What it means to be self-actualized

Ultimately, it’s about acceptance and love. Self-acceptance and self-love. Yes, it’s about also loving and accepting others and the world for what it’s worth. That said, the greatest peace you’ll ever achieve is that of self-acceptance and self-love.

It’s incredibly difficult for most people to accept who they really are.

There’s so much pressure, especially in today’s hyper comparative world. Social media, the internet, traditional media, TV, magazines, friends and family are all telling you – you’re – just – not – enough. It’s visual – airbrushed models and celebrities who’ve been “styled” into a vision of perfection. Auditory – celebrities hawking their sponsored products, “guaranteed to” fix your life once you’ve made your purchase. And kinesthetic – we’re told daily, we need more, more stuff. And in the US we’ve created places to store the stuff. Places we spend money storing stuff we rarely use, but must have to achieve fulfillment. To feel we are enough.

So, we buy, we buy in to all of this in the hopes of reaching that moment of fulfillment. And the truth is antithetical to all that external comparative behavior. Fulfillment comes when we simply look inward to our very own truth – it happens the moment we choose to own it; our truth that is. That is where self-actualization happens. In that instance.

Have you met my friend Maslow, now he’s self-actualized

I’m guessing you’ve probably not met him. He is dead after all. And truth be told I was only 3 when he died. And I never actually met him myself. Nevertheless, I LOVE HIM!

Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) –  American psychologist, best known for creating Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, a theory of psychological health predicated on fulfilling innate human needs. His theory; you’re motivated to achieve specific needs and that some needs take precedence over others. Your most basic need is for physical survival, and this is the first thing that motivates your behavior. Fulfill one level and the next level up is what motivates you, and so on.

Self-actualization occurs when you’re able to take full advantage of your talents while being mindful of your limitations.

Find out how self-actualized you really are – Take the Quiz

I want to know… What are you doing for your own personal growth and self-actualization?