Self improvement is not just about achieving as much as possible in the quickest time possible or developing the abilities to become the best, smartest or most effective superman or woman.

Rather, real self improvement is about true lasting success. And this can only be achieved when there is total alignment between all parts within us. Not just between the mind, soul, body and emotions, but also having harmony and agreement even within those elements.

The narrow perspective of self improvement that most people have is that we have to fix something out there (our action or approach/external people) or in here (our internal state) in order to achieve success.

That is an incomplete picture, which is why not many people achieve great success despite going through a lot of personal development work.

Self-Improvement-Mentor is not just about sharing tips for increasing productivity or becoming smarter. Rather the information here approaches self improvement through total alignment and integration of the whole being to support the outcome. True lasting success can only exist when all parts of the soul, mind, body and emotions are aligned.

All information here approaches the development of personal growth through that perspective.

The articles that you find here are unique and include easily doable quick fixes, more comprehensive longer term solutions, as well as anything in between.

You can find resources on goal setting, positive thinking, using and controlling emotions, motivation, leadership, practicing affirmations, finding happiness, using NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), gaining self confidence, changing habits, leadership skills and others. The information in the here is always expanding to cover more topics and go deeper in detail.

If you wish to learn about:

And ultimately How to take control of your life

Then this is the place for you.

You can start by going into any of the personal development topics in the Navigation Menu at the upper part of each page. Within each area, there are further links to specific articles on that topic.

Alternatively, you may go to the Blog page from the navigation menu for see a list and extract of my latest articles and blog posts.

Finally, you may also use the Search box at the top right corner of each page to search for content relating to a specific topic that you are interested in.

Have you ever felt discouraged at the lack of progress you are making in self improvement? Feel that the results youre getting dont reflect the amount of effort youre putting in?

I know exactly how you feel. It can be really frustrating. However, putting aside all fancy stuff, essentially 2 things are needed for successful personal development : focus & approach. Those who seem to not succeed lack either one of the two (some have neither!)

FOCUSmeans to follow through on your self improvement actions consistently without getting distracted along the way. I was guilty of lack of focus. I used to constantly search and load new information into my brain before I even had the chance to properly apply what I have learned. I never practiced something long enough to see the results. Sounds easy but it took me years to develop the discipline to focus on something long enough.

APPROACHmeans the strategies and teachings for personal development. Nowadays, everywhere you turn there seems to be a new self improvement book or program. Which to follow? Some are gold, some are junk, and many are basically preaching the same principles. I have experienced all 3 types, and you probably have too. Rest assured, there are nojunk here.

So, to achieve success, take care of these 2 areas first!! With the right approach and a 100% commitment, anything can be achieved.

If you keep moving towards your goal everyday, you will eventually reach it.

I hope you find the information here useful. Though our destinations may be the same, our paths to get there will definitely differ.

Happy reading (& applying) and I wish you all the best on your self improvement journey.

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Useful Self Improvement Tips, Advice, Personal Development ...

Are you someone who likes to grow? Do you constantly seek to improve yourself and become better?

If you do, then we have something in common. Im very passionate about personal growth. It was just 4 years ago when I discovered my passion for growing and helping others grow. At that time, I was 22 and in my final year of university. As I thought about the meaning of life, I realized there was nothing more meaningful than to pursue a life of development and betterment. It is through improving ourselves that we get the most out of life.

SEE ALSO: How to Better Yourself One Day at a Time

After 1.5 years of actively pursuing growth and helping others to grow through my personal development blog, I realize there is never an end to the journey of self improvement. The more I grow, the more I realize there is so much out there I dont know, so much that I have to learn.For sure, there is always something about ourselves we can improve on. The human potential is limitless, so its impossible to reach a point of no growth. Whenever we think we are good, we can be even better.

As a passionate advocate of growth, Im continuously looking for ways to self-improve. Ive compiled 42 of my best tips which might be helpful in your personal growth journey. Some of them are simple steps which you can engage in immediately. Some are bigger steps which takes conscious effort to act on.Here they are:

Id love to hear your thoughts on this article or anything about personal growth. Feel free to share your thoughts in a comment below and Ill get back to you! If you have any other suggestions to add to the list, please share with us too!

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42 Practical Ways To Improve Yourself - Lifehack

We all live lives of infinite potential but few of us make the most of what weve got.

The banality of everyday life takes over and we become stuck in a rut. We start to exist rather than thrive and we leave this world with a pathetic whimper instead of a colossal bang!

I dont know about you, but I dont want that!

I want to squeeze every last drop out of my time on this glorious planet and know that I havent wasted a single minute being unhappy or dissatisfied.

I mean, why wouldnt you want to want to explore your potential and be the best that you can be?

Its not necessarily about being dissatisfied with your lot in life. You can be grateful for what you have and still aspire to be more.

Life is for living and doing it on your own terms. We all deserve to be happy and happiness comes from being fulfilled and doing the things that have meaning to us.

Self improvement is about fostering the good relationships in our lives and sharing our unique gifts with others.

Seriously, what do you imagine you could achieve if only you had the opportunity? How different could your life be if you could change something thats been bugging you for ages?

Now is your chance to change those things. And to live your life.

Nobody should hold you back from reaching your potential, and that includes you!

So what is it thats holding you back? Maybe you need to understand yourself a little better? Perhaps its a friend or a relation, a husband or wife? Or maybe, just maybe, its you? Isnt it time you found out and did something about it?

Our fabulous writers have put together some of the best advice to help you live a fulfilled, enriched, and happy life so that you an put a you-sized dent in the universe.

Self Discipline 22 Reasons to Never Give Up 14 Timeless Ways to Live a Happy Life 7 Rules for a Life Worth Living Build Healthy Relationships 5 Simple Ways to Make the Most of Your Intelligence Learn a Foreign Language 6 Myths That Stand in Your Way 101 Self Improvement Resources Learn to Understand Your Own Intelligence Enjoy Life Each Day

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Self Improvement - Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self ...

