Personal Development Training
I’m taking a break from seminars and courses this year to narrow my focus to improving in very specific areas in my health, wealth, and relationships. That being said I have been very blessed and fortunate to take part in some great seminars and courses over the past few years and those have led to a lot of personal growth and development in my life. I believe that any time you have the chance to take advantage of a high end seminar or course of some kind on a topic that really fascinates you, then you should go all out and take the course.
Here are some of the more interesting courses I’ve taken:
1. Relationships: I took a bootcamp with Venusian Arts led by Mystery himself. I never really spoke about this in detail because I was somewhat secretive about it at the time but I’ve always been a fan of pickup and I really have no qualms about sharing it now. It is the means by which I got into the Rich Jerk’s Playboy Mansion party. This in turn introduced me to my fascination and obsession with internet marketing and led me to starting this blog as well. It was one of the best and most rewarding weekends of my life. I got to meet Neil Strauss, Ross Jeffries, Eben Pagan (a.k.a. David DeAngelo), and a slew of other guys who are big names in that realm. I also learned more about not just women, but relationships and human interaction than at any other stretch in my life.
It literally was a game changer for me and I would recommend that any man who would like to learn more about women and how to improve the relationships in their life to take a bootcamp from a reputable company. The importance behind it is they are not just teaching tricks to get more women, but rather a lifestyle of constant improvement. By cultivating this attitude of always getting better in all areas of your life, you will naturally become more attractive and more women will be attracted to you anyway which is just icing on the cake. I’ve also looked at many related books and courses on the subject since then and have gained a mass amount of knowledge on evolutionary and general psychology. It’s almost eerie how related that dating and marketing can actually be sometimes, which leads me to my next section.
2. Wealth: I have written about a few of these here, but it’s worth noting that I have dedicated a vast amount of time into ebooks, books, courses, and seminars on marketing the last few years. I’ve even selected marketing as a minor when I go back to school later this month because I’m so passionate about it. I’ve gotten courses from the Rich Jerk, Frank Kern, Mike Filsaime, Eben Pagan, and so on and so forth. I’m taking one currently about SEO that is already paying dividends with this site as well as the other projects I’m involved in.
One of my favorite experiences is getting to be at Frank Kern’s Mass Control 2.0 seminar in San Diego and getting to soak up such great information and be around a crowd that is so passionate about the subject. I learned a massive amount of great tips and techniques that weekend that I either have implemented or will in the coming years.
One of the downsides of all this is that I overwhelmed myself with information at times and didn’t take action to the extent that I should have. I’ve gone about correcting that problem this year and am already seeing results from it and hope to build on my progress as I get better.
I have no doubt that someday I will be making my living as a marketer and writer as a result of my introduction to this community. (Be here when it happens! 
)
3. Health: Because of the progress I made in the other two areas of my life, I noticed that I was slipping physically at times. So I started to work out again. I made a little progress right away but wanted a little structure and a plan I could follow. So I got my hands on a copy of P90X and it made a big difference for me. I made it to the third phase but found that I was getting a bit bored with the redundancy of the workouts so I switched to a more traditional weightlifting, cardio, and sports combo of exercise which has been phenomenal for me. I’m now in great physical shape and am training to run a half-marathon in May and then a full marathon later in the year.
The point here though is that P90X was HUGE for me. It got me into a habit of eating in a disciplined fashion and understanding how my body reacts to eating and working out. This allows me to make necessary changes on the fly and even if I eat some junk food now I don’t worry because I know when to be a little more conservative with my diet and/or when to rest and change up my workout routines.
Summary: I’ve been able to either take a seminar or go through a home study course for each area of my life over the past few years and all have made a huge difference for me. I am narrowing my focus to taking more action this year and taking less courses, but the foundation of knowledge I have built by taking high value trainings is invaluable to me. I have invested literally tens of thousands of dollars into my personal development and it has paid dividends for me in every area of my life and my overall well-being. I would encourage anybody else to do the same.
You don’t have to buy a big expensive course, but just simply start out with a book or a good blog. Try to practically apply the fundamentals of what you learn and use what works for you in your life and personal situation. Then as you gain a little more knowledge and experience, consider taking a higher end course of some kind. It will most likely be one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences of your life.
Do Something Nice
Give somebody a quick lift home if they don’t have a ride. Help your landlady with her garbage. Give a sincere compliment to somebody who looks like they could use it. Not only will they really appreciate it, but you are putting out an energy that will come back to you tenfold at some point. I’m not saying that it’s necessarily kharma, but these things that have such a small but positive impact have a way of coming back to you at the time that you really need it.
