It was the summer of 1995 when I won the world championship weight-lifting challenge. Granted, I was in a middle-range weight class, but I did it none-the-less. And can you guess the best part of the whole thing? I didn’t work out a single day of my life prior to the competition. Yup, not even a pushup. No special diets, no rigorous training plans, no real planning what so ever.
Of course, that glorious win ended after my morning alarm went off.
It just isn’t possible. No one on this planet could get any accomplishment done without putting in some real effort. Some type of work or elbow grease to get the job done. You can’t just think you’re way into a job. No amount of wishing is going to solve all of your problems.
What am I talking about? Self-Growth Exercises. Practicing what you learn to make it ‘stick’ in your life.
There are exercises all over the web and self-help books that are meant to solidify what you learn. It’s important that you attempt the exercises you come across. Not everything will seem useful, but give them a shot with a childlike curiosity. See what comes out and what you can learn. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose, but that you learn along the way.
You may run across an exercise or two that don’t seem relevant because of some weird detail. It would be better for you to change that detail to something that makes sense than to not do the exercise at all. In other words, look for ways to make the work, work. Seek to learn and apply. Application is a key to bringing good work to life.
Remember to Take a Break, Too
Giving yourself time to let information sink in is another important point about training and learning. Your brain really does need time to write what you learn to long-term storage. For instance, if you take your first golf lessons in the early morning and immediately head over to basketball practice, then you’re golf learning won’t stick as much.
It’s a great and wonderful thing you have between your ears – the brain. It takes a ton of energy to operate and never stops working. When you sleep, it’s maintaining your body, trying to communicate all kinds of things to you, and writing your day’s learning to your long-term storage. Truly a marvelous thing you’ve got there.
Try to work with it. Work with your body in the way it was meant to run. Before you decide to take on a big chunk of learning, get ready. Eat well, sleep well, and make sure you have time dedicated to the task at hand. Don’t just go in willy-nilly, hoping to wiz through everything you do.
Now that you’ve prepared yourself to take on the useful task of changing yourself for the better, make sure you don’t do too much at once. You have to take a break every once in a while to let your good work sink in. You’ve got to let your mind write the lessons down. Let your brain accept the goods you’re giving it.
Do what works for you, but I recommend making a plan. Set aside 30 minutes a day to absorb and digest a portion of the self-growth information you come across. Or maybe consider one hour every other day. You know what works in your life. Don’t do any more than you think you can handle at a time. But don’t do any less, either! Take on just enough. With moderation comes great progress.
To be the change you want to see in the world, you gotta do the work and let it soak in.
What’s your personal plan for taking on self-help? Start with knowing your strengths and personality type with these free online tests.
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