personal development - Angela P. Banks

12 books 1 year: Growing My Mind

Angela Banks — Sat, 06 Jan 2024 16:08:39 +0000

2024 is here! I don’t know about you but 2023 flew by. Every time I turned around it was a new month. Sometimes it went so fast I was trying to catch up with meeting my goals.

One of the goals I set for myself was to read 12 books in a year, which would have been about a book per month. Some I finished quicker than others.

Are you looking for some book recommendations? Here are 12 books that I completed throughout 2023. May these inspire you for your reading goals in 2024.

These books were a combination of supporting authors I knew, business, spiritual growth, and writing.

I will link to each of these and give you my thoughts about each book below.

I started 2023 with what many others seek to find. What is my purpose? And I will tell you that it’s typically not in any book. I’ve looked. But it’s more of what you captured as you go through a book about finding your purpose.

The Purpose and Power of Authority focused on your Personal Authority Profile and had you look into 12 areas to understand your purpose. It took me about 2-3 months to complete this book because I wanted to work through the questions with thought. At the end of it, I came away with a summary of my authority. This helped guide my focus for the rest of the year,

In keeping with a spiritual theme, I continued with a new book that was released by a former pastor of mine, Dr. Damone Johnson. Bounded by Love provides you with biblical stories around love and how you can use those in your day-to-day life.

Earlier in 2023, one goal was to focus more on writing and improving that skill set. So after researching, I came across On Writing by Stephen King. I knew of his movies but I had no idea the plethora of books he had written over the years. The first part gave me the background to the legend himself such as his upbringing and early writing years. The second part was geared toward writing techniques but in a book format.

If you have read any previous blogs, you would have seen several posts regarding my trip to South Africa in March of 2023. Soon after we returned, a good friend, Charleslisa DeJesus, published a book about her recent trip and experience to Ghana. The timing was perfect to read about another country in Africa. Black to Ghana, gives tips and knowledge regarding how to travel to Ghana.

In keeping with my theme of knowing the actual author, a fellow church member had published a book as well. Better Not Perfect by Dr. Shai Butler was based on her story from childhood to adulthood. It’s based on not having to focus on always being perfect and what happened when being perfect was at the forefront of her life. A great read for anyone needing to stop with a perfectionism mindset.

Peaks and Valleys took me about 2-3 hours. It’s from the same author who wrote Who Moved My Cheese. The main character in this book gets solid advice from a successful man and helps him navigate through a difficult time in his life. Life will throw you some curve balls, but how you handle it will be the key.

I purchased Woman Up several years ago but never read it until this past year. This talks about 7 reasons why you sabotage your success. I felt like it was directed toward a woman who is navigating the corporate ladder versus being a solopreneur or entrepreneur. However, there are good nuggets to help anyone succeed in business or on their regular job.

Getting back into more of a spiritual realm, the Power of Awareness was geared toward being aware of your thoughts and how those thoughts can become reality. This was harder to get into. It probably took me longer to read because there were many times when I would read a sentence or two and then realize I wasn’t sure what I had just read. So I would re-read the same area to understand. You need to read every word to make sure you don’t miss the point.

For the last year, I’ve been following Myron Golden’s YouTube channel and gaining lots of insight and knowledge about wealth using biblical principles. So when I saw he had authored books I decided to invest in one of them. From the Trash Man to the Cash Man gives you the building blocks to start from the beginning and build wealth. It was written around 2007, so some examples relating to technology may be a bit dated, but there is still pertinent information to set you up for success.

Nothing is Missing by Nicole Walters was one of my favorite reads of this year. I could not put this book down. I have been a follower and customer of Nicole’s for a while so to get the backstory on her life as a child and through adulthood raising adopted children was inspirational. The message for me was that you have everything you need right now to do amazing things with your life.

If you are ready to create a digital course for your business, check out Amy Porterfield’s book, Two Weeks Notice. It is a comprehensive view of everything you need to get started. No matter the size of the course you want to create, Amy’s book has the foundation that you need to get started. It also contains a workbook-style approach so you can get your ideas and processes in order.

Another short read is you² by Price Pritchett. There are 18 principles to follow to level up your life. If you are playing too small, then it will take you longer to get where you need to go. Be bold and make quantum leaps to get to success faster. If you need a quick guide to get started on your reading journey, this is it.

And as a bonus book, which I’m still in the process of reading all the way through, is the Holy Bible. My goal was to read the entire Bible in a year. I did not meet that goal, but as of the time of this writing, I made it to Jeremiah which is more than halfway. You’d be surprised how you can elevate yourself just by doing a daily reading of the bible. I did a segment in a post about what happens if you read the Bible 4 times a week based on a study.

