PPI #139: How to Improve Yourself RIGHT NOW

Do your best. We've all heard those words before, but what do they really mean? What does your best look like? Becoming our best selves is a journey of self discovery which allows you to test your limits and experience the satisfaction of reaching your full potential. The truth is, the pursuit of your best shouldn't be a struggle wrapped in anxiety or pressure, but it should be an opportunity to explore, to have fun and ultimately create the life that you really want. And today I'm going to be sharing what becoming your best really takes.

Hi, my name is Eric Partaker and I've been recognized as a CEO of the year and I'm also the author of two best selling books including the Three Alarms Now. For me personally, becoming my best was something that I always wanted as a kid, but it was something that I never seemed to experience. I always tried super hard in school to do my very best, but never kind of quite reached like the top of, you know, the, that group, you know, the top students in my school. I always wanted to do my best sports wise, but I always ended up being like slightly, you know, outside the best or maybe, you know, second best. Despite how hard, no matter how hard I tried, that was always like the feeling for me. But over the years and especially in my adulthood, I discovered simple things that I could be doing that could completely change the trajectory of my life and which did change the trajectory of my life. Things that helped me close that gap between my current and my best self so that I felt like I was reaching my full potential, that I was living to my best capabilities. So many people are thrown off course by the pressures and stresses of life. I mean, after all, if becoming your best was easy, then everyone would do it. But you must develop resilience and discipline and know that it's not an overnight process. For those of you that are still with me and in it for the long haul, here's what you need to know to become your best self. Number one, if you're obsessed with reaching your full potential and want to become your best self, you need to look at what sits at the intersection of what you love to do, what you're really good at and what the world really needs. If you're not passionate about something, if you don't really have a love for doing it, then you're not going to be compelled to stick through the down points. Because look, let's face it, if you're trying to build something new, create something new, or experience, you know, a new profession, or do something you haven't done before, there's going to be struggles, there's going to be hard points, and that love for whatever that is will help you get through those low moments. And then the other important point there is around skill. We don't want to do things that we're not skilled at. We want to be able to showcase our talent. This isn't to say that you shouldn't do something if you haven't developed a skill, because there's also a lot of enjoyment that comes from learning new things. But we also want to make sure that we're showcasing our talents, that we're showcasing what we're already good at. And then last but not least is what you potentially love doing and what would also allow you to exercise your skills, is that also something that the world really needs? Is that going to create an impact for someone else? And look, it only needs to be one other person. We don't need to change the world here. If what you're going to do is going to positively impact or influence or help someone, you know, person develop one additional person, then you're making, you're having a positive ripple effect on the world. And at the intersection of those three things, what you love, what would allow you to showcase your talents and your skills, and something that the world really needs. These are great candidates for things that will allow you to reach your full potential to become your best self. Next up, if you want to become your best self, you need to be willing to sacrifice your old self. What got you here won't get you there. And if there represents continuous improvement, represents you becoming a little bit better than you are today, then you can't keep doing the same things that have gotten you to where you currently are. So we need to sacrifice our old self. And I got a wonderful exercise for you to try in this regard. I'd love for you to just take a moment, take pen to paper, and write your current self. All the beliefs of that self, who you think you are, what your limitations are, what you fear, what you feel that, what you wish that you could be doing better than you currently are, just write that current self. And it doesn't need to be just critical things. It could also be all the things that you're happy about. But then I want you to write a new version of that. Write your new self, the version of you that's five years, maybe 10 years from now. How does that version of you look, behave? How is that version of you different from the current? And write that out as well. Write that new story. Because we need to ultimately Sacrifice our old story, the person who we've been up to this point, in order to create room and space for that new story. And by writing that new story, you're literally becoming the editor to your own life. Because the most powerful story that you'll ever tell is a story that you tell yourself day in and day out. And you might not think that you are telling yourself a story every single day, but you are. You're telling yourself a story about what you can do and can't do, what you're. What's possible for you, what isn't. And you can literally, as. As a writer does with a book, as a newspaper columnist, you know, does with a new article that they're writing, you can choose that news story for yourself and you can write that out. And I encourage you to do that because that will become the foundation, the thing that you're shooting towards, the thing that defines you between who you are today and where you're going to be next up, is that you need to create rituals that set you up for success. I have this thing that I do on a daily basis. I call them champion proofs. And I think of myself as if I want to be the champion version of myself, me at my best in the areas of life that matter most to me. You know, so on the health front, on the wealth front, on the home front, I think, well, if I was. If I had evidence, if I had to prove that I was being my best on each of those domains on a daily basis, then I need to think of at least one thing that I could do. A behavior interaction, one thing that I could do, which if done, would show the world, would show me that I was being that best version of myself in each of those three areas. So I might decide to engage in a particular exercise routine on the health front, or I might decide to do a particular piece of work or finish something on the work front and on the relationship front, I might decide to do something very special for a specific person, even if it was just a phone call, but on a daily basis. I'm saying, if I'm going to step in to be in the champion version of myself in those three critical areas, the health, wealth, and the home front. What's one thing that I can be doing in each of those areas which, if done, would evidence or prove that. That I was being the champion version of me. In other words, me at my best, me reaching my full potential, me becoming my best self. The number four thing that we need to do to help us become our best to reach our full potential is approach our day with positivity and optimism. Don't approach it with perfection. So what I mean is don't approach each day thinking, unless these 10 things happen in this particular order, I'm not going to be happy. That is just setting yourself up for failure. Instead, in the context of your day, create some flexibility and allow yourself to think, if today were to go optimally, not perfectly, but optimally, what would happen, leaving some room for error. And then approach your day with that kind of positivity. Approach your day from the point of view of an optimalist rather than a perfectionist. And last but not least, and this kind of relates to the previous point is have, have some compassion for yourself when things don't go to plan, when things don't go right. If you react in a way that isn't consistent with you at your best, be compassionate. Practice forgiveness with yourself. Once again, you can't be perfect, but what you can do is recognize what you at your best looks like. Try to achieve that. And sometimes you will, and sometimes you'll learn when you don't. And, and practice that self compassion. Practice that feeling of you know what? I didn't do everything that I wanted to do, but I gave it my best shot and I can try again. And even if you didn't give it your best shot and you completely failed, that's okay, you know, fall down, stand back up. The best thing that you can do is just stand back up quickly. And always make sure that you're standing back up and you're never staying down. And I'd love to hear from you. So don't forget to leave a comment and a rating as well. And, and if you'd like to get a copy of my new book, the Three Alarms, please head over to my website@ericpartaker.com that's Eric. Eric partaker.com where you can pick up a free digital copy of my new best selling book, the Three Alarms.