Just as you can accept the positive things in your life, be willing to accept the negative and roll with what life throws your way. When you realize that others may not be doing so well and lend a helping hand, you’re only setting yourself up for the same when you need the help. Becoming a positive force and doing a little something for the people in your world will not only be a kindness you have done for them, but can be very fulfilling as well because you have given of yourself for another. Give not expecting anything in return, but only help those who deserve it and will appreciate the kindness you have shown them.
Things may never be as good as we want them to be, but they are never as bad as they seem. Keep a little perspective in your life and realize that you can create a lot of little miracles in the lives of others every day if you choose to as well as appreciating the ones that are present in your life as well.
Seek Out Mentors
It’s absolutely essential to find somebody who is good at the skill you want to improve and model their methods and use what helps you. By continually finding new mentors in different areas in your life, befriending them, and picking their brain you will ensure a steady stream of personal growth and improvement in whatever you set your mind to doing.
1. Find an expert in your field and offer to buy them lunch. Do make friends with this person.
2. If you can’t find somebody right away, don’t worry. Read books, watch videos, go through home study courses. Seek out the answers and the understanding that you desire for your skill set. But continue to find those that are better than you at what you do.
3. Once you have found a mentor, use that resource wisely and get as much help and advice as you can. This could be a lifelong friend so treat them that way. They will only help you that much more and root for your success.
4. After you have learned all you can from one mentor, find another and repeat the process.
5. Wash, rinse, and repeat.
6. Don’t forget to pay back the favor. Do this enough times and you will be the expert. Somebody will come to you for friendship and mentoring one day. Hone your craft even further by teaching it. You will still learn as much if not more by teaching than you will by learning on your own.
I can’t always meet in person the mentors I want, but I have been very fortunate to meet many great ones. With the media resources available nowadays with books, courses, and the internet there is really no reason not to find an expert and study their skills for your own benefit from a distance at the very least. An important realization though is that you can only do so much by reading or watching. This is another advantage to having a personal mentor: to be guided through practical application of a skill by an expert.
Go network and find the mentors that will carry you to the next level in your life.
Start Your Own Blog
Why wouldn’t you? If you read enough of them (and they are everywhere now so you do), then you should go ahead and start keeping one of your own. It’s a good way to put your thoughts down, promote your ideas, and in some cases even build a business around.
I first started blogging a little over 2 years ago and I still suck at it! But I’m getting better every time I do it. I look at my initial attempts and can’t believe how lame they were and how bad the writing was. In retrospect though, I’m so glad I got started because I now have going on 3 years of web publishing experience under my belt and I’ve built a skill set that grows by the day. I’ve learned so many good things that I personally believe will support me and help me make a full-time income someday. The internet is still growing at a frantic pace and I can’t wait to look back on this post a couple of years from now and see how lame I think it is too!
Here’s a couple of tips to get started:
1. If you’ve never built a blog before just use something simple like Blogger or Wordpress. These are custom built for beginners to make setup and blogging as easy as possible. I still have blogs with these services though I don’t use them as much as this one. Many people start a blog this way and stick with it for years which is perfectly fine. The only problem is that you don’t own the domain or the site, although they are still monetizable.
2. If you’re a bit more serious and want to set up and own your own site, buy a domain name and service for hosting. I use Bluehost for all my domain and hosting needs and I love them. Full disclosure: That is my affiliate link and if you purchase the service through it I will get paid. But I couldn’t give them any more of a seal of approval. I’ve probably purchased and hosted around 20+ domains through Bluehost and absolutely love how easy the service is to use. I’d recommend installing Wordpress as your blogging software of choice, although there are other good ones. You get the the choice of your domain name free for a year if you buy hosting up front.
3. Set up your blog and start writing. Most successful blogs are built around a particular niche. This blog is built around personal development, which gives me pretty good room to write about just about anything. There’s a lot of things you can do to improve yourself personally and I enjoy doing those things in my own life and I figured others would enjoy learning about them or at least enjoy reading about how crazy I am in my own pursuits. But you can use a blog for just about anything. Keeping family and friends abreast of your life, impressing potential employers, starting a business, or just mindless rambling are all perfectly legitimate and acceptable uses of blogs.
4. Write as much or as little as you want. Just continue to write. I’ve had my good and bad stretches on here. I’m trying to write as much as possible this year. The thing is, the more you write the more traffic you will have and the more people will read what you have to say. You have to decide what your goals with the blog are and build your writing habits around those goals.