These were books that were either suggested or some that I came upon because of where I was at in my personal growth. I hope this list gives you a starting point if there are certain goals you are looking to obtain for 2024.

The post 12 books 1 year: Growing My Mind first appeared on Angela P. Banks.

Unlocking Growth: 4 Newbie Tips to Begin Your Personal Development Journey

Angela Banks — Mon, 06 Nov 2023 02:41:08 +0000

Are you searching for something, but not sure what it is? Are you feeling stagnant in relationships, a career, or even finances? This could be the time that you start to look inward and develop a personal development plan for yourself.

If you say that you don’t like to read or there is not enough time for you to add that to your day, then don’t worry because you are not alone. However, if you want to make changes in your life and don’t know where to start, then it’s time for you to invest in yourself and make space for it.

Personal Development

What is personal development? Well for starters, it’s not something that is a 3-week course. It’s a lifelong process. And the more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know as much as you thought you did.

Personal development is self-improvement in various aspects of your life and is typically gained through reading books or listening to speakers who have insight on the subject at hand.

I’ve been on my personal development journey for at least 15 years so I’ll share below how I got started. In this post, I give you why and how I started on my journey so that it can help you as you start yours.

“The only journey is the journey within.”—Rainer Maria Rilke

Who Moved My Cheese

If you are new to personal development, you may not have heard of a book called “Who Moved My Cheese” by Spencer Johnson. It’s an interesting title for a book, but it’s relevant because the main actors are four mice.

Mice you say? Yes. But we won’t focus on the fact they are rodents, but the lives they were living. I was introduced to this book by my husband several years ago and very early in our marriage. Let me tell you about where I was mentally at this time in my life.

I was about 27 years old and I had been at my government job for at least 3-4 years as a full-time employee. I’d worked there part-time while being a college student, so probably 8 years total. As you can imagine, I was working with colleagues who had been there 20, 30, and even 40 years. At that time, having a government job was what we call a “secure” or “good” job.

But the security was dangling over my head and so was about 400 hours of Sick Leave and 120 of Annual Leave. I liked the people that I worked with, but I was not happy in the environment. It seemed like everywhere I turned, someone was unhappy. And I just didn’t know if I could stay there for 30+ years of my life.

So, back to the book. My husband told me to read this book. It was about 70 pages and looked like an easy read. Now I had never done any leisure reading other than Sweet Vally High and the Baby Sitter’s Club (Yes I’m dating myself). Once I left college, I didn’t have the energy to just read for the fun of it unless it was a magazine.

I finished the book in about 2-3 hours. It was an easy read (which is why I recommend it for newbies). It brought to light what I was feeling. Like I was scared to change and what would happen if I didn’t. I won’t spoil it for you, but let’s just say 2 mice figured it out and the other mice kept reliving Groundhog Day.

Needless to say, that book was the catalyst I needed to start applying for jobs and updating my skills. A few months later I secured a different job where I was in a much better place mentally.

Personal development is about changing yourself. I didn’t do a complete 180 degrees just because of this book, but it started the movement because it was easy to read and understand from a mouse’s point of view.

Zig, Jim, and Les

These 3 character names are legends in the realm of personal development. But let me tell you their full names. Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn, and Les Brown.

It’s funny how you can be around certain things, but until you’re ready to receive it, you may not even notice it’s there. My husband was more advanced in his personal development journey than I was. He had already listened to these 3 speakers multiple times, but in my early years, it just wasn’t a priority for me.

I can’t recall if he introduced me or if it was the MLM I was a part of at the time that led me to that path. A few years after I had started a new position, something happened on the job that made me want to pursue another source of income.

So I joined a fitness MLM. Now say what you want about MLMs, one of the best things I took away from it was the personal development aspect. And there was my quest to listen to different speakers. So you can’t say personal development without hearing Zig Ziglar and Jim Rohn.

What I liked about their presentation in their recordings, is that I felt like I could become more. The positive mindset they portrayed and their delivery was something I didn’t mind listening to in the car or just cleaning the house.

Great for new learners on their personal development journey.

Les Brown is more current (and still alive as of this writing). His jovial personality and upbringing can make you feel that if he can do it, you can do it. And sometimes that’s all we need is the push to get started. Check out some of his recordings on YouTube to get the full effect.

