Introduction

Our September theme is self-improvement, and we will be doing highlight weeks that relate to the theme. This week is centered around education. In today’s day and age, there are many accessible ways to educate yourself on a variety of topics. You can find great resources for self-improvement online. Instead of being limited to education only through books, there are many different forms of media online. Videos, blogs, lectures, and research journals, to name a few. All you need to further your self-development journey is a device with internet access!

What do we mean by self-improvement?

Self-improvement is a pretty general term. So what do we mean by it? According to Dictionary.com, self improvement is, “improvement of one’s mind or character through one’s own efforts.” Basically, it’s anything you do in an effort to better any aspect of yourself.

Whether you’re to acquire a new skill, or improve an existing one, the Internet surely has what you need. You can learn how to cook, speak a new language, or even knit. 

When lockdown orders first started, I found myself with a lot of extra time on my hands. My mom suggested I pick a recipe and learn to perfect it. I’m not sure about you, but personally, I consider being a good cook an important character trait ;). So, I turned to the internet and got to researching. I decided on sourdough bread, which was no easy feat. But, I wanted something time consuming to distract me from the fact that I was supposed to be traveling around Europe (which is a whole different story). A few quick Google searches provided me with a basic understanding and an amazing recipe for starting sourdough. I spent the next few weeks kneading my sadness away, which made for some pretty great batches of sourdough bread.

My sourdough!

Fun hobbies aside, I also spent some of my time in lockdown working on self-development. It was through the Internet that I came across an amazing platform for yoga and meditation. The classes offered here taught me how to be present with the mixed emotions I was feeling from the uncertain state of the world. I also came across this internship with Safe Harbor IM through an online hiring website. I am beyond grateful for the opportunity it has given me to improve my writing and professional skills!

Best video resources

You might prefer to learn through listening rather than reading. Or, maybe you’re a visual learner. Either way, there are very useful video platforms online. 

• TED. Ted is a website that features what are known as TED talks. They are lectures by credible individuals, on any topic you can think about. TED has videos on everything from science to activism. For self-improvement related videos, I suggest checking out the tab labeled “personal growth,” or “identity.” “Health” is another one of my favorites!
• YouTube. I’m sure you’ve heard about YouTube, but maybe you only watch videos that provide mindless entertainment. There are actually a ton of educational videos on YouTube. The great thing about these is that a lot of them are demonstrations, so you can actually watch a real person give a how-to tutorial. 

Best Blogs

Needless to say, the Safe Harbor blog is one of my personal favorite blogs. However, I will admit there are other blogs out there that are just as good for self-improvement in specific. 

• The Positivity Blog. This blog inspires you to focus on positivity to start living a happier life! 
• Mark Manson’s blog. You might recognize his name, since he is a New York Times best-selling author. In the archives of his blog page, you can find articles for any aspect of self-improvement. His articles will help you direct your life how you want to, and strengthen your relationships. 

• Zen Habits. Leo Babauta’s blog will help you practice mindfulness to improve every area of your life. You can learn how being present will help you work less, how to move through your day with ease, and even the benefits of rest. This one is close to my heart because he lives in San Diego, like me! 

Other online resources for self-improvement

Here are a few other resources online that I’ve found useful for my self-development journey.

• Pinterest. I love using Pinterest as a virtual dream board. Pinning things that relate to my goals helps me actually visualize them. Visualizing is a big part of manifesting things into reality. 
• Apps. Apps are available to download on smartphones, laptops, and tablets. There are so many that are dedicated to self-improvement. This blog post lists some apps that they claim will change your life!

        Photo by William Ivenon Unsplash

Conclusion

In my opinion, everyone always has a little room for self-improvement. Lucky for us, technology makes it much simpler to do. Although the Internet can sometimes feel like a time-sucking blackhole, it does offer us many productive, positive resources. 

In the current state of the pandemic, you might still be stuck at home with some extra time. What a better way to use it then to improve yourself! Hopefully this article directed you towards a new resource that you’ll find useful. Be sure to read the articles on our blog for the rest of September, as they will all relate to our theme of self-improvement.

Written by Grace Haass, blogger at Safe Harbor International Ministries. For more articles, check out our blog page at https://safeharborim.com/articles/.