Category: Motivation

Since time immemorial, human beings have always been on a personal development quest – whether consciously or subconsciously. One way or another, people are wired to assess their qualities and skills, set goals, and aim to realize their full potential. As a result, personal development is one of the phrases used fairly often, but rarely explained.

Personal development can be defined as self-care or investing in oneself through activities such as increasing consciousness, expanding knowledge, and improving personal skills with the intent to effectively remain in control of one’s life regardless of all the obstacles that might come your way. In other words, it happens when you’re dedicated to becoming a better person.

Self-help enables individuals to be proactive and approach life with a positive attitude. Rather than give up when things don’t pan out, you learn from your failures and continue to pursue your objectives. It should be no surprise to you that the world is always evolving. To keep up, it is imperative that you strive to learn something new every day. And what better way is there to hone your self-development than to use excellent personal development books that can guide the way?

10 Outstanding Personal Development Books To Put On Your Wish List

Regardless of your profession, self-development plays a vital role in determining your success. Unfortunately, there are many personal development books out there that make big promises but never deliver.

Though some of these books are well intended, they turn out to be a complete waste of time and money. Luckily, the following list presents hand-picked must-read personal development books that have proven to have an immediate and lasting impact on the reader’s life.

1. The Success Principles by Jack Canfield

If you are an avid reader, then you have probably come across the name Jack Canfield. Canfield has been an inspirational author for several years, and plenty of people from all over the world love his work. The Success Principles focuses on 65 methods through which an individual can instantly transform his or her life.

In the book, Canfield provides readers with numerous ideas on how to not only improve their existence, but also excel on every level. However, if you are a dedicated fan of personal development books, some of the principles mentioned might seem as rehashed versions of what you already know. Nonetheless, the book is an excellent starting point for those new to the genre.

2. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

A classic that first came out in the 1930s, this book still mesmerizes self-improvement readers. Carnegie gets into great detail regarding personal habits that bring about success and also educates readers on how to deal with all sorts of people, from co-workers to strangers.

The book is packed with tales and anecdotes from some of history’s greatest achievers, making the content quite enlightening. Carnegie stresses that regardless of your objectives, there will always be third parties who can affect the outcome of your actions. Instead of ignoring them or antagonizing them, you are better of recruiting them to your cause. And this book will guide you through all the steps you need to take to do just that.

3. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (Revised and Updated for the 21st Century)

Via this book, Napoleon Hill tries to explain to the audience how to unleash their full potential, overcome obstacles, and achieve guaranteed success in all circles of life. The book also educates the reader on how to conquer day-to-day fears such as criticism and poverty. Hill does not focus a lot on financial wealth, but rather on leading a productive life. When that happens, money will follow.

What makes this book fascinating is that it is based on data and knowledge acquired by the author as he studied over 500 brilliant and successful individuals. After 20 years of thorough research, Napoleon Hill compiled the results and came up with 13 extraordinary principles for successful living. Start following them and you’ll be on the right path towards leading your best life.

4. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

What is there to say about Steve Jobs that hasn’t already been stated? Even Hollywood released an award-winning movie based on this release.

The enthralling self-development book is a biography based on more than forty interviews with Apple’s co-founder Steve Jobs, conducted over two years by author Walter Isaacson. The book is a riveting narration of the searing, intense life of the driven and creative entrepreneur, whose passion for the impossible revolutionized several industries.

5. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle

Tolle methodically makes the reader understand that there isn’t a better moment in life than the now. The author seeks to help individuals enjoy every minute of their life rather than spend most of their time lamenting about the past and worrying about the future. An eye-opening and fulfilling read, The Power of Now is guaranteed to change your life for the better.

6. The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy

Admittedly, there are numerous personal development books available that revolve around how decisions affect a person’s future. However, a huge percentage of these books do not come close to Darren Hardy’s work. The book is easy to read and has a step-by-step structure, allowing readers to keep track of their progress as they move forward towards greater things.

7. The Biology of Belief by Bruce H. Lipton

This book will definitely change your perspective about thinking. It revolves around the findings of leading scientists such as Dr. Lipton, on how cells receive and interpret information.

