Guest Post by Eunisse De Leon 

We all want to be a better version of ourselves. One way of becoming a more developed person is through upgrading the professional aspect of your life. Whether you want that promotion or to chase your dreams on your own pace, you need to level up to keep up with competition – yourself.

Tips to Create a Better Version of Yourself

Here are eight tips that will help you become a better individual for you chosen career:

1.  Set a fixed waking up and sleeping time.  

Your body should be able to adjust to a specified wake up and sleeping period so you can start and end tasks on time. Waking up at dawn and sleeping right after dinner isn’t required. Know what schedule works for you if, say, it’s a 9 to 5 job.

Train your body to rise up at least an hour before going to work to avoid getting there late. Maximize the remaining time before going to sleep to complete at least 6 hours to recharge your mind and body.

2.  Enhance communication skills.  

As your career progresses, you will meet different kinds of people and deal with more employees other than your team. Enroll in a speech class to enhance your communication skills. Learning the right words to use to engage and influence is part of becoming a good leader.

You might be invited to do some lectures or presentations in front of an audience and it is just proper to come prepared. Public speaking is one skill not everyone is endowed with, so you should do the extra effort of learning to be confident speaking in front of different kinds of people.

3.  Listen to your mentor.  

Not everything you need to learn is read in books or taught in modules. Some of them are from actual experiences of a person who is in the same environment as you. Talk to a more tenured colleague and hear stories of how they reached success and dealt with mishaps so you can apply it to your own professional life.

Have regular conversations with someone you consider as a mentor. Talk to him/her about your everyday journey at work and let him/her share his own experiences. You will be encouraged to do better since you know someone who’s willing to support you in your career.

4.  Upgrade your skills.  

You should never stop learning even if you are already doing great at what you do. Even if you are receiving attention for your talent and think that you have already reached your peak, do not be contented yet. Constantly look for ways on how to you can upgrade your skills.

Attend seminars, sign up for short courses, and become an expert in your chosen field more than just being someone who’s good at it.

5.  Learn something new.  

Although you have mastered an ability, it doesn’t have to stop there. You never know when you’ll need to report to a client who only knows Spanish or review your math lessons for business computations. Avoid cramming when the need arises and learn something new today that isn’t particularly related to your field.

Apply for foreign language lessons, join an organization you’re interested in, meet new people within your professional circle. Whatever you learn from them will be of use in one way or another.

6.  Create a list of your accomplishments and goals.  

Get a pen and paper and jot down your accomplishments in your work life. Start from the small achievements like finishing tasks on time to acquiring and retaining clients. Post it on an area where you can see it every day.

After this, prepare a separate piece of paper where you can spill all your goals for the coming months. Place it beside the “accomplishments” paper. The former will serve as proof that what you are aiming for is attainable.

7.  Pick up a new habit.  

When your habits become too much to handle, that’s when it becomes a vice. Drinking, smoking, and doing drugs aren’t the only vices that exist. Becoming too dependent on coworkers or arriving at work late are bad habits that could tarnish your professional image.

Do not let them overrule you. Instead, pick up a new habit that could be helpful to your career. Forbes’ Jacquelyn Smith enumerates the things you should do before the start of every work day such as eating breakfast and coming to the office on time.

8.  Keep ideas flowing through a journal.  

Who says journals are old school? Keep a journal with you at all times and write down whatever it is that pops in your head. This is to keep your thoughts flowing wherever you are. Some of the biggest ideas are spontaneous, so before you forget them, grab the opportunity to immortalize them.

Anything you see outside the confines of the workplace can spark a new idea which you can apply in a new project you’ve been planning.

Developing the professional aspect of your being is one step closer to improving your life in general. Which of these tips have you tried? If they have helped you in any way, don’t forget to share your thoughts through commenting below!

What suggestions or practices would you add to create a better version of yourself?

 Guest Author

Eunisse De Leon is a writer who aims to contribute to the overall development of an individual through the things she posts online. She’s also interested in Asian culture, music, and anything related to art. Follow her @eunissedeleon.