The word ‘growth’ immediately makes me think of a curve trending upwards.
As a result, whenever I think of other people in terms of where they might be in their own journey of personal growth, I automatically go into comparison mode and place them below or above me on the curve. Not good.
As a fixer, when I try to flatten things and try to visualize the word, I immediately start comparing whose region of coverage is more. Not good. When I compress things and try to visualize the word, I immediately start comparing whose height of accumulation is more. Not good.
However, when I remove myself from the equation and just let the word ‘growth’ be used as a point of reference for comparing their past and present self, I always see the other person at the top of their curve. Hence, I find peace in using the statement, “s/he has grown”. Good.
However, if I say, “I’ve grown”, I immediately think I’m in the middle of the curve with the maxima still very far from me. Not good. However, if I compare where I am in my growth curve to others, I find peace in using the statement “I’ve grown”. Good?
I feel like I’m inventing numbers just to create more problems like mathematics did but it sure does help in understanding things.