7 Steps to Turn Your Self-Improvement Desires Into Reality

“Reality leaves a lot to the imagination.” - John Lennon

How many times have we told ourselves in complete earnestness, “I’m going to be more organized and productive from now on.”? Or that the diet starts tomorrow? Or that we’re going to make a real effort to exercise now?

Only to have that enthusiasm fizzle away, and all our best intentions come to nothing?

25 Killer Actions to Boost Your Self-Confidence

Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit. - E.E. Cummings

One of the things that held me back from pursuing my dreams for many years was fear of failure … and the lack of self-confidence that I needed to overcome that fear.

It’s something we all face, to some degree, I think. The key question: how do you overcome that fear?

By working on your self-confidence and self-esteem. Without really thinking of it in those terms, that’s what I’ve been doing over the years, and that’s what helped me finally overcome my fears, and finally pursue my dreams.

Join the December Challenge, and a Zen Habits Facebook group!

This is a couple days late, so I apologize … but I’ve started the December Challenge forum in the Zen Habits forums. I encourage anyone looking to form a new habit in December to go there, join the ZH forums, and post your personal December Challenge!

How it works: The Zen Habits monthly challenges are a way to motivate yourself to form a new habit. I’ve personally found it a very effective way to form a new habit: challenge yourself to stick to a new habit every day for 30 days, and be accountable to a group of people in a forum. I’ve done it to quit smoking, start running, eat healthier, wake up earlier, form productive habits and more.

There is no required habit for the monthly challenges — you decide what your challenge will be, and announce it in the “post your challenge here” thread on the forum. Then, report back as often as you can (daily reporting is highly, highly recommended) and see if you can stick to that habit.

Unproductivity: 8 Fantabulous Ways to Make the Most of Your Laziest Days

Ever have one of those unproductive days when you just feel lazy, and don’t want to work on anything on your to-do list?

I sure have. Yesterday was one of them — I didn’t publish a post here on Zen Habits (and a few readers took me to task for that!), I did a little work but not everything I had planned.

We all have our lazy and unproductive days. Sometimes we didn’t get enough sleep, sometimes we just don’t have motivation, and sometimes we get distracted by a fun new game (mine yesterday was befuddlr).

So what do you do? Today, we’ll look at some of my favorite unproductivity-day strategies.

Ask the Readers: What Is Your Dream?

Yesterday’s post, How to Doggedly Pursue Your Dreams in the Face of Naysayers, seems to have struck a cord with many people.

Dreams can be powerful things.

So today I’d like to ask you two questions:

1. What is your dream?

2. What action will you take today to get closer to that dream?

That action might be something as simple as scheduling time for tomorrow to make plans … it might be Googling your dream to find some resources or inspiration … it might be writing the dream down and giving it some thought. It could be anything, as long as it’s something.

Leave your answers in the comments, or continue the discussion in the Zen Habits forums.