Positive Thinking by: Amit Abraham

Achiever's Profile - Do You Have It in You?

"Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved"

I really want others to be appreciative of me, admire me and respect the person I am. I have to move towards achieving this objective. To achieve this target you have to initiate, sustain and direct your thinking in this direction. This will provide you an internal energy that will energise your behaviour. These motivated activities will be the beginning of creating a need for achievement.
This need will cause a psychological state or feeling called a drive, to develop. This drive will activate a response designed to attain your goal that will satisfy your need for becoming the perfect individual you always wanted to be.
The need for achievement is the desire to meet your individual standard of excellence. A housewife, carpenter, clerk or student could live creatively and make full use of his or her potentials. Persons with high need for achievement strive to do well in any situation in which evaluation takes place. The tendency of making full use of one's potentials is referred to as self-actualisation. It is the process of fully developing personal potentials One who is living creatively and making full use of his or her potentials is a self-actualiser.

Where you stand is very important to know for you to act in accordance. So you must test yourself first.
This test is designed by the author to measure approximately the self-actualiser in you. Respond honestly to the questions positively or negatively. Remember your honesty is the key to your success.

1. Do you have the ability to judge situations correctly and honestly? Yes/No
2. Are you sensitive to the fake and dishonest? Yes/No
3. Do you accept your human nature with all its shortcomings? Yes/No
4. Do you accept the shortcomings of others as well as the contradictions of the human condition with humour and tolerance? Yes/No
5. Do you extend your creativity into everyday activities? Yes/No
6. Are you usually enthusiastic, engaged and spontaneous? Yes/No
7. Do you have a mission to fulfil in life? Yes/No
8. Do you have some task or problem outside of your own? Yes/No
9. Are you free from dependency on external authority or other people? Yes/No
10. Are you resourceful and independent? Yes/No
11. Do you constantly renew appreciation of life's basic goods? Yes/No
12. Do you have an 'innocence of vision' like that of an artist or child? Yes/No
13. Do you feel a sense of deep identification with others? Yes/No
14.
Do you feel a sense of deep identification with the human situation in general? Yes/No
15. Are your interpersonal relationships marked by deep, loving bonds? Yes/No
16. Do you have the capacity to laugh at yourself?
Yes/No
17. Do you make jokes that do not hurt others? Yes/No
18. Do you have marked feelings of ecstasy, harmony and deep meaning? Yes/No
19. Do you feel as one with the universe? Yes/No
20. Do you feel safe? Yes/No
21. Are you relaxed? Yes/No
22. Do others accept you? Yes/No
23. Do others love you? Yes/No
24. Are you loving and alive? Yes/No

Now rate yourself. For every Yes, give 1 point and for every No 0. Total up the points. If you score between 0-6 you are a very low self-actualiser; 7-9 you are a low self-actualiser; 10-15 you are average; 16-20 you are a high actualiser and 21-24 you are a very high self-actualiser.

Abraham Maslow's whole characteristics of self-actualising people: A bird's-eye view
1. They have more efficient perceptions of reality and are more comfortable with it.
2. They accept themselves and their own natures almost without thinking about it.
3. Their behaviour is marked by simplicity and naturalness and by lack of artificiality or straining for effect.
4. They focus on problems outside themselves; they are concerned with basic issues and eternal questions.
5. They like privacy and tend to be detached.
6. They have relative independence of their physical and social environments; they rely on their own development and continued growth.
7. They do not take blessings for granted, but appreciate, again and again, the basic pleasures of life.
8. They experience limitless horizons and the intensification of any 'unself-conscious' experience often of a mystical type.
9. They have a deep feeling of kingship with others.
10. They develop deep ties with a few other self-actualising individuals.
11. They are democratic in a deep sense. Although not indiscriminate, they are not really aware of differences.
12. They are strongly ethical, with definite moral standards, though their attitudes are conventional; they relate to ends rather than means.
13. Their humour is real and related to philosophy, not hostility. They tend to be more serious and thoughtful.
14.
They are original and inventive, less constricted and fresher than others.
15.
While they tend to be inclined towards the conventional and exist well within the culture, they live by the law of their own characters rather than those of society.
16.
They experience imperfections and have emotional responses like others.

