Looking for something to help you in your self-development? We recommend learning to play golf rather than reading self-help books. 

Self-development may sound like a yawn. If you subscribe to the old-school way of thinking, you might be thinking of therapy, hours of lying on a sofa talking about your insecurities. Or maybe a bookshelf of self-help books, all of which say contrasting things. 

But the truth is, every day, every situation is a chance for self-development. Work, recreation, interactions with others… The opportunities are endless. 

But one of the things that supercharge your self-development is learning something new. A language. A skill. Or a sport. We’re a huge fan of learning sports as self-development because it incorporates both physical and mental improvement. 

If you’re wondering which sport specifically, learning to play golf is one of the best sports to help you in your self-development. Here’s why! 

 

It Includes Physical, Mental, and Emotional Development 

One of the greatest things about golf is that it helps you to develop multiple skills at the same time. Physical, mental, and emotional skills are all at play on the golf course, so that makes it a wonderful opportunity for self-development in many areas… All at the same time. 

If you’re looking for physical development, golf is a great place to start, no matter your fitness level. It’s an excellent way to get in moderate cardio, because a round of golf contains close to 10,000 steps! You’ll also get a decent upper body workout when you swing. 

Physical self-development aside, you’ll have the chance to work on mental and emotional skills as well. Learning how to stay calm under pressure, thinking strategically, handling unexpected situations (like a rogue wind), and focusing on the task at hand are all important self-development skills you can work on while you’re on the golf course. 

It Requires Consistency & Practice 

You can’t improve your golf game without consistent practice. In the same way, you can work on your self-development without consistency and patience. Just like you can’t develop a precise putt by watching YouTube videos, you can’t work on self-development skills by reading self-help books. 

You need to actually practice. Often. Want to improve your handicap? You need to spend enough time on the course for improved skills to become muscle memory. Want to become more patient? You need to spend enough time working on it for it to become your default. 

The beauty of golf is that you can do both at the same time. Working on your handicap means you’re automatically working on your patience, your focus, your strategy, and a number of other things at the same time. 

You Can Learn No Matter Your Skill Level 

Golf is a great sport for anybody, regardless of skill level. If you’re totally new to the game, you can easily begin with mini golf or adventure golf to get a good feel for the clubs in your hand and the nuance of putting. 

From there, you can move to the driving range, where you can learn how to swing and work on your aim before you get to the course. You can also play around with training aids on the putting and chipping greens, getting comfortable before you play a full round. 

That means that whether you’ve played golf before or you’re a complete newbie, you can still have fun learning both the game and self-development skills! 

It Gets You Close to Nature 

There’s something to be said about playing sports surrounded by nature. Playing on a sports field may be outdoors, but there’s nothing quite like playing your way through trees, over water, out of the sand, and with lovely 360-degree views of nature. 

Research suggests that being close to nature is great for mental health. Not only do you get sunshine on your skin and fresh air in your lungs, but nature is calming. This is the best place to be when you’re trying to work on self-improvement! 

You Can Work On It Alone or With Others 

Self-development may begin with “self”, but that doesn’t mean you only have to do it when you’re alone. The support of others is important when it comes to both sports and self-improvement. 

Golf is unique in that it can be an individual sport, but you can also do it with friends. If you’re working on both your game and your self-development, taking a supportive friend along for a round can be motivating both for your game and your self-development skills. 

It’s Extremely Rewarding 

Working hard on your golf game does yield results if you’re consistent. There’s no feeling quite like hitting your first perfect, powerful drive right down the fairway. Or sinking a long putt on a difficult green. The markers of improvement are easy to see and give you great goals to aim for along the way. 

Self-development is similar. The sense of pride and peace when you realize you’ve crossed a threshold in your self-development is something that you don’t forget. Whatever skills you’re aiming to develop, you don’t forget the rewarding feeling when you realize all your hard work has paid off. 

Conclusion 

Sport is a fantastic way to work on your self-development. Whatever you want to improve, you can do it with sports if you just wrap your head around it the right way. 

Golf isn’t the only sport that can boost your self-improvement efforts. But we definitely believe it’s the best one! We may be biased, but between the proximity to nature, the safe level of activity, the accessibility, and the mental, emotional, and physical benefits, we can’t find another sport that even comes close. 

If you already play golf, consider this an excellent excuse to play more often! If you’re only learning to play golf now, enjoy every moment, and remember you’re working on yourself in many ways while learning. 