Self-help or self-improvement is a self-guided improvement[1]economically, intellectually, or emotionallyoften with a substantial psychological basis. Many different self-help group programs exist, each with its own focus, techniques, associated beliefs, proponents and in some cases, leaders. Concepts and terms originating in self-help culture and Twelve-Step culture, such as recovery, dysfunctional families, and codependency have become firmly integrated in mainstream language.[2]

Self-help often utilizes publicly available information or support groups, on the Internet as well as in person, where people in similar situations join together.[1] From early examples in self-driven legal practice[3] and home-spun advice, the connotations of the word have spread and often apply particularly to education, business, psychology and psychotherapy, commonly distributed through the popular genre of self-help books. According to the APA Dictionary of Psychology, potential benefits of self-help groups that professionals may not be able to provide include friendship, emotional support, experiential knowledge, identity, meaningful roles, and a sense of belonging.[1]

Groups associated with health conditions may consist of patients and caregivers. As well as featuring long-time members sharing experiences, these health groups can become support groups and clearing-houses for educational material. Those who help themselves by learning and identifying about health problems can be said to exemplify self-help, while self-help groups can be seen more as peer-to-peer support.

Within classical antiquity, Hesiod's Works and Days "opens with moral remonstrances, hammered home in every way that Hesiod can think of."[4] The Stoics offered ethical advice "on the notion of eudaimoniaof well-being, welfare, flourishing."[5] The genre of mirror-of-princes writings, which has a long history in Greco-Roman and Western Renaissance literature, represents a secular cognate of Biblical wisdom-literature. Proverbs from many periods, collected and uncollected, embody traditional moral and practical advice of diverse cultures.

The hyphenated compound word "self-help" often appeared in the 1800s in a legal context, referring to the doctrine that a party in a dispute has the right to use lawful means on their own initiative to remedy a wrong.[6]

For some, George Combe's "Constitution[1828], in the way that it advocated personal responsibility and the possibility of naturally sanctioned self-improvement through education or proper self-control, largely inaugurated the self-help movement;"[7] In 1841, an essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson, entitled Compensation, was published suggesting "every man in his lifetime needs to thank his faults" and "acquire habits of self-help" as "our strength grows out of our weakness."[8]Samuel Smiles (18121904) published the first self-consciously personal-development "self-help" bookentitled Self-Helpin 1859. Its opening sentence: "Heaven helps those who help themselves", provides a variation of "God helps them that help themselves", the oft-quoted maxim that had also appeared previously in Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac (17331758). In the 20th century, "Carnegie's remarkable success as a self-help author"[9] further developed the genre with How to Win Friends and Influence People in 1936. Having failed in several careers, Carnegie became fascinated with success and its link to self-confidence, and his books have since sold over 50 million copies.[10] Earlier in 1902 James Allen published As a Man Thinketh, which proceeds from the conviction that "a man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts." Noble thoughts, the book maintains, make for a noble person, whilst lowly thoughts make for a miserable person; and Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich (1937) described the use of repeated positive thoughts to attract happiness and wealth by tapping into an "Infinite Intelligence".[11]

In the final third of the 20th century "the tremendous growth in self-help publishing...in self-improvement culture"[12] really took offsomething which must be linked to postmodernism itselfto the way "postmodern subjectivity constructs self-reflexive subjects-in-process."[13] Arguably at least, "in the literatures of self-improvement...that crisis of subjecthood is not articulated but enacteddemonstrated in ever-expanding self-help book sales."[14]

The conservative turn of the neoliberal decades also meant a decline in traditional political activism, and increasing "social isolation; Twelve-Step recovery groups were one context in which individuals sought a sense of community...yet another symptom of the psychologizing of the personal"[15] to more radical critics. Indeed, "some social theorist [sic] have argued that the late-20th century preoccupation with the self serves as a tool of social control: soothing political unrest...[for] one's own pursuit of self-invention."'[16]

Within the context of the market, group and corporate attempts to aid the "seeker" have moved into the "self-help" marketplace, with LGATs[17] and psychotherapy systems represented. These offer more-or-less prepackaged solutions to instruct people seeking their own individual betterment[citation needed], just as "the literature of self-improvement directs the reader to familiar frameworks...what the French fin de sicle social theorist Gabriel Tarde called 'the grooves of borrowed thought'."[18]

A subgenre of self-help book series also exists: such as the for Dummies guides and The Complete Idiot's Guide to...compare how-to books.

At the start of the 21st century, "the self-improvement industry, inclusive of books, seminars, audio and video products, and personal coaching, [was] said to constitute a 2.48-billion dollars-a-year industry"[19] in the United States alone. By 2006, research firm Marketdata estimated the "self-improvement" market in the U.S. as worth more than $9 billionincluding infomercials, mail-order catalogs, holistic institutes, books, audio cassettes, motivation-speaker seminars, the personal coaching market, weight-loss and stress-management programs. Marketdata projected that the total market size would grow to over $11 billion by 2008.[20] In 2012 Laura Vanderkam wrote of a turnover of 12 billion dollars.[21] In 2013 Kathryn Schulz examined "an $11 billion industry".[22]

Self-help and mutual-help are very different fromthough they may complementservice delivery by professionals: note for example the interface between local self-help and International Aid's service delivery model.

