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| Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth | 
 enlarge | Author: Steve Pavlina
Publisher: Hay House
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $15.57
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Avg. Customer Rating:  56 reviews
Sales Rank: 3014
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.9
ISBN: 1401922759
Dewey Decimal Number: 158
EAN: 9781401922757
ASIN: 1401922759
Publication Date: October 15, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Over 600,000 Feedbacks Posted!!! Brand New, In-house and ready to ship!!! We are a 5 star seller!!!
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Product Description
Despite promises of “fast and easy” results from slick marketers, real personal growth is neither fast nor easy. The truth is that hard work, courage, and self-discipline are required to achieve meaningful results?results that are not attained by those who cling to the fantasy of achievement without effort. Personal Development for Smart People reveals the unvarnished truth about what it takes to consciously grow as a human being. As you read, you’ll learn the seven universal principles behind all successful growth efforts (truth, love, power, oneness, authority, courage, and intelligence); as well as practical, insightful methods for improving your health, relationships, career, finances, and more. You’ll see how to become the conscious creator of your life instead of feeling hopelessly adrift, enjoy a fulfilling career that honors your unique self-expression, attract empowering relationships with loving, compatible partners, wake up early feeling motivated, energized, and enthusiastic, achieve inspiring goals with disciplined daily habits and much more! With its refreshingly honest yet highly motivating style, this fascinating book will help you courageously explore, creatively express, and consciously embrace your extraordinary human journey.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 51 more reviews...
 Pavlina offers his personal story and new insights November 26, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Steve Pavlina has taken the ideas of others and made them his own. Don't get me wrong, that isn't a criticism. There is a central, inarguable truth in the messages of personal responsibility, the power of thought and action and giving to receive. Pavlina does offer his personal story as evidence these theories work. He has gone from felon to published author, helping others while finding fulfillment. Unfortunately we only get brief glimpses of the man behind the curtain.
The first half of the book introduces and explains Pavlina's seven principles, much like a textbook, it is very structured and analytical. The second part is devoted to the application of these principles and seeing these principles applied to everyday life, in areas of career, relationships, money and health was enlightening. It seemed as though Pavlina sighed a breath of relief, took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves for this section of the book. I found several fresh and thought provoking exercises, such as the 30 day trials, triage projects giving attention to those that will only survive if you take action and approaching habits with a strategy for victory, much like a game of chess.
Whether this is the first book you've read on Personal Development or the hundredth, you'll find value.
 Really makes you think ! November 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I don't review books very often, but occasionally one comes along that I'm sure others would really appreciate.... and Steve Pavlina's new book titled Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth definitely falls in that category !
Attitude is # 1
Steve has one of the best attitudes toward personal development and growth that I've ever seen. In fact, he has devoted his business (and a good chunk of his life) to the subject of Personal Development.
In his blog, you can get a feeling for his attitude by how he has documented a wide range of his own personal "30 Day Trials". This is where he tries out things like "PolyPhasic Sleep Schedule", "Raw Food Diet" and most recently, "Juice Feasting Diet" to see if they work for him (and we all get to live vicariously through his experiences). For an introduction to his blog, check out his website's home page at http://www.stevepavlina.com/.
Great [but slow] Book
Of course, his book is outstanding. I got it over a month and a half ago and it has taken me that long to read all of it. To put that in perspective, I can usually I can get through a book in about a week by finding spare minutes in my daily schedule. The "problem" with Steve's book is that it is TOO GOOD !
There were so many concepts and ideas in the book that I would read for a few pages and then stop to think about how it relates to my life. It was like driving through a beautiful neighborhood... with plenty of speed bumps!
Speed Bumps
Some of the "speed bumps" are by Steve's design. He inserts "Exercises" for you to try that help you stretch your thinking and, sometimes, learn more about yourself. Other times it is just the way he phrases or explains a particular concepts that makes you stop and think.
For example...
One of the ideas that got me thinking was when he wrote about "taking an hour for yourself every day". I had been looking for a "way of thinking" that would help get me motivated to jump out of bed and really "hit the ground running". Steve's suggestions allowed me to change my thinking (and my habits) so that I've been waking up like a kid at Christmas.... ready to jump out of bed and really enjoy that first hour of the day!
As you can imagine, with ideas like these that call for immediate action, it took quite a while to read Steve's book... but I certainly enjoyed the process!
