“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.” Napoleon Hill
Motivation Mondays: GROWTH – All life forms
Growth demands a temporary surrender of security. It may mean giving up familiar but limiting patterns, safe but unrewarding work, values no longer believed in, and relationships that have lost their meaning. John C. Maxwell
What does growth mean to you? Everything in life goes through a period of growth and ebb/flow. Every form of plant, mammal, animal and other life forms go through a progression of changes as they grow; to reach maturity takes effort, challenges and even failures. From the time a baby is conceived in his mother’s womb, the battle for survival begins. When we are born, we take our first gasp of air and let out a scream because we have entered unfamiliar territory. It takes a while to adjust to our new environment and, like other lifeforms depicted above, we need guidance and help from our mothers or from others that have been through the process. Our security and survival isn’t always assured but our growth demands a temporary surrender of security. The process doesn’t always work; there are times of failure but to keep growing, we must keep performing actions that support our survival.
Why focus on growth? The point here is that growth is lifelong and occurs in stages that are not always linear. Each day, we get up with hope and anticipation for what the day will bring. We perform our routines to get us going and, if all the chips fall into place, we leave our homes and head into the world to interact with other people who are also going through their version of growth. Monday is a particularly anticipatory day because it starts the school and work week for millions of people around the world. The process of rebirth and renewal is still the same. We go through continuous effort and struggle to reach each goal we set for ourselves and once accomplished, we start the process all over again to accomplish/complete other goals. When we fail to complete a task or a goal, we revert to our original steps and retrace them. All of these actions add to our body of knowledge, our experiences, and our confidence level. If something doesn’t work out, instead of abandoning hope, try a different approach, change directions and try something else or new and stay open to that form of growth.
“The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.” Lao Tzu
Motivation Mondays: GROWTH – Blackbird stages of growth
People are like dirt. They can either nourish you and help you grow as a person or they can stunt your growth and make you wilt and die. Plato
What comes to mind when you look at the blackbirds in the collage above? If nothing else, I hope it reminds you that the cliche – growing pains – has validity for all of life. From the time the blackbirds peck through their egg shells and begin to grow, there are countless opportunities for failure and danger. Because they are unable to fly from the nest, they remain dependent on their mother to fly around and find warms and other food to feed them daily. The baby blackbirds must also fight for space in the nest and learn to cooperate with each other. If a predator finds the nest, they won’t be able to fight it off and so their situation will remain tenuous until they are strong and bold enough to take that first flight to freedom. Even after they learn to fly, other challenges await them because the natural progression of life and growth includes struggle, danger and failure.
What about human growth? The same explanation, as above, can be said of human growth. Growing pains are part of our life experiences and they happen to all of us. We must first learn to walk before we can run and fly the proverbial coop. If we miss a few steps along the way, we find that gaps will appear in our learning curve, and we must go back and repeat the process till we truly imbibe the lessons deep inside of our being. Of course, we don’t walk around every day thinking about the gaps, misses, and failures in our lives because they are part of our natural progression through life; they fit seamlessly into the daily travails of living in the world. When we fail at a task, instead of beating ourselves up, we should contemplate what lessons are being taught and how we can improve our lot. Some people don’t take leaps of faith because they are afraid to fail or think failure will make them less valuable in the eyes of XYZ. On the contrary, it takes great courage and strength of character to stay true to who we are and to face our successes and failures with the same degree of introspection and gratitude. Where are you in your growth?
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for April and May are: 04/06 – PERFECTION 04/13 – MISTAKES 04/20 – GROWTH 04/27 – MINDFULNESS
“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.” Benjamin Franklin
Motivation Mondays: GROWTH – Butterfly stages of growth
Ever since I was a child I have had this instinctive urge for expansion and growth. To me, the function and duty of a quality human being is the sincere and honest development of one’s potential. Bruce Lee
What areas of your life need more growth? We all know people who are stuck in a rot. We know folks who seem to no longer grow because they have allowed fear, limited thinking and negativity to get in the way of their growth. Sitting on our laurels is the road to stagnation. We must always be testing the limits of our skills and strength, and find ways to broaden our minds and world view. If we keep doing the same thing day in and day out, we will soon become like a factory machine that produces the same stuff over and over again.
