We have all heard the infamous quote…”you never know what could happen if you don’t try”. And that’s because it is SO true!
This quotes related to new beginnings and change. This is something we all need in our lives in order to keep growing and avoid becoming complacent. Self-change is scary but it’s how you grow and mature into the best version of yourself. It’s how you form self-love and start learning to love yourself.
Sometimes, in order to understand yourself, accept yourself and find that well-being and satisfaction, you have to make a change. It doesn’t have to be a permanent change but the journey is what matters.
Keep reading to understand why change is good for your self-growth and how you can make a change and learn to love yourself!
This post is a part of my health and wellness series comprised of 9 other posts about creating a happy and healthier mind. If you would like to read more topics in my wellness series, click here.
And now that’s get right into it!
Why is Self-Change so Important?
The reason making a change is beneficial is because change is ultimately what stimulates personal growth. Pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone will help you further learn about yourself and in the end, improve your wellness and well-being.
It’s crazy that we spend every second of every day with ourselves but truly knowing who you are and what you like is one of the most difficult things an individual has to do. This is because we are afraid of change which makes it hard to learn new things about yourself.
How Change can lead to Self-Growth
For anybody that doesn’t know, I am a natural ginger. At the beginning of the pandemic, I was in my freshman year of college. Already that itself was a whirlwind of experiences and emotions. Then on top of that, I had to suddenly move back home due to Covid-19. I was unsure of myself and as did a lot of people at the time, struggled with my happiness.
May of 2020, I decided I wanted to dye my hair dark brown.
Yep! That’s right.
I went from strawberry blonde to dark brown.
Everyone always asked me why I decided to make such a drastic change and I didn’t really have to good answer to give at the time. However, the reason I wanted to go dark is because I didn’t have much appreciation for my natural hair color or myself. There was a certain negative stereotype about gingers that was really hard for me to shake.
Dying my hair allowed me to see the world through what it felt like, someone else’s perspective.
I looked and felt like a different person in the best way possible. I wasn’t trying to be someone I’m not, but instead I wanted to gain the confidence to live freely. When I died my hair, I slowly started gaining that confidence and it’s because I felt like I could be 100% myself without the negative stereotype I thought gingers had.
The reason I am telling you this story is because I think a lot of people could really benefit from a little change of pace when you get into a rut. Something new. It may turn out to be the best decision you ever made or it may make you appreciate what you already had and the things that make you unique.
Self Growth Takes Times
I didn’t tell this story to say that dying your hair will fix of your problems.
Trust me, I tried!
Dying my hair did push me in the right direction but it also came with a year of working on myself and self-growth before I was comfortable enough in my own skin. Change within your mind takes a lot of time. When you are conditioned to think a certain way, it will be hard to overcome that. Give yourself time.
Sometimes you need a little push or a little spark that starts your upward path to happiness. A change in pace, change in scenery, change in appearance…whatever it may be.
About a year after originally dying my hair, I went back to my natural color. While I really loved being brunette, the confidence I gained over that year made me appreciate and love my natural self even more.
Embracing Yourself
Everything that I’m saying leads back to embracing yourself. You are unique and special is your own way. Starting learning new things that interest you and figure out what you care able. Growing into yourself means you are confident in your own opinions and realize that people might not agree or feel the some way.
I needed to make that change to understand what makes me unique and special in my own way. I needed to experience something different and see a new light to start learning to love myself.
A lot of time the thing that makes someone unique is often times the thing that they are most insecure about. But you don’t have to “fit in”. The world would be boring if we were all the same.
Personalized Changes
Everybody is different and what worked for me, might not work for you. Make a change based off yourself and your experiences. Maybe you have something you always wanted to do but been to scared to do. This is your sign to finally just do it.
Making a change, whether big or small, might spark a light within you to guide you toward happiness and acceptance. Sometimes you have to make a change to understand and appreciate who you are and become the best version of myself to start learning to love yourself.
Change means growth
Impulsive decisions often have a negative cognation however, those change that might seem the craziest, often end up being the best decision ever.
Change is hard but it is so effective in promoting personal growth and wellness. The challenges on your mind and emotions that come with change are what build that personal growth. They give you a chance to work through any obstacles you may be facing.
Naturally, people don’t like change because it pushes us out of our comfort zone and that is scary. We generally like routines and like knowing what to expect. So, when your make a change, it may feel uncomfortable. However, those moments are what push us to grow and challenge our mental health. It is how we can start learning to love ourselves.
Make your change
If you are feeling uneasy, think about some things you might want to change. Something that might give you more confidence or something that might scare you. Maybe instead of adding something to your life, you need to take something out. Whatever you’ve been thinking about doing, just do it.
You’ll never know where it’ll take you! Learning to love yourself is so important.
Read the previous post in the Wellness Series: Self-care for Young Adults: What is it and Why is it Important
Read the next post in the Wellness Series: The Power of Your Mindset: Developing a Growth Mindset
“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.” – Henri Bergson
“I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is they must change if they are to get better.” – Georg C Lichtenberg
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