Self-improvement is a billion dollars a year industry. When the pie is that big, we can expect some hands that are not snow-white reach for it. We can expect scandals, misrepresentations, exaggerated claims and whole panoply of wild and crazy statements.
Every Tom, Dick and Harry with a bit of imagination is trying to strike big and make tons of money. To do that, these would-be Gurus know that they have to get known and the best way to get that publicity is by doing or saying something that is outlandish, that defies the imagination or makes them look as if they are the anointed ones who have just found the secret.
That state of affair is nothing new. It's been going on for ages. Sects were and still are formed. The hypes are getting more and more sophisticated and the prices charged to attend "special" events have reached astronomical proportions.
Even serious medias have found a way to get into the act and making money by exploiting this unsavory side of the Self-improvement world. All this is enough to leave the neophytes in the self-help movement a bit perplex and uncertain.
Here then are a few bits of advice that could help you if you're just starting out on a quest of self-improvement and self-actualization.
The first thing that you should know is that there are no magic bullets. Improving the mind is like improving the physical body. The results are directly proportional to the efforts made. Real and lasting improvements only follow patient and sustained work.
Real Self-improvement is not about learning new tricks or slick techniques; it's about transforming your character, your way of thinking and the way that you see the world. It's about shedding self-sabotaging beliefs and replacing them with dynamic and empowering ones.
It could be said that self-improvement is about character building. Being successful and effective is important but being a person of substance and integrity is even more important for the simple reason that we experience life through who we are and not through what we have.
Self-improvement depends more on the state of mind than on the information assimilated. A person who is eager to learn, grow and take action could find all the information necessary in one or two classic books on the subject.
On the other hand, anyone looking for the silver bullet, the secret formula or the perfect "get rich quick" scheme can spend an entire life studying self-improvement and not get too much out of it.
Self-improvement is an active process and not a passive one. It's more about changing than about learning. It's about discovering what it is that we should change in our life and working hard to affect that change. In some specific cases, the learning part could take as little as a few minutes whereas the transformation itself could take years.
All the basics of self-improvement can be found in three books: 1) Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins 2) Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and 3) The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.
With these three books and twenty to thirty minutes of daily studies, in less than a year, you will know all that you need to know to reach as high as you ever want to go... providing you apply what you learn.
Dr. Raymond Comeau aka Shamou is the Author of ShamouBlog and Owner Administrator of Personal Development for Personal Success Forums
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