What Is Analysis Driven Personal Development?

Analysis Report Results


Everyone has their favorite authors, experts and approach to making changes in their lives.  The tips, perspective and strategies that I discuss are based upon my personal experience, and the approach I have come up with – an approach I call analysis driven personal development.  A few people have asked me what analysis driven personal development is all about.  I define it like this:

Analysis driven personal development is personal development (improving oneself) based on and predicated on analysis of all the relevant information present.

There’s more to it than just a definition though – there are strategies, a frame of mind.  There are also certain things that are simply not related to analysis driven personal development.  This discussion aims to clarify what I mean by analysis driven personal development – and explain the broad approach I take to personal development.

Analysis Driven Personal Development Is:

  • Introspection Driven.  Analysis driven personal development is still personal.  At the heart of it is personal analysis about who you are and what you want.  Some examples of this are my discussion of how to approach personal change, the article analyzing my procrastination weaknesses and where I waste time online.
  • Research Driven.  Some of the previous articles include research into pleasure buttons and dopamine receptors, and the psychology research behind how to stop checking email so frequently and  psychological tricks to fool ourselves.  All these are examples of research driven personal development – being able to act and make changes in our lives based on scientific research and studies.
  • Evidence Driven.  Sometimes we don’t have any research to support particular decisions – but we have anecdotal evidence from experts, friends and colleagues. In these cases, it’s important to consider not just evidence that supports our case – but to consider all the evidence, even evidence that may be contradictory, or evidence that we would prefer not to consider. For example, I’ve always believed in written goals – but was dismayed to find that I could not locate any evidence the Harvard 3% written goals study occurred.  Fortunately, I have come across other studies and anecdotal evidence suggesting the benefits of written goals.
  • Personal Results Driven.  By considering our personal results, we are better able to make decisions about how to act in the future.  The results don’t have to be (and likely won’t be!) always positive – analysis of failures as well as success can be used as learning experiences and and a chance to improve.  The important thing to consider is to not just blindly follow what someone has written, or what has worked for other people – consider your own results and see what works for you, and whether other people’s advice holds true. Ali Hale did a great job showing this in her discussion of the problem with the Pareto Principle.
  • Trial and Error Driven.  I view many experiences in my life as experiments – things I am willing to try, even if I’m not sure how they will turn out or whether the end result will be positive.  What matters is taking advantage of opportunities, and seeing how they work out.  One example of an experiment is when I tested out and reviewed a virtual assistance service – and compared it to my dedicated assistant.

Engaging In Analysis Driven Personal Development Requires That You Be:

  • Open Minded.  When embarking on a new approach, I try not to pre-judge an experience or process.  I try to approach it with an open mind, try it out, and then rationally review the results.   For example, many personal development books may suggest things that conflict with my opinions – but I try to give them the benefit of the doubt, and give the new approach a fair shot.
  • Brutally Honest With Yourself.  You’ve got to know when you’re making excuses, taking things for granted or avoiding work with metawork.  Introspection and reviewing personal results isn’t easy – but the best way to make progress is to first be honest with yourself and have an accurate perspective of where you are.
  • Skeptical, perhaps even a little cynical.  Be open minded in your approach, but be skeptical of any results.  When I make changes in my life that appear to be positive or negative, I try to get to the root of what has led to the results. Sometimes it is obvious, while other times taking a closer look has led me to finding surprising things – such as how much time I was spending cooking each week.
  • Reason based rather than emotion based.  This is difficult for me, but I think it’s very important when reviewing anecdotes, research and evidence to not be swayed emotionally by stories or “one off” situations.  I know I often use my hiking stories to illustrate a point, but I encourage you to question even that – allow yourself to be emotionally involved and pulled into the story, but then before you accept it at face value, step back and ask yourself whether it rationally makes sense and applies to you, and where you are in your life.

Analysis Driven Personal Development Is Not Necessarily

  • Leader driven personal development.  You don’t have to subscribe to any particular expert’s views – Stephen Covey, David Allen, Leo Babauta – though these happen to be some of my favorites, they don’t have to be yours.  The process of analysis driven personal development applies to many areas, though my examples will tend to be drawn from writers, speakers and experts I admire.
  • Belief centric personal development.  Again, while my personal beliefs and dogma will creep into my writing, that should not be confused with the overall method with which I am approaching the issue.
  • Pleasant personal development.  You will not always feel good. It will not always be easy, and sometimes we may find it hard to stay motivated.  This is to be expected, as analysis driven personal development is not always a pleasant process.  Examining your goals and where you want to go will require some honest, difficult decisions.

Analysis Driven Personal Development is Less About Where You Are Going – And More About How You Get There.

Maze Direction White PathAnalysis driven personal development is all about you and your personal development. If you get down to the root of it, there are two big buckets in personal development: where you are going (goals and dreams) and how you get there (the process).  Analysis driven personal development will help you with where you are going, but those end results will differs from person to person.

Like metawork, which provides the groundwork and framework for getting actual goals accomplished, analysis driven personal development is merely a framework – an approach towards accomplishing goals . Though it is  is not tied to specific goals, my examples will of course analyze my perspective and areas important in my life, such as :

If these goals don’t resonate with you, I think you will still find the process of analysis driven personal development interesting and rewarding.

Your Thoughts?

What do you think? How do you approach your goals, personal development, and difficult decisions in your life? Do you disagree with this approach?

