By: Louis Bonaventura

When we look at a certain object, a painting for example - we won’t be able to appreciate what’s in it, what is painted and what else goes with it if the painting is just an inch away from our face. But if we try to take it a little further, we’ll have a clearer vision of the whole work of art.

We reach a point in our lives when we are ready for change. A whole pile of information that will help us unlock our self improvement power becomes evident because we are now searching for something to benefit us.

Until then, something can be staring us right in the face, but we don’t see it. The only time we think of unlocking our self improvement power is when everything goes wrong. For some, it’s not until they hit “rock bottom.”

Take a couple of frogs as an example -

Try placing Frog A in a pot of boiling water. What happens? He twerps! He jumps off! Why; because he is not able to tolerate sudden change in his environment - the water’s temperature.

Now try Frog B: place him in a luke warm water, then turn the gas stove on. Wait until the water reaches a certain boiling point. Frog B then thinks “Ooh … it’s a bit warm in here.”

People are like Frog B in general. Today, Anna thinks Carl hates her. Tomorrow, Patrick walks up to her and told her he hates her. Anna stays the same and doesn’t mind what her friend says.

The next day, she learns that Kim and John also abhor her. Anna doesn’t realize the importance of, and the need for, self improvement until the entire community hates her. But it’s never too late!

We learn our lessons when we experience pain. We finally see the warning signs and signals when things get rough and tough.

When do we realize that we need to change our diet? When none of our jeans and shirts fit us any longer! When do we stop eating candies and chocolates? When all of our teeth have fallen out!

When do we realize that we need to stop smoking? When our lungs have gone bad and we can’t breathe any longer.

When do we pray and ask for help? When we realize that we’re going to die tomorrow.

The only time most of us ever learn about unlocking our self improvement power is when our whole world is crashing and falling apart all around us.

We think and feel this way because it is not easy to accept the fact that we need to change. But change becomes even more painful when we ignore it.

Change will happen, like it or hate it. At one point or another, we are all going to experience different turning points in our lives - and we are all going to eventually unlock our self improvement power. Not because the world says so, not because our friends are nagging us, but because we realized it’s for our own good.

Happy people don’t just accept change, they embrace it. Now, you don’t have to feel the tremendous heat before realizing the need for self improvement.

Unlocking your self improvement power means unlocking yourself from being in the state of mind that “it’s just the way I am.” That is such a poor excuse for people who fear and resist change. Most of us program our minds like computers.

Jen repeatedly tells everyone that she doesn’t have the guts to be around groups of people. She hears her parents, sister, and her teacher state the same things about her to other people.

Over the years, that is what Jen believes. She believes it’s her story and that just “the way I am.” And what happens? Every time a large crowd would come over to their house, in school, or in the community - she tends to step back, shy away and lock herself up in a room. Jen didn’t only believe in her story, she lived it.

Jen has to realize that she is not what she is in her story. Instead of having her story posted on her face for everyone to remember, she has to have the spirit to show people “I am an important person and I should be treated accordingly!”

Self improvement may not be everybody’s favorite word, but if we look at things in a different point of view, we might have a greater chance of enjoying the whole process instead of counting the days until we are fully improved.

Three sessions in a week at the gym would result in a healthier life, reading books instead of watching TV or playing video games will enlighten us with more profound knowledge. Going out with friends and peers will help you take a step back from work and unwind.

By: Louis Bonaventura

Everything that happens to us happens on purpose. And most times, one thing leads to another. Instead of locking yourself up in your cage of fears and crying over past heartaches, embarrassment and failures treat them as your teachers and they will become your tools in both self improvement and success.

Say this to yourself … better yet, print it out and post it in a place where you will see it throughout your daily routine:

I Never See Failure As Failure But Only As:

- A learning experience!
- The negative feedback I need to change the course of my direction!
- The opportunity to develop my sense of humor!
- The opportunity to practice my technique and improve my performance!
- THE GAME I MUST PLAY TO WIN!

I remember watching Patch Adams. It’s a great film that will help you improve yourself. Hunter “Patch” Adams is a medical student who failed to make it through the board exams. After months of suffering in melancholy, depression and suicidal attempts - he decided to seek medical attention and voluntarily admitted himself in a psychiatric ward.

His months of stay in the hospital led him to meeting different kinds of people. He met a catatonic, a mentally retarded person, a schizophrenic and so on. Patch found ways of treating his own ailment and finally realizes he has to get back on track. He woke up one morning realizing that after all the failure and pains he has gone through, he still wants to become a doctor.

He carries with himself a positive attitude that brought him self improvement and success. He didn’t only improved himself, but also the lives of the people around him and the quality of life in general. Did he succeed? Absolutely!

So, when does self improvement become synonymous with success? Where do we start?

*Stop thinking and feeling as if you’re a failure, because you’re not. How can others accept you if you can’t accept yourself?

*When you see gorgeous models on TV, think more of self improvement, not self pity. That isn’t reality anyway! Self acceptance is not just about having nice slender legs, or great abs. Concentrate on inner beauty.

*When people feel down and low about themselves, help them move up. Don’t go down with them. They’ll pull you down further and both of you will end up feeling inferior.

