10 signs that you are maturing

People grow not only in terms of physical and cognitive development, but also emotionally. Maturity is understood as the moment in which we value ourselves more and respect others.

There are many small details that indicate that you are growing as a person. Among them, We can highlight 10 signs that you are maturing, which are the ones that we will see next.

• Related article: "11 habits to reach emotional maturity"

The main signs that you are maturing emotionally

Maturity is difficult to define. Some consider it a mere chronological question, whereas if you reach adulthood you are mature. However, most know that maturity is not something that you have to fulfill years, but for having reached a degree of emotional reflection that influences all our areas of life, both work and social and sentimental.

Maturity is demonstrated with gestures, attitudes, expectations and thoughts towards life and all the challenges that it poses to us, Maturing is understanding that that moment has arrived of life that one understand that there is no love more powerful than self-love, respecting others but also not allowing others to treat us in a way unfair. It is living and letting live, without hurting or letting others do it to us.

There are many signs that indicate that you are maturing and then we are going to talk about the 10 most important ones.

1. You let go when it's time

Everyone is afraid to let go of what they love or are comfortable with. It is normal to feel attached to people as well as to things and routines, but in life nothing is permanent and there are times when we know that it's time to say goodbye, time to change.

You are maturing when you let go when it is time, you know how to say goodbye to what you know no longer gives you anything or that it is necessary to change, even if you worry about what may happen later.

2. You value the past, but you don't take refuge in it

Throughout our lives we have had good moments and bad moments. There are many experiences that we have had in our lives and that we must value since valuable lessons are extracted from them

Nostalgia helps us to search in past times for something that can be useful in our present, something that a mature person knows how to do without falling into the trap of taking refuge in so-called “better times”. Emotionally mature people understand the importance of living in the present, overcoming and accepting what happened.

On many occasions we realize how happy we were for a time after it had come to an end. This means that right now we may also have a very happy time, but if we don't we value or take advantage of all that it brings us, we will see it as a lost moment when it reaches its end.

• Related article: "Rumination: the annoying vicious circle of thought"

3. You separate the rational from the emotional

A sign of maturity is to recognize what you think and what you feel. It is difficult to prevent our thoughts from mixing with our emotions, but a mature person tries to make this effort by trying to separate his rational part from the emotional part. Maturity is having a special awareness of thoughts and feelings, both your own and others..

When we get angry and say everything first that comes to mind, we are not honest, but aggressive. This can cause us to say things that we will regret when we calm down because, even if they are partly true, being moody can hurt others by making the situation worse.

On the other hand, when we are calm, we are more vigilant about what we say and, although we are honest, we try to say it without hurting others. That is the attitude of an emotionally mature person, who separates the rational from the emotional, knowing that emotions play tricks.

• You may be interested in:"Are we rational or emotional beings?"

4. Stop complaining

One of the most common attitudes in people who have not yet matured is to not stop complaining for things they disagree with but ironically they do absolutely nothing to change them. It is true that they have the right to express their opinion or to disagree with what they see, hear or experience, but if they want things to go their way they should try to make an effort to change it.

When a mature person is unhappy with something, instead of wasting time complaining, try to see if you can do something to change it. Know that there are only two skills in dealing with life's problems: either you change them or you accept them.

• Related article: "Self-sabotage: causes, characteristics and types"

5. You empathize with and listen to others, but don't let their emotions overwhelm you

Mature people are capable of managing their emotions, but also those they see in other people. They identify the emotional states of others, understanding what others are going through and trying to help them, but without feeling overwhelmed by problems that they may not be able to change.

Empathy and active listening They are two essential traits in every person who calls himself mature. Nevertheless, You also have to understand that we cannot solve life for others, since perhaps they have problems that only they can change. We cannot turn the problems of others into our personal struggles.

6. You accept your own limitations

Nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes, sometimes really stupid. What are you going to do? at the end of the day we are human. But in the same way that our nature prevents us from making everything perfect, it is also true that we have enough reason to learn from our mistakes.

Failure is human and we shouldn't beat ourselves up for it, but to learn from what we erred in and try to prevent it from happening again. A sign of maturity is accepting our limitations and, where possible, working to improve them.

• Related article: "Do you really know what self-esteem is?"

7. You open up emotionally

Although most people have empathy, this does not mean that they are fortune tellers. Sometimes it is downright difficult to know what others are feeling if they don't tell us, and this also applies in the reverse direction.

Emotional armor is not good for us or our loved ones. An emotionally mature person knows that the best way for others to help us is to give them the opportunity, explaining what may be happening to us, what do we feel and asking them if they have ever experienced the same thing. Who knows? it may happen that they have been through exactly the same thing.

• You may be interested in:"The 10 basic communication skills"

8. You apologize when necessary

Doing harm, even if it is unintentional, does not exempt us from having done it and therefore apologize. We might hurt without thinking, making a comment that we didn't think was offensive to the other. person or perhaps, in an effort to help her, we end up sinking her even more in the misery of her misfortunes.

Maturing means that we are able to identify the emotional wounds that we may have committed and, consequently, try to heal them apologizing to the injured person.

9. You value your family more

There comes a time in our lives when we see all the good that our family has done for us. Our parents, who during our adolescence saw them as a source of overwhelm and tension, suddenly They become those two people who understand us and who can give us advice on work and sentimental matters.

You also mature when you understand that you should spend more time with your family, since the day will come when they are not there. Listen to the stories that your parents have to tell because, although they are not very interesting, it is those moments that you spend with them that you will remember with great nostalgia when have departed.

• You may be interested in:"Family therapy: types and forms of application"

10. Your health matters more to you than the opinion of others

There comes a time in your life that you take more care of yourself. You exercise, watch your diet, meditate, do yoga and go to the psychologist. You may not do all of this, but you have decided include some of these healthy habits in your life.

One might think that you do it because you want to look better and that others value you more, but in reality you do not care. You do not do it for physical appearance or for others to take you for a person who takes care of himself, but because you really care more about your health than the opinion of others.

It is true that wanting to be handsome or pretty is not a sign of immaturity. We all have the right to want to look good. However, when you mature you take care of your mind and body because you know that the most important person in your life is, indeed, yourself. Maturing is understanding that the love that matters most is your own.