Positive self-development

Stop making excuses

Aku recently had the displeasure of bekerja dengan one of the most negative people I have ever met. Let’s call her Ms. X. Di ni sure lah si gile mase kat office aku nih..
In her world nothing good ever happen to her, the rains only falls in her part of town and there is a conspiracy to keep her from succeeding. Yang best about dia is that she is intelligent, articulate and has lots of potential.

The problem is that she will never realise her true potential if she does not change her attitudes and beliefs about who is responsible for her development. Sbb dia ni macam sewel sikit. She constantly blames the organisation she works with for not “training her more”, she blames the government for taking all her expandable income (through taxes) so she cannot go back to school, and she blames her family for taking up all her time so she can never get anything done. The one person who she never blames is herself, and as a result she never improves in any facets of her life and tak kawin2 sampai lah skang ni.

Unfortunately, many of us see the world this way. When we consider personal or professional development, apehal sangat senang untuk menyalahkan external factors for our own shortcomings. The reality is that making an excuse is the easy way out, and making a positive change in your life comes down to you making a conscious decision to take action without waiting for someone else to initiate it.

So, adakah korang semua bersedia to start working on personal growth? If so, ni ada lima kunci yang positif untuk korang memajukan diri sendiri... :P

1 Ape saje bende yang korang nak dalam dunia ni kan, do something about it. Aku bagi contoh la, if you would like to be more efficient at your job, and you work on spreadsheets all day but are not as fast as you could be, make a call and enrol in a night course that will sharpen your skills. If you believe that your health is holding you back from optimal performance, call your local fitness club and set up a training plan. Kiranya korang try la membzkan diri korang. Jangan bagi masa korang terbuang je. Lebih baik korang cari keje dari korang duduk tak buat ape..Do it now and stop putting it off. Making the commitment is the toughest part of any self-development plan, so get moving now and you will have the toughest part licked.

2 Choose one or two things at a time. Do you have a laundry list of things you would like to work on? Sometimes, looking at a huge list of personal “to-dos” can be intimidating, and as a result, you do nothing. I find it easier (and more productive) if I choose one personal and one professional self-development programme to tackle at a time. You will be focussed on the task at hand, you will not be overwhelmed, and as you complete one task after another, sure korang punya keyakinan diri tu will grow.

3 Adopt a selfish attitude. Too many people play martyr and say: “I can’t do anything for myself because I have to look after another.” Ni alasan bagi orang yang pemalas. Aku rasa zaman la ni, sangat ramai orang yang macam ni. Fair enough la, but then how many dreams go unrequited because of this? How much potential is lost and unhappiness caused because you did not take care of yourself first? The reality is that if you improve yourself, you will be able to do more for others and everyone will be happier. If you sharpen your professional skills and get a raise because of it, you will be able to provide for your family better.
If you take time to exercise and find optimum health, you will be more confident, less stressed, and you will set positive example for those around you. Actually, these things boleh buat korang distress tau. Believe it or not, korang cuba lah. You may have to be creative with your schedule and how you get things done, but you can do it.

4 Spend time with people who are at where you want to be. Learn from mentors ke seniorita ke senior ke and adopt the attitudes of the successful. But make sure positive attitudes la, jangan pi adopt yang tak elok pulak. Most people who have been fortunate enough to succeed in this world have done so because they are confident, positive and hardworking. Surround yourself with these people and you will start to understand how they came to succeed. The people you spend time with have a massive influence on your attitudes and mindset, so be careful about this.

5 Recognise that it is all up to you. Your growth and development is your responsibility – not the government’s, your employer’s, your family’s or your religion’s. Ada sorang mamat ni from US, Randy Gage, an American author, speaker and consultant on the topic of prosperity, recently said that when he looked back at his failed relationships, his crooked business partners, his bankrupt bank account and his failing health, he realised that there had only been one person at the scene of each of these “crimes”. Him. Are you the only one at the scene of your own failures? For most of us, this is the case. Start taking some positive self-responsibility for your personal and professional growth. Recognise that the choices you make now will impact your future. Today, even a single langkah yang positive boleh mebawa korang kepada masa depan yang positive, and will help you to avoid becoming the neighbourhood like Ms. X. Yang buruk jadikan sempadan yang baik dan indah jadikan teladan. :) ~wink

To Be Continued.. Penat dah menaip.

Regards,
Mya_Hanny