Bridging the Gap Between You and You

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Carl Rogers, whose work changed the way therapists work with their clients, said that humans are designed for fulfillment, joy, wholeness, and success. We’re created for self-actualization. That’s why we always find ourselves wanting more, striving for more, wanting to be better. We sense that innate potential within ourselves.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It’s like we’re all living with two versions of ourselves at the same time. There’s the self that you are now and the self that you want to be. There’s you experiencing the world now, and there’s your actualized self. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Self-actualization begins with awareness. Awareness of where you are now and where you want to be, and the awareness that everything you need is already inside of you. This awareness allows you to shed comparison and competition, paving the way for personal growth and win-wins. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Awareness helps you shift your direction filter to a positive-toward direction, focusing on what you want rather than focusing on what you don’t want. In this way, the target gets bigger as you move towards your goal, increasing your momentum and getting to where you want to be much more quickly than focusing on what you’re trying to leave behind.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">How can we bridge the gap between the version of you that exists today and the self-actualized you? Both iterations of yourself already exist in your unconscious mind. So how can you move closer to the actualized self and experience more of that in your daily life?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Change your thinking.</strong> <span style= "font-weight: 400;">Pay attention to your thoughts and how you’re feeling. When you’re not feeling great, it always mean you’re thinking a thought that negatively impacted your sense of wellbeing. If what you’re thinking about doesn’t feel good, shift your thought to somet