Self improvement is a necessary part of our lives.
It is quite obvious for people who have the “drive” and are always looking forward. However, not all of us are the same.
Some of us need a little bit of a push to start and that’s what this article’s focus is going to be – to motivate you and show you easy ways to start on your self improvement.
First of all, I would like to tell you about my own personal experience with self-improvement.
My personal experience
It happened when I was in my mid-twenties (as most people) and I had no idea what I actually wanted.
I really didn’t like my university programme, stopped going to classes, failed my exams, stopped caring and kind of got into the stage, where my only concern was – what I am going to do with my friends today.
I was always blaming the fact that I am a foreigner, living in Denmark and everything is much harder for me.
Obviously, many more things started to fall down (like a domino effect) and It’s been like that for almost a year until it hit me.
Wait a second, that’s not the problem – I am the problem! So what happened next? I realized that if I want to see the change, I need to change and improve, and I got lucky to get into the stage called self realization.
I started to work harder in every way. Change was coming, so I had three jobs back then, in order to pay my bills and I spent most of my free time reading articles, books and watching videos on the internet. I didn’t believe it at first, but I could have already seen small changes after the first two weeks!
Do you want to know what exactly helped me the most?
Continue reading and you will find all the necessary information that will definitely help you with your self improvement path.
I will recommend you self-improvement tips, books, podcasts that will change your life.
But, remember one thing – YOU must want it and YOU must change those things, in order to succeed.
What is Self-Improvement?
Self improvement is the improvement of one’s knowledge, experience, behavior and/or character by one’s efforts.
Was it a bit hard to understand? Let me rephrase it. Self-improvement is the improvement of your knowledge, experience, behavior and/or character, accomplished by your own efforts.
It is basically a path to make ourselves better in everyday life and fully enjoy its benefits. People with “character” and “drive” can usually achieve more indeed. However, not everybody is like that. Therefore, we have to find a way to achieve our goals and move forward in life.
Tips you will see below are not necessarily in the top-priority order, but are highly connected one to another.
However, your attitude is the key element as you need to realize if you want the change or not. Everything depends on you.
Now, let’s take a look at top 10 self-improvement tips that will change your life forever.
Top 10 Self Improvement Tips
1. Invest in yourself
That’s the most important tip in my opinion. Nowadays, you can basically invest in everything. However, the best thing you can do, is to invest in yourself. Nobody is going to take away your knowledge. There is no high risk as in trading and if you think about it, the so-called “return on investment” is very promising. You never know what might help you in the future or persuade an employer to hire you because of that one extra thing you have done in the past.
2. Attitude
Your attitude is the most important factor! If you look at everything negatively, you simply cannot expect that good things will come to you. Would you be friendly and positive to a person who is always negative and is only complaining? Definitely not. Then be positive and try to learn from every experience.
3. Experience
Life is one crazy experience. What you need to remember here, is that everything is good for something. Even the worst case scenario can benefit you. How? Simply by taking advantage of those things. Try to remember why and how it happened and learn from it. Something great happened to you? That’s amazing, but you still need to realize why it happened and think about, what could have happened if it went the other way around.
4. Help others
We usually expect something to get in return, when we help others. That’s not good thinking! Take it as an experience. You will also learn something new while helping your friend, or at least you will get better at what you already know. On top of that, that person will remember it and honestly appreciate your help, and you never know. One day, that person might help you with something much bigger that will change your life.
5. Network
Networking might not seem closely connected or relevant right now, but we will get there. As you already might have heard many times before, network, network, network. Always try to connect with people and simply have a friendly chat about his/her experience, as well as yours. Knowing the right people is sometimes more than the actual experience!
6. Organize
You definitely need to be organized. Being organized and structured is very important and you might have noticed that it’s commonly required in job descriptions too. It will also help you to have a clear overview of your tasks and what you want to work with.
7. To do list
Creating a to-do list is much more beneficial than you might think. It helps you to be aware of your short-term and long-term goals, and it improves your time management skills. We have only 24 hours a day, so plan it in advance and use your time correctly.
8. Focus
There are so many disruptions today that it gets harder and harder to stay focused. Don’t waste time scrolling Facebook and Instagram, just to look at famous celebrities and their amazing lives or cute dog videos. That is definitely not going to help you, quite the opposite. Unfollow those “perfect” celebrities and follow profiles that will bring you some value and help you in the future.
9. Read and watch
I highly recommend you to read books. However, if you are not a fan of books in general, then try to read lots of articles and watch videos online instead. You can learn a lot, get a better perspective and it will strengthen your communication skills too. Scroll down in the article where I also recommend self improvement books.
10. Personal evaluation
It is crucial for you to be aware of your strengths and weaknesses. The best way is to write them down in your laptop, notebook, smartphone – whatever you prefer. By writing them down, you are more aware of them and it’s easier for you to spot other ones. Firstly, focus on your weaknesses – how to eliminate or convert them to strengths. Secondly, how to improve your strengths or take advantage of them.
