Waking up vs. becoming a better person

There are many enlightenment teachers in the east and also in the west now, they are all pointing towards our real nature, ie. to the fact that we do not really exist. We exist only as a mental projection. The “I” thought is only a thought in our mind. So how can that which does not even exist work on itself and become for example “a better version of ones-self”. How to resolve this apparent paradox?

I witnessed many of my former spiritual teachers behave in a very immature way, their flaws were very evident. They ware only human after all. But they had a spark in their eyes, the spark that reminded me of something far greater. I would loose myself in this spark and my boundaries would simply dissolve. Yet their behaviour was such that they literally drove me away…so obviously it is possible to be fully awake to your “real nature” and on the other hand be emotionally very immature, full of unresolved trauma and similar issues…

They say that when crossing the river, one is not worried about how the boat looks like, as long as it takes us to the other side. And also when we cross the river, we leave the boat behind…

But at the end of the day, our life is all about human to human interaction. And no matter how enlightened someone may be, it counts only how we are in relation to other human beings. It is very easy to become caught up in stories about how “nothing exists” and “everything is just happening”, in order to justify our bad behaviour. So, no matter how enlightened you think you are (not that there ever was an enlightened somebody:), you still need to work on yourself. For the sake of your own self and the self of other human beings. The one and only non-dual self.