Constructive Suggestions
An evaluation would not be complete without some ideas for improvement.... so here you go, Steve:
1) The hardcover book needs a companion audiobook. If I could have listened to the book while I was driving to/from work... I'm sure I could have gotten through it more quickly. (I was also distracted by other audiobooks I DID listen to during the time I was reading Steve's book.)
2) The next product should be a workshop DVD where Steve takes people through the concepts in the book and it follows them through the changes they make in their life.
I would definitely recommend Steve Pavlina's book, "Personal Development for Smart People"!
These Are The Fundamentals... everything else stems from this book November 22, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Have you ever found a book that you like so much that you read it, highlighted it, wrote in the margins, put flags on your favorite passages, and reread it over and over? Well, that's how I feel about Steve Pavlina's new book Personal Development for Smart People.
It's been over a month since I've received my copy of this book, and to tell you the truth I haven't been able to put it down. Half way through the book I promised myself that I would reread the whole thing every 3-6 months, but I already lost track of how many times I've read it.
The book itself is much different from the hundreds of personal development books that I've read to date. What makes it unique, and worth taking a look at, is that it doesn't try to force feed you the author's idea on how you should be living your life.
Personal Development for Smart People gently guides you on a path to your own core, by making three very brilliant distinctions on Truth, Love, and Power. These three values prove to be fundamental in living the most fulfilling life that is most suited for you.
I feel like a lot of other self-help books give you fish. They give you a specific idea, or specific tool, that can help you solve one specific problem. This book is different, because it doesn't just give you tools, but it teaches you how to make tools -- it trains your mind for problem solving, and that's a skill you could take anywhere in life.
Honesty With Yourself
In the very first chapter of this book, there is a small self-assessment that asks the reader to honestly evaluate the area of their life. This evaluation isn't based on where you currently stand, but on the path that you're heading on.
After doing the evaluation, I decided that I needed to jump start my personal health and fitness goals. I'm 23, and I'm pretty healthy, but looking at my path I was just gaining weight by under exercising and overeating on empty calories. I ended up with a 1 rating for my health, and began to take action. Only three weeks into this month and I've already lost 13 pounds, noticeably improved my diet, and ran two official races with New York Road Runners.
I read personal development books all the time, and I write about it on my site, and despite of this I'm just as capable of getting into a slump as the next guy. Steve Pavlina's book not only motivated me, but refreshed what I already know about commitment to goals, progressive improvement, and persistence.
While going through this past month, with the knowledge of Steve Pavlina's book stirring inside my mind and my soul, I've noticed several synchronicities. The first thing I've already mentioned is the marked improvement to my overall health. The second thing I noticed is more income opportunities that I'm able to cash in on, such as getting extra work, making more from internet marketing, and disabling certain money spending habits that were not constructive.
Lastly, I noticed a huge markup in my networking opportunities. I've met several people that are going to be invaluable in my career, and others that will be very instrumental for my friends and inner circle. I've also connected with really interesting people, both online and off, that are going to make tremendous contributions to the flourishing future of this website.
The Core Message of the Book
Seek truth with open eyes. Courageously accept your discoveries and their consequences. Rid your life of falsehood, denial, and fear of what is. Make truth your ally, not your enemy. This isn't easy, but it is correct.
Share your love openly. Connect with yourself and others by tuning in to the connection that already exists. The risk of rejection is overshadowed by the rewards of loving connections. Whenever you feel disconnected, reach out and connect with another human being. Remember that you're always loved.
Action, not all airy fairy fluff - breath of fresh air November 22, 2008
One of the things that sets Steve apart is the fact that, unlike so many other authors and experts in the field of personal growth, he focuses on the value of hard work and (gasp!) discipline, two things that are practically dirty words these days. That resonates with me.
All the wishing, hoping and visualizing in the world doesn't do much good if you're not willing to get off your butt and create some value in the world. That's a refreshing stance, and one of the reasons I keep reading Steve's blog. His voice is a refreshing change in the sea of nonsense surrounding the "Law of Attraction".
More of my review of Steve Pavlina's book is here: http://naturalmomstalkradio.com/blog/on-personal-growth-a-review-of-steve-pavlinas-book/
Great Tool for Personal Growth November 22, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I first heard of Steve Pavlina when a friend referred me to his blog during his polyphasic sleep experiment. For over 150 days, Steve abandoned sleeping nights, and instead took six, twenty minute naps a day. I was immediately intrigued. And the more of his writing I read, the more I liked the message.
