Your Opinion...?

I agree with that. The biggest barrier for me is myself. Sometimes I don't want to learn, especially if the lesson cracks my ego.

Yes, but not completely: it's only a first step, like the first step in Alcoholics Anonymous. You may be stubborn and choose not to apply what you have learned to improve yourself. Or your personal beliefs may be so scattered that you cannot piece together everything you learn and see, even though you recognize the value in all things.

Growth requires that you have strong personal beliefs and morals, humility and openness to new values (like what you stated), but also the desire to build upon and improve your beliefs and actions.

Yes, I think being open to learning from everything around you most definitely leads to growth.

How to adopt that mindset when I'm in the midst of pain and chaos or sadness or whatever, is another story. I'd love to read how others overcome the emotional overwhelm that makes it so hard to be objective and learn during difficult times.

Personal growth comes from within, it has no influence from anything outside.

You may learn from sight and sounds, others may learn in other ways.

True personal growth is when you experience who and what you are.

I agree with that. You have to turn everything into a learning experience if you ever want to learn and grow.

Probably this is true. But, I've got a lot of learning to do.

Nicely put. If you are full, then how can you add more. If you are always right, how can you learn. If you are sure you are open to all things, then how much is lost to your arrogance.

I find self awareness tyricky, as I am the chief trickster to myself.

True, for even the ignorant have a story to tell.

Quite right, through evaluated experience we can also learn.