How to Accept Yourself (Without Giving Up on Change)

Dr. Rick and Forrest Hanson explore what self-acceptance really means and why it’s the foundation for meaningful change, not an alternative to it. They introduce the four stages of competence, explaining why conscious incompetence is often where learning stalls. The conversation distinguishes between judging a specific behavior and judging the self, presenting critical self-acceptance as the middle path between blind self-approval and harsh self-criticism. Rick shares his three circles model—the act, the scared self, and the being—along with two levels of acceptance: being with and working with experience.