What are you doing about it? Push yourself a little. Fail at something. Try a new way of viewing your work and see how much more you will open the door to new experiences and growth. A life spent playing it safe is a limited life and growth doesn’t dwell there. Now go do something new and different today. It can be something small or even learning a new skill or trying your hand at a new approach to old tasks… nothing dangerous, just different.
Positive Motivation Tip: Every day is an opportunity to take a courageous step and grow… Let go of your stereotypes, recriminations, and limitations, and just blossom.
Motivation Mondays is open to anyone who wishes to share a motivational quote, photo, personal challenge or a post that encourages others to start the week on an upbeat note. Basic Instructions: Each week, I will have a motivation word to help us create a response. (See listed words for end of November and all of December below) Email address: You may email or share your post as a comment and I will add it to the round-up of related posts. email it to: contact(@)mirthandmotivation(.)com Category tag: – Share your post using Motivation Mondays Twitter hashtag: – Use this on Twitter #MotvnM Dedicated Page: There is a dedicated page for Motivation Mondays. It has the same instructions and will include other helpful tools and a link to the round-up Facebook Page:MotivationOnMondays Join our page and add your post and/or any motivational piece you think will be helpful to others. Facebook Community: We have a Facebook community forum to compliment the page. It serves as another way to share uplifting posts and thoughts. Please join in and add your voice.
Badge: – I created a fun badge using PicMonkey’s free photo editing tools. You can create your own, use WordPress’ integrated tool on your blog or you are welcome to use mine. (see dedicated page) Tag: – Motivation Mondays Hashtag: – #MotvnM
I know that I personally try to continue to grow as a person. There are so many things to learn that you should never give up on learning new things or growing.
I love watching babies grow up and learn new things. 🙂
What a great post about growth. I definitely agree that we can all grow, we have room for growth, we just have to push our boundaries a bit and go for it! 🙂
I know I’ve seen how I’ve grown over the past year, but it hasn’t been intentional. I’d like to be able to make goals for my own personal growth and begin to work toward them in a purposeful way. Thank you for the nudge!
Failures and mishaps do seem part of the natural progression, and thank goodness. Could you imagine if the stuck out so much we dwelled on them? oy! You’re right though, if you don’t learn the lesson, there’s a gap that has to be filled. Best to learn it the first time so you can keep growing more, faster (easier said than done, I know). :)) Love those butterfly pics!
I have joined a weight loss program and realize that my decisions and choices are my own. It feel like growth; I struggle with some of my choices but it doesn’t feel like I am stuck, as it would have in the past.
I am so fascinated by watching living beings go through the growth stages! You are completely right that we have to go have great strength and courage in order to get through the successes and failures in life.
There is no growth without struggle, which is always a tough concept for me because struggle is tough, so it’s always wise to remember that when you’re struggling, you’re growing. You have no other choice.
What a great post! And a great idea. I definitely need motivation, like every day. I love the pictures in this post. It is amazing to see the animal kingdom grow.
Growth is so important to be a healthy person. There are several areas of my life that I need to focus on and this post is a great reminder for me. Thanks for sharing!
There are a few areas in my life that need growth and sometimes I feel like I just need a little push in the right direction. Growth is important to everything that lives and breathes. Thanks for your thoughts and the beautiful photos.
I learn so much from the quotes that you share. I think I need to take a few moments to just breathe it all in and remember what’s important in life- grow my spirit!
Seeing things grow in front of your own eyes is such an amazing thing. I did a Project365 last year where I took a picture of my son everyday for a year, it was amazing to see how much he grew in that time 🙂
I actually want the people around me to grow. Last time I talked to friends who said bad words to me since I can’t fix my decision in joining them for a vacation. I got my scheduled tied up at work. I’m actually trying to explain but they brush me off. I gave no judgment to what they said but I was hurt. I tried explaining my situation to them but they won’t talk to me.
At the present time I am in a stand still and regroup time of my life. I am slowly learning to deal with my new reality (partly retired). Eventually it will all come together for me.
What a great post. I’m wanting for my blog to grow after being burnt out for two years. I’m finally back in the swing of things. I definitely needed to read your post. Thank you!
Strength and growth are two things that a person should want. For the areas in our lives that need growth, we need to not want to be stuck in the same place. Growth happens when we step out of our comfort zone and when we decide that we want to move from Point A to Point B. And, that’s when strength comes in. Once you have decided that you want growth, one must have the strength and the courage to make this growth happen.
