Kick Starting your Personal Development and Self-Improvement Journey

Have you ever heard of the term ‘Personal Development?‘

Perhaps you view it as some cliché term or business concept.

In the past its been used “ad nauseam” for anything labelled under ‘bettering’ oneself for personal growth, and also in the business world as companies hope to bring out the best in their employees.

Regardless if its cliché or a business term the fact is most individuals need to work on their personal development to get out of their ruts, or entanglement of negative lifestyles.

Whether you’re reading this because you’ve decided to embark on personal development for yourself, or gathering information on what to expect on the “road to success” my aim is to give you some pointers towards your possible next steps.

But first let’s take a quick look at some hurdles along the way that could trip you up…

 

HOW PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT CAN FAIL:

Often time personal development involves getting rid of the bad habits or even addictions that set you back from becoming your best self.

Most of us know we have to make changes in our lives, and wish we could, but often wait for change to come to us, or believe we’ll wake up one morning and magically be the person we’ve always wanted to be.

Unfortunately, that’s not how the real-world works!

Getting to the best “you” takes hard work, and sometimes professional guidance. Psychologists, Hypnotherapists and Life Coaches can all help people make significant changes in their life.

But you have to be a willing volunteer and not a passive bystander.

While the term personal development seems to imply it’s all up to you – and to a certain extent this is true – the fact is your environment can provide a barrier. Family and friends can keep you “running on the spot.”

Past negative thinking can easily slip into the work you’re doing to change, especially when life gets hard and throws a curve ball at you when you’re at your most vulnerable. Difficult as it may seem, when you change your life you’ll end up changing a lot of your friends. “Friends” who rather than support you in change want to preserve “you” in where “they” are today.

If you’re easily distracted from your goals in the past then this can be another stumbling block in your future. There are plenty of excuses out there to avoid meeting goals or changing a habit.
Another environmental aspect that could impact your success is what else are you going through at the moment?

Is there a crisis in your life you need to attend to first?

I’ve consulted with people who want to quit smoking but have more pressing issues they need to take care of first. Attempting to quit before this core issue is resolved would be a barrier for failing to quit.

There are many other things that can trip you up during your road to a “better you.” While most self-improvement gurus will tell you none of these should stop you if you have a “big why”, the fact is they often do: lack of money, wrong mindset or attitude, easily distracted or lack of focus, lack of commitment, health issues both physical and mental, obligations to others.

Wow! You might say likely most of us have a few from this list junking up our mind. It’s a wonder anybody reaches their “best self?”

You’re most likely to succeed at what you want if you recognize your strengths and weaknesses up front. We all have blind-spots and egos that get in our way, and some of these can be earmarked to work on as part of your personal development journey.

Enough on our own-making “minefields”, let’s move onto how to make it work for you…

 

THE BEST INVESTMENT YOU CAN MAKE IS IN YOURSELF:

It can’t be argued the best investment you can make is in yourself. Not get rich schemes or stock investments or the lottery… but in yourself.

Look at investments that’ll improve your overall psychological/mental quality of life.

In order for personal development to work you first have to identify what you want to change in your life, or decide what type of individual you’d like to become. Examples can be creating or developing new attitudes, behaviors and values.

It’s okay to have some career or job goals in mind but remember to have a balanced life. All work and no play….

If you’re at the beginning of your journey then its worthwhile to remind yourself the benefits of Personal Development and I’ve included a link in the resource section below to cover some basic benefits for you.

Personal development is an inside job, meaning only you can determine what, or who, you’d like to become.

If you’re changing for others, your attempts at personal development and character trait changes aren’t most likely going to be successful or sticky. You should never change for another person, only for yourself!

There are ‘life-skill’ coaches who can literally coach you on helping you become the person you would like to be. They guide you on how to gain self-confidence, project a better version of you, help you overcome bad habits, help you improve on your time management skills, and teach you to become more aware of who you are already, and what you would like to become.

Some folks looking to improve on their personal development may actually see a psychologist to provide the same kind of ‘coaching’. Just remember the aim of a psychologist or life coach isn’t to tell you what to do. They’ll make suggestions but the final decision is up to you. Whereas a mentor is there to guide you on a path you agree with them to help you with.

It’s a fine distinction but make sure expectations are set if you’re going to invest in a life coach or psychologist. For more on how a Life Coach can help you check out the link in the resource section below.

There are any number of personal development or self-help gurus. One of the bigger name is of course Tony Robbins. Brian Tracy is also a powerhouse in the business personal development world. Before embarking on any of these programs work first on making sure your mindset is right so the help you get doesn’t “gather dust” on a shelf somewhere.

This can’t be an intellectual activity for you, so you’ll need to take action.

If you change nothing…. nothing changes for you.

If you’re looking to do this on your own, it may all be about a change in mindset, attitude and belief system, which can be helped by using hypnosis. Hypnosis techniques such as “pattern interrupt” can help replace bad habits with new positive habits that help in your self growth. I’ve included a link to more information on this in the resource section below.

By using hypnosis, you can modify beliefs you’ve held about yourself by re-working your unconscious mind. Perhaps it’s ‘beliefs’ about yourself that have held you back, thus creating low self-esteem and negative beliefs. If you want to consider working directly with me on your specific need through my online and in-office sessions then check out my Special Hypnosis Services Programs.

Hypnosis can help change these negative underlying thought patterns by reconditioning your unconscious mind and creating new ways for you to perceive yourself.

Within a couple of sessions, you’ll start to take on ‘new attitudes’ about who you are because your unconscious mind is no longer fixated on the negative ‘who you used to be’.

 

CONCLUSIONS:

Personal development and self-improvement is a lifelong journey. Recognize they’ll be many hurdles and obstacles during that journey that can distract you. Most of these miss-steps will be self-inflicted.

Working on yourself first before buying into expensive programs is key to having the right mindset, attitude and belief system, and avoiding old habits and thought patterns you possess getting in the way.

Consider getting professional help during the early stages. Help can be a Life Coach and/or working with a hypnotist.

If you want to sample a self-hypnosis program to kick start your personal development then check out this program here >>>

You’re always just one decision away from success.

 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES RELATED TO PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT:

What is a Life Coach and What Do They Do for You? >>>

Pattern Interrupt – Breaking the Habit – Erika Slater >>>

What is Personal Development? >>>

How to Reinvent Yourself with Hypnosis For Next Phase of Life >>>

Library of Self-Hypnosis Downloads Products >>>

Erika Slater CH
Free At Last Hypnosis
Massachusetts