And if you’ve never played before, now may be the best time to start! It could make the biggest difference to your mental, emotional, and physical health. 

About the Author

Jordan Fuller is a retired golfer who understands first-hand the effect golf can have on one’s mental, emotional, and physical health. When he’s not on the course, he’s researching and writing articles for his website, Golf Influence. 

Going back to school as an adult may seem like an impossible task, especially if you have a full life as it is. But if you are planning on returning to school again, here are some helpful tips on how to make it look easy.

Try to get as organized as possible

One of the first things you’ll want to do when getting reacquainted with school again, whether online or in person, is to familiarize yourself with your coursework and try to get as organized as possible regarding your course milestones. Reading through your course framework as well as jotting down important information such as your tutor’s details and who to contact when you have a query should help you save time should you encounter hurdles along the way.

Getting your home schedule in sync with your work schedule

If you have other obligations to see to, such as family commitments or even another job to work around, then it might be helpful to get all your schedules in sync with each other so that you don’t run into difficulties down the line. Technology can help with this if you want to make sure everyone is aware of what’s on the agenda daily with apps such as Cozi or Flayk.

Track your goals

Keeping track of your goals is all the more worthwhile if you can achieve them in the timeframe you set out to achieve them. Therefore, it is vital to keep track of your goals on a daily and weekly basis. For example, you may want to diarize important assignment dates as well as set weekly goals for yourself so that you stay on track with your syllabus.

Establishing what your ultimate goal is

Speaking of goal setting, perhaps your goal is to achieve your education so that you can open up your own business one day. If so, it would be helpful to look into the various business structures that are available to ensure you select the right one from the start. For example, an LLC might just work out the best for you if you want a business type with plenty of benefits, including tax benefits such as not having to pay corporate federal income tax; more flexibility when it comes to the management structure of your business should your business scale up one day; limited liability, etc. Furthermore, a formation service can assist you with all the ins and outs of registering your business and are even on top of the different regulations that apply in each state if you decide to move one day.

Branch out

Suppose you already have extensive experience in a certain field, then why not take a professional development course rather than going the longer route of acquiring a new or more advanced degree in your field? For example, if you are in the medical field and are already quite familiar with medical codes, then you can choose from among online medical coding courses to help extend your knowledge even further. You can even take an assessment at the end of the course to verify your skill level in this area to ensure that you know how to assign the correct medical codes and what they mean in terms of medical procedures and service claims.

So, if you plan on studying further, don’t let the passage of time prevent you from achieving your dreams. Also, you can help to reduce your length of study by using professional development courses to help save you time in the end.

For motivational tips on various topics, visit the Keep The Fire Lit website for more information.

 

Image via Pexels

 

 

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Growing up, many of us were encouraged to keep a journal or a diary. We might not have been aware of the benefits it came with but we did it all the same. Writing your thoughts in your little book of secrets seemed so mysterious and exciting until we grew out of it. With the everyday jostle and a busy schedule, sometimes it becomes hard for one to consider writing in a journal. Just like how we become so pumped up at the beginning of the year, we see the need to document our resolutions and how the previous year went, it should continue like that throughout the year. The reason why many of our resolutions are never realized is how we choose not to make a habit of journaling.

One might be wondering why they should keep a journal as it might seem trivial. There are many benefits to keeping a journal, it has been seen to be a great way of reducing stress and anxiety in turn improving a person`s mood. People who keep journals have better mental health and even physical health as the immune system is boosted. It helps you to organize, clarify, and articulate your thoughts. You develop better self-knowledge and problem-solving skills. It even aids with creativity and innovation as you get time to brainstorm on ideas, enhancing the curiosity to learn new things.

Keeping a journal sounds easy, l mean what could go wrong with just writing your thoughts in a book? Plenty of us at some point picked up a book and started journaling maybe for a couple of days and probably just lost interest in the process. It takes a lot of willpower and organization for one to be able to be consistent about keeping a journal. Below are some amazing tips to help you keep going once you start, all the while enjoying the process as well as getting the most out of it.

Always have your journal with you

Your journal shouldn’t be a book for special occasions or just one you use when you want to write something special.  Dump all your thoughts into it. By always being with your journal you give yourself more chances to write in it. You get to scribble down ideas and decisions you might need to get back to. Inspiration can strike anytime. And if you have a journal that you can also color in, it allows you to have something to do that is both therapeutic and relaxing. A coloring journal allows you to plan out your week or further ahead, while also having fun coloring.

