We’re all looking to grow. It’s in our nature, and we can’t avoid it. Most human beings, regardless of their beliefs, education, nationality, age, and gender, are already extraordinary beings capable of amazing things.
The main thing that sets us apart from the rest of the species is obviously the presence of our conscience. The human being is able to learn and grow faster than any other existent being. We can hustle and work our way through our challenges, so we can achieve progress.
Since without growth there would be no life, it’s safe to assume that human beings core need is of making progress and achieving growth.
And that’s how the entire story begins. Personal growth, personal development, professional growth, spiritual growth, awakening, enlightenment – there are all sorts of development ‘fields’ that people pursue in order to satisfy their growth needs.
Today’s post is about personal and spiritual growth, more precisely the differences between the ‘personal’ and the ‘spiritual’ terms, which can often be tricky and complicated to fully comprehend.
A Personal Perspective
When we’re talking about personal growth, we’re talking about the growth of our personality, qualities, characteristics, circumstances, and of all the elements that make up what we are today. Ego is not a negative element like most people think. Yes, it can have a negative side, but the ego is basically the entire you.
The ego is you, the person with all the experiences, thoughts, and feelings since you were born, here on earth. Your soul is a different entity, which lives on the spiritual realm and acts as a parent that chooses to intervene or not in your journey.
You are a soul who lives on Earth experiencing this life as a human being with your ego, and you’ll become a soul once again when you’re gone. The purpose? GROWTH.
All the knowledge, experience, and mastery you gain in your life will be shared with your soul, as you’ll receive nice things in return. Now that is perspective, of course, which was shared as food for the brain.
Now back to our topic – the difference between personal and spiritual growth. Let’s start with three big differences between the ‘personal development’ field and the ‘spiritual growth’ one:
The Purpose
The purpose of personal development can be (and often is) influenced by external factors such as our environment, imposed beliefs, brainwashing, and close influences.
The most commonly expected benefits of personal growth are:
- Improved physical health
- More money
- More knowledge
- More skills
- Status
- Enriched experiences (better person = more money = more entertainment/progress/joy
- Happiness (even though most people can’t clearly define it)
The list could continue, though I think I made myself understood.
Concerning the spiritual growth, the purpose is often less concise but more powerful and real.
A spiritual purpose often involves the expansion of the consciousness, the enrichening of our awareness, and the growth of our vibration. Unlike most people believe, spiritual growth is not about gathering a lot of knowledge but about becoming wise enough to filter and act upon it.
The Nature
Personal growth is about improving our lives here on earth, by developing our knowledge and skills. It’s also about making the effort of overcoming challenges, problems, and setbacks, and about learning how to manage ourselves and our emotions. The nature of personal development is very broad, especially because everything we do in life can be done better.
The nature of spiritual growth is of a deeper essence, and it’s also very abstract. Your spiritual growth is often defined by your connection with your soul, or with other beings of various vibrations. Spiritual growth is enlightenment. It is the understanding of your essence as a human organism and the acknowledgment of your individual role on earth.
The Requirements
The requirements and the expectations of personal and spiritual development are different.
When you want to develop your ego self, you’re going to need to dispose of external factors such as money, conditions, and opportunity. You’ll need a laptop, books, and perhaps subscriptions to educational material.
Spiritual development can often require the same aspects, at least at the beginning of one’s journey. However, that’s not always the case, as spirituality has more to do with the knowledge that comes from within rather than from the external environment.
You can learn to meditate on your own, for example, as you can allow yourself to be guided by your intuition. Learn from your thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and you can experience spiritual growth in your own unique way. Consuming information and gathering knowledge is great, as long as it’s implemented properly.
Self-Awareness Is Of Many Kinds
There are many ways in which one can be self-aware. You can be self-aware of your body’s vibration, of your feeling’s intensity, of your stomach’s sensibility, or you can be self-aware of your condition and purpose on Earth.
Self-awareness is a quality that enters both the spiritual and personal development realm, and it is often the bridge that makes the connection between the material and mental environment.
Reading Spirituality Books Doesn’t Make One Spiritual
As I’ve already mentioned, even though they say that ‘knowledge is power’, I say that knowledge is hardly useful without proper implementation.
There’s a difference between knowledgeable persons and wise persons – wisdom is knowledge and action combined, and the person who knows how to balance the two elements will be unstoppable.
True Awakening Comes Only from The Inside
Personal development seems to be a fancy trend right now, where crooks make a lot of money by sharing simple and basic information that helps the confused/unaware ones put their hopes into another ‘self-development promise’.
Of course, the mindset of the consumers is also wrong – books are only meant to show the way, but the road needs to be crossed only by them.
If you truly want to awaken, you need to take full responsibility for everything that’s going on in your life. You need to learn how to stay present and focused. Most importantly, I believe you must learn how to properly meditate, so you can get access to your subconscious mind and cause real change in your mindset and behavior.
Takeaways
Personal and spiritual development are two different fields, yet we can observe a handful of similarities and common points in them.
Take today’s post as a fresh reminder that both of these ‘self-development’ fields are important and make sure you stay on your course now and forever so that you become the best version of yourself.
