Monday, November 16, 2009

Quick Tips On Self Improvement Pt. 1

Dear Gentlemen,

All of my posts have been revolving about men's fashion but there are just so many ways for a gentleman to improve himself other than what he looks like on the outside. I'm going to go over a few things that I think all of us(especially myself) can work on day to day to help us become a confident, more educated, and improved individual.

1.) Stay Current With the News

There's nothing more unattractive than speaking with someone who just has no idea. Things are happening around us, and around the world every second of our lives. Sure it's impossible to be knowledgeable about every little thing but it's great to know about at least the major things that are going on. If you're like me, than you're on the internet for the majority of the day. Even with hours surfing the web, sometimes reading the news doesn't cross my mind at all. I've come up with a great solution to help me stay current: Setting my homepage to CNN.com. Yep, as soon as I double click my browser I'm led to this site and simply browse the day's headlines. If there are any topics that I find interesting, with one click I'm able to read the entire article. You'd be surprised at how many interesting things you can learn by doing this everyday. I probably spend around 20-30 minutes reading the news like this to start my mornings and then I begin surfing through other websites (favorite blogs, forums, facebook, etc). If you don't like CNN there are tons of other news websites (I also like the New York Times) that provide great information all for free. You won't regret making this a habit! Whenever you meet someone new or just catch up with friends, it's always great to talk about everyday things and be the guy who has a clue to what's happening in the world around them.


2.) Develop Your Voice

Having a squeaky, high pitched voice isn't too attractive but having a nice, deep voice will not only be recognized by your peers but will also evoke a sense of confidence as well. The fact is that not everyone has a deep voice like Clint Eastwood or Sean Connery however there are ways to develop and train your voice to definitely sound a bit deeper. Every individual has a vocal range, from your lowest to your highest tones. If you find yourself speaking to others on the higher end of your range, than you can start practicing to speak more on the lower end of it. You won't sound unnatural or seem as if you're trying too hard because there certainly are times where you probably have spoken in your deeper voice at one time or another. The trick is to utilize this "deeper voice" and try and make it your everyday one. The earlier you start, the faster your voice will develop and sooner or later you'll notice that people will be much more open to what you have to say.



3.) Don't Get Wasted In Public

It's never pleasant seeing a guy puking his brains out, or a girl passed out on the couch of some lounge but I'm sure it's happened to some of us at least once in our lives. In a social setting like a bar/restaurant/club there are always opportunities to potentially meet great people. For example: Your friend invited you to a social gathering at a nice lounge where you could meet a lot of new women. You get to the party well groomed, and dressed in your nicest outfit, ready to start mingling. Everything starts off great; You've met a bunch of great people but have some interest in this one particular girl that catches your attention more than the others. But you start pounding drink after drink and an hour or so later you're in the bathroom with your buddy waiting outside with a cup of water and some paper towels. The next morning you wake up, feeling hungover as ever, not remembering what you said or how you acted towards the girl you were into. Sounds like it would've been better if you hadn't gone out at all! It's not about who can drink the most anymore like the high school/college days. Instead you should pace yourself, converse more, and develop a nice buzz just enough to make sure you both are having fun without having to worry about saying or doing something stupid. This applies to meeting anyone, not only girls. So the next time you're out in a social scene, control yourself, you definitely don't want to be remembered as the guy who couldn't hold his liquor.


4.) Make Exercising A Habit

This is one of the most important ways to improve yourself both on the inside and out. It's hard to consistently exercise but once you develop the discipline to include even a light workout several times a week you'll love it. Not only will you look better in (and out) of your clothes it will keep your overall health in good shape and also develop a confidence like no other. You don't have to work out for hours a day to start seeing results. I recommend getting one of those pull-up bars that can attach to the frame of your bedroom door. Whenever I see this thing I just crank out a few pull-ups as I enter or leave my room throughout the entire day. I also keep a set of dumbbells in the corner of my room, next to my dresser and do sets of those whenever I can throughout the day. Exercising will really transform you into a stronger, healthier, and more confident man. It'll be hard being consistent with this in the beginning, but once you and others start noticing results, it'll become very addicting.


5.) Surround Yourself With Positivity

It's no surprise you and your friends probably talk very similarly, enjoy the same music, and like doing the same activities. That's because the people you surround yourself with will to some degree influence who you are. With that being said, the more positive people you are around, the more positive potential you have to work with. If you're hanging out with people who just like to chill all day, play video games all night, or get drunk and party all the time, you're probably going end up joining them. Now imagine hanging around people who are very eager to learn new things, to exercise, or driven to improve themselves, again you're probably going to end up joining them. Hang around people who are successful and they will only motivate you to become the same.



Closing Words: This is only Part 1 of many parts I'm going to write about that can be nice little tips for all of us to keep in mind. When thinking of many of these things, they were mainly areas that I personally wanted to improve on. There is so much room for each and every one of us to grow, the sky should is the limit as to what we are capable of learning or becoming. Set realistic goals and once you reach them, set even more. Each one of us are given one chance at life to make ourselves great, why not "be all that you can be"?



9 comments:

  1. Hahaha I definitly started with Step #1

    Good Stuff KidKorea
    Keep It Up Man

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  2. Very nice post. #5 is one i always make sure to follow.

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  3. I Love your blog keep it up son!

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  4. Thanks for the comments guys!

    Izzy - I've been helping my cousin who's started her own brand and she's doing incredibly well. Being around someone who is already so successful with only a year old company gives me all the motivation in the world to work hard so I can one day be like her. Surrounding yourself with great people will really transform your thinking and working mentality.

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  5. great people = me.

    kthanks.

    late.

    (following you btw!) :)

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  6. Hey man I respect what you are doing with your blog and especially like the look at improving yourself. I would add don't pas up on opportunities. But check out my blog http://thebowtiesociety.blogspot.com/.

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  7. Awesome stuff you're cousin Ellie sent me from her blog..lol I will definitely have my nephew check it out

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  8. ^Haha yes she has gotten me quite a number of viewers, thanks Melonie :P

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  9. all of this true, though i do like a little public drunkenness from time to time. Not like the photo above, maybe Austin Powers drunk

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