March 6

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“Personal Development” – What IS It, Really?

By Staff Writer

March 6, 2015

inner peace, life balance, Time Management

Striving to make ourselves better may be thought of by some to be “New Age,” but this practice actually dates to ancient history. Throughout the years there have been many societies that spoke of developing oneself as the only real purpose in life and that philosophy (knowing more about oneself and the universe), was the best way to live a more fulfilling life.

ben-franklin-writing-retro_zykmd3I_No matter where we find the roots of personal development, whether it is in ancient Greece, or more recently in the teachings of Benjamin Franklin, it is all about becoming the best YOU that you can possibly be.

If you study the work of Ben Franklin, he may have actually created the first personal development course outline – and BrainSpeak is going to take each one of these BFFT’s (Benjamin Franklin Favorite Traits) and explore it in more detail over the next few weeks.

BFFT’s that you will be seeing on BrainSpeak for the next few weeks include:

Discipline and self control: How do these help self-improvement.

Becoming quiet and learning to listen: How to become a better listener, and why it is such a great idea.

Maintaining order: How to become organized so that you don’t forget things or put them off.

Developing a solid work ethic: Put forth your best effort daily.

Money and Time Management: Where does it go, and how can we manage it better.

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Putting your heart into everything you do: Learn to work and play hard, striving to bring a smile to others.

What goes around comes around, or “Do unto Others”: Always treat others, the way you yourself would like to be treated

Balance: Ben suggests moderation in everything, but is that true or is more a matter of overall balance?

Cleanliness: In body, mind, and spirit – we will also be exploring where the phrase “cleanliness is next to Godliness” actually came from.

Peace: Why is an inner feeling of peace so important?

Serving others: Why helping others is a win-win for all involved.

Humbleness: The belief that no one is better than another.

Honesty: Speaking the truth both to yourself and those you come in contact with.

As you can see from this brief list of traits, personal development is not a destination but a journey, and each of us will follow a different path. Life is a continual movement from birth to death, and along that path we should always strive to move ourselves forward and to strive for excellence. To live a fulfilling life we need to seek excellence in mind, body and spirit, and one cannot truly be separated from another.

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About the author

Our staff writers come from various backgrounds in the neuroscience, personal development, brain science and psychology fields. Many started out as with us as contributors!

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