it's been a while

It's been a while since I've thought of the "challenge of managing yourself".  Maybe this has become such a daily thing - this "challenge of managing yourself"- that I've stopped taking notice this is what I've been trying to do.

The challenge of managing yourself is exactly what it is - one big, huge challenge.  If managing other people is not easy, try thinking of how you are managing yourself, leading yourself, making sure that you are an effective, productive, well-rounded (not literally), truly happy person.  If you're having problems managing others, think about how you are managing yourself.  We can't lead others if we cannot even lead ourselves.  It's called personal leadership- the key to leading others.

The challenge of managing yourself will continue to be challenging because the need to be better, to have better relationships, to be content, will always be there.  Unless, you have given up on yourself and it's okay to stay as you are, to think that your bad relationships are because of other people, to feel dissatisfied and sometimes empty.

Ever heard of Gestalt psychotherapy? The theory involves taking responsibility for your self, for your life. It's being response-able, not just responsible.  Very Stephen Covey - Habit # 1 of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - the essence of facing the challenge of managing yourself.

I think (and know) that the biggest challenge of managing yourself is that it deals with the self.  It's so much easier to see the fault of others, to try and change them, to make excuses, to tag ourselves as the victim, to say we are unhappy because of our boss or our partners in life.  And this is why no matter what we do, the challenge of managing yourself continue to be very challenging.  In fact the challenge of managing yourself becomes more and more difficult as we go along.  Because we fail to use Stephen Covey's principle of inside out - to see ourselves first:  what's wrong with us, what are we doing that contributes to the problem, what do we need to change (within us) to make things better, to be responsible for our actions, to be proactive instead of reactive.

The challenge of managing yourself should be a daily thing.  Maybe there's really no need to think about it because it is so interwoven into our routines, a habit, a way of life.  There's really no need to think about the challenge of managing yourself because you see the changes:  in yourself, in others as they respond to a better you.

Oh, well!  I don't know if I am making sense.  Maybe I should eat breakfast first.