Dangers Of Personal Development At A Young Age?

[Yang Noctus]

As Leo announced in his last video that he wants to turn Actualized.org in a kind of ''Sage University'' and things are starting to become more advanced. I'm wondering if the lifestage and emotional and psychological development start to play a bigger role. I'm 19 years old and still have a long way to go until my brain is ''fully developed'' at the age of 25 (Yes i know the theory of neuro-plasticity that the brain always changes). But still you are more mature in a psychological sense at the age of 25. Is it dangerous to do personal development (or learning about it, because In no way am i at the advanced stages, but still watch Leo's videos which are pretty advanced.) at it's advanced stages at my age? 

[SFRL]

@Yang Noctus I think you are actually asking a very intelligent question. And I think you hit exactly the point that some people are missing. 

The focus is often on meditation, enlightenment, transcending, etc. But that's the top of the pyramid. And I don't believe a whole lot of people build a strong foundation.

It is really important that you got a good foundation build. And at your age it's perfect to start working your way from the bottom to the top.

Watch this video about Maslow's hierarchy of needs. You will see that transcendence is only at the very top. 

https://www.actualized.org/articles/using-maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-to-self-actualize

 

 

Edited December 10, 2016 by STC

[AlwaysBeNice]

Going within for healing and truth creates the best and safest foundation, there is no real danger to damage yourself, in fact the damage has already been done by the suppressing the spontaneous self of the child and creating unbalanced societies, it is more like anti-danger truly. 

[5thPablo]

none

[Soulbass]

Morpheus to Neo :

"We have a rule...we never free a mind once it reaches a certain age. It's dangerous, and the mind has trouble letting go"

So, the sooner, the better.

[Jacobsen]

What i experienced is that leos older videos related to my challenges and growth much more (when his "hey" was quick and snappy). i still watch his new videos but i find the older ones tend to sometimes directly answer my questions unlike the new ones which are a lot more lofty to me. This is due to simply me being at a lower level than what the advanced works are entering

 

[Leo Gura]

The real danger you should be concerned about is staying under-developed.

I know folks who got enlightened in their early 20s. So if anything, you're behind the ball.

If our society had any decency, everyone would be fully enlightened before they finished high school.

[Vladz0r]

Some of the dangers I've experienced. (They're a mix of positive and negative, and this isn't meant to be sarcastic or judgmental)

-Being aware of how neurotic and unconscious you and others are. 

-Spending your time wisely and focusing on the long-term.

-Being criticized by others who are bigger failures than you, who will try to suck you back into the matrix. You may be seen as a hippie, a workaholic, or a threat for not just "going with the flow of life."

-People may call you religious or atheist if you align with.

-Having a life purpose that "won't pay the bills" (immediately) will piss off your parents.

-You might be seen as "not having a life" because you don't waste all your time dabbling in different time-wasting activities.

-Your friends will try to deplete you and waste your time and bring you back into low consciousness, and you may to leave them if their ideas don't align with your purpose.

-Emotions may actually become more intense as you consciously feel them and become aware of them. 

-Suicidal thoughts, depression, existential crisis - happens when you still have a very incomplete picture of self-actualization. I was going through this when beginning to dive into Leo's videos. You might start to feel like "everything's pointless" until you surrender to the now and start to realize your potential, that you can do anything because you're not so separate from others, etc.

-Savior Complex - you might try to save your friends and family, but most of them won't listen to you, because they're highly unconscious. I wish I had friends that meditate and do self-actualization, but ultimately it's a journey you'll primarily tread alone as you refine yourself.

-Dreaming big for the first time - I didn't realize how much I had suppressed my dreams of being able to accomplish anything significant. This was a huge shift for me, in terms of my long-term goals. 

-Awareness of other people's beliefs, your reaction to them, and how you may embody them as well. You'll quickly notice generalizations. I think I become triggered into consciousness by what people say, and have to be aware of my need to interject "The world isn't really that way" or "it's pretty negative to see our city this way." I try and look within and see how I make these same sweeping generalizations. (Leo made a cool video on how to exploit other people for your own personal development.)

-By being aware of certain behaviors, they may become autocorrected, or become harder to justify. As you become aware of certain negativity loops, playing the victim, etc., and through meditation practice, your mind may dissolve the negativity as it pops up.

And this is the biggest one:

Presence, Bliss in the Now, and enjoyment of the mundane beyond what I could've ever imagined. You can just go outside and really look at a tree and relent to the present moment, and realize what a ridiculous fucking miracle it is to even be alive, in that moment. You can take it in without really thinking too much, and without having to much about it. Conversations also start to happen like this, and I find myself psyching out sometimes. It might lead to become overly attached to people, and being attached to the present moment, and then rejecting the next moment. (Say you're really present while going for a walk, but you come back and lose consciousness when you have to do work.) So, it can inadvertently lead to a clinging, but you'll be aware of it, and that's cool.

 

I would say to watch a mix of Leo's videos. Leo's video on Maslow's Hierarchy helped me a lot in consolidating the different ideas, because I was like "Wait, can I just skip to enlightenment? Can I just be that guy who works at 7-Eleven and is enlightened?" I'd be listening to a bunch of his videos on my phone, walking through my college campus, altering my interpretation of the world and the people around me. Sometimes I'd just walk through campus with no music or audio and see reality "as it is" while being aware of neurotic tendencies to project certain beliefs, judgement. So, getting the big picture is important, so I'd recommend the Life Purpose Course and to watch a ton of his videos.

On this topic, I think the whole point is that you can reconcile your life purpose with self-actualization and enlightenment, and through following the hierarchy and being a creator, you're making the best use of your experience. You could become a monk, but you'd lose a lot of potential impact you could have as a creator first.

Edited January 8, 2017 by Vladz0r

[Christian]

I do not think there are any real dangers with doing PD work at a young age. I do it and I am 18 myself - started at 16.

 Of course you become aware of how unconscious you and others around you are, you begin to draw away from unconsciousness and more toward the vision and I think it is great. Just do not get so caught up in self actualization that you neglect important practical skills because all you do is meditate or read books.

You still need social skills, marketing, networking, a great physique, etc. It is a balance. 

Focus on becoming a hole human being and do not become a Zen devil or too involved in PD theory. You need to be someone who can crush it at life. And PD advice cannot give you that only. Action is required. 90% action and 10% PD theory should be the ideal for maximum results. Not the other way around. 

Good luck mate