11. Listen
Listening is a very underrated aspect. Yes, of course we are listening, but not necessarily. When you listen to somebody speaking, try to absorb every piece of information. Even though it might not be an interesting topic for you, or the person himself/herself is not interesting, please listen carefully. The reason for that is that you will absorb all the information and it will stay in your mind. One day, you might remember/realize something that can totally change your life and it can be precisely the discussion you had a long time ago.
12. Ask questions
What is the purpose of asking questions? Obviously, getting the answer. However, that’s not a priority in this case. By asking questions, you will start a dialogue with another person, find out something you didn’t know yet, but most importantly, strengthen your communication skills and have another experience.
13. Keep track
Keep track of your progress. The optimal outcome is to be able to write down what happened every day. By doing that, it will be easier for you to track your progress, see what you have done wrong and what you can improve, as well as what you accomplished.
Wait what? Yes, I have decided to give you 3 extra tips on self improvement.
Additional tips:
In addition, I have decided to give you a couple of more easy tips, in order you did not get them previously. Below, you can find additional 42 easy tips on self improvement.
- Find a new hobby
- Do online courses
- Learn new language – Consistency is key in language learning. Practice daily and consider online language tutors for personalized guidance.
- Overcome your fears
- Convert your weaknesses into strengths
- Wake up early
- Relax
- Exercise
- Get out of your comfort zone
- Don’t be afraid to ask for a help
- Don’t postpone things you can do now
- Find inspirations
- Avoid negative people
- Learn to deal with negative people
- Start today
- Don’t waste time on social media
- Stop watching TV
- Meditate
- Follow successful people
- Treat yourself
- Create a monthly budget
- Create a meal plan for at least a week ahead
- Make a short-term and long-term plan
- Eliminate bad habits
- Crate simple routines in your life
- Find a buddy with similar mindset
- Ask for feedback
- Listen to podcasts
- Pay attention to your thoughts
- Think about your actions
- Eat well
- Drink lots of water
- Spend time alone
- Be adaptable
- Always learn something new
- Build an emergency fund
- Admit your mistakes
- Be aware of your advantages
- Travel
- Share your thoughts
- Challenge yourself
- Have fun
Top 5 Self Improvement Books
As I already recommended you before, reading will definitely help you and broaden your horizon. It is a bit time consuming and a bit boring for some people, but once you get caught up, you will not want to stop.
I am going to recommend you 5 books for self improvement, as I believe these are one of the best reads you can get. I recommend getting them from Amazon, as you can also get an audio version in case you do not want to or do not have that much time to read it.
1. Watcha gonna do with that duck?
You might get confused by the cover, but the book is simply a masterpiece. It covers multiple aspects of self-improvement and its purpose is to lead you to a better version of yourself. You will look at things differently, from a different point of perspective, as well as with a fresh mindset to achieve your goals. (get it here)
2. The 7 habits of highly effective people
Stephen R. Covey shares his secrets on 7 habits every person who wants to succeed should implement. However, the book is not only about how to be effective. It is much more than that. The book will show your practises, guides and lots of useful information to help you go through the stages and become a greater person. (get it here)
3. Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time
Are you procrastinating? Do you find it challenging to get things done? Then this book is the right option for you. Tracy recommends us how to get things done by setting your priorities straight and move forward. (get it here)
4. The Definitive Book of Body Language: The Hidden Meaning Behind People's Gestures and Expressions
I highly recommend this book! I have personally read it twice and I can’t even explain how much it helped me with my self development process. If you like psychology, gestures and want to know how it can benefit you in your daily communication, then you must read this book. (get it here)
5. How to Win Friends and Influence People in the Digital Age
Yes, the book title might be a bit too much and confuse you. But, it is way more than about “winning your friends” and “influencing people”. It is a combination of psychology, leadership and general techniques of home to be more successful in our lives. (get it here)
Top 5 Self Improvement Podcasts
In addition to the top self improvement books, I am also going to recommend top 5 self improvement podcasts, in order to create a complete guide for you. Click on the title of the podcast to find out more.
We all struggle with procrastination at some point in our lives. What if you could actually take advantage of that? That’s exactly the purpose of this podcast. Highly recommend to give it a try and listen carefully to what the guys are talking about.
This podcast will explain how procrastinating is slowing you down, as well as give you hints on how to implement productivity strategies. It is important to move forward, sometimes to even get unstuck and realize why we are not meeting our goals.
Psychology, stress and mental health. That’s how I would explain the topics covered in this podcast. The overall “vibe” of the podcast is an amazing experience and will definitely take the stress out of your body, as well as open up your mind to things that you have not realized before.
As a successful seller of books on stress and nutrition, Dr. Rangan reached out to us with his great podcasts. What makes it different is the way he interviews, using a more calm and soft approach and questions every single aspect. This is definitely one of the best podcasts to start with.
In conclusion, most of the times it’s us that need to change, not everything around us. Start working a bit harder in every aspect of your life and I guarantee you will see the difference. I hope you find these self improvement tips helpful and it will lead you to a great success story.
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