"Many risks fail because they were not taken in time. Too many risks are postponed until unnecessarily elaborate preparations are made. This does not mean that one should say, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" That is foolish and self-destructive. But don't sit back waiting for the perfect moment. It almost never comes."   *--  David Viscott 

"Don't let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."   *--  John Wooden 

"If you wish to reach the highest, begin at the lowest."   *-- Publilius Syrus 

"Start from wherever you are and with whatever you've got."   *-- Jim Rohn

---

We could all do with a little personal improvement, but where do you start? Here are some self-improvement tips that can help you get motivated to change your life.

Tip #1

Where do you stand with yourself? This can be hard to evaluate because often we try and think of what other people have told us about ourselves, but if you sit and just think about it for a little bit you can usually come to a good conclusion about how you really feel. Write it down and sort things out. A big indicator of disliking yourself is if you are constantly feeling guilty, self-conscious, or thinking that you should be able to do more. If this is the case write down the three biggest things that you feel stop you from liking yourself.

Tip #2

Now focus on the three things you wrote down. Start with the first and figure out a way to change that part of you into something you do like. In some cases it may be as simple as eliminating something from your life, but in most cases the things on your list that you dislike are things that will take a little time and work to establish in your life. Set a goal and work on only one at a time. If one of the things you don’t like about yourself is your weight, you may want to consider making a couple of goals and working on each individually. For example, start with eating a balanced diet, then when this is something you have mastered, move on to exercising regularly. Trying to work on all of your goals at once will only make it hard and more likely that you won’t succeed.

Tip #3

Find someone to use as an example. Is there someone you know who exemplifies a characteristic you want to make a part of your life? Watch what they do, talk to them. If you feel comfortable telling them that you have made a goal to try and gain this characteristic let them know and see if they have any suggestions that may help you. This is especially useful if you are trying gain a talent they have or if you are trying to loose weight. They may be able to refer you to someone who helped them.

Tip #4

Get some help from experts. Read a few books by self-improvement gurus Dale Carnegie, Deepak Chopra, Zig Ziegler and Anthony Robbins. They can really help motivate you when you are feeling doubtful or hesitant about starting a goal.

Tip #5

Take action and practice, practice, practice. If you want to continue your education start calling local colleges; if you want to get into shape don’t waste your time getting expensive equipment, sign up at a local YMCA, get a workout video and get started. Like playing the piano, learning to ride a bike or learning to read it may take a while before your goal becomes second nature, but don’t let this discourage you. Leave yourself reminders in your car, at work and at home that will continue to keep that goal in the front of your mind. Once you get started it is harder to stop, so stop planning and start implementing your goal.

"Your brain has more than 100 billion cells, each connected to at least 20,000 other cells.   The possible combinations are greater than the number of molecules in the known universe."
*-- Brian Tracy - Million Dollar Habits

"Edison failed 10,000 times before he made the electric light. Do not be discouraged if you fail a few times."
 *-- Napolen Hill - Think and Grow Rich