Getting better every day is a common aspiration, be it getting better at sports, relationships, or simply being a better person than before. The only way to get better is by Self-improvement. Self-improvement is a continuous process of making yourself better than you were in the past.
Self-improvement is the activity or a continuous process carried out by oneself to improve or enhance an aspect or a habit to achieve pre-defined goals.
As the name suggests, the process of self-improvement is to be carried out by oneself for oneself – that’s why the word ‘self’. The motive for self-improvement is usually to improve the quality of life or to inculcate a good habit that leads to achieving a goal.
What can you improve?
The most common areas of self-improvement are career, relationships, health and finance. Having small, achievable steps is the way to achieve these goals. Each small, consistent step leads to self-improvement – an incremental improvement compared to the previous day.
Steps for Self-improvement
The first step for improvement is to define your goals. As discussed above, your goals can be any of the common areas. That goal should be specific and time-bound to implement the improvement plan.
Following are a few examples:
- Improving cardio activity by 40% over the following year
- Getting a promotion in the next three years
- Improving relations with dad over the next six months
- Saving for a down payment to buy a house in the next year
Once you have your goal, the next step is to start working towards it. The following is the list of steps for self-improvement:
1. Self-awareness and acceptance
Self-improvement starts with self-awareness. You have to realize and accept the present to start working towards your goal. If you don’t realize that your cardio activity is not good, how else can you improve it then? You first have to acknowledge an area for improvement and accept it.
Awareness and acceptance are the most challenging parts of the journey of self-improvement. Acceptance is not a sign of defeat but rather the exact opposite. Accepting you don’t have a good cardio activity doesn’t mean you are a loser or will die. It means you are now aware of the necessary steps to improve.
2. SMART Goals
Once you accept it, then start working towards it. SMART goals are the way to go about it—specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound goals.
So you have terrible cardio. How bad is it? How do you define good cardio? How much can you realistically achieve? By when can you achieve it?
A Series of questions like these can help you figure out a plan. The same can be applied to other goals as well. Having a vague goal is worse than having no goal. Set a SMART goal so that you can measure it.
3. Self-Discipline
Only self-discipline paves the way for self-improvement. (See: Self-Discipline).
Incremental improvement every day is the goal for self-improvement, and the part of ‘everyday’ can only is where self-discipline comes in.
Inculcating self-discipline is the best thing you can do for yourself. Waking up early – every day – before 7 am, going to bed early, balanced meals, etc., all are perfect examples of self-discipline. You can say you are self-disciplined (for instance, as an early riser) if you start the habit of waking up before 6 am and with practice and self-discipline, one day, without alarm or trying, you still wake up at 6 am; even on holiday.
4. Consistency
Since self-improvement is a continuous process, not a one-time thing, keeping up with it is crucial. Being consistent in habits is the final step toward achieving self-improvement. You read every day to improve your knowledge; you save every day by changing your habits.
Consistently implementing self-discipline to achieve self-improvement is the goal. Consistency is the second most challenging part of incorporating self-improvement in life. It is dry, repetitive and boring, but it is good, requires effort and courage to keep up and is the only way to achieve your goals.
Consistently staying with the things you have is an underrated quality in life. Successful people are consistent, don’t get bored with monotonous life and are good at what they do – because they do it every day.
5. Measure and repeat
You need to know that there is an improvement, and quantifying is the only way to know that. What percentage of goals have you achieved in the past three months? What is your plan to go ahead? How will you break down that plan day-wise? These are the common questions to keep you up with your goals.
Measuring the success or incremental improvement will let us know that the path is right and efforts are correct.
If there is no improvement, then something needs to change – and only measurement will tell you that.
Conclusion: Self-improvement is a crucial aspect of a successful life, and incremental improvement daily is the key to it. It’s not a one-day task but needs a daily roadmap – something which necessitates the help of self-discipline and consistency.
Self-improvement books that inspired me: