Personal Growth

Normalizing the Neuroticism of Personal Development

The process of personal development can feel neurotic. We crave so badly to change, to be happy, to be free. We look for short-term solutions to get us there right now, damn it. The desperation is short-sighted and looks for validation that everything will be alright. It is desperation not to feel emptiness, apathy, stress — all of these uncomfortable feelings pervasive today that loom large.

I am intimately familiar with such neuroses. There have been periods when I swan dived into a rabbit hole of blogs, books, videos-you name it-to figure out the key to what would make me happy, or at least content. The high peaks and low valleys are real. One second I was getting excited and fired up, only to be frustrated and disillusioned the next when I couldn’t figure out my passion or purpose.

In these moments, we can find grounding in remembering that it’s a process. There are many steps on the path to finding your version of happiness-meaning-freedom — whatever it looks like. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s words reassure us that exploring personal growth and freedom is one of the most challenging journeys we take in life.

“Liberty is slow fruit. It is never cheap; it is made difficult because freedom is the accomplishment and perfectness of man.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ask Questions for Personal Development

Just by asking the questions and seeking knowledge, you are on the path. It may be a mosey or a run, but it is still moving towards a version of you and your life that hopefully will resonate and bring peace. At whatever place in the journey you’re at, it is perfect, and you’re in good company.

There are so many resources out there on finding your happiness, going after your passion, or getting free that it can be overwhelming. Some are downright anxiety igniting. There is a handful of content that I’ve found so far that feels has resonated with me, which I’ll link below.

“Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.”
-Steven Covey

To you fellow personal development self-explorers out there, I see you. We’ll do this thing called life one step at a time!

Resources

Let me know in the comments if you’ve had any similar days in your personal development journey.

5 Ways I Want To Help My Audience

My blog exists to help women get planning, set goals, navigate life’s challenges, and create a life that you can truly say that you love.

Provide planning and organization tools to simplify to live your best life

I am a planner. No, literally, I am a planner of cities. I’ve been an urban planner for 15 years, so I am a ‘plannerd’ through and through. You develop many skills as a planner that translate into how you manage and organize your personal life. Like project management, budgeting, record keeping, serving the public, contract management, analyzing, researching, writing tons and tons of reports (in a way that anyone can understand), and on and on.

I’ll put all of my planning and organization tips I’ve learned in my career into the tips and tools for you. Because there’s nothing more I want than to help you feel in control, organized, and on top of your shit.

Keep reminding you that self-care is critical

If you’re anything like me, I have to continually slow myself down and remember that it’s a journey. And along the trip, we need to take care of ourselves. Part of my mission is to remind you that it’s ok to stop, take a pause, and do something that’s just for you.

Self-care is survival.

If you’re so burnt out and overextended that you’re hanging on by your finger nails, it doesn’t serve anything (she reminds herself). I have devoted much time during my life to figure out how I can live my best life, including what it means to make sure I am giving myself the care I deserve. It’s the same care you owe to yourself.

Help you to minimize your stuff

Stuff.

We have a lot of it. I want to help you get to a place where your stuff doesn’t dictate how you spend your time (think constant dusting and organizing), how you spend your money, and how you prioritize. I have been there, friends, trust in that.

Back in 2007, I lost my Dad and Grama within a year of each other. I couldn’t bear to get rid of their stuff. And it was all for sentimental reasons. Pretty soon, the obligation and weight of maintaining everything and my house filled with it all became suffocating. After a couple of years living with it, I decided to keep only the most precious things and let the rest go.

I want to help you release what no longer serves you or adds value to your life.

Keep you inspired to live your best life

Even though we know we’re not alone; the feeling can take over. I want you to feel like you have a friend in this. There are people and processes in my life that help me feel supported, and I want you to have that too. Even if it’s just a post online that makes you feel understood and gives you just a nugget of something to help.

Remember, if you’re feeling it, then there are tons of other people out there experiencing the same thing. We’re here to lift each other up so that we can all live our best life. One that we can honestly say we love.

Conclusion

So there it is. Plan & Bloom will be a space that provides helpful information to get everything in your life organized, make plans, and get your finances in order. Why?

So you do all of these things to take care of yourself and see forward motion. You’ll feel good that you are taking steps, putting one foot in front of the other. And ultimately so you can get out there and live your best life.

What is Plan and Bloom’s “why” behind the blog?

Plan and Bloom’s why is to create a space to share little tidbits to help you start to make plans to achieve your goals, improve your day, and make little changes to make you feel more content in life.

I am tired of feeling like there is no other option to support myself other than making someone else lots of money.

Or working to the bone for a cause that could have a positive impact, but also may not result in much change. That is not how you live your best life.

Only to spend the weekends catching up on cleaning and organizing the apartment and feeling too exhausted to do much else.

Often we stay in jobs we don’t love because we have debt. Or maybe we don’t know what else is possible.

We feel overwhelmed, exhausted, disenchanted, and at times desperate for change.

Burnout is the result of long hours, stressful deadlines, difficult co-workers, and missing out on time with friends and family.

It would be one thing if all energy was going into something that benefitted us beyond just paying the bills.

And I am sooo over hearing myself say, “work’s been crazy” or “my job is so stressful” when people ask how I’m doing.

Don’t get me wrong. I am grateful to have a job. Especially one that pays well and direct deposits a paycheck twice a month.

But, I still have that feeling of, is this it?

Is there nothing else out there for me that would make me excited in the morning to get going? And then negative thoughts start to pop in. How would I make ends meet if I tried something else? How will I find the time to explore other ways to make money? I don’t have time for this. I can barely keep up with work and keeping the house together.

So I decided to create my little space on the interwebs to share what I can to help.

Let me explain the what’s, why’s, and how’s right now.

Plan and Bloom is Designed to Help You Feel Contented in Life

I started Plan and Bloom to share tools and tips to help you live a life that you feel great about.

I don’t want debt and bills to dictate how you spend most of your time. Or you to feel so overwhelmed with all of the things that you give up and retreat into binge-watching. Ahem, guilty. But why?

Because it is possible, there is a better way. It takes time and patience, and persistence. But it is possible to live a life you can confidently feel is exactly where you’re supposed to be—one where you are content and satisfied.

And I hope to help you on the path to get there. It may be uncomfortable at times. You may have to change your way of thinking. There will for sure be cutting back on the wants and likes, versus the needs and musts. And you will have to put yourself first for once. Self care at any time is needed for you to thrive, but especially during times of growth and taking actions.

But it will all be worth it.

This site will share the tools that allow you to live a life where you can breathe. A life that has flexibility and freedom and space in your every day now and for your future self.

Let’s do it!