I have six fundamentals to success. These are six fundamentals that I adhere to and when I do, I typically achieve whatever goal I have set. Typically, for me, that’s been losing weight, but it could be applied to any goal in life. Personal development is the sixth fundamental and I want to just take a step back and talk about how personal development will help you. Oftentimes, there’s almost a negative connotation with personal development. It’s as if you are afraid to be caught listening to it for fear that you will be judged.

I know that’s how I felt a few years ago when I started reading personal development books and I felt I had a very good mindset but after listening to and reading a serious amount of PD, I can see that I clearly needed it in my life. So I want to take a step back, talk about what it is, who should be doing it when I like to listen to it, how to get it into your life if you don’t already listen to it and discuss why you should be adding personal development into your life.

To begin, what exactly is personal development?

Basically, these are activities that improve awareness and identity of yourself and those around you as well. It’s also a tool that can be used to develop talent and potential. You’re not going to achieve your goal just by listening to personal development, but it is going to put you in the right mindset to go out and work towards achieving that goal. It also enhances the quality of life and contributes to the realization of dreams and aspirations. At the end of the day, it allows you to feel better about yourself, handles real-life situations better, and build confidence.

For me, I try to incorporate personal development into my daily routine. I like to read at night before bed. For me, this is a great way to quiet my mind and put myself into a positive state before falling asleep. I also listen to a lot of personal development when I’m driving. If I’m on a long drive, then you can bet that there’s either a personal development audiobook or podcast playing.

At the end of the day, who should be listening to personal development.

In my opinion, everyone should be listening to it. For anyone that has goals or dreams and especially if you feel lost or stuck or you want to make a change, but you don’t know where to start. Personally, I always like to start with what successful people are doing. I find that a common theme among the elite is that they all practice some form of personal development. At its core, I think it’s the foundation to accelerating your life and being better.

Be warned though, like most things, you can have too much of a good thing. Beware of becoming a personal development vacuum where you consume it without taking any action on it. It’s like buying a new television getting it hung up on the wall, not plugging it in and wondering why it’s not working. You must plug what you learn into your life to turn it on. Use it to shift your thinking from a negative, toxic mentality to a mindset that’s positive and beautiful. Your mindset is a muscle and must be exercised. Like any muscle, a positive mindset must be built, trained, and maintained in order to continuously stay strong. Find what works for you and listen to it, read it, and most importantly use it!