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Please review the Comment Policy.
  • mrjWells
    Hi Sid, what a great read. I recently wrote about making decisions based on consequences, this takes it to the next level.
  • Hi mrJWlls,

    Thanks for the comment! Making decisions based on consequences absolutely
    makes sense to me - it's sometimes difficult for me to predict what the
    consequences may be ;)
  • evanhadkins
    Hi Sid, I don't disagree but see it as limited. Analysis can help with efficiency. But it doesn't deal with values - it tells us how to climb the ladder, not if the ladder is against the right wall.

    I like the emphasis on scepticism and experience but just think it needs to be part of a bigger picture. For me if personal development doesn't increase compassion and awareness it isn't worth bothering with - but these are my values and research on improvement won't lead to them (at least not directly).
  • Hi Evan,

    I think that's a great point, and a good analogy. Truth be told, my writing
    does tend to center more on "climbing the ladder" - but you're absolutely
    right, I am taking it for granted that the ladder is against the right wall,
    and that may not be the case for everyone (even me).
  • evanhadkins
    Thanks, it's tricky I think. It leads to discussions about the place of emotions (their own kind of decision/evaluation) and intuition. I don't want to discount thinking but just want the rest of us in the mix.
  • Hi Sid.

    I can vouch for this type of development, because I know all about personal development which has no analysis involved, and it lacks any pinpointing of what worked best. It takes way longer to find out what you are doing right if you aren't analyzing the steps of it, speed of parts of the process, or the response. Seeing as how leaving analysis out is a pretty weak way to go, this makes a good case for analysis driver personal development.

    Trial and error driven experiments are ones I would agree as enjoyable to talk about after they are done. Find me a person who doesn't learn something from trial-and-error methods and I'll show you a blue 3-leaf clover.

    Great links to past articles here as well.
  • Hi Armen,

    Thanks for your comment!

    I think you make an excellent point - that analyzing, while it may "feel"
    like it slows us down, can actually speed things up by showing us where we
    are making mistakes - or where we may be heading in a different direction
    than we intended.
  • Sounds like a great concept. I fully agree that a personal approach to personal development is needed. Not all of us want/need the same things and we each have different methods of learning, relating, communicating and changing.

    To answer your question, I am very goal driven. I think it helps to stay motivated if you keep you eye on the prize. I'm good at maintaining motivation too because I have more than one trick cup my sleeve to keep me focused on doing the same thing for a long period of time.

    Decision-making is a tough one though. Sometimes it's easy and I follow my gut. Other times careful research and advice are needed before a decision can be made. Occasionally decision-making can be agonising and that's when it's best not to make any decisions at all but leave it a few days or weeks and see how things pan out!

    Thanks for sharing your ideas. Keep up the great writing!
  • Hi Annabel,

    Thanks for your comment!

    You know, decision making really is one of the hardest things for me as
    well. Like you, once I am heading down a certain path I am able to
    (usually!) maintain my enthusiasm and motivation, keeping in my that a
    payday may be far down the road.

    Its especially difficult when my gut reaction disagrees with the research
    I've done - like you I let it simmer for a few days and hopefully come up
    with a decision I'm happy with ;)
  • I like this approach, it's interesting, I can certainly agree with the meta aspect of it. I don't know how much I agree about discounting emotions, though. I see the value of not being swayed when you are trying to map out "how you are getting to your future", but I think emotions provide important clues that help show you the future you'd be most happy in.

    Cheers,
    Miche :)
  • Hey Miche,

    Thanks for your comment!

    You know, I think you bring up an interesting point that is probably on a
    lot of other people's mind as well - discounting emotions seems like it may
    be something I should look into more. Maybe I don't listen to my emotions
    enough - or maybe I am swayed by my emotions, and just rationalizing that I
    made the choice based on logic and reason (something I know I've done in my
    past, and that psychologists have found to be a common phenomena)

    Thanks for the food for thought - and you're right, emotionally if we don't
    have any desire for a particular future, we may not be happy with it no
    matter how hard we try to reason it was the "right" decision!
  • Sid,

    Excellent distillation of the process in analysis driven PD. To me, this approach is essentially applying the scientific method (across it's entire spectrum) to the circumstances surrounding personal growth.

    On a side note - the Harvard 3% study....I had not read your post before, but about 9 months ago went through nearly the exact same process! I started by reading both of McCormack's books - only too realize he doesn't make this reference. This led to some substantive internet research (with primarily the same results you described).

    I find the touting of this study quite interesting. It's one of those fascinating examples of how a supporting "fact" can be picked up in literature of an industry and spread virally so that it becomes commonly accepted. I happen to believe that Brian Tracy is responsible for this particular nugget - with others then jumping on the bandwagon.

    Thanks for detailing your personal journey on this blog - I find it helpful and intriguing.
  • Hi Seth,

    Thanks for your comment!

    You know, I am surprised that the Harvard 3% study still exists as such a
    strong force in the personal development writing and blogs - but part of me
    still has a hard time letting it go, especially when I know that
    anecdotally, the people who I know with set goals (written or not) are so
    much more accomplished than others I know who have no direction or goals

    A self fulfilling prophecy of sorts I guess!
  • Hi, Sid,

    I think you're absolutely right - those of us committed to personal development tend to believe strongly in goal setting and we WANT the apocryphal Harvard study to be true.

    This fits nicely into Chip and Dan Heath's "Made to Stick" (you've probably read it - if not I'd suggest picking it up). For the PD community, the Harvard study is "sticky" the same way that the urban legend of the "Kidney Heist" or the story of poisoned Halloween candy is.
  • Hey Seth,

    Thanks for the recommendation =)

    Made to Stick is on my Amazon "Someday" wishlist, but it seems like I never
    have enough time to read all the books on it ;)