Nine Myths About Personal Development

When some people hear the phrase “personal development,” they immediately start thinking about the new age “law of attraction,” or worse, about a bored wealthy person with nothing better to do than focus on “self-care” and other selfish pursuits. However, the truth is, personal development is none of that and is indeed an essential process from which everyone can benefit.

1. Personal Development is Selfish – Working on yourself to become a better person cannot be selfish. Mastering your emotions, taking care of your health, and acting with impact in mind are all important concepts you’ll learn as you embark on self-improvement that will inform decision-making and thus improve your life.

2. Personal Development is “Just Fancy Positive Thinking” – There is positive thinking involved in mindset work as you create your personal development plan, but the act of thinking positively is just part of your mental and emotional growth and not the entire picture.

3. Personal Development is For Rich People – Contrary to widespread belief, it’s not expensive to grow personally. Sure, you can spend money on personal development, but it’s not required. You can find everything you need at the public library and on the internet for free. While that is an added barrier for a person without many resources, it’s not the roadblock you may think it is.

4. Personal Development is Temporary – Personal development is a process that will become part of your life forever. The best personal development plans can change – whether from data or desire – but they will last a lifetime.

5. Personal Development Requires Willpower – Absolutely no willpower is needed to develop or follow a personal development plan. Instead, personal development focuses on enhancing self-control by focusing on what you’re already good at doing while developing good habits.

6. Personal Development is For the Ambitious – You don’t need to desire top billing to embark on a personal development journey in any area of your life. All you need is a desire to grow in any or all five areas of personal development.

7. Personal Development Demands Too Much Changing – The thing you can count on in life more than anything else, as you know, is change. Change is going to happen no matter what. Whether you plan for and prepare for change or not, it’s coming, but it’s also just part of your entire plan.

8. Personal Development Requires Peak Performance – You can achieve excellent results by doing the minimum necessary. So, if it takes walking fast 30 minutes a day to maintain your cardiovascular health according to science unless you want to be an athlete, why do more? So, if anything, proper personal development lets you slack off in areas that aren’t as important to you, allowing you to do the minimum for maximum results.

9. Personal Development Entails Focus on Your Weaknesses -- An accurate personal development plan will improve your strengths while learning to mitigate your weaknesses. In some cases, you may learn more to make awakens a strength. In others, it may require skipping it or outsourcing it.

Do you have some personal development thoughts that may not be accurate? Are they harming your chance for self-improvement? If you do, take the time to acknowledge your thoughts and challenge yourself to prove the facts to move forward with your life.