6 QUALITIES TO BE ACQUIRED ON THE JOURNEY TO BETTER 'SELF'

There comes a time in a man's life, where he has to sit and really think about EVERYTHING. Everything in the sense of 'where he Is coming from, his current state and where he intends to go'. This feeling comes as a result of maturity (not necessarily age) and the need to be better than his present self. At this stage, he knows better than to lie to himself. The current state of things are depressing or less than the expected. He is aware of the popular saying, "change Is constant" and also aware of the fact that sometimes change occurs as matter of choice. Now, he has to decide and consciously strive to achieve the 'better self'.

The journey to better self is not a day's job and not for people lacking the enthusiasm for greatness. According to John C. Maxwell, "Greatness is never something conferred, it is something achieved. It is not something given, it is something earned. It is not an accident of birth; it is an attitude of quality; a dimension, an outlook, a way of life that is open to anyone who is willing to pay the price." The whole idea will have to surpass just becoming a new man but becoming a great man. He has to see himself as an achiever by looking past the conventional wisdom of things and understanding 'normal' as a measure of mediocrity to produce better results.

Discussed below, are some steps out of the so many steps to aid you become a better person. They are: 

1.  Have a thirst for new knowledge

The only factor that differentiates a man from the others, is the amount of information he has consciously consumed over time. It is commonly known that knowledge is potential power until it has been applied in the most appropriate manner. But then, it can only be applied when the user had acquired the knowledge before the time it was needed and used. 

The habit of reading books (hard and soft copies) must be adopted, in order to gain wise words and tap into the world of other great men. William Ellery Channing wrote: “It is chiefly through books that we enjoy intercourse with superior minds, and these invaluable means of communication are in the reach of all. In the best books, great men talk to us, give us their most precious thoughts, and pour their souls into ours. God be thanked for books; they are the voices of the distant and the dead, and make us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages”. The idea of learning should not be restricted to the four walls of any school. Knowledge can be drawn from anywhere and in anything, and shouldn't be limited to just academics. Infact, we all started learning before we even had a chance of attending kindergarten. 

The need to acquire new knowledge on a daily, cannot be over emphasised because it plays the key part in making a person have deeper insight into the meanings and reason behind so many things. The journey to better self can only be done by deleting useless mental files and installing useful mental files to help in the much needed direction because 'lack of direction and not lack of time is the factor that limits ignorant people. Afterall, we all have 24 hour days'. Now, it is safe to say that the limit breaker here is learning new things, understanding them and applying them right.

2.  You have to 'befriend' courage

The reason most people stay stuck in 'not so interesting' positions in life, is not because they lack imaginative thinking of how to get to better positions, but because they lack true courage in going after their much desired dreams. They are often failure conscious; filled with fear, doubts and somehow hoping courage will manifest itself someday. Stating it's importance, Murori Kiunga wrote, "Courage is not absence of fear. It is the ability to be inspired by fear, step out in faith, to launch out into the unknown and then to face the inevitable doubt and uncertainty that accompany every new venture". It is a very vital mental attitude that can be developed with patience and resilience. 

Real courage Is the main ingredient needed to put most of the new knowledge into practice, it doesn't hide in the face of danger and will never bargain with doubt and uncertainty to move a person forward. Courage starts with 'bracing up' when the need arises and with constant practice, your habitual state will match your bracing up state and get to a level where people assume it to be an inborn trait. 

3.  Learn to become relevant

This is a point that one should learn and one should really become. A man craving to be seen as a great person doesn't get into a system and sit in the corner, he gets into the thick of things. He takes up space, literally. He pays attention to details, able to point out existing problems and proffer possible solutions on how to fix or work around them or take advantage of the opportunities created by the problems (strategic thinking). There is nothing as horrible as people not feeling your absence from a system, meaning that you were only an excess to the requirement and nothing close to being valuable. 

One of the fascinating things about relevance, is that it makes other people constantly see the need to enjoy whatever you are have to offer and it makes the bracing up state mentioned in the previous subhead easy to achieve. The need will only arise, when you present yourself as an active and not a passive individual. Being relevant leads to having a strong personal presence.

To be continued..............