Posted by: Dr. Justin D'Arienzo, Psy.D., ABPP

Being the Best Person You Can Be

Self improvement may seem out of reach to some, especially those who have faced challenges before and feel they may not be good enough. But no matter who you are or where you’ve been, you can make improvements to your life just by changing your attitude and outlook. Being the best person you can be doesn’t take extensive training or effort, just some changes in the way you think.

Reflect Upon Yourself

Benjamin Franklin once said that knowing yourself is one of the hardest things to do. But knowing what you want from life is one of the most important factors in being your best. Do you have a hobby you wished you pursued more fully? Is there a journey you want to take or a job you want? Create a vision of who you want to be, what you want to do and reflect upon in. Think about the new you, imagine yourself in new situations and talk about it with people. By creating an ideal, you already have something to live up to.

Think and Act Positively

Positive thoughts are extremely helpful, but they aren’t always enough to enact the self improvement changes you need. To take action, start by practicing what you want to achieve. Commit more time to your hobby or interest. Or rehearse social circumstances where you want to change how you act. Getting motivated to take action will take some personal energy. Take stock in the good things you have in your life and use those to boost your confidence and personal energy levels.

Spend Time with Good People

The people you surround yourself with can also affect your ability to succeed. Sometimes people can project their negativity or neediness on you, while others will constantly steer attention back towards themselves. These people can make it hard to develop a positive outlook and move forward. If possible, try to avoid or minimize your time with negative and selfish people and instead surround yourself with positive people who are supportive of your wishes and goals. And while you’re at it, try to clear your space of unnecessary items and clutter. Is TV, the Internet, games or some other distraction taking too much time? Is a messy house, or too much focus on buying and collecting things, getting in the way? Try your best to eliminate the people and things that you don’t need and drag you down.

Get Organized

Becoming a better person will take discipline and organization. This may require some time management so that you can put yourself in a place where you’re ready to succeed. For instance, if family or work duties won’t let you pursue activities or studies in the morning, try to arrange a time for the evening, perhaps by replacing TV watching. Don’t let you efforts of self improvement be crowded out by your routine or your habits, make the time for it. But while making time is important, so is giving your efforts to better yourself time to work. Don’t set deadlines or make unreasonable expectations. Sometimes you’re making more progress than you realize, so give you better self time to develop.