‘Busy’ seems to be a word in constant use in our day to day lives. ‘I was super busy this week at work!’ ‘The queue at that shop was so busy’ ‘I’m too busy to do that’. But frequently leading full lives can become a barrier, and an excuse not to aim towards any kind of self-development. Life never really slows until, until something happens that forces you to pause for a minute and take a step back.

Without that kind of life-changing event, many of us may never understand what it means to give ourselves permission to realise the full potential that we each have. Procrastination is an easier route than facing up to hard truths about ourselves or grasping the potential we each have to affect change.

The truth is that self-improvement is not only one single choice. It’s a series of tiny choices, repeated over and over through the course of an average week. It can be hard work, it’s not always comfortable, but it certainly leads to transformation over time. Here’s how to begin:

Make a Date With Yourself

When you say you don’t have time for self-improvement, you certainly aren’t alone. Beginning this process can be as simple as carving a space in time. It’s not generally effective to just say you will do something – for a commitment to yourself to really take hold; you need to actively schedule the time as you would a work appointment or coffee with a friend. Consider the first action, which is to map out your goals, and give that the importance that it deserves.

Baby Steps All The Way

Inertia can be a powerful thing, and if you’re tackling a big shift in your personal status quo, you need to remember that you won’t make massive gains overnight. Be realistic and build your self-improvement goals around easily achievable baby steps. These will help you to build momentum and become rewarding when you achieve them, giving you a motivational boost. Make your plan come within your reach by setting a small action – it could be discovering the 16 Best Self Help Books To Read [2017 Experts Pick] and tackling one per month that appeals to you.

Create Accountability

Self-development doesn’t happen without some form of being held accountable, so you need to locate the source of that in your life. It could be working with a qualified life coach, sharing a goal with friends on social media or finding a buddy to text your progress to – anything that will help to give you that boost and encourage you to stick at it.

Just Keep Going

It’s the easiest thing, and it’s the hardest, but not giving up when you come across obstacles in your self-improvement journey is the hardest challenge. Try to keep in mind that nothing worth achieving ever came easy. Mistakes are fine, but see them as a learning opportunity rather than a spiral downwards. Don’t allow a setback to make you discouraged. You’re on a lifelong journey, and it takes time to see real results in your development.