*Mistakes are a great way to learn lessons. Don’t feel stupid and doomed forever just because you failed on your attempt to achieve something. There’s always a next time. Make room for self improvement.

*Take things one at a time. Don’t expect a black sheep to be renewed in the snap of a finger. Self improvement is a one day at a time process.

*Self improvement results in inner stability, personality development and SUCCESS. It comes from self confidence, self appreciation, self esteem and hard work.

* Set meaningful and achievable goals. If your goals are too far out of whack you will never reach them! Setting attainable goals is one of the keys to success.

*Little things to us may mean BIG things to other people. Sometimes, we don’t realize that the little things that we do like a pat on the back, saying “hi” or “hello”, greeting someone “good day” or telling Mr. Smith something like “hey, I love your tie!” are simple things that mean so much to other people. When we’re being appreciative about beautiful things around us and other people, we also become beautiful to them.

*When you’re willing to accept change and go through the process of self improvement, it doesn’t mean that everyone else is doing the same thing. The world is filled with people of different values and attitudes. Sometimes, even if you think you and your best friend always like to do the same thing together at the same time, he/she may decline an invitation for self improvement.

You should always remember that there’s no such thing as “over night success.” If it was easy, wouldn’t everyone be doing it? It’s a wonderful feeling to hold on to the things that you already have in your possession, but realize that those are just some of the things you once wished for.

By Amy Twain

What drives you to be motivated in your life-or in your career? There are many people who have created and pursued a fulfilling career training people the significance to motivate oneself. One example of this is the self-motivation guru like Tony Robbins. Today, we will discuss about the substance of motivation when you work at home and in all aspects of daily living. We have already seen several advertisements and seminars on how to be inspired and how to stay motivated wherever we are. There are countless reasons why self-motivation is so essential. Other people could help to inspire and motivate you for so many things, but then, if you like to attain a particular goal, then you really have to learn how to motivate yourself.

So many people out there have already found out and likewise explored the significance of being totally motivated. However, there are also most individuals that want to finish and accomplish tasks, yet they lack the motivational instincts to get the job done effectively. So why do you think you want to be inspired and motivated? There are two different reasons why people around the world need drive and inspiration.

1.) If you are working at home, you have no boss or workmates to motivate you.

2.) You don’t have anybody to motivate yourself you but you if you are your own boss.

No matter how tough or difficult it is to reach an objective, you could have all the power in your hands when you finally come to realize and understand how to effectively motivate yourself. You will not get too far in your life or even come closer to your destiny if you do not know how to utilize self motivation to its fullest potential. One example of this is–you have a particular career such as being a nurse. It all really starts with motivation of oneself when you truly want to attain a goal through all your exerted efforts. In the end, it will all be up to you to search and look for those ways to use self motivation in order to accomplish that desired goal in your mind.

You really need to be sure and update and educate yourself on ways to apply self motivation for your best interests and use it to your utmost advantage. You could try self hypnosis that would suit you best and find out what really works for you best that could prove beneficial. In addition, you can also look for available training programs that will enable you to learn what you need to know more and in which areas. In the end, no matter what ways or methods you want to educate yourself, you just have to be sure that you become as inspired and self motivated as you really could.

By: Sarah Pierce

There are several self-improvement advice out there, but which of them are the most effective? Anyone likes a great technique to enhancing the self. The only thing that needs to be done is to find exactly where that source is.

A really good self-improvement advice is discipline! Discipline does not mean you lose freedom. One habit down means you get tenfold the benefit. It all depends on how much you are actually willing to let go of some things so you can gain something that would benefit your life more.

Begin by doing something, anything. Every time you start to lag, it is essential to breath well and stay away from thoughts that drain energy from you. These things can actually have an effect on your performance.

What you want to do now is to take pleasure in what you do. Look back to those days when you were painting, something you’ve always loved doing, and ended up painting for hours and hours on end. There is always a way to encourage yourself. You can visualize what you’re going to get for your hard work, such as money, personal fulfillment, and a reward from yourself!

A different kind of self-improvement advice is to visualize. This may be too good to be true, but it really is very helpful. Visualization is achieved when a particular image is imagined and the mind eventually goes through a “jumpstart.” Visualization is considered effective because the mind itself is known to have great power over the body.

Visualizing can help you actualize what you tell yourself: “I can do this!” The first step is to fully relax yourself by imagining all muscles beginning to contract from your forehead down to your shoulders until your toes. The next step is to imagine you are crossing something like a bridge, to indicate to yourself that you are crossing over to your subconscious. You may then imagine the desired outcome of reaching your goals. The final step is to imagine that you have already reached that desired outcome.

A comparable self-improvement advice is to attempt hypnosis. A counselor can aid you in doing this. During the usual mental state, a lot of people are incapable of admitting some flaws. When you subconsciously deal with what has to be worked on in life, you will have eliminated those persistent flaws you weren’t even conscious of previously.

The last self-improvement advice is meditation. This is quite connected to the preceding tips in this article. When you attempt to better yourself but at the same time are surrounded by distraction, meditation can aid in enhancing your concentration skills. A mind free of distraction will help you concentrate more on yourself as well as your true desires in life.