Welcome to the first lesson on personal growth. This is a 10-lesson course. (It might grow to more lessons if I can think of more cool stuff for you).
This e-class will teach you an inside-out approach to personal growth. It will give you 10 important tools to help you face your fears, break bad habits, and to stay motivated and get the most important work done. And if you really struggle with your confidence, Lesson #4 gives you a simple tip on how to deal with negative self-talk.
This isn’t a quick-fix course or a bunch of mumbo jumbo with positive affirmations. There are dozens if not hundreds of places to learn that around the Web. Instead, this class will teach you the principles of joyful living that will serve you over the long haul.
By the way, when the course is completed, you’ll get a PDF checklist including all 10 lessons, so you can be sure you’ve covered all aspects behind a truly fun and meaningful life.
The Most Important Life Lesson
If your computer dies and you never receive another lesson, this one tip alone will set you apart from the rest.
The first step is simple, but not always easy. Begin with the end in mind. Ask yourself: “Why am I doing this?” The answer to this question will steer the direction of your life.
Now you may already have a clear end in mind. You know you want to go to college, travel the world, and start a family.
If you’re not lucky enough to know what you want out of life, you’ll have to use your imagination. What would your ideal life look like? In 5 years from now? 10 years? 25 years? What are you doing? Who are you with? Where do you live?
If you’re struggling with these questions, imagine you’re attending your own funeral. You walk in to the service and the coffin is wide open. Who is mourning you? How do you want to be remembered? What legacy do you want to leave behind?
Don’t just do this exercise in your head – write down every detail. I know it’s a morbid exercise, but it gives you valuable insight into the kind of person you want to be, and it sheds light on your most important priorities in life.
Always Make the Most of Your Day
In personal development jargon, you’ve just used a powerful visualisation technique to better understand who you want to be. The Funeral Exercise reveals important values, people you hold dear, and can even shed light on your bigger mission.
In short, you cut the fluff and get to know what actually matters. Few people regret that they didn’t watch enough re-runs of Days of Our Lives (if you’re curious, here are the 5 most common regrets of the dying).
I know it’s not exactly uplifting to think about your death, but it’s a good reminder to make sure you live your life to the fullest. Ironically, your mortality is your best productivity tool. It encourages you to act today rather than tomorrow. And if you want to live a fun and meaningful life, that’s exactly what you have to do.
Of course, your dreams and goals may change as you get older and gain new experiences. In fact, you can count on it. But without the end in mind, you don’t know what you’re striving towards, and so you don’t get where you want to go.
Compare Yourself to Yourself
You will be tempted to compare yourself to others. You’ll look at them and make a snap judgment. And you’ll have a verdict: they’re either better or worse off than you. But your comparison is neither fair nor helpful.
Trying to compare yourself to others is a huge mistake. Don’t do it.
Until you receive your checklist at the end of the course, get up right now and write up a Post-it for yourself:
“Compare yourself to yourself.”
Stick it on your computer, or maybe an extra copy or two around your office or someplace else where you’ll see it often.
It isn’t always easy. But any of us can do it if we keep working at it, and you’ll find that it transforms your life.
You’re Not Alone in This
Now is a good time to think about what you want to get out of this course. What goals do you want to achieve? What’s stopping you? What challenges do you have right now?
Just hit reply to this email and let me know what’s stopping you from moving forward. Please don’t skip this important step, because I don’t want you to get stuck. I’m here to help you get results and move forward.
Bottom line: There’s not a “right” way to live a rich life. You need to try things out, and learn more about what works best for you. But there are some basic principles that help you along the way.
This class is going to focus on exactly how those principles work, so you can use them to walk down your own path in life.
If you want to get a headstart, I put together a special report on how to make your everyday life more enjoyable; download your copy here.
If you’re hungry for more lessons today, I’ll invite you to check out a post I wrote a few months ago, called 3 Practical Tips on How to Live a Fun and Meaningful Life.