Conflicts can and do arise on that interface, however, with some professionals considering that "the twelve-step approach encourages a kind of contemporary version of 19th-century amateurism or enthusiasm in which self-examination and very general social observations are enough to draw rather large conclusions."[23]

The rise of self-help culture has inevitably led to boundary disputes with other approaches and disciplines. Some would object to their classification as "self-help" literature, as with "Deborah Tannen's denial of the self-help role of her books" so as to maintain her academic credibility, aware of the danger that "writing a book that becomes a popular success...all but ensures that one's work will lose its long-term legitimacy."[24]

Placebo effects can never be wholly discounted. Thus careful studies of "the power of subliminal self-help tapes...showed that their content had no real effect...But that's not what the participants thought."[25] "If they thought they'd listened to a self-esteem tape (even though half the labels were wrong), they felt that their self-esteem had gone up. No wonder people keep buying subliminal tape: even though the tapes don't work, people think they do."[26] One might then see much of the self-help industry as part of the "skin trades. People need haircuts, massage, dentistry, wigs and glasses, sociology and surgery, as well as love and advice."[27]a skin trade, "not a profession and a science"[28] Its practitioners would thus be functioning as "part of the personal service industry rather than as mental health professionals."[29] While "there is no proof that twelve-step programs 'are superior to any other intervention in reducing alcohol dependence or alcohol-related problems',"[30] at the same time it is clear that "there is something about 'groupishness' itself which is curative."[31] Thus for example "smoking increases mortality risk by a factor of just 1.6, while social isolation does so by a factor of 2.0...suggest[ing] an added value to self-help groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous as surrogate communities."[32]

Some psychologists advocate a positive psychology, and explicitly embrace an empirical self-help philosophy; "the role of positive psychology is to become a bridge between the ivory tower and the main streetbetween the rigor of academe and the fun of the self-help movement."[33] They aim to refine the self-improvement field by way of an intentional increase in scientifically sound research and well-engineered models. The division of focus and methodologies has produced several subfields, in particular: general positive psychology, focusing primarily on the study of psychological phenomenon and effects; and personal effectiveness, focusing primarily on analysis, design and implementation of qualitative personal growth. This includes the intentional training of new patterns of thought and feeling. As business strategy communicator Don Tapscott puts it, "The design industry is something done to us. I'm proposing we each become designers. But I suppose 'I love the way she thinks' could take on new meaning."[34]

Both self-talk, the propensity to engage in verbal or mental self-directed conversation and thought, and social support can be used as instruments of self-improvement, often by empowering, action-promoting messages. Psychologists have designed series of experiments that are intended to shed light into how self-talk can result in self-improvement. In general, research has shown that people prefer to use second person pronouns over first person pronouns when engaging in self-talk to achieve goals, regulate ones own behavior, thoughts, or emotions, and facilitate performance.[35] If self-talk has the expected effect, then writing about personal problems using language from their friends perspective should result in greater amount of motivational and emotional benefits comparing to using language from their own perspective. When you need to finish a difficult task and you are not willing to do something to finish this task, trying to write a few sentence or goals imaging what your friends have told you gives you more motivational resources comparing to you write to yourself. Research done by Ireland and others have revealed that, as expected, when people are writing using many physical and mental words or even typing a standard prompt with these kinds of words, adopting a friends perspective while freely writing about a personal challenge can help increase peoples intention to improve self-control by promoting the positivity of emotions such as pride and satisfaction, which can motivate people to reach their goal.[36]

The use of self-talk goes beyond the scope of self-improvement for performing certain activities, self-talk as a linguistic form of self-help also plays a very important role in regulating peoples emotions under social stress. First of all, people using non-first-person language tend to exhibit higher level of visual self-distancing during the process of introspection, indicating that using non-first-person pronouns and ones own name may result in enhanced self-distancing.[37][38] More importantly, this specific form of self-help also has been found can enhance peoples ability to regulate their thoughts, feelings, and behavior under social stress, which would lead them to appraise social-anxiety-provoking events in more challenging and less threatening terms. Additionally, these self-help behaviors also demonstrate noticeable self-regulatory effects through the process of social interactions, regardless of their dispositional vulnerability to social anxiety.[38]

Scholars have targeted self-help claims as misleading and incorrect. In 2005 Steve Salerno portrayed the American self-help movementhe uses the acronym SHAM: the Self-Help and Actualization Movementnot only as ineffective in achieving its goals, but also as socially harmful.[3] "Salerno says that 80 percent of self-help and motivational customers are repeat customers and they keep coming back 'whether the program worked for them or not'."[39] Others similarly point out that with self-help books "supply increases the demand... The more people read them, the more they think they need them... more like an addiction than an alliance."[40]

Self-help writers have been described as working "in the area of the ideological, the imagined, the narrativized.... although a veneer of scientism permeates the[ir] work, there is also an underlying armature of moralizing."[41]

Christopher Buckley in his book God is My Broker asserts: "The only way to get rich from a self-help book is to write one".[42]

Kathryn Schulz suggests that "the underlying theory of the self-help industry is contradicted by the self-help industrys existence".[43]

The self-help world has become the target of parodies. Walker Percy's odd genre-busting Lost in the Cosmos[44] has been described as "a parody of self-help books, a philosophy textbook, and a collection of short stories, quizzes, diagrams, thought experiments, mathematical formulas, made-up dialogue".[45] In their 2006 book Secrets of The Superoptimist, authors W.R. Morton and Nathanel Whitten revealed the concept of "superoptimism" as a humorous antidote to the overblown self-help book category. In his comedy special Complaints and Grievances (2001), George Carlin observes that there is "no such thing" as self-help: anyone looking for help from someone else does not technically get "self" help; and one who accomplishes something without help, did not need help to begin with.[46] In Margaret Atwood's semi-satiric dystopia Oryx and Crake, university literary studies have declined to the point that the protagonist, Snowman, is instructed to write his thesis on self-help books as literature; more revealing of the authors and of the society that produced them than genuinely helpful.

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Self-help - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You are very welcome to our self improvement web site, many thanks for visiting.

If you want to explore the i-choose-self-improvement.com site randomly right now, please go right ahead, have fun.

You may find the site contents map helpful as it lists, and gives direct access to, every page on the site.

On this web site we have over 100 pages of free information that we want to share with you, which includes, for example:

NEW Amazon has just published the second edition of my new Kindle ebook which answers the following key questions and will help you to overcome interview nerves and land your ideal job: * what should I expect at an interview? * what and how do I need to prepare? * how do I set myself up for success and stand out from other candidates? * what questions will I be asked and what are the best answers? * how do I deal with difficult or awkward questions? * what questions should I ask? * what's the best way to rehearse? * what's the best way to follow-up an interview?

