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If you aren’t growing, you’re dying! While this feels like two ends of the spectrum, it’s not wrong. Personal development is growing yourself into the best possible person you can be. And, if you aren’t growing yourself, you’re just dying. Or in nicer terms, you’re just repeating the same things over and over but bringing no value to yourself. Which still doesn’t sound like an enriched life.

My story with personal development is something I stumbled upon. It was right after I had Jeffery and I was sick and tired of feeling like I was stuck inside a rut inside my head. I ended up purchasing three books from amazon and I was hooked! Some personal development was hard, but it was all worth it!

Personal development is anything you do that helps you understand and grow yourself. There are so many things that qualify as personal development! Some suggestions include:

• Books
• Podcasts
• Journaling
• Gratitude
• Meditate
• Manifesting
• Make goals/ intentions
• Find a mentor/ coach
• Create new habits/ break old habits
• Get out of your comfort zone

My absolute favorite form of self-development has been reading books. I already love to read so it was kind of a no brainer for me. I know a lot of people do not like to actually sit down and read and prefer audio books for self-development. I just do not pay attention to audio books to really get anything out of them. If you are struggling with starting personal development, I would strongly suggest starting with some books or podcasts to help frame your mindset. If you are looking for some god reads, here are the books that I started with:

• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
• Unfu*k Yourself by Gary John Bishop
• You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
• Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
• Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis
• The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson

Recently, I finished reading The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson and it blew my mind. I have read some personal development books that made an impression on me and I have read some really encouraging personal development books. No book has made me want to take action like The Slight Edge. Not only does it go into depth about our daily habits and how they either make or break you (there is no in between), but it also gives you steps to move your life in a new direction. It gives you insight on how to focus on what you want and make changes immediately to change the course of your life. I have gotten the most value out of this book by far!

Now, if you start to read self-development books without an open mind, you will literally get nothing out of them and just make snarky comments under your breath the whole time. Yes, that was me when I first started reading some of these. It wasn’t until I actually decided these books could help and I broke up the pity party in my head that I actually got some value from them.

And that is going to lead me into my biggest point when it comes to self-development. Your mindset! This is by far the most important thing you can start to be intentional with, not just while doing self-development but for the rest of your life. Your mindset dictates everything, including your quality of life. And let’s be honest, we are doing self-development to better our quality of life so do not skip out on your mindset!

I don’t care how many organic vegetables or fruits you eat. I don’t care how many products you switch to non-toxic. I don’t care how many hours you spend in the gym. I don’t care I don’t care how many self-care books you read or podcasts you listen to or goals you set. If you have a toxic mindset, nothing will change. Your body will still fight against itself, physically and mentally. Life is far too short to spend your days at war with yourself. So stop the toxic cycle and work on turning your mindset positive. Some ways to promote a positive mindset are:

• Gratitude – make a list everyday, this is a nonnegotiable for me
• Positive self-talk
• Look at the bright side/ silver lining
• “What is this teaching me?” vs. “Why is this happening to me?”
• Intentional good thoughts

Some of these things might seem like no brainers, but when someone has had a negative mindset for so long, it’s a hard cycle to break. I know it took me a very long time to break the habit of highlighting all that can go wrong instead of looking on the bright side. And, most of the things are still a work in progress for me. Positive self-talk is something I still struggle with every single day. But every single day I work to banish that negative mindset from my mind. If you’re struggling with mindset, just remember to treat yourself how you would treat your best friend!

The final item I want to discuss is following your passion and getting out of your comfort zone. More times then not, these two are connected. The things you want most in life typically require you to step out of your comfort zone. Many people don’t achieve the things they want because they are scared! They are scared of failure, scared of looking stupid, and just plain scared it won’t work out. DO NOT be afraid to fail! Who gives a damn what other people think, they aren’t paying your bills! Some of the best advice I have heard is that people are going to judge you no matter what, so you might as well do what you want to do! These are words I have lived by and words that I remind myself of daily. If I crippled myself with the opinions of others I would have never started this blog or started my partnership with Monat! Two things I love!

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While personal development might not be all butterflies and rainbows, it is a really important part of self-care! What are your favorite personal development practices?