8 Gifts for Personal Growth

At holiday time most years, I offer gift ideas for the psychologically attuned. Last week, I suggested nine presents for people who could use comfort in these stressful times. But some psychologically oriented people on your list want to go beyond just being comforted—They want to grow. Perhaps one of these gift ideas is right for them . . . or for you?  I will admit that one of them is the booklet I wrote that just was published today.

8 Presents for Personal Growth

At holiday time most years, I offer gift ideas for the psychologically attuned. Last week, I suggested nine presents for people who could use comfort in these stressful times. But some psychologically oriented people on your list want to go beyond just being comforted—They want to grow. Well, might one of these gift ideas be right for them... or for yourself?

Apps

Remente helps you choose a professional and/or personal goal(s) and then fit the baby steps toward achieving those goals into your schedule. You can also use Remente to track your mood, which can provide insight. Or you can browse Remente's curated courses on well-being, productivity, relationships motivation, etc. Remente is available across a wide range of platforms: iPhone, Android, PC and Mac. On GooglePlay (Android,) Remente's average rating is 4.2 across 10,264 ratings, and on Apple's App Store, it's 4.6 across 1,699 ratings. There’s a free version but the giftable premium versions are $10 a month, $49 a year.

Wysa has two components: a chatbot in which you talk out your feelings on whatever issue and the AI-augmented software responds, mainly to encourage you to further flesh out the issue and develop solutions. Wysa's other component is its Tool Packs: tips and activities for stress, anxiety, mood, loneliness, sleep, relationships, and so on. Wysa's GooglePlay (Android) average rating is 4.7 across 66,000 ratings and on the App Store (iPhone), it's 4.8 across 3,800 ratings. Wysa is $12 a month, $99 a year. Optionally, you can get daily messaging support and eight live sessions with a “mental health professional” for $99 a month.

Imprinted clothing

Imprinted clothing can remind you and others of your commitment to personal growth. As we enter winter, a sweatshirt might be particularly appropriate, like a growing plant, keeping the person warm and growing. Examples:

Forever Evolving and Still Growing, the latter which is particularly appropriate for teens because they're still growing physically as well as otherwise. Countless sweatshirts bear a butterfly, a symbol of metamorphosis, but this one is understated yet artful, so it would seem to be a safe choice for whoever you give it to.

Books

Atomic Habits by James Clear.  Despite its hypey title, this offers an effective approach. It encourages you to first realize that changing small habits can cumulatively have big effects. Next, you identify the reasons you want to form new habits or replace old undesirable ones. Then you log all your habits—positive and negative. Next, you note the external cues that trigger your bad habits so you can eliminate that cue (for example, tossing your stash) or at least, on seeing that cue being reminded that you want to  replace the negative behavior with a desired one, perhaps writing in your journal rather than getting high.

Talking to 'Crazy': How to Deal with the Irrational and Impossible People in Your Life by Dr. Mark Goulston. This book helps you avoid getting frustrated or defensive in the face of irrationality but, instead, shows how to enter the irrational person’s world, to experience it as the person perceives it, to and convey that you are an ally, not a threat. That lays the foundation for helping to guide the person toward rationality.

Why Do I Do That?: Psychological Defense Mechanisms and the Hidden Ways They Shape Our Lives by Joseph Burgo. Many readers of Psychology Today believe that defense mechanisms, often rooted in early experience, heavily govern our behavior today, and that understanding one’s defense mechanisms provides both insight into one’s self and also is often prerequisite to moving forward. For such people, this book is ideal. Thorough, clear, and rooted in psychodynamic theory, it enjoys a 4.6 average Amazon rating.

The Best of Marty Nemko, 2021 edition. This is a collection of my 26 most helpful blog posts from among my 4,000.

A print subscription to Psychology Today. It can feel good to curl up not just with your electronic version but an actual magazine. $19.99 a year (6 issues.)

I read this aloud on YouTube.