Personal Development

By Alex Vernocci

 How do your thoughts flow through your head? Are they organized or more chaotic?
 Do you have clear and defined goals for you personal life and professional career?
 Do you feel happy and satisfied with all you have?
 Do you find yourself under the stress of a time crunch frequently, and you feel over-tired during the day?
 Are you sick more often than you should be? How many hours per week do you exercise?
 Are you worry about your personal finance?
 Are you feeling overwhelmed with a desperate need to get back the control of your life?

In many ways, personal development is a science, and there is a set of skills you must learn to harness and make your own if you want to improve yourself.
No matter how many mistakes you have made that you think you cannot come back from, there is still hope.
You might feel like you will never learn to be sociable because low self-confidence has always gotten in the way, or that you are not motivated enough to take on leadership roles in your job.
The truth is that no one is a “natural born leader”, and they continue to practice the behaviors that will get them ahead in life.
Even the most successful self-made businessperson had to make their first pitch to a client, and it probably was not their smoothest one, and the most influential speakers get nervous before a performance.
However, what both of those people possess is self-confidence and perseverance.
This is how they can go out and chase their dreams, even though they are afraid to do so. You can learn to become like these people.
This book is a practical guide with exercises and worksheets for self-assessment and useful techniques to:
• Achieve and maintaine a positive mindset
• Set goals and see them through to the end
• Express gratitude and stay content with your present
• Access and express your emotions in a constructive way
• Utilize empathy to build lasting relationships and succeed in the business world
• Manage stress and anxiety even when life gets tough
• Learne how to make the most of your time, avoiding procrastination
• Keep a healthy body to contribute to a healthy mind
• Utilize meditation to maintain a state of mindfulness, ensuring your judgment to stay clear
• How to best manage your money, so it does not become a problem
…And much more

If you want to start your Personal Development journey today, buy this book with confidence ... you’ll not be disappointed!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jan 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9781716259388

Book preview

Personal Development

Basic skills to detox your mind, relief stress and anxiety with mindfulness meditation, develop self-esteem, self-compassion and mental toughness

Alex Vernocci

Copyright © 2020 Alex Vernocci

All rights reserved

alexvernox editions

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Mindset

1.1 Mindset Self-Assessment

1.2 Mindset Practical Techniques

Chapter 2: Goal Setting

2.1 Goal Setting Self-Assessment

2.2 Goal Setting Practical Techniques

Chapter 3: Gratitude

3.1 Gratitude Self Assessment

3.2 Gratitude Practical Techniques

Chapter 4: Emotions and Empathy

4.1 Emotions and Empathy Self Assessment

4.2 Emotions and Empathy Practical Techniques

Chapter 5: Stress and Relaxation

5.1 Stress and Relaxation Self-Assessment

5.2 Stress and Relaxation Practical Techniques

Chapter 6: Productivity, Time Management and Procrastination

6.1 Productivity Self-Assessment

6.2 Productivity Practical Techniques

Chapter 7: Health and Fitness

7.1 Health and Fitness Self-Assessment

7.2 Health and Fitness Practical Techniques

Chapter 8: Meditation

8.1 Meditation Self-Assessment

8.2 Meditation Practical Techniques

Chapter 9: Resilience

9.1 Resilience Self Assessment

9.2 Resilience Practical Techniques

Chapter 10- Personal Finance and Money Management

10.1 Finance and Money Self-Assessment

10.2 Finance and Money Practical Techniques

Conclusions

Introduction

We all dream of becoming that person who seems to always come out on top. You know the one I'm talking about- the one who can walk into any room and fit right in. People like them on sight, and things have a way of always working in their favor. They get the job they were after. They make the friends they want to. You wonder what it is about them.

Does the world just prefer them? The truth is, that person makes things work out for them. You have a choice to either succeed or fail. The life you've always wanted to have can start becoming a reality today exactly as you are.

There is nothing wrong with the person you are right now. What personal development really means is shaping your habits so that they create a mindset fit for success. Your accomplishments in the outside world start inside your mind.

A successful person is created by their internal dialogue. Instead of telling themselves why they could never have what they want, they think, What’s the first step to getting there? They know how to soothe themselves in healthy ways during times of stress. They take an active role in the way their life is structured instead of letting it happen without input from them. They set attainable goals for themselves and then take the steps necessary to follow through with them. It is not about overnight success. It is about steadily working towards what you want eliminating obstacles that stand in your way.

Personal development is a process that goes on throughout life. When you look through the things we will discuss, the skills necessary for this are actually quite simple. It is less about changing yourself and more about asking yourself questions such as how long has it been since I invested in self-care? or How well do I manage my time? or when was the last time I did something to relieve my stress?

You might notice that all of these things trace back to your internal state. This is because personal development is not about what you appear to be, the things you say, or your current status. It is about how well you treat yourself so you can present your best self to the world. It is about making sure the hours in your day are as well-spent as possible.

These are things all of us can begin at any time. As you begin one path of self-improvement, you will eventually be able to branch out to others. For example, if you begin to work on making your body more healthy, you will start to feel better about yourself, meaning your mental wellness will improve. This in turn will raise your productivity levels and you will enjoy more success from this.

If you want to reach your ultimate goals, you will have to start with the small victories, because that is where it all starts. You will get the results you put your efforts into. I can assure you that when you apply the concepts, you will learn about in this book to your life, you will see the changes you desire in it.

You will become your ideal self. You will approach situations with confidence and a mind that will see solutions instead of obstacles. If you want to change yourself and your life, give this book a read and let us know what you think!

Chapter 1: Mindset

This topic was not put in the first chapter by pure chance, but because it is the most important one, which governs all the others, without which there can be no real change and real improvement.

It is our mind (and mindset) that regulates the perception of the world around us, that decodes it and arouses certain emotions and reactions, that guides us in everyday relationships and makes us act according to what we consider the best decisions.

Your mindset is everything when it comes to personal development. You can have all of the physical qualifications to create success, but if your head is not in the game, there is a serious chance that you could fail.

Let’s talk about Dweck's Mindset Theory, which categorizes the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset.  A person with a fixed mindset is set in their ways. They do not want to see other points of view, so they limit how much knowledge they can take in.

However, a person with a growth mindset is open to change. They may keep their ideas and beliefs, but they will hear the other person out in a disagreement and perhaps even see where some parts of their argument are valid. This makes it much easier for them to create and keep relationships because they can have a different opinion from someone else and still maintain a relationship with them. Instead of being offended, they decide they can politely agree to disagree:

This is why we need to stop thinking in terms of natural talents and those who do not have it. While everyone has things they can learn more easily, the idea that certain people are born with gifts no one else can have is incorrect.  Otherwise, why take lessons for something new.

If you always wanted to dance and you tell yourself you have two left feet, you defeat yourself before you begin.  Dancing is just not something you were trained to do.  Part of the fun will be the slips ups, and as you improve, you open new pathways in your mind. 

Let’s deconstruct the idea of a prodigy who exceeds all of their peers in their math courses. For one, they have an interest in solving math equations. When we do something with enthusiasm, we are automatically going to put more effort into it. Your mind will be sharper because the task will have all of your focus.

Another factor is this student’s support system. This is an integral part of honing talents for a couple of reasons. The first is that it will give you a support system to fall back on when you are hitting a rough patch. If this student runs into a lesson they are struggling with, they can tell their parents about it, who will call in a tutor to help them.

A support system also serves as a force that will hold you accountable. Let’s say the students get into a rut where they are neglecting their studies. They might be spending too much time