There are hundreds of articles on his website, all about how to grow as a person. His approach is an intriguing mix of hippie, mainstream American, and strait-up crazy person, and from my perspective, the best of each. His thinking and writing is decidedly left-brained, and he doesn't shy away from financial or career growth issues. At the same time he eats a 100% raw-vegan diet and talks with dead people.
From no other author have I found such accessible, intelligent, practicable personal development advice, and rarely such a warm and inviting tone. So when Steve announced he was publishing a book and would offer free advance copies to bloggers who would review it, I immediatly wanted to participate. That was the original impetus to start and grow this blog, and this review is the result.
The aims of the book - Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth - are ambitious on at least two counts:
To be sufficiently different from and superior to the hundreds of articles on his website to satisfy his massive readership (he claims two million visitors a month).
To lay out the fundamental principles of personal development.
The book is highly structured, and will probably work better for "thinkers" than for "feelers" on the MTBI T/F spectrum, which may be what Steve alludes to with his tag line "Personal Development for Smart People."
The book is divided in two parts. The first is the seven fundamental principles of personal growth. Truth, love and power are the three primary principles. From those are derived oneness (truth + love), courage (love + power), and authority (power + truth). And the seventh is intelligence, which is defined as alignment with truth, love and power, and is the "highest form of human expression."
I'm not convinced that these principles represent any sort of underlying order to personal growth, mostly because I'm unconvinced there is any such order. The three primary principles seem right to me, but the secondary ones feel forced. I'm not sure, for example, that courage is a combination of love and power. In the section on how to build courage, one of the suggestions is to educate yourself, which I agree is a great way to overcome timidity, but seems to come from the primary principle of truth, not love or power. I can also think of no compelling reason why personal growth should rest on such a neat foundation.
As a tool though, a way of thinking about and planning growth and handling life's problems, I think this scaffolding will be valuable. Perhaps it is the neatest possible representation of an inherantly complex, chaotic pursuit.
Each of the seven principles is broken down into its key components. Truth, for example, breaks down to perception, prediction, accuracy, acceptance, and self-awareness. Each component is explained and described, and sometimes a how-to improve this component is given. On prediction, for example, he says, we grow from exposure to new patterns: when our expectations are met it reinforces our beliefs; when they are not, it forces us to build new ideas about how the world works. Thus we should seek stability and routine only as a launching pad for exploring new areas. In order to side-step denial we can bring the process into the conscious part of the mind by making conscious predictions and comparing our expectations to how reality turns out to operate. He also says that emotions are predictions: when we have negative expectations we feel bad and when we have positive expectations, we feel good. That's just one component of one of the seven fundamental principles. I wanted to detail it to illustrate the depths the book reaches.
For each principle, he also lays out some common blocks to alignment with the principle. For truth, for example: media conditioning, social conditioning, false beliefs, emotional interference, addictions, immaturity, and secondary gain. And each block is described and explained with similar detail. As I read these, many of the obstacles to growth that I face, some of which I've been struggling for years to elucidate, become immediately clear.
Finally, for each principle, he provides several techniques for coming into better alignment. For truth, he suggests a quantitative self-evaluation in various aspects of life (the process is described in detail), journaling on a regular basis, and forgoing all media, at least for a trial period of time.
In the intelligence chapter, there are extensive quizzes and evaluative material to determine where and how you can best serve your personal growth.
The second part of the book details six primary areas of life: habits, career, money, health, relationships, and spirituality. Suggestions are offered for how to improve congruency in each area with each of the seven principles. If that sounds overwhelming, it reads as detailed and useful.
For example, in the section on habits and oneness, there is a discussion of how our habits influence others and how we might be role models to the world with them, and also how we can use habits to develop congruency with the principle of oneness, like going for long walks in nature, smiling at strangers on the street, or offering hugs instead of handshakes.
I thought there was more value in the first part of the book, and it was more fun to read than the second. When I return to the book to do the exercises suggested -- which I will begin this weekend -- I plan to spend more time in the first section. On the other hand, if I ever feel in need of help in a certain area of life, the organization of the second section would be of great value.
In sum, this is an excellent book and one that I will use for years to come. I fully recommend it to everyone, and especially those who prefer a rational/logical approach to complex issues (which can be hard to find in the "self help" section of a bookstore). I'm not sure that it succeeds in its most ambitious task, but it is still immensely valuable, even to someone who has read almost all of Steve Pavlina's website.
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