This second edition has an extra chapter - what is the best way of getting an interview?

Click here to go to Amazon's Kindle ebook store and see details of the book.

NEW - now also available as a paperback book. Click here and see details of the book, 'Interview Questions and Answers'. Thank You.

Why did we create this web site?

The overall purpose is to help people help themselves to create the future of their choice, by choice, deliberately, using their inner resourcefulness.

Two famous Americans sum it up for me: Henry David Thoreau said, "most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them", and William James said, "compared to what we ought to be, we are only half awake".

Having spent over 30 years of my life as a self employed consultant, working with hundreds of companies and many thousands of people, I have experienced too many individuals heading for the grave, half awake, with their song still in them.

And, most often, NOT by choice, but because they did not know HOW TO be fully awake. How to release and realise more of their potential. How to be all they could choose to be. How to create the future of their choice.

And, most of the time, that was because no one ever told them or helped them to learn self help development (e.g. setting and achieving goals).

The best investment you will ever make.

Investing in improving yourself cannot be beaten as a strategy for success and amazing benefits on many levels, ranging from material success and money to personal growth and building self esteem to happiness to enriching the people around you to changing you and your family and friends and society to creating the future of your choice.

In addition, the significance of self improvement is that ALL improvement ultimately is SELF improvement because things don't do themselves, someone has to do it - guess who?

However, it is often in the doing it that things get tricky.

To illustrate the point, let's say that you decide to run a marathon as part of your self help personal improvement initiative.

Unless you are already an accomplished athlete and just running for the fun of it, you will probably NOT just turn up on the day and start running (i.e. not if you want to succeed anyway).

You know you will have to do some training, get into a fit condition, and get the right gear, do some planning etc. etc.

Daft as this example may seem, just turning up and starting is more or less what many people do when embarking on self improvement. For many people buying the latest fad personal development idea or gadget is like impulse buying - there's a felt need that needs instant gratification. Come back a few months later, though, and "business as usual" is the norm as old habits have re-established themselves.

However, if you manage your self improvement the right way - the i-choose-self-improvement way - you will achieve life changing benefits.

If you do self improvement the wrong way, you may finish up feeling disappointed, frustrated, disillusioned; having wasted time, energy and money; and with your self esteem a bit battered.

I've spent 30 years and more learning what works, and helping others to do so, and I want to share this experience with you on this site. (click here to find out more about who I am).

Finally, this web site is for YOU, so do relax, read on and enjoy browsing the 100 plus pages.

Do use the navigation buttons to explore. They will connect you with the 15 or so major aspects of successful self improvement.

And be sure to use the links provided on most pages to access extra material.

In particular, when you see a link in bold, this indicates that that material is available through the page link but not directly via a navigation button.

Use this link to access the site contents map if you wish. It lists, and gives direct access to, every page on the i-choose-self-improvement web site.

You might want to come back here though (or click the process button) to see the i-c-s-i structure and method suggested for outstanding self improvement results and success.

Please click on the links at the bottom of this page, or the navigation buttons on the left, to get started.

It's your choice, of course, but you may want to start with the self diagnosis link to identify your self improvement strengths and weaknesses.

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"The site is very well made: the information is interesting and explained in a comprehensive and fun way" - Aiko, Canada

"Inspirational and informative" - Grace, Australia, Gracedong@liquidideas. com.au

"You have an incredible website with very helpful and useful information. Thank you" - Brennan, USA _________________ "I like your website, it is very good. It shows how to bring improvement in life and how to get good results. It's really good" - Vijendrasingh, India _________________ "I like most of what you advocate. I wish someone had taken the younger me aside and advised your ideas" - Theresa, UK

"This is a very good site. It will definitely help a lot of people personally" - Femi, USA _________________ "I read the article on Left vs Right vs Whole Brain thinking and have found it extremely interesting" - Sneha, United Arab Emirates _________________ "Great information, thanks" - Stephan, Zimbabwe _________________ "Great self help" - Priscila, USA

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Self Improvement: How To Self Help And Achieve The Future ...

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"There's only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self." "Every man who knows how to read has it in his power to magnify himself,to multiply the ways in which he exists, to make his life full, significant and interesting." AldousHuxley

Terms such as self-help, self-improvement, personal development, self growth, and personal improvement are often used interchangeably to describe self-guided improvement economically, intellectually, or emotionally usually with a substantial psychological or spiritual basis. Philosophies traditionally start with a metaphysics: a theory of the essence of things, of the fundamental principles that organize the universe. These are generally referred to as universal laws, and the law of attraction, i.e. that like attracts like, is the fundmental law of the universe upon which other universal laws are based. Metaphysical books therefore deal with causation mainly rather than with effects, and applied metaphysics (known as New Thought) is the practical application of metaphysical knowledge to real life desires and needs.

Our classic self-help books focus onsubjects that have become very popular in recent years such as: the law of attraction, subconscious mind power, positive mental attitude, self-healing, creative visualization, attracting and manifesting wealth, overcoming addictions, conquering anxiety, stress & depression, self hypnosis,autosuggestion, mind power techniques, overcoming negative thinking, affirmations, mental and spiritual healing, personal magnetism, thought-power, memory improvement,mind reading, self-mastery, scientific prayer, meditation, human emotions andrelationships, public speaking, etc., many of which have in the past gone under the headings of new thought, mental science, or new-age thinking, but are generally known as self-help, self-improvement and personal development books. If you visit your local book store you are sure to find lots of shelf space devoted to self help, personal development, self-improvement books, as the personal growth industry is a rapidly expanding one.

These self help books are not about mind tricks andwishful thinking, they are aboutreprogramming the subconscious mind using well established techniques such as autosuggestion, visualization and positive affirmation in order to establish healthy new thought patterns and a prosperity consciousness which will attract an abundance of all good things into one's life. Positive thinking and a positive mental attitudecoupled with deep desire and initiative open the floodgates to greater good. These self-help books and self-improvement audio lectures and self- development audio books teachpractical psychology and positive philosophy for everyday living based on sound, time tested principles. The world is changing for the better, despite all appearances to the contrary, and it is through adopting the various formulas for success explained and outlined in the type of self-help books, self-improvement ebooks, and personal development audio books and lectures found on our web site that an individual can in time rise above and overcome life's problems and challenges as he or she travels the path of self-discovery, self realization and self mastery which we all eventually must travel.

