Beginner's Guide to Personal Development

One of the key components in any Personal Development plan is creating a higher sense of self esteem. Your self-image is very important and determines whether you are successful in life or not. Many things you encounter, including people and environment, can affect your self-esteem and self-image. There are those spiritually deficit people who will deliberately damage your self esteem and those you do it unknowingly. Circumstances can sometimes push hard against and make you doubt yourself and others. Situations can cause you stress and disillusionment. Never allow these destructive influences to affect you. 


Here are some tips that will act as a quick guide starter to your self improvement. 


Don’t permit the behaviour of others to affect your self image. Never get caught up in the game of believing that the negative comments of others are true. If a person wishes to berate or belittle you then see it for what it is - a lack of self-esteem on their part. These people feel so low within themselves that they must elevate themselves at the expense of others. Do not do this yourself. It is very damaging to your own self esteem. For in order to be good at something you will have to make another person bad at it. You aren’t good at it your just better than ‘they’ are! Start to build your faith in your own abilities and let others take care of their own. Stay away from toxic people who have such a bad self-image, low self-esteem and lack of belief in themselves that they must build up their own ego at the expense of others. 


Beware of a negative work or social environment. Don’t get caught up in the competitive mindset. You are a creator. You were put on this planet to be productive, to add value to your life and the lives of others. You don’t need to be competitive, you merely need to be creative and this will bring its own rewards. By keeping a creative mindset you can share in the joy of another’s success without feeling it is depriving you in anyway. Trust me, this new mindset will launch you further than the competitive mindset ever could. 


Be open and willing to change. Embrace the new. As you progress in your personal development you will find that your old paradigms begin to shift and make way for new ones. This is natural and desirable. Remain flexible and adapt yourself to your changing world. Many people fight against change and this internal resistance causes inner strife and hardships of all kinds. This is an ever changing Universe and we must be willing to change with it. 


Find a way of looking at the world, yourself, others and life in a new exciting way. Do not judge the present or make predictions about the future based on your past experiences. Use the past as a learning experience. See how you did things wrong and adjust your behaviour, actions, outlook or mental attitude accordingly. Release all that old emotional baggage and embrace the present. Enjoy the journey and all the changes that are taking place in your life. 


Watch where you direct your focus. Your focus determines the reality you experience. "One man’s meat is another man’s poison". Is your cup half empty or half full? Look for the good or at least the opportunity is every situation - "everything happens for a reason". Take stock of your mental attitudes. How do you view YOUR world? Many people are fearful of the times we currently live in. They worry about the environment, economies, unemployment, war etc. Images on TV and in the news only lend further weight to these worries by showing the very things we should not be focusing on! This world is full to overflowing with abundance, riches, love and joy. You just have to start noticing it.


Restructure your thought & feeling patterns. Your feelings regulate your thoughts, your thoughts determine your actions and your actions restructure your life. What type of life have you built for yourself up to now? Are you content and happy? Probably not or you wouldn’t be reading this. Your beliefs really do affect how you live your life, what you believe is possible for you and what you believe you are capable of achieving or having. Many of your beliefs are positive and nurturing. However, many are not. Find a way to change your negative beliefs. Your beliefs are merely a cluster of thoughts brought together to form a view and you can ALWAYS change your point of view!


Enjoy the journey. Life was meant to be rich and abundant. Celebrate each small positive change you make and enjoy the point in your life where you are right now. Don’t postpone your happiness until some future event or when you have developed some desirable characteristic. You will always be changing and evolving, it’s a universal law. So enjoy where you are, celebrate the progress you have made, be prepared to embrace the new but let tomorrow will take care of itself.