The importance of Self-Improvement in Personal Development

Pursuing personal development must be one of the most important pillars of a person’s life. This is because, when we improve our talents and qualities, developing our full potential, we change the way we relate to the world, to others, and we evolve constantly and naturally.

Personal improvement is a constant journey in our lives. Every day we must strive to be better people than we were yesterday. As a constant activity, it means investing in yourself, training yourself, learning to deal with different situations. It is directly linked to a better quality of life, increased individual capacities and achievement of personal and professional goals.

When we start our self-improvement, we transform thoughts, words and actions. This has a direct impact on all our relationships, whether personal or professional, helping our well-being and chances of success and being happy.

There are many people who think of growth only in professional terms, but this is a much broader and more fruitful issue. Of course, in the professional world, these virtues count a lot. So much so that, when we are still inexperienced, it is the level of our personal development that helps us get hired, because without technical knowledge, what is evident for the employer are some qualities that we have and that can be useful to companies.

There is no longer any doubt that the main asset of companies is people. In a structured way, they perform all functions and guarantee high-performance deliveries.

At a certain level, all companies depend on the individual and collective success of employees. The great results produced by individuals within the organization is the result of this development of each individual and shows us that it is worth investing in our training.

However, self-development goes far beyond career planning or short/long-term goals in the company. It means tracing a path for you to become the best person possible, polishing defects and valuing unique qualities and skills. And this search need not be anything complex, as we need to learn to develop ourselves with the tools that are available to us on the journey of life.

There are countless skills that we need to develop throughout life in order to achieve our goals more easily and have a full life.

When we evolve and make our personal lives more spectacular, we also grow in other ways.

But the big question is, what are the best ways to invest in your personal improvement

Let’s start with what personal development really is?

When you think about developing personally, which aspects stand out? This type of development encompasses several skills, which can be used in different contexts, for example, emotional intelligence, good communication and interpersonal skills are some of the skills acquired when you invest in personal development. It also encompasses several areas of knowledge and challenges all of our abilities and intelligence. Becoming a multi-skilled person makes you better and work differently from the standard.

In this sense, it is possible to state that everything that can be developed to improve the way you deal with yourself, your emotions and the other, are part of personal development.

Now that you are aware of the importance of working on your personal growth plan, here are some powerful tips:

1. Self-Improvement is the first step 

Self-knowledge is one of the key points of personal development. It will help you to identify many self-sabotages that will not let you go the way you would like.

Likewise, you will be able to define a type of profile that fits and where you need to improve, and  to change if necessary.

Therefore, only by having the courage to know yourself deeply, you come to understand your limitations and capabilities, an essential factor in achieving your achievements.

Sometimes we are “tricked” by our unconscious, repeating unhealthy behaviours without realizing or even knowing why we do them. But, whether we are aware or not, if the result is unhappiness, we need to look for the cause of these behaviours and, above all, change them.

Another important point is to take care of our mental environment, such as productivity, creativity, the cause of emotional disorders and also the path to our personal development. In fact, our life is a reflection of our mental state. So much so that if we are stressed and discouraged, we become unfocused and even develop illnesses.

When we have well-being and high self-esteem, our work progresses and we manage to maintain healthy relationships. In this sense, striving to create a mental environment conducive to your growth is often difficult but essential to train your mind and body in the path of self-realization. 

2. Set goals and have clear and defined objectives. 

After learning more about yourself it is time to set your goals and objectives. To achieve our dreams in professional or personal life, it is necessary to make decisions and they need to be aligned with a purpose.

Having a clear objective is the essential criterion for a successful personal development plan. So it is important to establish a list of goals, write down how to achieve them and what you need to change in order not to give up halfway. Always try to be as clear and sincere as possible.

It is proven that those who put ideas on paper are much more likely to achieve. With good personal strategic planning, you will greatly accelerate your personal development. In it you will detail your goals, define an action plan and go for it.

The opposite of this can lead to a waste of time for the realization of your dreams. Therefore, define your goals, defining priorities, areas in which you need to develop more and where you will seek help to accomplish all this.

3. Read books, especially personal development ones.

A good way to improve your personal development is by reading. After all, books are a huge source of knowledge. What is written there may be the work of a lifetime of experiences, research, mistakes or successes. So, no laziness, to improve your personal development it is good to align yourself with good reading practices.

If you want to take a step forward, read about personal development. Today, there is so much  content focused on promoting emotional evolution and personal development.

The important thing is that they all bring beneficial examples of changing habits and behaviours that can change your reality, in favour of achieving goals and dreams. Whatever your affinity or preference, invest in books that bring positive changes to your life. Read, put the proposed exercises into practice and, above all, do whatever it takes to be happy and self-fulfilled.

4. Watch lectures and listen to podcasts

Books are wonderful but there are other tools like podcasts and lectures, such TED talks.