I believe that we grow most when we experience struggles and difficulties in life. That’s my motivation whenever I am going through something. I just keep the faith and believe that everything will pass and after that I am a better me.
growth is a characteristic of life and all life forms experience this. It’s just sometimes it is being confined in the physical context and the psychological growth in human is stunted due to some environmental factors. true that in mistakes we learn and this learning is a part of the growing process.
Growth, what a wonderful subject to ponder upon on a Monday. I see it everyday, being a mom of 3. I wished my kids would stop growing so fast, I can’t keep up anymore haha. But it’s a beautiful thing to witness on a daily basis especially in kids.
This is probably the best way to see the things even if you fail treat it as a stepping stone to grow and motivate yourself to do best !! Growth stage of butterfly/blackbird shows how important and beautiful each stage is in our life.
One thing I find is that by writing I have found personal growth, and new found strength. It is wonderful to reflect on the changes that can come about when you let yourself grow.
I like your quote from Plato, it has similar meaning as “What doesn’t kill you make you stronger”…. which reminds me, always to grow and not decline. No matter how slow… that’s growth…
What a fantastic post and lovely relevant images. We have several similar images of baby blackbirds hatching – a wonderful thing to see and be part of!
Very true. I am venturing for another growth personally. I will be writing a book. I’ve found a great mentor. This was no accident you wrote this, and I was able to read this. It means that the universe is conspiring for me to be pushed and do it! I’ve just talked to my mentor last night, and he was pushing I finish one topic. Now I’m more than moved to do it. Great inspiring quotes and lines you have here as always El. 🙂
I think personal growth is when you improve yourself for the better. It is not about being perfect but it is in knowing out limitations but still continuing to push to get better. -katrina centeno
Both photos are interesting to me. The cycle of life..to grow, to experience pain and become independent, and to successfully get out from the shell and be somebody.
There are also so many aspect we can measure growth from physical, intellectual, emotional, etc. We get to be better when we grow as a whole and not just on one aspect.
I think growth comes when we keep an open mind to learning and experiencing new things, always have a positive mindset when it comes to bad experiences too. Learning is a neverending process even after we graduate from school, that’s how we all grow.
Yes. We change to grow. We must grow. I hope though that while other grow they would still realize and remember the simple things that made them happy and things that really matters.
As with change, growth should also be constant in our lives. To do so, I always read, try to explore new things, and keep an open mind to different topics.
Physical growth is just one mark but what i think is that most importantly the growth of a human as in person matters most , his contribution towards society matter most apart from spiritual growth which is for self.
I have really been more motivated to grow as a person the last few years! I guess as I get older I realize how important it is!
I know that I personally try to continue to grow as a person. There are so many things to learn that you should never give up on learning new things or growing.
I love watching babies grow up and learn new things. 🙂
I feel like I just had my son yesterday and he turns 3 next month. 🙁 Love the pictures.
I may have to make Motivation Monday a routine.
What a great post about growth. I definitely agree that we can all grow, we have room for growth, we just have to push our boundaries a bit and go for it! 🙂
Failure is a chance to learn. So I don’t have any regrets.
You had some very good points on growth and as always, I love your photos! Just lovely!
I’m definitely not good at pushing myself all the time. I do that in waves, but you’re right. When I push myself, I definitely grow.
You are doing great Liz! 🙂
It’s so important to continue growing throughout life.
Have I spotted your and babe?
No… It’s a Wikipedia photo. 😉
I know I’ve seen how I’ve grown over the past year, but it hasn’t been intentional. I’d like to be able to make goals for my own personal growth and begin to work toward them in a purposeful way. Thank you for the nudge!
Failures and mishaps do seem part of the natural progression, and thank goodness. Could you imagine if the stuck out so much we dwelled on them? oy! You’re right though, if you don’t learn the lesson, there’s a gap that has to be filled. Best to learn it the first time so you can keep growing more, faster (easier said than done, I know). :)) Love those butterfly pics!
Thank you Rosey… i’m with you on that point.. 😉
Great motivation!
I have joined a weight loss program and realize that my decisions and choices are my own. It feel like growth; I struggle with some of my choices but it doesn’t feel like I am stuck, as it would have in the past.
I am so fascinated by watching living beings go through the growth stages! You are completely right that we have to go have great strength and courage in order to get through the successes and failures in life.
Growth can make us vulnerable for a bit, but there is always the end result of a wiser, stronger stability after each growth spurt!
beauitful photos and I love the thought about people being like dirt!
