7 Steps to A Better You!

Nobody has any time to waste so let’s get straight down to business. If you want your life to change, you will have to make some different choices. There is a mountain of information on the internet about ‘change’ and issues related to self improvement, but when all is said and done: a person’s life comes down to the opportunities available to them, the choices they make and their capacity maintain a prescribed course of action – even in the face of (seemingly) insurmountable obstacles.

Simply put, there are some things in life over which you can exert no influence – and others over which you exercise complete control. The objective of this article is to outline a few core strategies that you can employ in order to improve your effectiveness in all areas of your life. This is by no means the whole story, but merely a ‘starter pack’ to get you on your way to a much brighter future. Let’s go!

1. Change Your Thinking.

   ‘You are what you eat.’ If that premise is true in a physical sense, it is even more pertinent when applied to your mental state. ‘You are what you think’ is not a widely promoted phrase – but it should be. Thoughts determine speech (except in the case of the idiots who only bother to think: long after they have finished speaking). Speech makes personal intentions known and intentions announce forthcoming actions. Your actions must directly affect your outcomes (otherwise you are essentially powerless) and your outcomes define your quality of life. Do you honestly want to change your life? Start by changing your thinking.
   

2. Be More Principled.

   Intellectual accounting doesn’t sound sexy at all, but is absolutely vital if you are ever likely to lead a successful life. Introspective analysis can be uncomfortable, but is very necessary. Your life plans and actions should to be inspired and constantly marshalled by your core life principles: which in turn, ought to be centred in proven, truthful ideals – if you are to avoid living a perpetual lie. If you don’t have any core principles: get some. If the essential principles that guide your life repeatedly take you to places that you deem unsatisfactory: get some new ones. Principled people enjoy a more fulfilling lives than everyone else, so be very clear in your own mind about what precepts you rely on to shape your daily existence.

3. Get Better Knowledge.

   Even the most well-meaning person is a danger to themselves and everyone they know – if they are bereft of resources that truly edify. If someone: who is themselves sadly short of insight, offers to ‘teach’ you – run away as fast as you can! When fundamentally ignorant people ‘share’, they merely succeed in propagating ignorance: ensuring that it expands its sphere of dubious influence. Smart people identify sources usable knowledge and hang on to them for dear life. Where do you go to in order to locate resources that will enable you to continue to grow as a person? If you cannot answer unequivocally; a measure of intellectual famine may have already befallen you. Increase the calibre of information available to you and in so doing; widen the scope of wisdom that you can call on in order to make better decisions about your life.

4. Publish Your Personal Blueprint.

   In most civilised countries, the right to build physical structures is entirely subject to planning permission. Prospective builders need to submit detailed plans, which are then carefully scrutinised so that potential hazards can be identified and rectified, before anyone gets hurt. Your personal vision acts life a blue print for your life and enables you to utilise forethought and foresight to your best advantage. In practical terms, clarity about your vision will ensure that you extract the maximum value from every ounce of skill, talent and brilliance that you possess. ‘Living in vision’ will educate you, empower you and establish you faster than anything else known to mankind, so don’t delay. Make sense of your vision. Write it down: then implement it with passion, dedication and ceaseless commitment. 

5. Keep The Junk Out Of Your Trunk!

   I often see very capable people walking around with the weight of the world on their shoulders: burdens that ultimately wear them out, or dull their enthusiasm for life. It is not wrong to care per se, but it is beyond wrong to waste energy worrying about issues that only serve to drain your brain. Stay clear of problems that aren’t yours to solve – you’ll end-up emotionally empty and incapable of probably addressing your own affairs. Don’t let fear slow you down nor deter you from wanting ‘more.’ Remember that brave people get scared too, but do what they need to do anyway! Don’t keep people in your life who specialise in jealousy, rancour, discouragement or subterfuge: they will blight your existence and stifle your dreams. You just don’t need that.

6. Be More Resilient.

   A gifted author once wrote: ‘the most talented people do not always succeed in life – but the most resilient certainly will.’ Actually it was me, but please don’t tell anybody! Resilience is not a talent: merely a mindset, so you have no excuse for not embodying it. If you routinely give up on things: just because you don’t like adverse circumstances – you will depart this earth a very regretful, underachieving person. If you are trying to do anything remotely worthwhile, you should not waste vital resources wondering: ‘why is it so hard?’ If achieving exceptional results was easy, fewer mediocre people would be wandering around the world today – using up vital oxygen for no good reason: whilst promoting the (non-existent) virtues of ordinariness. People are willing to pay more for excellence, principally because it is so hard to accomplish, but excellence will evade you for a lifetime if you never develop granite like resilience.

7. Become a Better Leader.

   The world is essentially made up of leaders, followers, or dimwits who are far too stupid to care either way. Just for the record, leadership is not a title, position or job description, but is simply a state of mind. Great leaders operate according to clearly defined principles – and as a result, set elevated standards of personal and professional performance, integrity and consistency: values that others aspire to emulate. World class leaders are proactive, not merely reactive: ever willing to go beyond the call of duty – just because. The best leaders are trustworthy, dependable and robust: attributes that are well within your grasp. Don’t sit around waiting to be ‘appointed’ a leader – be the leader of your own life. Set your own agenda and faithfully implement your carefully considered plans. By the way, the very best leaders also know how to follow others better placed to advance them, so always remain humble in your pursuit of your objectives: thereby, making it easy for people to add genuine and lasting value to your life.

Starting your journey of is the single most important step!

There are of course, many more ideas that you will need to embrace if you are ever likely to join the pantheon of greats, but these seven points represent a reasonable starting position. Every single point outlined above is directly within your power to accomplish. None of what I have proposed is too hard for you, or in anywise beyond the scope of your abilities, so be about your business. Diligently and progressively apply changes to your life wherever necessary until you see all that you hope for.

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 ©2008 Errol Michael Henry/EMH Global Media LTD, All Rights Reserved.