Make lists

It is not always easy to make detailed entries in your journal especially when you always have a busy schedule or when you are someone who doesn’t really like writing. A bullet journal will work just perfectly for you. Write lists instead,

• things you like,
• what excited you today.
• Interesting quotes you come across
• bucket lists.

You don’t have to narrate your whole day.

Create a layout that works for you

Write in a way that makes the experience enjoyable, one that allows you to go back at some time and still understand what you were writing about. If you list your goals, things you want to work on, let them be clear also with a specified time frame that allows you to go back to them and track your progress. Include how you plan to achieve the desired goal in well-articulated steps.

Don’t be hung up on perfection

Many times we end up losing the zeal to write because we will be obsessing about doing it the right way. There is no right way to do it. Embrace your thoughts and go wherever they take you, it is alright to be spontaneous. Your handwriting doesn’t have to be perfect, that idea doesn’t have to make sense entirely before you can scribble it down. If you find it difficult to write anything down unless it’s “perfect”, then before you start, write at the top, “no one else has to see this”or  “practice  pages  only”  or  something  else  that  will  encourage  you  to write,  rather  than  edit  yourself  before  starting  to write.

Don’t overthink it…

Write it down no matter how ridiculously big or how small the idea might be. Write about what scares you; your long-term goals, the short-term ones and be sure to always document your wins and celebrate them no matter how small they might be. Keep your journal entries short and easy to follow up on. Use diagrams  or mind maps or speech bubbles or drawings of scrolls or whatever you want to record a few words and make them stand out.

Journal consistently

Make it a culture, it might not necessarily be every day but to make the habit stick it is advisable to write daily and even push it with a specific time you find flexible. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time you give yourself – five minutes daily to write up a few thoughts. You can even choose to write during a specific activity during your day, if you take a bus to work or to school you can even make the bus ride a time for reflection and writing daily. Set reminders if you are one to forget.

Eliminate distractions while journaling

To be in sync with your mind and to able to tap into the creative realm your mind should be free of distractions. Find a serene spot that is relaxing which makes it easier for you to focus. If music calms you down, play some to shut out all other distractions. Or maybe color in and focus on the coloring. It is surprising what useful ideas suddenly start appearing!

No need to make it too serious!

Journaling should be fun. If you love color and glitter, if you are into pictures include some in it. It does not have to be strictly writing. Spice it up to keep it interesting in line with your preferences. Sketch a drawing if you want to.

If you have not yet started the journaling journey, anytime is the right time to do it. Don’t wait for the beginning of the month or the year, start now. Grab a book and get on it, you will not regret it!

 

 

 

 

 

Motivational Quotes

Babe Ruth said, “You just can’t beat the person who never gives up”. Writers facing writers’ block have been told, “Apply rear end to seat and stay there until you have written X number of words”.

But sometimes, motivation doesn’t seem to work!

No Motivation

Is motivation the only key to success? When you feel motivated, it may seem easy to finish your tasks and work towards your chosen goals. After all, when you feel motivated, you feel like you can fly though every task and easily reach your every goal. But the problem may be how to reach your goals when you do not feel motivated to do so?

When your motivation to achieve is missing, every task related to the goal may seem like drudgery. And it may seem that your goals will never be realized. There are two ways to get through those times when you don’t feel motivated. One of them is to commit to something and stick to it. The other is to have developed a habit that will carry you through. The second method means you plan ahead, developing a solid habit, knowing that those times will come. But when you just cannot work up the motivation to get you through the tasks you need to complete to achieve your goals, and you have not developed a habit that will carry you through automatically, sit down and remember the commitments you made to yourself.

Sometimes, we find it easier to keep promises, or commitments, to others, than to ourselves. As children, we may have been taught never to break a promise made to others. But we need to treat ourselves as just as important as anyone else, in that we keep our promises to ourselves also.

Why Do We Fall – Motivational Video

It’s also easier to stick to commitments when they are written down and especially if they have been published for everyone to see. If you want to stick to a commitment you have made, write it down and post it on a social media page, or pin it to your home bulletin board. Even write a letter or email and send it to someone who will ask about it.

Motivation quotes

“Only I can change my life, no one can do it for me”, Carol Burnett

Conclusion

If you know that your motivation for a goal may not last the race, plan ahead, develop a habit that will carry you through. Write down your commitment and publish it. Check it regularly and check your progress towards your goal.