Personal Development Toolkit - Behavior

Each week Personal Development Toolkit features a one word tool of personal growth and development. This week's tool is Behavior.

Welcome to Personal Development Toolkit, a new feature appearing every Monday. Each week, Personal Development Toolkit will feature a one word tool you can use to construct additions to your personal growth and development. Each week's toolkit will include a brief description of the tool and a suggestion for using it.

Behavior is a person's action or reaction to some situation or stimulus. Behavior is what we do or say in response to what someone else does or says. We don't often think about our behaviors because so many are automatic. Without even being aware of it, we look into our memory banks for similar situations and react as we did in the past.

Example: Without thinking, I stop my car when a traffic light is red; it's an automatic behavior. If I ever saw a purple traffic signal I wouldn't know what to do. This new situation would require a conscious decision before acting.

This Week: Pay special attention to everything you do and say. Ask yourself why you're doing and saying what you are. Most of your answers will be routine; "I said yes when my boss gave me an assignment because that's my job." But there will be some behaviors loaded with special and important insights. Watch out for them. You'll know you found one when you feel troubled by pondering why you did or said that. Reflect on these situations for the insight and personal growth opportunity within.