Personal development is important for anyone who desires a meaningful and fulfilled life. We grow old each day. We cannot help it. But when we pursue personal development, we grow up. We become the person we can love. We become the person our loved ones will remember. We become the person our co-workers desire to see every day.
Personal development is vital because it allows us to transform ourselves. And transformation is not only remarkable; it is a joy.
One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.
Abraham Maslow
After you read this article, I recommend that you go to the following articles too:
- Hero’s guide to personal development.
- Six Aspects of Personal Development
- My 3 Big Steps in Personal Development
Why is personal development important?
Personal development is important because we are meant to grow big.
Plants need fertile soil, sun, and water to grow. The right combination will make them grow and multiply. If you cultivate the land and trim them, plants will grow according to your desire.
In the same vein, personal development makes us intentional in our growth. Unlike plants, we can define how we want to live our lives. We can accelerate our progress. We can position ourselves so we can live the lives we desire.
If we are not intentionally working on ourselves, we may fail to become the person we want to be and someone we dislike. The worst thing to happen to us is to dislike ourselves.
George Bernard Shaw famously observed that there are three kinds of people: those who make things happen, watch what happens, and wonder what happened.
10 Reasons to Pursue Personal Development
Here are ten reasons why personal development is important.
Why is personal development important? Here are practical answers.
It increases your sense of purpose.
When a person is purpose-driven, each new day is an opportunity to get an inch closer to a goal, a dream, or a vision. Each morning promises new opportunities, and every evening a celebration of gratitude.
It helps you manage stress.
Personal development does not make stress disappear in your life. I met people who work in stressful situations (doctors, teachers, firefighters, and the like) who serve under constant pressure. Yet, they find ways to manage their stressors because they fully understand what matters most.
It helps you re-energize yourself.
When you are mindful and fully aware, you can re-energize yourself. That is because your motivation comes from within. When I was still studying in a Catholic seminary, we spent our days and night on physical, intellectual, social, and spiritual works. Though we are dead tired the night before, each new day.
It helps you develop a more positive outlook.
Good and bad things happen to all of us. Unfortunately, many of us choose to listen and talk about the negative things in life. For example, it is more appealing to watch Tulfo shows than videos on how to become good citizens or succeed in business. When you seek personal development, you prefer the positives. You smell the flowers. You find positive ways to make a difference.
It helps you to become healthy.
You become more conscious about what you take in. You only live once, giving yourself the gift of a healthy body and mind.
You become more conscious of the need to exercise, rest, sleep, and eat the right food.
It helps you become wealthy.
You fully understand that you have assets you can use to multiply your value in the marketplace. You can also use your assets to make a difference in the lives of others. Though our wealth is not limited to financial capability, mindful people take care of their finances and can find ways to create value.
It helps you grow as a leader.
It is said that in the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed person is the king. You are not a one-eyed person. You see things with clarity. People are attracted to you because you speak with authentic confidence.
It helps you improve your mental power.
Since you are intentional about many things, you learn faster than most. You ask questions, and you find answers to your questions. You become the source of many solutions, too, which helps make people consider you their leader.
It helps you leverage your strengths.
Since you prefer the positives, you tend to pay attention to your strengths. You use whatever you already have. You sing because you can sing. You speak and write because you have a message to share.
It opens new opportunities for you.
Those who seek will find. You see opportunities when they come because you are looking for them. Opportunities are everywhere because many expect “instant” change without hard work.
You can enjoy all of these benefits when you pay attention to all aspects of personal development.
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Resources
If you are looking for more resources on personal development, there are 75 articles I suggest that you explore.