#dabrowski

Stefan Dąbrowski, Dynie (Pumpkins)

"[T]he individual is more and more able to match his or her ideals with the actual living of those ideals...In the process of inner transformation, individuals move towards becoming more compassionate, responsible, and more fully in the process of self-realization. Self-deprecation and comparison with both the inner ideal and the perceptions of others give way to self-acceptance and freedom from social convention, as well as distancing oneself from lower aspects of one’s self. Acceptance of others and compassion for oneself and others become dominant. [...] 

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Maslow [also] provided a rich and extensive description of the characteristics of self-actualizing people and the principles that they live by -- for instance, lack of egocentrism; focusing on problems outside of themselves (problem-centering); a sense of kinship with all people; respect for every person, whether high or low (democratic character structure); and having definite moral standards. In Maslow’s words, ‘they do right and do not do wrong.’

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Examples of development at this level have been gathered from both literary analyses and case study approaches with individuals in contemporary settings. [...] Janice Witzel (1991) found examples serendipitously among never-married women who turned out to be gifted, happy, self-actualizing, and invisible. Thanks to the single qualification ‘well thought of,’ the women nominated for Witzel’s study were outsanding in their achievement, often despite lack of support or acknowledgment in their environment, making their achievement even more amazing. They had a high level of energy, had drive for autonomy and development of their own powers, responded to opportunities and help offered, had high self-esteem, lived a deeply satisfying way of life, and were able to let go of difficult experiences without devaluing them. They were deeply engaged in altruistic pursuits through varied and far-reaching volunteer work. And despite such elevated personal qualities, they were, for the most part, unnoticed. They fit Maslow’s criteria of self-actualization, which makes them good candidates for advanced multilevel growth.”  

Stefan Dąbrowski, Hawrań i Murań w zimie (Hawrań and Murań Mountains in Winter)