At its core, personal development is "improving your lot". If you are poor (and this is depressing for you), the main focus of your personal development should be getting money. If you are motivated enough (and intelligent enough), you will learn most the specific things that help you achieve this goal thorough osmosis or trial and error, you improve almost "unconciously". (I am basing this from what I have observed among previously poor, but now successful people I've met). But once that motivation from the physical shocks of life (like from being poor) is gone, you need to work "consciously" to improve. I think this is why reading books etc. to improve is better suited to people living comfortably. Most of the now rich and successful people I've known, did not take that step to "conciously" try to improve, hence they have fallen behind in a lot of areas of life, except the financial area ofcourse
