Bloom Where You Are Planted
Posted May 27, 2020
These days, you might be finding yourself with a little bit more free time than usual. You can use that free time to your advantage by investing in yourself and identifying ways to grow. Below are some ideas that could get you started on a season of growth.
- Get Acquainted With Yourself
The better you know yourself, the better you can structure your life to meet your wants, needs and goals. You can learn more how you operate by identifying your four-letter Myers Briggs personality type and your Enneagram number. Both of these identifying factors are a result of personality tests. What you do with your results is up to you. The SIUE Career Development Center administers personality tests to help students learn how your personality type might match with potential careers. Have fun getting to know more about yourself and what makes you uniquely you!
- Pick Up a Book
Reading of any sort is a good use of your time and a good habit. Reading books that can help you develop and grow personally are even more beneficial. I have motivated myself to read in a few different ways. First, I set a goal about the number of books I’d like to read in a given time, and naturally, I get a bit competitive with myself to beat that goal. I also strive to maintain reading nightly before bed as a consistent habit, and I reward myself for reading a good personal development book with the chance to dive into something fictional. Spend some time reading books that will help you grow!
- Create a Vision Board
Getting creative with your hands can be a good way for you to get excited about working on goals. Many people enjoy visualizing what they want out of life or even the next season of life; either way, seeing goals visually helps. If you are trying to figure out some big long term goals, maybe creating a vision board of the life you want could be helpful for working in that direction. Or maybe you would like to create a vision for the next six months or year, and you create your vision board to focus on more short-term goals and achievements.
- Listen to Podcasts
Podcasts are a great way to learn new things and learn about the experiences of other people. We spend our whole lives learning from people like our parents, teachers, mentors and supervisors. The lessons they teach are invaluable, and it’s exciting to know that you have access to learn from so many more experts about a variety of topics. Dive into some of these entertaining and personal growth podcasts, and find more you love!
Time will never be wasted by spending it on yourself and your own growth. You don’t have to try to do it all or make every goal come to fruition all at once, but you can start somewhere on something! So get to know yourself a little better, make a list of books you want to read...and actually read them, create a physical vision for yourself, and listen to the experiences and stories of others that you can learn from. Pick one, and go for it TODAY!
Author: Ashley Cameron, SIUE master’s candidate