These wonderful self-help books, self-improvement books, ebooks and personal development audio books and lectures contain priceless gems of wisdom that can transform an individual's thinking and attitude completely, and help them to build the life of their dreams. No matter what your current situation in life may be, you too will benefit greatly by reading and listening to theseself help books, ebooks and audios. If you are truly seeking answers to life's perplexing problems, you are sure to find them within the many great new thought self-help books, personal improvement audio books, self-improvement ebooks and self-help articles featured on this web site.

The best self help books, self-improvement ebooks, and personal development audio books and lectures on the internet are just one mouse click away, so enjoy your time here, explore all we have to offer, and visit us often as our web site is continually being updated with new life-changing material. Sign-up for ourfree 21-day "Pathway to Prosperity" eCourse and you will automatically receive regular newsletters from us via email with information about new thought self-help books, ebooks and audio books as they are published.

Most of the self-help eBooks featured on this site are in Adobe Acrobat Reader (.pdf) format, which is by far the most popular format for electronic books. Most modern computers, both PC's and Mac's, come with Adobe Acrobat Reader pre-installed, but if it is not already installed it can be downloaded free from adobe.com.

We have provided descriptions and excerpts from most of the featured self help books. We have also provided direct links to Amazon.com if the self-help books or self-improvement and personal development audio books are available from them.

PayPal and 2CO (2CheckOut.com Inc). are authorized payment processors and retailers for goods and services provided by SelfHelpBookSites.com.

Most of the products for sale on this web site are instantly downloadable once payment has been received. If you do not receive an email with your download detailsfollowing payment, and for some reason we are unable to provide them, you will receive a prompt refund. Although there is no way to return a digital product once it has been downloaded, if you are unhappy with any eBook or audio book purchased, we will happilyoffer you an alternative eBook/audio of similar value at no additional cost.

Do You Want More Energy, Radiant Life, Health, Wealth and Happiness? By: A. C. R.

Rise at five o'clock in the Summer and at six o'clock in the Winter months.

Now for five minutes rub your body from head to foot briskly with a dry flesh brush. Then have a quick shower, or better still, a sponge bath, and finish off with cold water and a brisk rub.

Now when you are physically pepped up, and all aglow with each cell of your outer skin radiating above the average amount of radiant life, contacting more abundant life, make yourself comfortable in a straight-backed chair.

Now for ten minutes go over the many good and unexpected things God has given to you in the past.

Fill your mind with the Positive, Constructive Sunshine of Your Thoughts, praising the Kingdom, Power and Glory of the Source of all Life. The Father Principle of all Love and Life, and all Understanding, within each one of us, that we call God.

Will that this Divine Source of all Knowledge shall direct your Thoughts and Words and Deeds.

Realize that your every Thought and Word and Deed is really a Prayer to the Divine Source of all Life, and is always establishing your exact position in the Universe, and showing your relation and unfoldment to Divine Guidance.

And now when you have raised your mental and physical and Spiritual rates of Vibrating, Radiant Life, and by willing that you shall be guided by your Inner Voice have put yourself in tune with the InfiniteNow put your Mental Thoughts in order for the Day by going over every detail of the work you are to do and are now planning out in a positive, constructive way.

Plan out your work directed by Divine Understanding from within, ever conscious of that "Wee, Small Voice""The Oracle of God"that will guide your daily work in harmony with Nature's Laws of Life, when you are "In Tune with the Infinite."

This Divine Power within is unlimited in Love, Wisdom and Understanding, and is always anxious to give you everything you are willing to trust this Power to give.

Be confidential with God within, put all Fear, Worry and Doubt out of your heart.

Make the mental picture of your day's work as you wish it to be, and realize what you give to life, life will in turn give back to you; for life attracts like throughout the Universe.

Now go to your breakfast and daily work, doing each task in hand a little better than you did the day before.

Eat your breakfast and live your working day in this wonderful constructive Radiant Understanding of the abundant supply of Life that is all around you, and is a part of you, all guided by Divine Unfoldment.

Be Natural, Be Sincere, but do not become a religious fanatic.

Live each hour with a strong desire to be Kind to your horses and cattle that you feed and care for.

To the wonderful perfect grain that Sunshine, Rain and Divine Understanding has given you from the productive Soil of your Western Ranch.

Scatter Sunshine and Love as you go, to mankind, to your family, and to all life, with which you come in contact.

See and Feel the constructive love that all Life gives to you.

How your Cattle and Horses trust you and want to be where you are.

How your Saddle Horse will follow you about, ever anxious to do your bidding.

Truly you have Dominion over all Life with which you are in contact.

Then are you living a constructive life that will produce Health, Wealth and Happiness for you.

And now before you go to sleep at night, make a positive, constructive Demand to your Inner Self, to the Source of all life within you.

"I desire to do God's will, to be directed by Divine Guidance, to Radiate more sunshine, and love, each day. To do my work better and more in harmony with Nature's Laws, and to be a Man amongst Men, loved by all with whom I come in contact, by the Animals I serve and care for."

"I realize that God's Kingdom within me is the source of all my supply of Health, Wealth and Happiness."

Try this and see how wonderful is the reward of living a constructive, Spiritual Life in tune with the Infinite.

Continued here:
Self Help Books & Self Improvement eBooks for Personal ...

