Quotes about Personal Growth

What determines the level of self-esteem is what the individual does, within the context of his or her knowledge and values.

If our liabilities pose the problem of inadequacy, our assets pose the challenge of responsibility

In therapy I have found that one of the most powerful ways to help men and women become more effective in love relationships is to work with them on their relationship to their opposite-gender-self

If a self-concept cannot accommodate a given level of success, and if the self-concept does not change, it is predictable that the person will find ways to self-sabotage.

As a psychotherapist I see that nothing does as much for an individual's self-esteem as becoming aware of and accepting disowned parts of the self.

The better I know and understand myself, the better the life I can create. Self-examination is an imperative of a fulfilled existence.

Healthy self-esteem is not ashamed to say, when the occasion warrants it, "I was wrong." Denial and defensiveness are characteristics of insecurity, guilt, feelings of inadequacy, and shame.

Whereas self-esteem is something we experience, self-acceptance is something we do.

Self-acceptance is the willingness to say of any emotion or behavior, "This is an expression of me, not necessarily an expression I like or admire, but an expression of me nonetheless, at least at the time it occurred.

people always grow more foolish, unless they take care to grow wiser and wiser...

We must not always talk in the marketplace of what happens to us in the forest.

But now we've finally taken full possession of what is rightfully ours, because everyone must feel their own pain--and as awful as that is, it's also wonderful.

I mean, it's like we all get our raw materials from our families?but it's up to us whether we build bridges or bombs.

When, she wonders, did she stop being a child? The law says it was when she turned eighteen, but the law doesn't know her.

Instead of ignoring me, Frankie was suddenly noticing every little thing I did, wondering why I did it. Christina started asking me questions about things, like I was the smarter brother. Dad was now confiding in me about things that were really none of my business, and Mom started treating me like I was actually a responsible human being. It was all very disturbing.

He wants to tell her, but she's always so busy - and you don't just go to somebody and say, I'm a better person because you're in my head

Everything in life is a lesson, Kelton. Learn from it. Better yourself. Become stronger.

You'll find your own path. It may not bring you redemption, it might not even bring you peace, but it will keep you from despising yourself.

Why did it all have to go so wrong? the heavy man wailed. She knelt down to him and put a hand on his shoulder. Maybe it needed to go wrong, she said softly, to bring you to this moment.

Don't fight your demons. Your demons are here to teach you lessons. Sit down with your demons and have a drink and a chat and learn their names and talk about the burns on their fingers and scratches on their ankles. Some of them are very nice.

I had come a long way from a guy who had worked in slaughterhouses, who had crossed the country with a railroad track gang, who had worked in a dog biscuit factory, who had slept on park benches, who had worked the nickel and dime jobs in a dozen cities across the nation.

Well, I asked him. I said, 'Master, what can I do to make my work better?'" "No shit?" "No shit." "What'd he say?" "He said, 'I can't tell you anything about your work. You must do it all by yourself.'" "Ha.

My contest is only with myself: to do it right, with power and force and delight and gamble. Otherwise, forget it.

You can't blame a man for wanting to better himself.