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The phrase ‘a change is as good as a rest’ is a good motto to follow when it comes to self-improvement. So try to do something different each day…and it doesn’t need to be too drastic!

You could try to eat different foods, perhaps something you have tried before…I never ate fish until 1 year ago and now I can’t get enough of it!

Perhaps go to a different restaurant or bar, try a drink different drink when you are out, wear something that you wouldn’t normally wear, even if it is just a hat and look to other people for inspiration!

It is all too easy to get sucked into work and feel overwhelmed with workload and the pressure to achieve. It is especially difficult nowadays as competition for jobs is on the up and the need to succeed and not give your employer an excuse to find fault or measure you against a colleague, is at the forefront of most employees minds.

But, you need to take time out and take a break to allow you to focus on the tasks you have to complete. Eat your lunch away from your desk as it aids digestion and stops you rushing your food and take a break throughout the day by making a cup of tea or go or chatting to a colleague.

Give yourself a break and take a break, you will find that you will feel refreshed and be able to think clearly.

You may be feel satisfied in your job, but feel like you want a little more. Well moving jobs may not be the answer, learning something new is.

You are never too old to learn something new and it needn’t be studying for a degree in molecular physics, but something much more pleasurable. There are lots of short adult learning courses available at local colleges and they range from brushing up on your language skills, dress-making, art and cookery. Or why not be a little adventurous and try a new sport or hobbie; think of something you wanted to do when you were a child and just do it! I did and now I own a horse and compete in local show-jumping competitions!

Finally for today, a quick anecdote that highlights poor thinking about future careers. This happened when I was at college, when I was about 18.

A tutor was asking students what their aims were for their future working lives. One girl, who was very academic had very strong feelings. “I want to be either a lawyer or a doctor,” she said.

This is moronic. Those jobs are totally unrelated and the only things they really have in common is that they’re well-paid and highly respected. That’s all well and good, but you have to consider the work that you’ll be spending many thousands of hours carrying out. What is the nitty gritty?

That girl was just reacting to other people’s thinking. She hadn’t considered the matter at all herself.

This follows on from this morning’s post about whether you’re aiming to do the right thing. When you’re fresh out of college or university, it’s easy to leap into the first ‘good’ job that comes your way. A lot of people do this without for one minute considering that they might end up working in this industry for the next 40 years.

With so much at stake, surely it’s best to spend some time thinking about whether this is the right move for you. Chances are the right industry for you won’t be the first one you come across. More likely it’ll occur to you what you want to do after giving it a good amount of thought.

That thinking time might run into years.

Quite often people get so wrapped up with self improvement, they never actually ask themselves what they’re hoping to achieve.

People will go on courses and mumble on about ‘transferable skills’ without giving much thought to whether those skills will transfer to something they actually want to do. These people will often talk about ’skillsets’ as well, which is always annoying.

The point is that personal development isn’t a thing in its own right. It’s a means to an end. People will often acquire a whole range of skills and knowledge before finding that it’s only applicable to something they don’t even want to do and without enthusiasm, you’re nowhere.

OK, I don’t know how this one passed me by but a report produced by Canadian researchers in July this year (I know, I know) showed that self help can’t always help.

In essence, the study revolved around a getting people with low and high esteem to repeat positive phrases such as “I am a lovable person” and “I accept myself completely” – common tricks used by people hawking tapes, DVDs and books which rarely contain any concrete information.

What they discovered, though, is that people with low self esteem (i.e. those who would be using this kind of ‘help’) actually felt worse after repeating these mantras. If they were ‘allowed’ to think negative thoughts, quite often their mood improved.

What about those with high self esteem though? Well, they did get some improvement from positive phrases, but not as great as was expected.

What the researchers did point out though was that as a part of a broader therapy programme, such mantras could help. So, all is not lost, but surely this must put a dent in the old snake oil market? Right?

Life coaching. The very phrase makes my skin crawl. Some person telling you how successful they are and how you can be like them, pumped up with some ridiculous jargon to make it sound like they actually know something.

OK, maybe you can tell I don’t approve of it much. The reasons behind this are simple – they’re just there to take your money. That is what makes them successful. They’re one step away from ambulance chasers in my book.

I believe that in order to really pump yourself up and increase your self esteem (which is what these people are trying to do most of the time) you actually have to realise that you are in complete control of it. Some guy standing there telling you how you either suck or rule at whatever is useless. As I’ve mentioned countless times, improvement is a result of your time and effort. Simply offloading this onto someone else who you pay money to is cheating, plain and simple!

Some life coaches like to think of themselves as ‘life planners’. They acknowledge (mostly) that they know nothing about psychology, so simply try to organise someone else’s life in return for money. All well and good, but what are you paying for? Something you are too lazy to do yourself? Isn’t the whole point of self improvement to actually improve yourself, and not just do what someone else tells you to do?

Give me your thoughts.

I thought I’d throw a question out there to the readers of this blog – how do you look for self help and self improvement information?

It is a bit of an open ended question really. After all, there are plenty of sources to choose from. Books are the age-old source many people have experience with – I think most people have encountered a For Dummies book at least once for example! However, they aren’t the only solution.

Audio tapes used to be popular but seem to be diminishing with the advent of the internet and the wealth of free information available. Self-help DVDs range from fitness and exercise to motivational and self esteem guidance, but I must admit I don’t really know anyone who has tried anything beyond an exercise video.

Finally, the internet has an almost limitless source of information for those thirsty for improvement. So – where do you look? What sites do you go to? Which ones are the best? Answers in a self-addressed envelope, please!

One area of self improvement which is not discussed overly much on this blog is fitness and health. Seeing as most people who are trying to improve their lives are trying to lose weight or generally get fitter, I thought I’d redress the balance!

There are plenty of applications around to help you stick to your plans and get fit. The iTunes App Store is home to an every increasing number, along with a variety designed for your home PC or laptop. One of them is the WeightDate Weight Tracker, which takes in a bunch of information about your body and routine. Keep it up to date with your weight each morning and hey presto – you have graphs and charts to show your progress towards your goals.

There are many more apps out there for you to play with, so I suggest you look around. Even if it is just keeping track of your progress, this can often help keep your motivation up. However, go overboard and you could well find yourself obsessed with stats and figures which don’t always have a bearing on reality!