Employ your time in improving yourself by other men's writings so that you shall come easily by what others have labored hard for. Socrates

People seldom improve when they have no other model but themselves to copy. Oliver Goldsmith

Let us strive to improve ourselves, for we cannot remain stationary; one either progresses or retrogrades. Mme. Du Deffand

The safest principle through life, instead of reforming others, is to set about perfecting yourself. B. R. Haydon

Change yourself and fortune will change with you. Portugese Proverb

What you dislike in another take care to correct in yourself. Thomas Sprat

The highest purpose of intellectual cultivation is to give a man a perfect knowledge and mastery of his own inner self; to render our consciousness its own light and its own mirror. Frederich Leopold von Hardenberg

What are the aims which are at the same time duties? They are perfecting of ourselves, the happiness of others. Immanuel Kant

Whenever you see a man who is successful in society, try to discover what makes him pleasing, and if possible adopt his system. Benjamin Disraeli

A scrap of paper and a stub of a pencil beats the best memory. Michael Wardinski

Each of us must work for his own improvement, and at the same time share a general responsibility for all humanity. Marie Curie

Every man has in himself a continent of undiscovered character. Happy is he who acts as the Columbus to his own soul. Sir J. Stephen

Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself. Leo Tolstoy

I believe that true identity is found in creative activity springing from within. It is found when one loses oneself. Anne Morrow Lindbergh

I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship. Louisa May Alcott

Discontent is the source of all trouble, but also of all progress, in individuals and nations. Berthold Auerbach

The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none. Thomas Carlyle

Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anyone else expects of you. Never excuse yourself. Henry Ward Beecher

It was the sacred rule among the Pythagoreans that they should every evening thrice run over the actions and affairs of the day. Dr. L. Watts

Never neglect an opportunity for improvement. Sir William Jones

Remedy your deficiencies, and your merits will take care of themselves. Edward Bulwer-Lytton

Everyone has naturally the power of excelling in some one thing. Proverb

Circumspection in calamity; mercy in greatness; good speeches in assemblies; fortitude in adversity: these are the self-attained perfections of great souls. Hitopadesa

Practice yourself in little things, and thence proceed to greater. Epictetus

The farther a man knows himself to be free from perfection, the nearer he is to it. Gerard Groote

If you have great talents, industry will improve them; If moderate abilities, industry will supply their deficiencies. Nothing is denied to well-directed labor: nothing is ever to be attained without it. Sir Joshua Reynolds

There is nothing noble about being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self. Hindu Proverb

What you are must always displease you, if you would attain to that which you are not. Saint Augustine

Live up to the best that is in you: Live noble lives, as you all may, in whatever condition you may find yourselves. Henry W. Longfellow

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Self Improvement Quotes and Sayings

"The most extensive step-by-step personal development program on the internet... that focuses on your mind, body, emotions and soul"

Dear Reader,

Today, I am going to show you a step-by-step method that will take you from where you are today to where you want to be.

Whether you are someone looking to boost their self-esteem....achieve financial independence... or simply get peace of mind

...this simple method can help you achieve literally ANYTHING.

But before we get into details, I'd like to explain...

If, my dear friend...

... then, I congratulate you, because, you, most likely, already know what I am about to tell you. And you don't need any help from me or anyone else.

But if, on the contrary, you cannot relate to any (or all) of the above categories, then, you should read on to find out how you can...

...and much more.

I am John Robson, the founder (with my wife, Patrice Robson) of Higher Awareness.

About twenty years ago, I left the world of engineering to get rid of the emptiness and dissatisfaction that was eating away my existence.

It wasn't any financial crisis or something that made me take this decision. In fact, my circumstances were ideal for an engineer of my age.

I had a very comfortable job... I earned well... and everyone respected me...

But deep inside, I didn't feel satisfied... A part of me felt incomplete.

I did everything I could to suppress that feeling of emptiness.

Nothing worked.

Then, I resigned from my job... and changed several jobs after that.

But all my attempts proved fruitless...

The chaos was now taking over my personal life as well. It began to overshadow my very existence...

I began to have a difficulty in making decisions... I got angry very quickly... I couldn't even sleep properly...

Eventually, I got so frustrated that I felt like giving up was the only way...

Then, one day...

I had a realization that changed my life... FOREVER.

I realized that the only person who could change my life was MYSELF.

So I set on a journey of self-exploration and began searching for the real purpose of my life...

I started reading every book on personal and spiritual growth... and taking every course I could.

Within a few years, I had taken over 120 personal development programs and read countless books on the subject.

The Result: I felt fulfilled and was living a life of meaning and purpose.

However, just taking the uplifting courses didn't do that for me.

Sure, they lifted my spirits and taught me some insights... but they didn't provide the daily, step-by-step tools to keep me on track. And as a result, I would often feel like going back to my old self.

To overcome this...

I went on a quest to build such tools myself...

I kept modifying my system with time... And with its help, I kept growing.

My life became more joyful... and fears and problems seemed to disappear.

People were intrigued... naturally.

They started asking me the secret to my happiness... They wanted to learn the 'techniques' I had used to achieve those results.

What really surprised me was that there were so many people like myself... who had similar problems as I once had. Their individual challenges were different but the core reasons for their struggles were, more or less, similar to mine.

This led me to the road I have been travelling ever since...

I took all the tools I had created for myself and used them to design a step-by-step process for others... that would gently keep them on track without making them feel overwhelmed with information.

I started organizing workshops at my home... and within a year, I had over 1000 students whom I was helping from my living room.

I gave them a powerful set of tools that would help THEM uncover their innate inner wisdom... the imagination, creativity and intuition that already lied inside them.

You see, relying too much on 'gurus' or others is actually downright dangerous if you don't know what you're doing like driving drunk or not wearing a seatbelt.

So, the programs I developed focused on helping each person discover for themselves who they really are... their own inner purpose... style... character and inner processes- their souls (we are all unique).

And the results were miraculous...

I must admit that it is one of the best investments I have ever made. I continue to gain new insights about myself and I am expanding my consciousness at the deepest level possible as I meditate on the emails. I feel a deep shift in my confidence and I am gaining more clarity on which direction to take my business. I have been considering signing up for this course for approximately 2 years and I intuitively knew that this was the perfect time for me to do this. So glad I did!

