Monday, March 26, 2007

Do you really believe this stuff works?

This is a question I was asked by a close fried of mine recently. We were discussing a few books I had read and the insights received from them. When out of the blue we switched to a discussion of does this stuff really work. In a moment a flood of thoughts emotions and questions ran through the morass of my mind. At the same time I began to recognize the symptoms of self doubt, anxiety and confusion just before going into a defensive posture. It was in this realization that my answer came to me.

In that brief flash of time I went from a friendly conversation to self doubt, does this stuff really work, to an answer that surprised even me as the response rolled off my tongue.

No I don't think this stuff really works. Just look around at all the self help books, courses and movies out there and people still ask questions like does this stuff work. I even recommend and have laid many of the books I have read and feel to have been beneficial in my life on my my blog, but the answer is still the same. No this stuff doesn't work or everyone who ever picked up a book would be "cured".

The problem is people often take a seminar, read a book or listen to a new audio and HOPE this is going to be the one to fix everything. Everyone is so excited about this one. Even the latest sensation "The Secret" has millions of people clamoring to see what its all about. Some want to debunk the message while others watch hoping this will be the one that answers all the questions of why they don't enjoy their current situation.

What people tend to forget is we have free will and have the ability to chose what ever we want. This is the beauty of being human and the curse at the same time. When you use one of these personal development tools my suggestion is you use it as a tool and go in asking yourself "what will I learn from this experience". My personal experience has been much more beneficial when approaching development as one of my personal responsibly vs looking for how "IT" will work. Ultimately I believe a few things need to take place to gain the most value from personal development materials.

1. Repetition
2. Variety - libraries are packed full of books, movies and audios. Check them all out and find a few authors that have a stile you connect with
3. multiple formats - books, audio books, ebooks, seminars, online courses
4. discard what doesn't FEEL right, accept what does
5. relax and know you are always in control of your beliefs, good, bad or indifferent.

The point that is trying to be expressed here is yes personal development products are great, insightful and provide millions of people tools for taking control of their life. What people often forget in life is you get out what you put in. Ultimately the question of "Does this stuff work" falls in the hands of the user.

If you look for why something will fail you will find failure. If you look for why something will succeed you will find success. With a news media geared towards sensationalizing misery, doom and gloom, and the horrors of life its easy to see why we are programed to look for the why not's vs the why not (think about that one a moment).

Churchill said "Never give up, Never give up, Never give UP" and I would agree.

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