8 Daily Habits to Enhance Your Self-Development
Photo Credit: Tide & Tree
Some things matter more than others. Since your time is so limited, it’s wise to use your time as effectively as possible. You can’t do everything, but you can do the things that matter the most.
Fortunately, many of the most important things are also easy to do. If you’re serious about taking your self-development to the next level, there are things you can do that will give you the best bang for your time.
Make the most of your self-development efforts with these strategies:
Be very consistent. A moderately good plan can be incredibly powerful if followed day after day. A great plan doesn’t accomplish much if you’re inconsistent. Strive to be consistent with your efforts. It doesn’t matter if you’re following a diet, learning about physics, or learning to play the piano. Consistency matters.
Become an expert. Expand your knowledge and become an expert on whatever it is you’re trying to improve. The more you learn, the greater your potential to make progress. However, it’s important to avoid falling into the trap of learning at the expense of doing. Many procrastinators convince themselves that they need to learn more when they actually need to be doing more
Create routines. Routines encourage consistency and require a minimal amount of brainpower. Routines eliminate decisions. At the very least, have a morning and an evening routine. Set yourself up to have a great day and end your day on a positive note.
An example morning routine:
Wake up at 5:30 AM.
Read something positive for 15 minutes.
Exercise for 30 minutes.
Play guitar for 30 mins.
Review tasks for the day.
Shower.
Breakfast.
Leave for work by 7:30 AM.
Measure your progress. Things that you measure get done, and they improve. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, bench press more, save more money or become a better cello player, find a way to measure your performance and progress.
Review your day. Reviewing your day allows you to gain the most benefit from it. Review your good decisions, mistakes, and progress. Use that information to make every day in the future even better.
Try to live your life just a little bit better each day than you did the day before. The results over time will astound you.
Use affirmations when your self-talk goes south. Everyone suffers from negative self-talk to varying degrees. One way to combat it is to recite affirmations when your thoughts are negative. Have a list of affirmations you can read. YouTube also has a lot of affirmation audio recordings you can listen to.
Affirmations can be a great tool to use at the beginning and end of your day.
Unplug at least an hour before bed each night. Give your brain a break and put away all of your electronic devices at least 60 minutes before you turn out the lights. No TV, cell phones, computers, video games, or tablets before bed. This is a great time to read a book and increase your knowledge.
Plan your day in advance. It’s easy to waste a day by not having a plan. Avoid going to bed without having a clear plan for the next day. You’ll accomplish much more with this simple idea. Never again will you wake up wondering what you need to do that day.
Self-development can be hard work, so it’s important to make your efforts as effective as possible. Consistency, planning, routines, and review are simple but powerful tools you can use each day. These take little time but supercharge your efforts. If you’re working hard to develop yourself, use these tips to enhance your results.
Interested in a 30 min no-obligation private consultation call to help you strategize your personal development and growth? I look forward to learning more about your vision and goals.