- Michael Taylor

Just a few years ago, I got access to your material when I was in an absolute financial mess. I am ever so thankful. Fast forward a few years and I have now a job I work two weeks every month and am earning almost $130000 a year and have just moved into my first house that I bought myself. My life has gone from strength to strength and I am a single mum with a 16 yr old son and 7 yr old daughter and I've accomplished this all in that shirt time. I wanted to send you a heartfelt thank you for helping me to turn things around, and for your kindness in my time of need.

- Nikki McGrady

I have just completed the Know Yourself program, and I am enjoying this wavy path to self discovery, it feels almost like unraveling a knotted rope and then being at the helm to use it as a trapeze artist might to fly through the air! I literally laughed out loud as I came to the end of it because my very worries at the beginning are actually the biggest opportunity for growth and healing! I am very excited to continue with your courses to heal and grow. I am now doing the Awareness & Intuition workshop which I absolutely love, and am having fun with. I also just received the 'Next Step' email to Who Am I, and I felt the time management, goal setting and success tracking programs immediately grab me as a must!

- Tessa Miller

Thanks so much....deeply grateful for the knowledge, wisdom and understanding gained over the period I have been receiving your email. Your work has impacted me in many positive ways.. I look forward daily for your insights. I have nothing but high praises and a sense of deep and profound gratitude for the work you do.

- Peter Leon

Although it's only been a week, I'm just so amazed by all that I'm learning & becoming. Personal development has always been important. Next to breathing, now it's become my main focus in life. Knowing, and learning the truth about who I am, has restored my self confidence and self awareness at a level it was never at. Before, I didn't always know that I could trust my intuition, nor my innate abilities. Change is good.

- Catolyn

As the word spread, more and more people became interested in my personal development resources... Then, a friend suggested that I make them available to people on internet.

In 1999, I launched HigherAwareness.com with my wife, Patrice...

...and to date, more than 7000 people have used our approach to achieve the life they desire for themselves.

Over the last fifteen years, the Higher Awareness program has seriously evolved... we kept adding new resources to suit the needs of our growing community.

And today, we have hundreds of resources that help people like you break through their fears, self-doubt, and insecurities and create a peaceful life for themselves.

Our personal and spiritual resources are condensed under four major steps...

These four steps contain the essence of a happy life... and our program takes you by the hand and shows you how you can evolve from being an unfulfilled person to being content and living a life of purpose.

Here are some of the things that you'll discover as a part of the Higher Awareness program:

"I have been receiving your higher awareness e-mails for about a year now. I love reading them, and have saved them all in a folder. I have appreciated each piece of wisdom they contain, many of which have come at just the right timing for me, often directly correlating with something in my life. This intuition series also came at a time when I was looking to listen more deeply to my inner wisdom, and couldn't have been a better answer for me. Your work has continued to show me the magic workings of the universe. I have really enjoyed this series so far, and I want to say thank you. I hope you continue to reach out to the souls of the world in this way that you do."

- C Donald

"Receiving Higher Awareness daily the messages seem to have been written directly for me and in my spiritual growth they also seem perfectly timed. I am currently in a small local group but would be interested at some point to write about my journey. Thank you so very much."

This simple mind hack is often taught by psychotherapists... and can help you achieve phenomenal results in overcoming other negative forces such as self-doubt and insecurities etc.

Here are a few more growth secrets you'll discover:

"Thank you. I really enjoy these Awarenesses, and look forward to them daily. They really give me a good feeling of life and becoming a better person from the inside out. I forward them to family and friends around the entire U.S.A. The ones that really hit home I put in my favorites' e-mail list, so I can refer to them from time to time, to re-energize that thought when I need it again, or for a pick me up to get me going each day."

- KB

- JS

As a part of our Higher Awareness program, you'll have complete access to a rich array of resources that will help you go from where you are to where you want to be. Here's what you'll get as a part of your membership:

- Sue Hulen

- Nieves Sancho

- Phyllis Foster

Personal and spiritual growth is a life-long journey. And our aim is to help YOU become your best self and achieve the life you want... one step at a time.

As a part of our Higher Awareness program, you'll have access to hundreds of growth resources... and this might seem a lot to you, at first. But these resources are designed to help you develop every single aspect of your being and transform your life completely.

You can, and should, focus on one area first... heal it and develop it... and then, when you feel satisfied with that particular part of your life, move on to the next one.

- KM

You don't have to follow a timeframe to grow with us. All you need is commitment and willingness to change your life from its current state to the one you have dreamed of.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

- Mark Twain

There's never been a better time to take control of your life and start living the way you want to... than NOW.

Imagine being able to live a life free of insecurities, self-doubt, worries... to earn as much as you want to achieve all of your goals... have peace of mind... spend enough time with your family and be your best self.

All of this is possible... and you have the chance to make it possible NOW.

We'll be raising our prices in September, this year. So, NOW is your chance to get this goldmine of life-changing resources for a bargain price.

If, for any reason, you think Higher Awareness is not the right program to help you turn your dreams into reality... let us know and we'll send all your money back... No questions asked.

People spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on their education... But there is no school that teaches you the most valuable skill in life. i.e, how to live it.

- JP

- Adam Smith

-Esther Dorothy Lucio

- PN

No matter how educated you are or what degree you hold, these things have no value... unless they help to make you a fulfilled human being and create a life for you that you deserve.

Our Higher Awareness program, however, is going to change your life forever. No exceptions.

So, this, without any doubt, is going to be the best investment of your life.

Sincerely,

Continue reading here:
Self Development Courses, Personal Development Programs

Bad days are a fact of life, no matter who you are and what your circumstances might be. Sometimes, bad things happen and you just can't control them—but what you can control is whether or not you react by turning the negativity inwards. As a society we tend to think that self-criticism is what keeps us motivated, and while that can indeed be a source of motivation to do better, it's a strategy that also reduces self-esteem, increases anxiety, and can ultimately lead to a depressed mental state. On the other hand, self-compassion is linked to reduced stress, anxiety, and depression, and higher self-esteem. People who practice self-compassion feel freer—to take risks, to try new things, to explore the world—because they allow themselves to fail and to make mistakes, without judging themselves and without feeling ashamed. Self-compassion isn't a skill that comes naturally, but it's one that can be learned, and can bring amazing benefits.

