How to Grow Without Growing Selfish | Fitness for Fatherhood

There?s an interesting paradox at play with people who want to grow.

To grow, you must invest a lot of time getting to know yourself.

But isn?t this selfish? Won?t it take time away from the people you love? It can, but not if you?re doing it right.

If you?ve read my blog before today, you know that I?ve been running quite a bit. And more recently, you learned that I am exercising my mind more often. All in all, I spend about 2.5 hours per day exercising my mind and body (not including the time I?m using my brain at work to solve problems).

Where do I find the time to run and read without taking time away from my family? The short answer: in the morning. ?But I?m not a morning person,? you say. Well, neither was I, until I chose to be.

In the bestselling book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People?by Stephen R. Covey, the first habit discussed is be proactive. In other words, act or be acted upon.

You are not a ?morning person? or a ?night person?. You are just a person, and you are capable of making decisions to live in accordance with principles and values. You choose to act, or to let your bad habits, your schedule, your employer, your diet ? and so on ? act upon you.

If you value personal health and act according to the principle that there are consequences for being unhealthy, then you will rise before the sun to get physically healthy if this is the only time you can find. Principles and values don?t care if the sun is shining or not. And neither will you, as long as you act in line with these things ? which is another way of saying, if you live with integrity.

To grow without growing selfish ? or spending to much time with yourself ? you must find creative?opportunities?throughout your day to invest in yourself.

For me, it means running before most people in my neighborhood are awake. It?s amazingly peaceful and allows me to reflect on my life without distraction. It also means that I ride the bus to and from work rather than drive. This gives me roughly two hours in my day to read, to sharpen my mind.

There are days when I fail to wake up to exercise or when I miss the bus. On those days, I have to be very creative, because I know there is not time to make up what I have missed without negatively affecting my family and my health. I might read a few chapters of a book on my lunch break and take the stairs at work all day rather than ride the elevator. This keeps me true to myself without impacting others.

And remember ? you?re investing time in yourself to benefit you, but more importantly, to benefit others. Do it because you believe in it. But do it with the end in mind. With how you want your long-term health and relationships to look.

Have you ever felt a sense of selfishness while investing time in yourself to grow? How did you overcome it?

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Source: http://johncade.com/how-to-grow-without-growing-selfish/

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