Qualities of self-actualisers
The test you went through and its results thereafter must have made clear the distance you stand from being a self-actualiser. The test was designed to measure the following qualities found common in self-actualisers the world over:

Efficient perceptions of reality
Self-actualisers are able to judge situations correctly and honestly and are sensitive to the fake and dishonest.

Comfortable acceptance of self and other's nature They accept their human nature with all its shortcomings. The shortcomings of other's and contradictions of the human conditions are also accepted by them with humour and tolerance.

Spontaneity
They extend their creativity into everyday activities.
They tend to be usually alive, engaged and spontaneous.

Prioritising/Prioritise tasks
problem outside of themselves to pursue.
Phey have a mission to selves to pur su some task or

Autonomy
They are free from dependence on external authority or other people. They tend to be resourceful and independent.

Continued appreciation
The self-actualisers constantly renew appreciation of life's basic goods. They have an 'innocence of vision like that of an artist or child.

Fellowship with humanity
Self-actualisers feel a deep identification with others and the human situation in general.

Profound interpersonal relationships
The interpersonal relationships of self-actualisers are marked by deep, loving bonds.

Non-hostile sense of humour
They have a wonderful capacity to laugh at themselves.
They never make a joke that will intentionally hurt someone.

Peak experiences
Self-actualisers have frequent occurrences of peak experiences. These are marked by feelings of ecstasy, harmony and deep meaning. They feel at one with the universe, stronger and calmer than ever before, filled with light, beauty and goodness. In short, they feel safe, non-anxious, accepted, loved, loving and alive. How to move towards self-actualisation
Ityou have ailed the test you need not get disheartened.
This book is meant especially for you. It you have passed you still need to know.

There is no magic formula for leading a more creative life. Self-actualisation is primarily a process, not a goal or an end point. As such, it requires hardwork, patience, and commitment on your part. Here are some ways to begin.

• Be willing to change - Begin by asking yourself,
"Am I living in a way that is deeply satisfying to me and which truly expresses me?" If not, be prepared to make changes in your life. Indeed, ask yourself this question often and accept the need for continual change.
• Take responsibility - You can become an architect of self by acting as if you are personally responsible for every aspect of your life. Shouldering responsibility in this way helps end the habit of blaming others for your own shortcomings.
• Examine your motives - Self-discovery involves an element of risk. If most of your behaviour seems to be directed by a desire for safety or security, it may be time to test the limits of these needs. Try to make each decision a choice for growth, not a response to fear or anxiety.
• Experience honestly and directly - Wishful thinking is another barrier to personal growth. Self-actualisers trust themselves enough to accept all kinds of information without distorting it to fit their fears and desires. Try to was yourself as others do.
Be willing to admit, "I was wrong" or "I failed because I was irresponsible."
• Make use of positive experiences - You should actively repeat activities that have caused feelings of awe, amazement, exaltation, renewal, reverence, humility, fulfilment or joy.
• Be prepared to be different - Everyone has the potential for greatness, but most fear of becoming what they might. As part of personal growth, be prepared to trust your own impulses and feelings; do not automatically judge yourself by the standards of others. Accept your uniqueness.
• Get involved - Get personally involved and committed. Turn your attention to problems outside yourself.
• Maintain an average level of anxiety - Research has emphasised the constructive contribution of anxiety to the growth of the self. It is maintained that self-actualisation, the creative use of one's talents, comes about only through encounters with anxiety-provoking experiences. New possibilities for overcoming potential threats are said to enlarge the scope of one's activity and to increase personal freedom.
• Assess your progress - Since there is no final point at which one becomes self-actualised, it is important to gauge your progress frequently and to renew your efforts. If you feel bored at school, at a job, or in a relationship, consider it a challenge or an indication that you have not taken responsibility for personal growth. Almost any activity can be used as a chance for self-enhancement if it is approached creatively.