What is Self-Compassion?

Associate Professor Kristin Neff of the University of Texas at Austin—author of Self-Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind—writes that self-compassion is made up of three different components:

• Kindness—being kind, gentle, and understanding with yourself when you're in physical or emotional pain. Recognizing that failure, pain, and suffering are inevitable facts of life, and that it's healthier to react with loving kindness than with self-hate.

• Humanity—the recognition that everyone struggles. In times of strife, we feel isolated and alone, and but recognizing our common humanity reminds us that everyone makes mistakes and feels pain. This allows us to feel less judgmental of ourselves; everyone makes mistakes, and everyone has personal faults, and mistakes and faults don't make you a terrible person.

• Mindfulness—the process of consciously observing what happens in your life without judgment, and without avoiding or suppressing your emotions and thoughts. It also means putting your pain into perspective. Rather than allowing yourself to get carried away with negativity, you'll feel and acknowledge pain, and move past it.

There are a lot of myths about what self-compassion is—that it's about self-pity, or self-involvement, or that it encourages people to ignore responsibilities. In fact, self-compassion is the opposite of self-pity. When someone is in a self-pitying state, they're so immersed in their struggle that they forget that they're not alone in that struggle; self-compassion, on the other hand, recognizes that struggle and suffering are something that everyone goes through, and it's that struggle that connects us to the rest of the world, even when we feel isolated. It's that connection that helps you put your problems into a more realistic perspective, and while self-compassion allows you to acknowledge your own suffering, it also reminds you that you're not alone in it.

Self-compassion also doesn't encourage people to ignore responsibilities or become self-indulgent—again, it's the exact opposite. It simply means that you support yourself, and far from being complacent, it encourages you to change whatever behavior you're perpetuating that's making you feel unhappy or unhealthy. For example, if you're constantly engaging in negative self-talk, then practicing self-compassion encourages you to find ways of reframing negative thoughts. If you're engaging in physically unhealthy behavior, self-compassion encourages you to find ways to reduce the unhealthy behavior, or take care of yourself physically to reduce its negative effects. The key is that when you're practicing self-compassion, you don't judge yourself for engaging in unhealthy behavior, whether or not you're actively trying to change it.

How to Practice Self-Compassion

Self-compassion is an easy concept to understand, but it's hard to practice, and even harder to master. It's a natural reaction to respond to bad moments with negativity, and for many of us it's just as natural to turn those bad feelings inwards and use them to attack your own self-worth. The solution is self-compassion and kindness, and learning how to take control of the negative thoughts to reframe them into something positive.

Perhaps the most important and useful general rule is to treat yourself like your own best friend. Most of us are much harsher on ourselves than we'd ever be on a friend or family member, and we say things to or about ourselves that we'd never say to someone else. When you catch yourself engaging in negative self-talk, try to reframe what you're saying as though you're saying it to your best friend—someone you love very much, and whom you don't want to hurt—and always try to remember that you deserve that same level of compassion and kindness. There are many ways to practice being kinder to yourself, whether it's with self-care routines for cheering yourself up on bad days, or learning strategies for combating negative thoughts. For example, you can try guided meditation, positive affirmations, or comfort yourself physically with gestures that “take you out of your head” by engaging your physical self. If some of the tried-and-true strategies don't work for, you, don't worry—there's no single "right" thing to do; it's all about what works for you.

Acknowledge your mistakes, and then let them go. It's human nature to bring up old memories of embarrassing moments and errors—things we said or did that we wish we hadn't, errors in judgment, and times when we didn't live up to expectations—and spend far too long internally obsessing over them. While it's virtually impossible to stop yourself from bringing up old memories, you can resolve to think of your past self more kindly when it does happen.

Focus on growth, rather than improvement. Framing personal development as self-improvement can be a subtle way of telling yourself that you're not okay the way you are. Growth is a much more neutral term, because it doesn't imply that there's anything wrong with your current state.

Don't rush yourself or try to force things you're not ready for. Personal growth doesn't need to be rapid, or even consistent—often it's a case of one step forward and two steps back, and sometimes it's just about standing still to appreciate where you are and how far you've come.

References

http://www.psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/06/27/5-strategies-for-self-compassion/

http://www.vitalaffirmations.com/affirmations.htm

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-mindful-self-express/201202/why-caring-yourself-makes-all-the-difference

 

I subscribe to Coast to Coast a paranormal and other oddity stories radio station that streams on the web. Attached is an hour's worth talking about stuff. You'll enjoy.ooops Its a media windows file but it's to large. check it out on your own.

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/show/2011/08/02

World Affairs / Conscious Evolution
Date: 08-02-11
Host: George Noory
Guests:

In the latter half, visionary, social pioneer and author Barbara Marx Hubbard discussed the idea of conscious evolution, and how humankind must evolve or face extinction. She suggested that evolution can occur by choice rather chance, and while many are focused on doom & gloom 2012 scenarios, she presented a hopeful vision of our future. "I think we're seeing the emergence of a universal species...we're going to have extended life, extended intelligence, extended contact throughout the universe, that we'll be freed up from repetitive labor...and the species itself will evolve into a co-created humanity... But if we don't, if we stay self-centered, separate, competitive, overpopulating and polluting, we won't make it," she stated.
We're seeing a breakthrough of more people becoming conscious of god, super-nature, spirit, or tendency of higher order-- a transcending impulse of higher evolution, she continued. Hubbard, now 81, shared some of the fascinating paths in her life, how she turned from a housewife into a "futurist," her relationship with Buckminster Fuller, and details of her run for Vice President in 1984 (Neale Donald Walsch recently penned a biography of Hubbard called The Mother of Invention).

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/show/2011/08/02