How to develop Thy Self?

Self- development seems to be the buzz word now and a much propogated agenda for being successful. We stumble upon many an information on self- development- people offering assistance , coaching classes, books, e-learning courses etc.

But what is self- development actually? Google defines it as the process by which a person's character or abilities are gradually developed. That means :Self-Development is a gradual process and It is dependent on the person

So developing ‘thy’ self is thy own effort- and not to be done by a third party.No mistake here- Making new contacts, adding skills etc does develop oneself, but that is not what self-development is all  about.

Self-Development should start with a self-introspection: Examine yourself and see who you really are, what you are made of. Maybe , A SWOT analysis on yourself?Yeah, we can do a SWOT on people

First define the purpose- why you feel the need here- what you feel is lacking? What is your aspiration in life? What makes you happy? Define, short term ,mid term and long term goals.

1.Strengths- Identify your strong points. Do a mental check of things you are confident of doing anytime, anywhere,something people appreciated in you always and things which you excelled in. List them down, yes, on a paper, because nothing gives you more clarity that writing down. Once you have your strengths, see how they will help you in your course to the goals you defined.

2.Weaknesses – The less strong part of ourselves,things which we shy away from doing, situations which terrify us that we feel we better have earth swallow us!  Identify them and boldly accept them as your limitations. Do not stop there-see why they became your weakness, perhaps just because you feel so! See how to work around them and develop them to your strength.Maybe here you can attend a worshop if it is a tangible skill you need to work on.

3.Opportunities – the knocks on our doors  which comes only once in a while !When you have your goal clear, you will know what they are- grab them at first go. Do not shy away,they have to be used to your advantage. And remember there are 1000s of doors out there waiting for the knocks!

4.Threats – I would call them the invisible walls we create around us, the ones which tell us we cannot go ahead.First demolish these mental walls. Then when you are on your road to achieve your goal, you will see threats are less. But when it is slammed on your face,those elements which pulls you down,anticipate them in advance and have a plan B ready.Face them when it comes,do not let that pull you down ,but work on it.

So you have a good idea about what you are. Once you get it started there is no holding back, you know what to do. You have embarked  on the so –called self- development journey. Let me remind you all, self-development starts from early childhood- As a child ,while playing games, you knew how to place that board to your advantage for a better access, which partner to chooce for which games …the same goes true.. Learn how to turn your self to your advantage so that you achieve your goals in life.

As Gandhiji rightly said - As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world - that is the myth of the atomic age - as in being able to remake ourselves