Blogs are a great way to deliver information to whoever your target audience is whether it be a potential customer or just grandma. In this day and age, just about anybody could use one. Think about getting one set up for yourself and try it out. It could end up being a life long passion, but you’ll never know until you try. Happy blogging.
Self Improvement Series 1: Grooming
Here’s a new series in my ongoing dedication to personal development and related topics. I’ll be covering some grooming basics in today’s article.
Grooming is one of the simple things that many people overlook but can make a huge difference on how you look, feel, and how you are perceived by others which can also in turn affect your perception of yourself. Part of personal development is improving yourself in all aspects and how you present yourself to the world is a big piece of that. I like to sit in and bum out as much as the next guy, but I’ve found great success with how I feel and how that in turn affects me over the following days and weeks because of my grooming or lack thereof.
A lack of hygiene, dress, and presence can be overcome by how you present your personality. But if you have all of these working in unison, you will find it much easier to be attractive and impressive to others. This can lead to networking and relationship opportunities you may not have had otherwise. So let’s get started. These can generally be considered applicable to men and women:
1. Hair maintenance: Keeping your hair in a neat, trimmed style. If you are going bald, investigate your options: hair products, implants, different hairstyle, etc. For men, it may just be worth going bald. Grooming all other hairy areas of the body is a must as well. Back hair, nose hair, ear hair, and possibly chest hair are all candidates that are worth touching up. If you have a unibrow, pluck it! Facial hair for men can be considered attractive but it should be groomed into a nice goatee/beard style or clean shaven altogether. For women: Wax those upper lips!
2. Mouth Hygiene: Brush your teeth at least twice a day. If possible do it more! Flossing is also a must, and it is much easier if you use the pre-strung flosser tools. Use a tongue scraper to get all the nasty bacteria and gunk off your tongue. Finish this off by using a good mouthwash (alcohol-free will leave your mouth feeling less dried out). Keeping breath mints or gum on hand is also a wise decision for those social moments when you want to keep your breath fresh! Another reason is to give yourself the chance to smile regularly!
3. Physical Appearance: Work out and eat right! This should become a part of your lifestyle. This is not to say that you can’t eat some junk food ever, but get to your goal weight before you allow yourself to indulge and then do it only in moderation. If you are not working out regularly, then what are you waiting for? Being obese is not attractive and you feel terrible! Trust me, I know all about it If you aren’t at your target weight quite yet, keep working. The next two areas will help you in the meantime.
4. Posture: Important to stay mindful of as most people can overlook it. Consciously work on your posture. The way you carry yourself can speak volumes to your mindset and personality. If you are slumped over with your shoulders forward and face down, it can scream “I’m low confidence…don’t respect me”. Head up, eyes forward (making good eye contact with others), back straight, and shoulders back is where you want to be. If you need help with this, investigate “Alexander Technique” on Google or another search engine.
5. Dress: This is something that many people (myself included) have trouble with at times. Go out and buy some nice shoes first of all. Then a belt that goes well with the shoes. Offer to buy a friend who is more fashion-savvy than you lunch if they will agree to help you pick out a new outfit or two. Start to get a feel for what they see and get tips and suggestions as to what style fits your life and personality. After you get more experience picking out nice outfits, you start to develop your own tastes and you can tell what clothing works for you as you improve. Nice form-fitting clothes are definitely more flattering than baggy, rap video outfits. Unless of course that is the style that fits your personality.
6. Cleanliness & Scent : This should probably be higher on the list, but since these are in no particular order here it goes. Shower regularly, use deodorant, and a nicely scented (but not overwhelming) body spray, cologne, or perfume. Putting your scent on your pulse points (chest, wrists, neck, & hips) will allow it to be released more slowly over time.
7. Extras : Other things can also be considered to improve or enhance your physical attractiveness. Tanning, teeth whitening, and other more intrusive cosmetic procedures may be worth considering depending on your situation. Be informed and look into everything!
There is the short list on grooming basics. Entire posts could be written on each one of these (and may very well be at some point!). Take care of yourself first and your other personal development endeavors will go much more smoothly.
Self-improvement and personal development begins with you taking care of yourself first. When you look good, you start to feel much better and more positively about yourself. You’re sending a very subtle but powerful message to your subconscious that you are worth putting more effort into.
Improve your grooming habits and strengthen your personal development progress today!
