Tuesday, October 18, 2011

On self improvement

"There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self."
Ernest Hemingway
I keep looking at my former self, and I keep wondering if I'm being superior to who he was. Not sure I'll ever know the answer to that one - sometimes, it sure doesn't feel like it - but I'll keep trying.

Your turn: How do you raise the bar?

5 comments:

David Edward said...

thankfully, i am slightly better each season ( or relationship) i am now aiming to be as good a man as my father, THAT is a worthy goal.

Snaggle Tooth said...

I'd like to get back to the creative time n ambition I had before this 5 year long night job happened!
In my case, forward is back!
Hmmm
Just waking in the am n getting out in the the sunlight would be a big mood improvement!
I need to improve my attitude for positivity I think.

Very broad question to solve here!

Jamie L said...

Self improvement is a selfish endeavor if not tempered with humility. We need to keep in mind the real reasons we strive to change and grow. To enrich our own reality, and equally as important to grow our capacity to positively affect the people in our lives.

21 Wits said...

As a child my mother was forever telling me you do it (and keep doing it) until you have it right....and we do learn from each mistake....but also, I think every day we learn all by ourselves what is truly right in our world and we move towards that goal....and never dwell on the stuff that isn't important....

Jonas Ellison said...

That's a great way to go about it. Your former self. Constant improvement is key and there are so many levels you can improve upon your former self. It's interesting, after a big challenge, to stop and reflect back on how you may have handled it, say five years ago... ten years ago... Kaizen is a study and philosophy in itself. Thanks!