Hi. I’m Dan. Here are some true things about myself that you may be able to relate to:
- While I live comfortable and my basic needs are met, the money situation always feels like an endless battle;
- I am generally pretty healthy, but do not exercise or put much effort into my health;
- I used to do several extra-curricular activities and hobbies (track & field, choir, guitar, drawing, etc) that I no longer do;
- I have had and do have some great friendships – many of which have dwindled after “real life” set in for us all;
- Most of my professional life has been in fields unrelated to my college degree;
- I had extremely ambitious dreams & goals that I set for myself during high school and college and virtually none of them actually happened;
- I sometimes find myself doing things because I feel like I should be doing them, and I hate that;
- I feel like my sense of self and my actual self don’t line up completely some of the time;
- I am not as happy as I could be.
Any of this sound familiar? If you’re living in the United States and you have a pulse, chances are you could throw a few of these line items on your own list of truths. Like a Zombie plague, this pandemic of self-made misery (or worse – boredom) has the ability to sweep through and consume entire generations of people before they even realize that they’ve been transformed into something grayer. I’m not saying that my life is anywhere near as bad as becoming a zombie; I have a pretty good life, actually! I have a great family, great relationship, good health, a stable lifestyle, and I’m decent-looking and smart to boot (thanks, Mom & Dad). So why the list of grievances, you ask?
The Heart of the Matter
The simple truth is this: I am not the best version of myself (despite my plans and best intentions) and it weighs on me like that lead smock the dentist throws over you when they take your X-Rays. It’s just heavy enough to know that you’ve got something weighing you down, but not heavy enough to alarm you and certainly not directly indicative of invisible beams of radiation blasting through your skull to poison you. Once every 6 months or so isn’t a big deal, but I doubt any doctor would recommend multiple X-Rays per day without expecting you to start growing new and exciting things on your face after a few years. I propose that the lead smock is something that I let myself and the world throw on me every day – mental defenses and walls made up of expectations and fear – and the X-Rays are what bombard me every day as a result. The X-Rays, in my case, would be things like boredom, feelings of being unfulfilled, unachieved goals, diminished sense of self and self-worth, etc. THAT is the stuff that does the long-term damage. THAT is the poison. Is my analogy perfect? No, but I hate going to the dentist.
The Quest Begins Here
Now that I’ve established that there is an overall problem, it’s time to turn things around. But how? It’s time to analyze these problems and attack them one at a time to become my SuperSelf. That’s right – this isn’t going to be some cutesy journey of self-discovery and self-help. This is going to be an epic quest for super-hero status in my own mind, and I encourage you to follow along in whatever capacity you’d like. Want to take the journey with me? Awesome, and I’m happy to help if I can. Want to just watch me struggle and be entertained? Also awesome. In summary, the goal is simple:
To define the best version of myself: my SuperSelf, and then…
Identify and analyze the problems that have stopped me so far, and…
Eliminate, avoid, or overcome these problems so that I can…
Enjoy increased happiness, fulfillment, purpose, and health within my finite lifespan.
Piece o’ cake, right? I’ll be writing about topics related to this journey of SuperSelfdom, including both things I’m starting to tackle and things I’ve already overcome. Hopefully you’ll find the content helpful and can learn from my experiences and mistakes. Engage with me. Ask me questions. Tell me I’m doing it wrong. Tell me your success stories. Follow along and laugh from afar. By the end of this, I’m hoping to have a process for structured personal development to help you unlock your ideal self: Your SuperSelf.
Questions, ideas and feedback are all welcome – feel free to share in the comments or on social media with #superself!
-Dan
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