When you have a desire to change yourself and live differently, such thoughts and aspirations confirm that your personality requires self-development. Ideas 24 advise how to change everything.
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Why do we need to get better at all when it’s easy to satisfy the basic needs of a patty, a latte and a TV series now – and supposedly be happy? American psychologist Philip Brickman conducted an experiment examining the level of happiness of the inhabitants of Illinois. Some of them won a lot of money in the lottery. And after a short time, the lucky ones returned to their usual level of satisfaction with life. So how can you pass this level? With the help of self-improvement of a person – “work on oneself.”
The famous psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi came to the conclusion that happiness is not something that falls on us from heaven.
The key to happiness is the ability to control yourself, he says.
How to start change
Any project begins with an understanding of the purpose and conditions. Even the simplest one depends on the main questions that you ask yourself. Perhaps you create a file with certain achievements (start a startup, win a grant for education), or start a special sketchbook with figurative drawings. Perhaps you need outside support and find yourself a coach. The main thing is to plan and record achievements. Otherwise it’s hard to stay on track “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road can be the wrong way.”
The goal for self-development must be SMART (reasonable)
Namely:
- Specific – specific (not “I dream of moving better”, but “I dream of learning to dance tribal”).
- Measurable – it can be measured (not “pull up the language”, but “learn German to B2”).
- Attainable – achievable (not “save the country”, but “achieve the introduction of a network of bike paths”).
- Realistic – realistic (not “have a hundred best friends”, but “get out with Olya at least twice a month”).
- Time-bound – have a time frame (at least indicative).
What to work on
What is self-improvement: lose five kilograms that prevent you from feeling comfortable, grow up to be a director, or learn to show up to meetings on time? All these things – ostensibly different – in practice are interconnected. They should be considered in a complex, for each item answering the main question: “Why?”.
Why should I read a book a week if I’m organizing hikes? Because the piggy bank of experience increases and you become an interesting interlocutor and a specialist in great demand.
The first step to self-improvement / Photo by unsplash
Ideas for self-development and self-improvement
Self-organization and positive attitude
You must immediately tune in that it is quite easy to start self-development and self-improvement. It is difficult to stay on this path in the absence of rapid progress and tangible results. To change yourself and your life, you need willpower, self-organization and positive thinking. You have taken up work or study that should bring you closer to your goal – do everything carefully and efficiently.
Development of mental abilities
It is impossible to change yourself and your life without constant development of the intellect. Literature, educational programs about history, man, space, and the development of technologies will help in this. Learn foreign languages, memorize poems, solve mathematical problems, collect puzzles, puzzles, write articles – all this will make your brain work. In books and on the net you will find a million tips on how to develop your brain so that it solves problems most efficiently, and not stupidly over every step. Learning something you don’t know yet is about creating new paths to self-improvement.
Energy storage
If you want to know how to start a new life and change yourself, then start accumulating energy. It is she who will be needed to solve new complex problems that your personal self-development plan includes. Do not waste energy on negative emotions, do not get angry, do not discuss others. An inexhaustible source of positive energy is sports that train willpower, perseverance, and endurance. If you “do not enter” to carry iron in the gym, it will not give you any benefit. Try something else until it clicks: “This is mine!”. In today’s world, even the lazy can find something to do. It is very important that you like it.
Development of communication skills
To start self-development and self-improvement, you need to be able to adapt in society. After all, it is impossible to develop in a closed space. Watch different people, listen to how they speak, how others react to it. Notice communication skills and behaviors that cause a positive reaction, help avoid conflicts, and persuade the interlocutor to your point of view. Know how to listen to someone else’s opinion, try to understand the interlocutor, stand in his place. During the development of social networks, it is simply a sin not to use all the opportunities that they give us. Moreover, you can find out about them simply by using a mobile phone.
Time management
Time management, like getting along with people, seems innate. But without the realization: “It’s really important for me – not to waste hours of my life, not to let people down” – no program will help. You need to make punctuality a personal value, and then implement it through small habits within a month. The next one will be easier.
self-presentation
Oratory is needed not only for those who conduct trainings. Today, in the implementation of any idea, not only curiosity is important, but also the ability to convincingly “hook”. Shall we try to fit into the plan? Don’t forget the magic “why”.
It is possible to change yourself and your life at any age. The desire for self-development and self-improvement is a natural process in the life of every person.