Dr. Lipton uses humor and simple language to explain to the reader how DNA signals are affected by messages from an individual’s thoughts. The book will immediately change our understanding of life, enabling you to learn how to grow as a person at the same time.

8. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey

Covey’s unique approach to human behavior redefined personal development books and still inspires people to cultivate productive habits. The book is based on the philosophy that better habits can change a person’s daily life and that positive change within has the same effect on the outside world. If you’re looking to spice up your routine, this book is an excellent tool to help you kick-start the process.

9. The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason

This book is the perfect introduction to finance. Clason emphasizes the idea of financial freedom and teaches you how to achieve it. Also, he reveals to readers how planning for the future acts as a guide for making smarter decisions. Apply the lessons from this book and you will be able to build a more financially secure future for yourself and your family.

10. The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz

Another classic in the self-development genre, The Magic of Thinking Big first came out in in 1959, but both its advice and anecdotes have a timeless feel that make the book an enjoyable read to this day. The author doesn’t make empty promises; instead, he offers readers proved methods on how to get the most of their lives, whether you’re looking to become better at your job or play a more vital role in the local community.

You don’t have to be an intellectual to achieve great success. In fact, it’s all about attitude, and learning and how to be kinder to yourself and set better goals is the first step towards a more abundant lifestyle.

Schwartz is a strong believer in the fact that when you actually think that something is possible, that objective becomes much simpler to accomplish. Just take it one step at a time, ignore the haters, and focus on building confidence every time you manage to get something done. You’ll be surprised on how quickly one can make their dreams come true when they don’t let other people’s doubts stand in their way.

To Sum Things Up

There are plenty of great personal development books out there. The task of narrowing down the list wasn’t easy, but we strongly believe that the books mentioned above are ones that have a comprehensive approach to life, finance, and self-development. Plus, a lot of people seem to like them, based on general reviews.

At the end of the day, personal development books play a pivotal role when it comes to mental wellness, self-improvement, and growth. If you are a huge advocate of continuous learning, then picking up a self-development book every now and then should definitely be on your to-do list. Start with the options from out list and take it from there. You’ll become a better version of yourself in no time.

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Growing up in a world where the perfect bodies are defined in magazines can be a little upsetting at times. For those who deal with a lack of self confidence, this can be a huge thing contributing to why they have such low confidence and self esteem. It is important that we know that those girls in magazines are beautiful in their own way, but that we are beautiful in our own way as well.

The struggle of having low self confidence is something that most people go through at least once in their life. Many men grow up feeling like they have to be sporty, and have big muscles. Many men don’t play sports and don’t have muscles and some may be very insecure about that because we’ve grown up in a society where we are expected to do things just by our gender or to look a certain way because that’s how other people look. We are all special in our own ways and we all have someone who loves us no matter who we are or what we look like. It is so important to love yourself and care about yourself.

Things can get hard and sometimes we can experience unbearable pain but when things like that happen, we can’t start to hate ourselves because you have to know that people make mistakes and that you are just human. It’s okay to make mistakes, and it’s okay to not do everything right all the time–it happens. So many females do whatever they can to change their appearance because they are so unhappy with what they look like, but that should not be the case. You are so beautiful. Everyone in this world has beauty, it just takes the right person to see it.

You have so much potential in this world and nothing should make you think otherwise. Same goes to men: you have so much to live for and maybe you’re not that happy with yourself now but before you know it, things will get better and you will love who you are. Loving yourself is so important and vital, so don’t let society’s standards make you feel any less beautiful than you are because you are amazing. If you’re struggling with having confidence in yourself, keep reading below.

1. Kill Negative Thoughts

Now, we all know that no matter how hard we try to get all the negativity out of our lives, it always somehow creeps back into our lives–it is inevitable. We can’t control the negative people around us, but we can control how we react to them and the negativity that they are bringing. When trying to boost your self-confidence you have to try to push anything negative out of your life so that you can experience all the positive energy. In doing this, you will feel happier and more relaxed.

If you happen to be insecure about what you look like, start by changing the way you see yourself. Every day that you wake up and look in the mirror, tell yourself that you are beautiful, you have potential, and that you are amazing. Push all the negative thoughts away and really inhale all the great things about yourself–not the negative.