Now of course there are hundreds of great personal development coaches and leaders and podcasts out there, but if you are new to this, I’d recommend starting with these 3. You can’t go wrong.

The Bible

Now if you just met me, then let me tell you that I am a believer in God. However, it wasn’t until recently that I decided to take on actually reading the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. My goal at the beginning of the year was to read the Bible in a year.

Now I will say that for complete understanding, please consult with a better authority figure because I’m still understanding a lot of it myself. But there is a reason I have this as a good start to personal and spiritual development.

Something I have noticed over the past year has been a change in how I think about life, people, and circumstances. I wish I had started daily readings several years ago.

According to a study published by the Center of Bible Engagement, there are many benefits to reading your Bible only four times a week. For example, getting drunk decreases by 49%.

I’m not saying you are going to understand every single word but there are a lot of gems in there to help you in your journey for personal growth. Myron Golden, a successful entrepreneur and business owner often relates his teachings to passages in the bible.

As Myron says, if you want to be successful, use the Bible as your guide.

Journaling

One of the last items I want to mention is the concept of journaling. Now this isn’t a particular resource to gain from like a book or podcast, but it is a resource to pour into. When you are reading or listening to something that has given you an aha moment, jot it down.

You’ll be surprised what you write down when you come back to it a week, month, or even a year later. You’ve heard at some point that writing down your goals helps you meet them. Writing down positive affirmations and tips to help you in life will make you remember them more when you need them the most.

Start Now

Now it’s your turn to start investing in yourself. This type of self-care may not be a trip to a day spa but you are starting the journey to care for your mental well-being.

If you need another good reason to start, check out Tom Corley’s research. He is the author of Change Your Habits, Change Your Life. He spent years studying the habits of wealthy people.

A couple of takeaways from that study were that 55% of wealthy people read for personal development and 63% listen to audiobooks on their commute. Why not start today to be part of that percentage?

Once you get started, you’ll never want to stop and watch your life take on a new direction and meaning. Now go pick one to start!

If you liked this post, check out my writing on having an Abundance Mindset.

The post Unlocking Growth: 4 Newbie Tips to Begin Your Personal Development Journey first appeared on Angela P. Banks.

Having an Abundance Mindset for an improved life.

Angela Banks — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 16:22:44 +0000

When you think of the word abundance what comes to mind? More than enough, overflowing, or plentiful? Well, it’s certainly not scarcity. Abundance is a large quantity of something or having more than what you need.

When we think about an abundance mindset, it is the belief that there are enough resources in the world for everyone – and of being grateful for whatever the universe provides.

if you come from a place of struggle or a place of just making ends meet, it’s hard to understand an abundance mindset because you may not have seen your life play out that way. Always looking at it from the outside can take on a different perspective when it’s always someone else who gets to enjoy their abundance.

By being closed-minded to this approach you are shutting yourself off from your blessings. If you feel others will receive a promotion, a new car, or a new relationship, but not you, then that’s a limited or scarcity mindset.

Our minds are powerful. If you keep telling yourself whatever you want will never come to pass, then it will never happen. The world is limitless. Ideas are limitless. Money is limitless.

Get yourself on the right trajectory of life. If you are surrounded by family and friends who are always complaining about the lack thereof, then find some new friends and limit your family time with those individuals.

Grow your knowledge. Read a book, listen to a podcast, feed your soul, and work on your mind. Stop saying phrases like “I’m broke” or “I won’t ever be able to afford that”. Speak life into yourself and any words that come out of your mouth. If you keep saying you are broke, then you will be broke.

Check out this video from Myron Golden on Abundance. You don’t lack Abundance, you lack Awareness. If you have never listened to personal development videos, you can start now.

Also, be grateful for the little things. If you receive a refund check for $5, then cash it. How will you be blessed with the big things if you aren’t grateful for the small things?

Every morning when you wake up, write down 5 things that you are grateful for. It can be having the ability to get out of bed without being sick or the fact that you are still employed when so many people have just lost their jobs.

An abundance mindset does not always have to revolve around money. Having an abundance of quality friends to share ideas with or an abundance of quality clients that come into your business establishment to request your services can be just as amazing as unlimited income.

The next time you sit down remember to internalize that feeling and mindset to set you on your way. You’ll be surprised what can happen in your day to day just by adjusting your attitude.

Every day won’t be a walk in the park. However, starting your day off with the right mindset can change your whole outlook on what happens throughout your life.

If you found this helpful, check out 7 ways to get balance in your life.

The post Having an Abundance Mindset for an improved life. first appeared on Angela P. Banks.