They are great opportunities that enable us to meet professionals and experts in the field of your interest. In them, you are exposed to several points and ideas with which you had not yet had contact and that help to deepen your knowledge in a specific subject.

Through lectures and podcasts, you will have contact with a problem and its solution, something that someone may have taken a lifetime to discover.

5. Managing your time 

Poor time management is one of the biggest enemies in achieving your personal development. That’s because having time to take care of yourself and look for ways to evolve is essential to conquering a new reality in your life.

We all have diverse goals in various fields of life, including professional, family, learning, travel, reading etc. In addition to rest and leisure, it is essential to find time to dedicate to the path of self-development. Therefore, personal development also depends on an organization of your time.

So, divide your time between all these activities for your personal growth. Start, of course, by thinking about what they are and choosing priorities. And do not hesitate to eliminate anything that is not a strategy or a path to achieve goals of personal and professional self-realization.

The goals are quite different among people, because we are all unique, too. However, thinking about the main areas of your life (family, professional and leisure) and choosing a priority for each one is a good start.

6. Avoid procrastinating

We human beings are the best in the world in deceiving ourselves. We have a real tendency to underestimate the time to complete a task and always leave it to do it later. However, if you have a goal in life, try to focus on it instead of just the task. So you may be able to get extra motivation to tackle everyday activities.

Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today, and overcome procrastination!

7. Increase your Networking

You are not alone in the world and if you have any certain desires or aspirations, I bet with you there will be other people with the same intentions and goals. It is worth knowing and relating to them to accelerate your personal development. They will certainly give you many tips on how to improve.

To further intensify learning, you can participate in online forums on your subjects of interest, search for pages on social networks, groups such meetup.com among others. In these places, you have the opportunity to learn and also to share your experiences.

8. Focus on your improvement points and work on your weaknesses

When reflecting on our actions and behaviours, we will notice several points where we can improve. And this can be represented in several ways. It may be a habit that harms us like procrastination, for example, it may be a skill that we have not yet developed, among other points.

No one is good at everything, that is a fact. It is up to each person to make an internal reflection and put on paper all the points where they think they should improve. This search for improvement has to be worked on daily and is part of the process of your personal development.

The fact is that we always need to improve on something. Remember that personal evolution is constant, so investing in personal improvement is an endless path. You can and should become a better person, but you will never be perfect. So, focus on finding points where you should improve.

9. Be prepared for new challenges

Have you ever received a new challenge and felt panicked for not knowing if you would be able to meet the expectation? This can happen, especially, because when you develop a function for a long time it is normal for you to be very good at it and do the job with skill. However, when faced with a new challenge, especially in the professional field, confidence in your ability can be shaken, since you are rusty in everything else and do not know if you have the necessary skills for the new activity.

When investing in your qualification, you will be constantly learning something new and, consequently, you will feel more prepared for the challenges.

10. Learn new languages

Without a doubt, learning a new language is one of the best experiences for your personal development. Think of all the benefits associated with this learning.

Learning a new language will allow you to get in touch with more people and also get to know different cultures, which in turn is a great experience that will contribute to your personal development.

About which language to learn we can say that English has become basic for most professionals. It is used in international trade, in scientific articles and also in many multinational companies worldwide. However, it is worth remembering that there are many other markets on the rise. How about learning Mandarin?

11. Invest in knowledge and training

Nowadays there are no more excuses for anyone who wants to learn new skills. On the internet it is possible to find many free and paid teaching sites and platforms with a multitude of courses available.

Self-knowledge can help you understand what you want to do with your life. And with that, run after your dreams! Search for courses and training that help you achieve your goals.

During the quarantine, several educational institutions released free courses or with great discounts, this is an excellent way to invest in coaching and training with little pay.

We cannot stand still, be always investing in knowledge and training. Always take a course, take a workshop, attend a seminar, among other things. Acquiring knowledge is fundamental for your personal improvement.

12. Get your own personal coach 

You can achieve so much by yourself, however, you must understand that it is not always possible to achieve all your personal development goals alone.

A good way to start is to invest in something that will help you understand what is missing in your life and career. Seeking professional help is one of the most efficient ways in the medium and long term.

Get professionals and experts such as psychologists or coaches, whose main objective will be to help you walk this inner path, without fear and insecurity.

Coaching is one of the professionals who can help you find the right path and work on the necessary aspects of personal and professional development.

Whether to be a better professional or a better person, we have already seen that it doesn’t matter, that you are the whole, and coaching helps you to get the best out of this whole. With self-knowledge and the reflections in which you start to dedicate yourself, you understand what is best in you. Coaching works its best so that it is applied in all spheres of your life. That way, you start not only taking advantage of new opportunities, but developing new opportunities for yourself, identifying your strengths, strengthening your skills and abilities.

Were you aware of all these powerful tips to improve your Personal Development? Which ones are your favorite? Hope you find them helpful.