Baba Sam Shelley
I used to think personal growth meant MORE. More books. More therapy. More courses. More fixing myself.
For years I was always “working on myself.” Honestly? It was exhausting.
Then something unexpected happened. I got lazy. I started sitting still for 20 minutes a day. No agenda. No trying to fix anything.
Just sitting there like a weirdo.
And that’s when everything shifted.
My nervous system chilled out. My body started healing in ways I didn’t expect. That restless part of me that was always chasing something finally found peace.
Turns out the biggest breakthroughs in personal and spiritual growth happen when you stop trying so hard.
What I Learned About Real Growth
It’s not about hustling toward perfection. It’s about remembering who you are under all the noise.
Think of your mind like a phone with 50 apps running. It overheats and crashes.
Most of the mental clutter we carry isn’t even ours. It’s family baggage. Societal pressure. Old wounds we never asked for.
The moment you give yourself permission to release it, something magical happens. You make space for your natural energy to return.
That’s the paradox of personal spiritual growth: less doing, more being.
Meditation for Spiritual Growth
Meditation isn’t about becoming some enlightened monk sitting on a mountain.
It can be as simple as breathing and letting thoughts come and go.
Your mind will wander. That’s normal. What matters is gently coming back to now.
Over time, consistent meditation for spiritual growth helps you:
Calm the nervous system
Quiet mental chatter
Release anxiety and stress
Build clarity and intuition
Reconnect with who you really are
The key isn’t perfection. The key is showing up.
Creating a Personal Spiritual Growth Plan
If you’re feeling stuck, you don’t need more courses or complicated programs. What you need is a simple structure that leaves space for intuition.
Here’s what a personal spiritual growth plan might look like:
Set a simple intention. What do you want to feel? Peace? Clarity? Compassion?
Pick one practice. Meditation, journaling, mindful walking—choose what feels natural.
Carve out 20 minutes of quiet time daily. That’s it.
Seek support. Mentors, retreats, or guided meditation for spiritual growth can help you go deeper.
Reflect often. Instead of measuring external results, notice inner shifts—calm, joy, resilience.
This kind of plan isn’t about “doing everything right.” It’s about slowly aligning with who you already are.
The Hardest Part of Growth
The hardest part isn’t finding 20 minutes. It’s sitting with yourself without distraction.
We’re addicted to noise—TV, podcasts, social media. Silence feels uncomfortable at first.
Your brain will resist. It will tell you this is boring, that you’re wasting time, that you should be doing something more productive.
That’s just resistance. Push through it.
After a few days, the chatter begins to soften. You hear your own voice again. Not your parents’ voice. Not society’s expectations. Your voice.
The one that knows exactly what you need.
My First Real Breakthrough
I remember my first real meditation for spiritual growth breakthrough.
After two weeks of daily sitting, I was frustrated. Nothing special seemed to be happening. Then one morning, everything felt lighter.
For the first time in years, I felt truly calm.
Not the fake calm you get from wine or Netflix. Real peace. The kind that comes from within.
That’s when I realized I’d been chasing happiness in all the wrong places.
I thought I needed to achieve more. Earn more. Be more.
But what I really needed was less. Less noise. Less pressure. Less doing.
More being.
How This Shift Changes Everything
This shift changed my entire life. My relationships got deeper. My work became more meaningful.
I stopped reacting to every little thing. I started responding from a place of wisdom instead of fear.
And here’s the truth: this isn’t some special gift I was given. Anyone can experience this.
You don’t need to sit in lotus position or chant mantras. You can meditate on your couch. In your car. Even lying down if that’s what works.
The key is consistency. Some days feel magical. Others feel like nothing’s happening. Both are part of the process.
Why Guidance Matters in Spiritual Development
In my Healing Oasis Immersive, I guide people into deep stillness where they connect with their own soul. Each person’s spiritual development looks different.
That’s why cookie-cutter approaches often fail. Personal and spiritual development needs to honor the uniqueness of your path.
Still, the foundation is always the same: stillness, listening, and remembering who you are beneath the noise.
What Happens When You Commit
If you practice daily for even a month, here’s what you may notice:
Better sleep
Stress doesn’t overwhelm you as easily
Clearer decision-making
More self-trust
Anxiety begins to fade
A deeper connection to everything around you
This isn’t woo-woo. It’s practical life change that comes from training your mind to slow down.
Think of meditation like going to the gym. You don’t expect to transform after one workout. But with time, the results become undeniable.
Choosing Stillness Over Struggle
If you’ve tried everything—supplements, self-help books, endless research—and still feel stuck, maybe the answer isn’t more effort.
Maybe it’s allowing. Maybe it’s silence.
Personal growth vs spiritual growth isn’t about choosing one over the other. They’re interconnected. One grounds you in practical resilience, the other lifts you into meaning and connection. Together, they create wholeness.
And at the center of it all is stillness.
Final Thoughts
Personal and spiritual growth isn’t about fixing what’s broken. It’s about realizing you were never broken to begin with.
When you create space for silence, you give your body and spirit permission to heal.
So start simple. Sit for 10 minutes today. Breathe. Let go of “getting it right.”
Because the answers you’re searching for aren’t out there. They’re already inside you.
You just need to get quiet enough to hear them.