I needed to read this today. I feel like I’ve been stuck. I need some motivation this morning! It’s been one of those weeks and it’s only Tuesday!
There is no growth without struggle, which is always a tough concept for me because struggle is tough, so it’s always wise to remember that when you’re struggling, you’re growing. You have no other choice.
I love the quotes you shared…truly made my morning motivating :).
Love that Lao Tzu quote! 🙂
Growth never stops. We all grow and then enter a new phase and grow some more. Thanks for the reminder when it’s time to change
I really like your pictures. You capture each shots beautifully.
What a great post! And a great idea. I definitely need motivation, like every day. I love the pictures in this post. It is amazing to see the animal kingdom grow.
Growth is so important to be a healthy person. There are several areas of my life that I need to focus on and this post is a great reminder for me. Thanks for sharing!
I love the pictures of the bird growth. Its amazing to see something so tiny develop into something so graceful! I love your themes!
There are a few areas in my life that need growth and sometimes I feel like I just need a little push in the right direction. Growth is important to everything that lives and breathes. Thanks for your thoughts and the beautiful photos.
Very good post. Love the points you made
I feel like i grow as a person everyday.. there are so many variables that take place that get us where we need to go.
I learn so much from the quotes that you share. I think I need to take a few moments to just breathe it all in and remember what’s important in life- grow my spirit!
I need to focus more on the process of growth instead of trying to jump to the end result of growth.
I believe that we learn and grow each and every day.
I believe that everyone needs to grow, even those who are well-advanced in age. For to stop growing is to stop living.
Seeing things grow in front of your own eyes is such an amazing thing. I did a Project365 last year where I took a picture of my son everyday for a year, it was amazing to see how much he grew in that time 🙂
I actually want the people around me to grow. Last time I talked to friends who said bad words to me since I can’t fix my decision in joining them for a vacation. I got my scheduled tied up at work. I’m actually trying to explain but they brush me off. I gave no judgment to what they said but I was hurt. I tried explaining my situation to them but they won’t talk to me.
Growth is important and sometimes it happens without us even being aware of it. We just realize one day, Wow, I have changed and for the better!
Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.
— > This quote doe ! <3
oh, the evolution of living things…great motivation post!
This is so inspiring. I am always pushing myself harder in order to grow. I love your butterfly pictures: so relaxing
I think that I am always evolving and changing as a person and that is an important part of personal growth.
I agree that we need to push ourselves to strive for more and we need to do something in order to grow.
Love seeing all of the photos – the colors in the ones with the butterflies and caterpillars are very striking.
I love this, I love looking at the way things grow. Especially the chickens, they are so cute watching grow up.
You included some gorgeous photos to demonstrate growth. I feel like we can have growth in any and all things.
Amanda
At the present time I am in a stand still and regroup time of my life. I am slowly learning to deal with my new reality (partly retired). Eventually it will all come together for me.
I pray it comes together for you and all of us… i hear you!
What a great post. I’m wanting for my blog to grow after being burnt out for two years. I’m finally back in the swing of things. I definitely needed to read your post. Thank you!
Welcome back dear Amber, take it a step at a time… it will grow. Like life, this is an up and down experience too. 🙂
ahhhhh growth!!! Growth is so important in life! You have to learn from anything and everything to grow into a better person 🙂
Strength and growth are two things that a person should want. For the areas in our lives that need growth, we need to not want to be stuck in the same place. Growth happens when we step out of our comfort zone and when we decide that we want to move from Point A to Point B. And, that’s when strength comes in. Once you have decided that you want growth, one must have the strength and the courage to make this growth happen.
I think we grow better with each experience. The key is to be able to learn from each and live past it.
Focusing on what is being taught is super important! We should focus on what’s learned not the failure itself!
The worm is very beautiful but they give me the creeps every time I see one in my garden.
It’s okay to make mistakes because it is our mistakes where we learn great lessons.
What a beautiful explanation of growth. I’ve been growing lately so much in my business and it’s a beautiful process that takes work.
This is a great post about growth. The chicken are a good example to illustrate it
Beautiful photos. I shared them with my 3-year-old. He loved pointing at the butterfiles and chickens. Thank you!
Watching my baby grow is the most amazing that happened to me! When it comes to growth, I’d like to grow spiritually.
