Self-Improvement

"Good people strengthen themselves ceaselessly." Confucius

I had never given serious thought to self-improvement. I had always assumed that all those individuals I saw on the tube reading books with titles like The Power of Positive Thinking or MegaLiving! were troubled souls looking for some sort of prescription to help them get back on track. Now I realise that those who took the time to strengthen themselves were the strongest, and that only by improving oneself can one hope to better the lives of others. I then began to think about all the ways I could improve. I had to start by getting rid of my bad temper [something im still working on]. The more I thought about it, the more potential improvements I saw and the more I realised I had such a chicken mind, as one of my friends puts it, and it became clear that the aspect of my life that I needed to improve was how I read. I began reading extensively and learned a few things, one of which is relevant to our writing today: courage.

The courage that is of importance to us is not the kind that comes from hitting the bully in the face, but rather the courage that consistently shows up in our day-to-day actions. It is what I call  "Living with courage."  Therefore, in my opinion, living with courage is a trait that can be developed,  then everyone can acquire it. When I was wondering why courage wasn't paired with other beautiful talents like determination, faith, trust, love, etc., the words of a writer I greatly admire, Sharma, came to mind. He spoke about courage in this way: "Courage allows you to run your own race. Courage allows you to do whatever you want to do because you know that it is right. Courage gives us the self-control to persist where others have failed"

This indicates that the level of courage with which we live impacts the amount of fulfilment we experience. It enables us to fully appreciate all of the wonderful wonders of our life's journey. I then feel that individuals who master themselves and achieve on the path of self-improvement possess a wealth of courage. Courage also motivates us to do things we are afraid of.  I can recall numerous instances in which I lacked courage, but one stands out in particular: after my brothers and friends berated me for my physique and weight, pushing me to gain weight—something I still resist doing—I went to the gym, but that didn't last even a week because I lacked the courage to face that painful place.  Had I understood, as great thinkers and psychologists  say, "Pain is the great teacher," I would have withstood the suffering and learned by now, perhaps becoming a bouncer. It is during that week because of the lack of courage I lost trust and confidence in my abilities and capacities of improving myself. 

We can talk and talk about self improvement but we should note before embarking on this journey of self-improvement, that we must be mindful that we are not merely developing our exterior selves. True improvement should begin on the inside, in the mind and soul, because "success on the outside begins within." Self-improvement needs us to ask ourselves honest and difficult questions, and we should not stop there; we should also answer these questions honestly and act upon those answers

 I implore you then, my  friends, to make an effort to improve ourselves every day. Some examples of this would include reading books to broaden our horizons and avoid seeming foolish in front of others, exercising to stay in shape and live longer, or praying to establish a strong bond with the Almighty. It's time for us to begin, gentlemen and gentleladies, in order to become the people we always wanted to be or were meant to be.