GROWTH ENVIRONMENT MASTERY
To create your own growth, you must master your environment first.
Key concept 5: Elements for Growth
Grow and thrive with nutrients, water, sunlight, and CO2.
In the previous lesson, we delved into how we acquire various types of knowledge and how information about a subject or ourselves can influence our future. Our main focus was on how curiosity acts as a tool for us to build either deep or wide roots.
We compared nutrients to general information, as well as knowledge about yourself including the development of durable skills. In this lesson, we'll explore the additional elements necessary for a seed, plant, or tree to grow and thrive.
Water: Refreshment for growth.
While certain plants, like cacti, need less water than others, every plant requires water to survive and thrive. Moreover, water is essential for productivity.
Water plays a crucial role in a plant’s ability to produce solid carbohydrates that benefit other living things.
Similarly, for you to create a positive growth environment that enhances your productivity, it's essential to incorporate water-like refreshing activities into your schedule.
What activities refresh, energize, or feed your soul? Is it hiking, playing or listening to music, lifting weights, doing yoga, painting, or surfing?
Engaging in activities that energize, refresh, and inspire you is vital for maintaining productivity and creating your optimal external growth environment.
Sunlight: Infusing you with confidence and power.
Energy from the sun is used to convert water and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates (sugars). Plants then use the carbohydrates to grow.
Extending our analogy, encouragement, and praise can often act similar to sunlight, infusing you with more confidence and building your self-esteem, thereby truly empowering you to grow and have a positive impact on others.
However, just like plants, individuals may require different amounts of praise and encouragement.
You have control over this aspect of your external growth environment. Limit the time you spend around negative or critical people, and build a circle of friends who are supportive, encouraging, and positive.
Much like carbon dioxide, often viewed as waste produced by humans, can be repurposed by plants to convert energy and water into essential sugars, the words people say, including critiques and constructive criticism, can hold hidden potential. While on the surface, these verbal expressions may seem negative, they offer an opportunity for growth. By taking a cue from nature, we can sift through the seemingly adverse remarks, identify the valid points, and use them as a catalyst for positive change, just as plants harness carbon dioxide to fuel their growth.
While the ability to identify relevant points from seemingly adverse remarks falls within the realm of the internal growth environment, we include it here because oftentimes, we can't escape external input, whether the critique comes from a teacher, parent, or boss - all of which are part of your external growth environment.
Carbon Dioxide: Turning a negative into a positve.
Vital for Life: Get what you
need to grow.
Many people overlook the importance of examining their external growth environment, but it's crucial for you to assess yours. Determine whether the people, attitudes, culture, and mindsets you are exposed to daily truly are the best external growth environment for you.
It's vital to ensure you have the necessary elements for growth: nutrients (knowledge), water and sunlight (refreshing activities and positive relationships), and CO2 (input and feedback from others to aid improvement).
Metacognitive Goal
For this lesson, take note of the elements for growth present or missing in your external growth environment.
Do you allocate time for activities that bring you joy, reinvigorate, or recharge your energy?
Are there individuals in your life who are consistently encouraging, positive, and willing to praise and compliment you? Or do you find that most of the people you associate with tend to be critical and discouraging?
Consider your response to constructive criticism. For instance, if someone were to point out that you interrupt people mid-sentence, would you become defensive, choose not to engage with anyone, or could you analyze the statement objectively to determine its validity and, if applicable, identify the cause and solution?
After analyzing the above, consider the question, “Am I productive”. Write your comments in your journal.
“Rest when you’re weary. Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit. Then get back to work.”
—Ralph Marston