About Steve Pavlina

Conscious growth has been the central focus of my life for many years. I study what it means to grow and how we can deliberately invite, process, and integrate new growth experiences.

Which patterns help us grow faster and squeeze more juice out of life? Which patterns slow us down or cause stagnation? I answered these questions in my book Personal Development for Smart People, published by Hay House in 2008. As I shared in the book, the ultimate growth driver is intelligence. The more intelligent we become, the faster we grow, and vice versa.

I read, research, explore, experiment, contemplate, test, and refine ideas. As I discover meaningful insights, I share them via my blog.

I do what I can to support people on their paths of growth. I encourage people to contribute value to the world as well, so we can create compounding ripples of improvement for all.

In 2010 I uncopyrighted my articles, podcasts, and videos and donated most of my creative work to the public domain, which makes it easy for people to share, translate, and republish it. See my uncopyright notice for details. Many people have published collections of my articles as books and other products. Consequently, I’ve been credited as the author or co-author of more than 150 books, with more being published each year. I don't receive payment when people sell these products. My motivation is to encourage a broader commitment to co-creating a more intelligent, growth-oriented world. Share my work freely.

All life is sacred to me. I've been a vegetarian since 1993 and a vegan since 1997. I don’t relate to animals as product or property, so I don’t eat them, own them, or wear their skins. Some of my most inspiring experiences have been in the presence of animals, such as when I walked between two bears while hiking alone in the woods, feeling a beautiful sense of kinship without fear. See How to Be Vegan if you want to learn more about the vegan lifestyle.

I encourage you to treat the other beings of this world with respect and compassion. It's unnecessary, unintelligent, and counterproductive to abuse our power over other species. This is especially important as we develop stronger AI.

Before I started blogging about personal growth in 2004, I ran my own computer game development company for 10 years, mostly focused on nonviolent puzzle games. For five of those years, I wrote articles on the side to help other software and game developers. Readers kept requesting more articles on a wide range of topics, which eventually motivated me to get into blogging. I retired from game development when I realized I could create more positive ripples in the world by shifting to personal development work. I still enjoy programming and occasionally write my own software tools to assist with personal growth experiments.

The readers of this site inspire me. Their results often exceed my own, and their encouraging feedback motivates me to keep exploring, growing, writing, and speaking. We all grow faster when we cooperate and support each other.

Although many people regard me as a personal growth expert, sometimes referring to me as a guru in publications (a dreadful label), I see myself as a perpetual student and explorer. I love deep dives into fresh learning experiences. I especially like the beginner phase of each new exploration since that's when I learn the fastest.

I maintain a flexible and self-reliant lifestyle centered on exploring personal growth. I haven’t had a job since 1992; being a corporate slave doesn't interest me. I define my own objectives, choose my own projects, and work for the joy of working.

The inspiration to pursue a jobless yet fulfilling lifestyle came from watching Star Trek: The Next Generation when I was younger. I loved Gene Roddenberry’s vision of a society where people did work that inspired them (like exploring the galaxy), and technology handled their basic needs. Money was irrelevant. It took me several years, many mistakes, and a bankruptcy before I succeeded in creating a similar lifestyle (sans aliens and phaser battles), which I've been maintaining since the start of this century. I also enjoy teaching like-minded people how to do the same.

I’m technically an entrepreneur since I own my own business. This is a convenient vehicle to support my work and lifestyle, but making money isn’t my primary aim, nor is building a business empire. I do enough income-generating work to maintain a positive cash flow, so I can devote most of my time and energy to discovering, testing, and sharing ideas that benefit people. I'd rather create and hold wealth in the form of elegant insights, positive relationships, and social goodwill, as opposed to personal assets or money.

I was married for 11 years and have two kids. My ex-wife and I separated in 2009 and divorced due to diverging lifestyle priorities. It's fair to say that she wanted more predictability and security, while I wanted more growth, adventure, and new experiences. I think my ex-wife and I navigated this transition well.

As my marriage concluded, I began exploring alternative relationship styles. I found the fluidity and flexibility of open relationships appealing. I'm not a jealous person, so exploring intimacy with other like-minded people seemed like a promising path to travel next, and it was indeed. Since 2010 I’ve been enjoying an open relationship with my girlfriend (now my wife as of April 2018). This has been a beautiful way to balance the love and intimacy of a long-term relationship with the flexibility, spontaneity, and playfulness of short-term connections.

I don’t have comments on my blog because – let’s be honest – most online commentary is a waste of life. I’d rather see you trying ideas and taking action. My blog content is uncopyrighted, so if you really want to discuss it, feel free to reshare it on your own site or social media pages. Then you can invite all the commentary you desire.

I have a deep and abiding trust in the universe, and I always give it the benefit of the doubt. I forgive quickly. I laugh often. I love easily. I cuddle ferociously.

When a friend dies, I’m more likely to celebrate his life than mourn his death. When I die, I want people to throw a party instead of a funeral. Just be sure that the food is vegan.

This website exists to inspire, encourage, and support you on your path of growth. Please use it for your benefit, share it freely, and let me know how I may continue serving you.

Life Purpose

My life purpose is:

to care deeply, connect playfully, love intensely, and share generously;
to joyfully explore, learn, grow, and prosper;
and to creatively, brilliantly, and honorably serve the highest good of all.

Media Bio

Here's a bio that can be used for interviews, re-published articles, and other media requests. Feel free to edit it to fit your desired word count.

Steve Pavlina is a leading personal development innovator, blogger, author, international speaker, workshop leader, and coach, dedicated to helping people create extraordinary lives. His website at StevePavlina.com has attracted more than 100 million visitors, and he has written more than 1800 articles on a broad range of self-development topics.

Steve is the creator of several groundbreaking personal growth courses, including Deep Abundance Integration, Submersion, Stature, Amplify, Guild, and Engage, which have helped people enjoy more abundant, aligned, creative, productive, and fulfilling lives. Many of Steve’s students have credited his work in helping them get their books written, music albums composed, and businesses launched.

In 2017 he founded Conscious Growth Club, an online community that provides abundant support, coaching, and resources for people committed to their personal growth journey.

Steve is especially well-known for his immersive personal experiments, which he often documents by blogging or YouTubing about them. These include water fasting for 40 days, eating raw for a year, and going to Disneyland for 30 days in a row.

Before starting his world-famous personal development blog in 2004, Steve founded and ran an award-winning computer game development studio for 10 years. Preferring cooperation over competition, he maintained a popular online community to encourage and support other independent game developers. In 2005 he was inducted into the Association of Software Professionals’ Hall of Fame.

Since 2010 Steve has kept his blog articles and YouTube videos uncopyrighted, so people around the world have been free to republish, translate, and build upon his work. Consequently, Steve has been credited as the author or co-author of hundreds of self-development books worldwide.

Fun fact: The actress Lindsay Lohan has a tattoo on her left arm inspired by Steve’s work.

Through his articles, videos, courses, workshops, community, hands-on experiments, and boundless enthusiasm for helping people upgrade their lives, Steve continues to inspire and empower people around the world.