2. Stand Tall

When it comes to having self-confidence, you have to believe in yourself and know your worth. Everyone has opinions of you and some of them are not going to be positive. We can’t expect them all to be great things. Not everyone is going to like you. Spend time with those who DO like and appreciate you. If you’re a teenager, then you know that keeping good self-confidence can be a challenge, especially during your high school years.

Always stand tall and don’t allow what others say destroy your confidence. Stand up for yourself, and always believe in yourself even when it seems impossible to do. Once you start to stand up for yourself and believe in yourself, that is the time when your confidence level starts rising. Believe that you are incredible and not what others say about you.

3. Commit Yourself To Success

Never give up on what you are trying to succeed in, regardless of how many times you fail and don’t get the outcome you want. Building your self confidence is hard to do, but pushing yourself to exceed your own expectations will surprise you in ways you can’t imagine. Once you succeed and accomplish the goal you have been working at, you will feel proud of yourself and know that all of your hard work paid off and that you can do it!

There is a solution to everything, and that is exactly why you should never give up. When we work on something for a long time and keep failing at it, we start to think that we are not good enough and that we will not achieve our goal–but we don’t want those thoughts. Don’t accept that you didn’t achieve your goal. Keep trying until you reach it. Doing this will help you feel better about yourself.

4. Recognize Your Insecurities 

We all are born with things that we don’t like about ourselves, and sometimes we feel like our insecurities are defining who we are. We feel that other people only see us for what we are not good at or what we don’t have. Everyone has something that makes you feel ashamed of yourself; this can be anything from acne, to the way you walk, or even your voice.

Whatever your insecurities are, write them down on a piece of paper and rip them up. This is just one of many methods you can employ to help you understand that you are not those things you are insecure about. Surround yourself with empowering people who will make you feel good about who you are and not those who will bring you down. Accept your flaws and love who you are.

5. Take Care Of Yourself

If you want to feel good about yourself, then you have to take care of yourself. In order to do that you have to do some simple daily tasks. Brushing your teeth, brushing your hair, and bathing are all important. Also, eating healthy is a big factor in taking care of yourself. If you feel insecure about your body, eating healthy is guaranteed to help you feel better about yourself. Put some effort into your appearance. I’m not saying that you have to look like a supermodel or Brad Pitt, but once you start putting some effort into your appearance, you will feel better about yourself. Sleep well. When you sleep well it can make you feel and look better the next day; having good sleep patterns will help you have a positive attitude and more energy throughout the day.

6. Exercise

Staying active improves your all-round confidence. More importantly than physical attributes, this includes heightening your mental wellbeing. For most, it’s difficult to find the time and energy to commit your life to exercise, though when you accept that you’re worth this commitment, you prove your self-worth.

With regular exercise, you’ll begin to see physical changes that flick a switch in your brain that says you’re possible of anything. When you set personal goals and work hard to achieve them, there’s nothing that’s out of your reach. Over time, you’ll start becoming more aware of how you feel in your own skin and develop strategies to work on the areas that put limitations on your confidence. Exercise also produces endorphins, a feel-good stimulant, that changes your energy levels and entire attitude on life. Suddenly, you become physically and mentally stronger that makes you feel like you can accomplish anything.

7. Stop Comparing Yourself To Others

With everything readily available to us online, we can easily see the highlights and triumphs in everyone else’s life that can lead us to believe we’re living a worthless existence. What if you put your phone down and stopped engaging with people who compare their lives to others? With this theory in mind, we believe you’d begin to pay attention to your own skills and achievements, rather than others. 

It’s healthy to celebrate other people’s attributes, though this shouldn’t lead you to reflect on your own, because life isn’t a race. Take a step back from the areas of your life that make you doubt your own self-worth. This might involve disengaging with certain social groups, living offline, and watching different TV shows. By having fewer outlets to compare yourself to, you’ll begin to work on your own developments and successes. 

If you are still feeling bad about who you are (even after reading these seven ways to boost your self-confidence), I strongly recommend these two videos below. If you are having a bad day and are feeling unhappy or unloved, click on these videos below and listen.

Here is a video for women:

Here is a similar video for men: