Five Tips to Maximize Results from Self-Help Books

May 8, 2007

[Edits: Fixed a formatting error in my numbered list.] 

As a follow-up to my post on my favorite “self-help” or personal development books, I present these tips to help you maximize the benefits of reading a personal development book. As a recovering borderline “self-help junkie” I know all too well the pitfalls of consuming one program or book after the next and never putting the information and strategies into play in real life in a powerful way. I’ve found that when I follow the tips below, I grow by leaps and bounds and the results I create are delightful and impressive. So, before you purchase another self-help book, please consider the following tips and give them a try. They might help you take your self to the next level.

1. Read the book with an open mind. Don’t assume you already know anything about the topic. Don’t look for ways to support or validate prior experience. Allow yourself to be surprised and led in a new direction. Allow the author to show you something from a new perspective.
2. Read the book with an active mind. Ask questions, take notes, think about how the ideas apply to you.
3. Allow yourself time to try on new ideas and strategies, taking breaks if necessary. While it may be tempting to eagerly rush through to the end of the book, it may be in your best interest to move more slowly through the material so that you reap the most benefit from your interaction with the ideas. Sometimes it takes a little while for the new ideas to “sink” in and take root in your mind. Keep revisiting the new ideas you encounter in your reading and allow new connections to form between what you already knew and what you’re learning in the current book. If others are available, take the opportunity to discuss the concepts you’re exploring with people you know. Perhaps others will offer a different perspective on the material that you had not previously considered. If no one else is available to discuss your reading, consider writing or journaling about the ideas.
4. Finish the entire book before you judge its effectiveness. To me it just seems obvious that you can not fairly assess the argument the author is attempting to make if you have not read all of it. Wait to draw your conclusion until after you’ve read the author’s conclusion first.
5. Put the ideas into action. If there are actions steps or assignments, complete them faithfully. Reading is not enough. Allow yourself the privilege of learning by doing.

Posted in Tips