Personal Development the secret to be your best version

I remember it as if it were yesterday, I was in one of my change processes, seeking information on the most effective ways to modify my behaviors, attitudes and habits to be led to a more improved version of myself, more optimized and of which I was most proud.

At that time, I came up with a concept that some authors suggested to create spectacular changes in your person. It seemed very simple and it was also very in line with my personality.

The recommendation was:

“Read one book a week and a year you will have read 52 books. If you read 52 books on personal development, at the end of the year you will be a totally different person. Transformed. "

The truth is that for me it had overwhelming logic. I was so seduced by the idea of ​​bombarding my mind to affect my behavior that I applied it to the table, permeating myself with the knowledge of scientists, coaches, psychologists and authors who dealt with different topics on the personal development of the human being.

I set up an à la carte personal development school, based on the things I wanted to improve with the best authors.

If I wanted to implement new habits and understand how it worked, I would get the pioneering books on the subject.

I did want to understand my emotional world and know how to manage my emotions. Did exactly the same.

I had become a voracious reader.

But it wasn't until two years later that I realized that something was not working as expected..

Know or be? Here is the question

After more than 100 books read behind my back during that time, I developed a kind of illusory security, that made me believe that he mastered all those areas that he had wanted to improve.

Emotions?

That was a piece of cake, I had read the best and understood that world perfectly, I even allowed myself the luxury of advising others.

Self-esteem?

Please, it was something I knew by heart. If anyone had a self-esteem of steel that was me.

But life is incredibly wise and puts everyone in their place. There are times when situations arise where all our skills and abilities come to the fore.

And unsurprisingly, that's what happened in one of the most difficult times of my life.

But it is in those moments, when the human being is put to the test, when the automatic and subconscious behaviors, the ones that are truly rooted.

And you know what?

That after 100 books read and a handful of lectures had not changed so much.

I KNEW a lot, but it WAS little.

Which means to know does not mean to be.

You can understand a lot about how to speak in public and what you should do to be calm, but if you don't rest those teachings in you and calmly take them to action, you WILL NEVER BE.

You can understand what emotion you are experiencing and how to manage it, but if it is not something that you consciously bring into your day to day and work to modify it, you will not notice anything at all..

You'll still be like that runaway horse out of control.

Don't read a book a week

What I want to imply here is that you do not need to read a book a week to generate changes in who you are, because basically when a concept, idea or knowledge enters your head you do not let it rest, settle and expand in you so that spend time with you, since next week another new reading with a new idea will be poking through your head and so on.

Also on the other hand, not by reading more will you create a change in your person, because be honest for a moment ...

Of the personal development books you have read lately, how many do you remember 100% of the ideas?

And 80%?

And 50%?

My experience tells me that only we keep 10% of the book normally and in exceptional cases 20%, as long as the subject captures your attention and you are prepared to clearly perceive the knowledge they want to share with you.

Because as an oriental saying says:

"When the student is ready, the teacher appears"

That is, when you are prepared to absorb certain information then that book that seemed like it had nothing to say to you and that didn't even resonate with you, suddenly becomes very revealing (the teacher appears).

I would like to give you an example with a personal story:

Nine years ago I read a book called "The power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle, as he wanted to learn to live more in the present and also understand a little more the idea of Mindfulness.

I remember that I read it in one go, I believed at that moment that I had understood it and had even internalized its concepts.

When I tried to apply it for a few days, I immediately lost interest, for me at that time it did not work, what's more, I remember that I suffered a lot trying to bring these teachings to the world today.

So I threw it in a drawer and started a hate relationship towards what that book said.

Nine years later I had changed a lot and decided to give it another try.

I read it again and this time I was stunned, it seemed like I was reading another book, totally different. Full of revealing teachings that resonated with me and had me totally hooked.

At that time the student was ready, then the teacher appeared.

Do you understand now what i mean?

The first time I read it, I shouldn't even have retained 10% of its wisdom, the second time I assure you that I retained much more, although if I had decided to read another book the following week, then I would have lost some of its strength. For not letting rest and internalize ...

I want you to just keep 2 things from everything I have told you:

• People usually keep 10% of everything we read, if we do not give time for the teachings to rest on us and put them into practice then you will know a lot but you will remain the same.

• Reading a lot of books because you think that this is going to change you ... from my point of view today it is absurd, because if you are not prepared to understand, see and internalize a teaching that resonates with you in the vital moment in which you you find then ... will fall on deaf ears.

If you keep these two things I will be more than satisfied.

My recomendation

Don't read a book a week, but keep the habit of reading calm 😉

Apply the 10% technique or the unique concept and it will guide you towards your best version.

This means that from now on before any book you should ask yourself:

• What is the 10% of the knowledge in this book that interests me today and would produce positive changes in my life? The rest forget about him.
• What is the unique concept that this book revolves around constantly? Write it down and work on it, everything else, forget about it.

Currently this is what I do and it works for me. It took several years for me to realize this.

Will the same thing happen to you or are you going to apply my recommendation to truly develop your potential?? 🙂

Tell me what you think of the article in the comments and what do you think about it, I would love to know your point of view.