If you’re over self-help, this post offers you an alternative… with a playbook of suggestions to try today.
Where self-help is typically prescriptive and formulaic, self-expression is more open-ended and exploratory. This allows you to experiment with different ways of expressing yourself without the pressure to achieve specific outcomes or goals. Without the constraints of external advice and boring repetitive guidance, you’re free to express yourself and play your own way without expectations.
You get to test out different art forms, styles, and ideas that suit your unique needs, interests, and desires to discover what feels authentic, meaningful, and empowering to you. You can express yourself in ways that are unique, personal, and fun.
Self-expression offers a flexible, personal, and authentic approach with encourages self-acceptance over self-improvement. You get to express yourself as you are right now. This opens up new possibilities in your life and business as you embrace hidden aspects of yourself and expand into all of you.
Here are 5 alternative options from self-help to self-expression with ideas to try.
From personal improvement to intimate expression
Self-help typically focuses on personal improvement and problem-solving, while self-expression focuses on expressing oneself creatively or emotionally.
To guide you with intimate expression, here are some ideas to try:
- Keep a journal of your dreams where you write down your dreams and reflect on their meaning and significance
- Create a piece of art, such as a painting, sculpture, or collage, that reflects your inner emotions and experiences
- Pursue a passion and or unusual interests, even if it’s not financially or socially rewarding
From setting goals to exploring emotions
Self-help often involves setting goals and working towards achieving them, while self-expression may not have specific goals or outcomes in mind.
To guide you in exploring your emotions, here are some ideas to try:
- Engage in role-playing activities like acting, improv, or cosplay that allow you to explore and express different emotions and characters
- Try automatic drawing, where you draw without thinking, or surrealist art, where you combine elements from your dreams or unconscious mind into your artwork
- Express your emotions through your body by chanting, singing, or breathwork
From overcoming challenges to personal exploration
Self-help may be focused on practical, concrete goals, while self-expression may be more abstract or experimental.
To guide you in personal exploration, here are some ideas to try:
- Create a personal mission statement that outlines your values and beliefs
- Seek out new experiences, such as traveling to a new place or trying a new activity, or trying new foods, to learn about yourself and the world around you and to challenge your beliefs about your limitations
- Reflect on your past experiences and challenges, and use them as inspiration for creative expressions, such as writing a poem or painting a picture, or self-portrait photography
From seeking advice to individual expression
Self-help may involve seeking advice or guidance from others, while self-expression may be more individual, personal, and often solitary.
To guide you in your individual expression, here are some ideas to try:
- Do physical activities that allow you to release emotions and express yourself, such as dancing, martial arts, or extreme sports
- Engage in community service or volunteer somewhere that aligns with your values and helps others
- Use divination tools and methods, such as tarot cards, crystal balls, or astrology, to find one that resonates with you
From self-adjustment to deconstructing identity
Self-help may involve personal growth, while self-expression may be more about exploring and deconstructing one’s identity.
To guide you in your deconstructing your identity, here are some ideas to try:
- Speak up and advocate for causes that align with your values, such as social justice, environmentalism, or animal welfare.
- Reflect on the roles and labels that you have assigned to yourself, and consider how they shape your identity and your experiences
- Engage in activities that require you to confront your fears, such as public speaking, social interactions, or physical challenges
And here are a few more bonus ideas to play with:
- Read books that challenge your beliefs (or write one).
- Join a club or community group to pursue a shared interest or passion (or start one).
- Start a business!
Summary
5 alternative options from self-help to self-expression with ideas to try.
Key Takeaways
From personal improvement to intimate expression
From setting goals to exploring emotions
From overcoming challenges to personal exploration
From seeking advice to individual expression
From self-adjustment to deconstructing identity
Recommended Reading
Original Beauty: A Poetic Perspective
The C Word: Compulsive [A Creative’s Cure]
Love, Lauren
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