Self-Authoring as a Tool for Personal Growth

Self-authoring is a tool developed by psychologists from the University of Toronto, McGill and Erasmus University, with the aim of improving the well-being of anyone who cares to use it. Psychologist Jordan Peterson has described self-authoring on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast. In a nutshell, it’s a writing exercise. And you’re writing about your life. The whole…

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Self-Acceptance and Self-Improvement Go Hand in Hand

Self-acceptance is often contrasted with self-improvement. While the former means embracing how things are, the latter is all about growing out of a state of stagnation and deficit. However, self-acceptance – while it involves accepting all aspects of yourself, both praiseworthy and unpleasant – is a process that has self-growth at its core. Moving from…

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Carl Rogers on Why a Fulfilling Life Depends on Realising Our Potential

The ways in which humans stand out from all other species is inexhaustible. Our very psychology speaks volumes about the ways in which we are unique and distinct from other animals. Perhaps one of the most fascinating ways in which humans stand out is to do with this idea of potential. The uniqueness of human…

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Why Moral Outrage is Self-Serving and Counterproductive

When confronted with the fact that people, or groups of people, act in ways that are palpably selfish or callous, the intuitive, knee-jerk reaction is moral outrage. Moral outrage is distinct from anger. We feel angry when we or our loved ones have been mistreated. But we feel moral outrage when others – in particular,…

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Carl Jung and Hermann Hesse Explain Why Other People Irritate Us

The Swiss psychoanalyst Carl Jung and author (and fan of Jung) Hermann Hesse have explained why other people irritate us so much. This is conveyed in quotes from the two: If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part yourself. What isn’t part ourselves doesn’t disturb us. – Hermann Hesse Everything…

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