This is completely understandable, because you’re in the process of normalizing a new habit. Similar to the way a little boy or girl goes through significant physical growth phases during childhood, you won’t notice their growth if you are around them all the time. But, if you saw the child once a year, their looks, behaviors, and attitudes would clearly stand out each year. Fortunately, that’s EXACTLY how it works with inner growth if only you stay consistent.
For reassurance, if you are ever in doubt of whether an action is in alignment with your highest self, simply ask the question: “Am I acting out of love or out of fear?” Every action or reaction can be backtracked to these two opposing energies that reside in every human. It is YOUR decision which one you choose to feed and what you want to bring into this world. Whichever one you feed, grows.
The Third Pillar of Growth puts you in a dilemma: You can make the easy choice and give into impulsive, fearful reactions, or you can make the tough choice, be the bigger person, and make you and the world a better place — your call.
Pillar 4: Self-Accountability
The Fourth Pillar of Growth is, as you may have guessed, about holding yourself accountable to the standards of your highest self. Did you know that about 75% of people that go to physiotherapy, don’t do their prescribed home exercises? They’ve paid for a session, made their way there, and they obviously have a desire to fix their problem, but yet, 75% fail to do their home exercises which is something well within their control. Why do you think that is?
It’s because they forget the bigger picture which is easy to do when going about your daily business per usual. Therefore, remembering the bigger picture and why you’re doing this in the first place, is the key to self-accountability.
In this moment, we encourage you to ask: “What’s my WHY? Why do I seek growth in this part of my life? Why do I desire to be better? Write down your answers and store them somewhere safe and sacred. These answers will be your motivation when life hits you hard. That’s RESILIENCE . Find your why and combine it with your passions and habits of self-fulfillment, and you have a beautiful recipe for happiness and success.
Most Importantly…
The 4 Pillars of Growth are a gentle reminder of what you already know: Life is too precious to live in unawareness. Odds are that you only walk this Earth for about 73 years (which is the average life span). This is no longer than a blink of an eye in the existence of the Universe, and you have been given the wonderful gift of BEING , so live everyday like you have nothing to lose.
Growth takes time, effort, and most importantly: Courage. Courage to dream, to fail, and to succeed. Use the 4 Pillars of Growth to your advantage and create what you were put here to create.
Guides for Growth is a space designed for self-realization in understandable terms. Therefore, we encourage you to explore these writings for more specific guidance on creating a great, long-lasting relationship with the one person you are forever stuck with: YOU .
Thank you for your time, and as always, we want you to inspire others in your life. Do the world a favor and share this information with anyone that might benefit from it.
– Guides for Growth
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