We grow or else we are not alive! I admire your patience in capturing the growth of the birds in that nest. – Fred
I believe that we grow most when we experience struggles and difficulties in life. That’s my motivation whenever I am going through something. I just keep the faith and believe that everything will pass and after that I am a better me.
I like to continue growing as a person. I also try to find way to improve some of my skills. This is really inspiring.
i believe that growth = learning and thus is a lifelong process, we shouldn’t stop seeking growth until the day we cease to exist.
growth is a characteristic of life and all life forms experience this. It’s just sometimes it is being confined in the physical context and the psychological growth in human is stunted due to some environmental factors. true that in mistakes we learn and this learning is a part of the growing process.
Growth, what a wonderful subject to ponder upon on a Monday. I see it everyday, being a mom of 3. I wished my kids would stop growing so fast, I can’t keep up anymore haha. But it’s a beautiful thing to witness on a daily basis especially in kids.
For me, in order to grow, you need to change for the better.
Growth, learning and pushing your limits is so important. It’s a whole new world when you open your eyes to new things
This is probably the best way to see the things even if you fail treat it as a stepping stone to grow and motivate yourself to do best !! Growth stage of butterfly/blackbird shows how important and beautiful each stage is in our life.
One thing I find is that by writing I have found personal growth, and new found strength. It is wonderful to reflect on the changes that can come about when you let yourself grow.
Love your motivation for this week. The events of my past have taught me to be a better person.
These pictures are precious! How neat to see how the birds grew.
I like your quote from Plato, it has similar meaning as “What doesn’t kill you make you stronger”…. which reminds me, always to grow and not decline. No matter how slow… that’s growth…
growth is always beautiful to see. i was looking at some old family photos and saw how year by year, things have grown and blossomed
Looking at the collage reminded me that life is a cycle — that one has to go to joy and pains to really appreciate it.
What a fantastic post and lovely relevant images. We have several similar images of baby blackbirds hatching – a wonderful thing to see and be part of!
Very true. I am venturing for another growth personally. I will be writing a book. I’ve found a great mentor. This was no accident you wrote this, and I was able to read this. It means that the universe is conspiring for me to be pushed and do it! I’ve just talked to my mentor last night, and he was pushing I finish one topic. Now I’m more than moved to do it. Great inspiring quotes and lines you have here as always El. 🙂
I think personal growth is when you improve yourself for the better. It is not about being perfect but it is in knowing out limitations but still continuing to push to get better. -katrina centeno
Both photos are interesting to me. The cycle of life..to grow, to experience pain and become independent, and to successfully get out from the shell and be somebody.
The growth comes from within 🙂 Such amazing post!
Growth is not limited to physical growth. I agree that everyone experiences the growing pains 🙂
I love your post 🙂 we need all to grow to know the exact meaning of life and learn in our mistakes
There are also so many aspect we can measure growth from physical, intellectual, emotional, etc. We get to be better when we grow as a whole and not just on one aspect.
That is so true.. Growth is a process that occurs over time and includes all of our being and our experiences. 🙂
I have read this post before but it is only now that I really looked at the photos. Those are beautiful butterflies. -katrina centeno
I think growth comes when we keep an open mind to learning and experiencing new things, always have a positive mindset when it comes to bad experiences too. Learning is a neverending process even after we graduate from school, that’s how we all grow.
Yes. We change to grow. We must grow. I hope though that while other grow they would still realize and remember the simple things that made them happy and things that really matters.
Yes, I hope so too.. TY! 🙂
I believe that everyone needs to be out of their comfort zone in order to grow.
Motivation is something that is constantly needed. Growth occurs always. We just have to embrace the changes we go through.
As with change, growth should also be constant in our lives. To do so, I always read, try to explore new things, and keep an open mind to different topics.
Everyone should have save a space to grow as a person physically, spiritually and mentally.
Thank you for this. I actually need more motivation right now as I face a new journey in my life.
Physical growth is just one mark but what i think is that most importantly the growth of a human as in person matters most , his contribution towards society matter most apart from spiritual growth which is for self.
We made mistakes, we learn and grow. It help us to be better person, smarter and stronger. Thanks for the motivation.:)
Great inspirational blog post once more. Growth for me is not about the age, but how wise we get. 🙂
Growth is not just experienced physically. For me, Growth is also experienced mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
Exactly! TY 🙂
Growth is not just experienced physically. For me, Growth is also experienced mentally, emotionally, and spiritual