Self-improvement and Psychometric tools

Shweta Sarkar
Jul 12, 2020
9 min read

The quest for making a better version of yourself is self-improvement. It is a continuous process of “forming a better you”- that whatever you are today is an improved version of that “you were yesterday”. It enhances your merits at the same time lowers the wrong sides by bringing better changes. As we all know change is the sign of growth hence self-improvement is the key to grow as an individual. Thus, you can say that any major or minor change in the status, knowledge or character of a person is self-improvement. Doing so is as simple as the above sentence whereas a person never acknowledges it and keep on chasing the unknown right - point, method or step to pick and start his betterment.

Importance:

Everyone seeks betterment in their lives- the most successful person, the richest, the most popular or satisfied person also look up to a new and improved persona which is possible only through self-improvement. It let you to identify your strengths and weaknesses depending upon them you craft your life in the desired way. Starting from personal to professional, improvement is required in every sphere of life because then the life becomes a happy place to live in and you are provided with the strength to swiftly pass the trials of it. It gives a better understanding of what you are seeking and where you are likely to thrive and excel in. Also, it is needed to take the full charge of your life and go beyond the preconceived notions that are limiting you. Attainment of self-confidence, building self-esteem, cultivating self-love, power and sense to make the right decisions and sticking by them, stable mindset, happy relationships and self-awareness are all the byproduct of it which collectively makes a better you. Keep making small or big changes in the life let you grow and growth is not only necessary but mandatory, suppose how horrifying it is if a child stays the same and never comes out of the cradle, the same is with you as a person, staying in the comfort zone with a lay back attitude is hopeless. Stepping out to learn and accept challenges is the life and to succeed or fail, a forward move has to be made and this is possible only through self-improvement.

What and When to do:

The simple formula to self-improvement is- “Increase doing the right things and decrease the wrong”. There are so many things which collectively lead to self-improvement and being intimidated from where to start we never start. If I quote a famous saying- “Every successful journey was once a small step”, it won’t be wrong for the journey of self-improvement, because the primary and mandatory step to take is- TO START. Instead of taking it as a wholesome process- Start by taking baby steps. The beginning can be from waking up early in the morning and you will see how other things start falling into place. Well, it’s just an example, you can start from any habit with incorrect timing that needs a correction, be it- taking your meal on time, going for a walk, stop gossiping, reading a book, uninstalling useless applications or start sitting silently for at least ten minutes to let your mind to calm down. After talking about the day-to-day change in habits let’s move on to other personality traits which collectively cast a colossal impact on your life, family and society ultimately making you a better person. These might be- accepting yourself, stop overthinking, letting grudges to go, forgiving, being compassionate, being minimal, helping others, showing gratitude etc. and the list goes on… of which you can choose any to start with. Moreover, self-improvement is not limited to quitting bad habits and starting good ones but “Skill Learning” is also an integral part of it. Skill-learning is not a mere matter of professional growth but adding on to your practical knowledge also improves you as a person, in this article further you will know more about this.

If I speak about the right time to start the process of self-improvement my take will be - Right Now!. In the search of the right time, we procrastinate to start the process which results in nothing other than regretting upon the time lost. instead, you should start right now from anything that seems easy to mend. Improvement in your life should not wait for anything but begin immediately to never stop. All that you want to change starts from changing self and that has to be done from now and always.

How to do:

Knowing all that constitute as self-improvement you may be wondering about which way to go when every right door is open, also right things can be done by everyone but “Which right thing is right for you” remains an unanswered question. This answer is hidden in- self-awareness by which you come to know about your personality and individuality. There are so many things which en mass lead to self- improvement but the foremost can be self-awareness that helps you in deciding the most suitable method to opt for. Self-Awareness is associated with knowing your personality factors such as your temperament, priorities, strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, circumstances, available resources and above all knowing your expectations from yourself. Once you become clear with your personality the passage to self-improvement becomes clear too. External situations are subject to change but knowing yourself will help you to stay on track to maintain your inner equilibrium for unhindered personal growth. It is like the SWOT analysis organizations do before running a business where they evaluate it on four bases- Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat. As an individual, you too have to do the same to calculate the best measure that you can choose towards the self-improvement.

Psychometric Tools for self-improvement:

As soon as the idea of self-improvement strikes your mind the need for a systematic approach arises to take you on the never-ending ride of self-improvement. This approach as a whole is called- “Psychometric Tools”, through which you do your personality evaluation. These are designed to unveil the personality traits of a person which helps in self-awareness. These are used in job interviews too, the personality of a candidate is observed by using these tools. They are also helpful for a person in knowing himself and exploring his within. Knowing oneself completely and believing it to never change is irrational because changes are bound to happen and the same works as a founding stone to self-improvement but, by knowing the tendency and uniqueness of your personality you can be calm and composed as well as productive in any situation. Psychometric tools allow you to understand your personality based on your characteristics and aptitude and also provide with the solutions to unhindered growth.

You would have played a game in childhood where one friend asks another to tell the first thing that comes in his mind after listening to a word or the name of someone or in your school you have been asked by the teacher to respond to an imaginary or unprecedented situation or in current times some multifaceted images circulate on social media where “what do you see first in this image” is asked and in all these situations everyone come up with their unique answers. This is nothing but the “Psychometric Test” where people respond based on their personalities and experiences. Through these tools in organizations - What colour do you like, how you dress up, how do you write, walk or speak, your signature, choices and selections, expressions and everything that forms a unique personality, is observed to evaluate your tendency and approaches by which nature of work is decided to assign you for achieving the optimum results. As an individual, you can do this for self-awareness which helps you to figure out what is best or at least better for you whether in life or career decisions. This way you end up choosing the job and area of work that is most suitable to you which helps in maintaining your interest and increasing the quality and quantum of work done by you.

Need:

As I mentioned above the psychometric tools help you in making the right choices that result in higher productivity and quality work. But the use of psychometric tools is not limited to this and is much needed to you as an individual than to an organization. Many times you must have experienced that despite having a fair will to work you could not work enough, working hard and smart you do not attain the desired, after doing any work you feel tired, work pressure frustrates you or a bright student does not become as successful as expected, because they are not doing the work they are made for. Putting a whole lot of effort in wrong things decreases its magnitude which makes you feel unsuccessful or unwanted but if you are clear with your personality and interests you make right choices. These right decisions keep you going and in any unfavorable situation you do not lose your temper or hope rather come out as a fighter. Therefore, saying that- “Psychometric tools are useful in making right the decisions and managing pressure as well as well doing productive things that keep you happy” will not be wrong.

Skill-learning and self-improvement:

In this digital age, learning is no more a ‘will to learn’ rather a ‘need of the hour’ then why to stagnate it? If you are a student it is never enough to know more, as a professional updating the knowledge is a must, you being a blogger holistic awareness has no alternative, as a parent learning becomes inevitable to match with the pace and so on but whatever role you are playing in the life, static knowledge will put you in a place where the confusion starts persisting, therefore, skill learning should become a part of our life. It is not confined to awareness but learning new skills provides the strength to “Restart” anytime and every time. I would share my own experience- I am a well-educated person who likes reading and has an inquisitive nature but somehow things did not fall on the place at my professional end and despite having good knowledge I was lacking the purpose in my life and one day my younger brother asked me for some academic help, I helped and he appreciated me for having known the things in return a dishearten me replied – “what is the use of this knowledge for being a jobless person”. He said to me that I can use it by writing blogs! and here was my turning point, all that I have been googling down, reading and learning came into action, I enrolled for a creative writing course and started blogging since then there has been no look back for me and I must say that I am a happier person now because I found a day to day motive to live with, still, I have not stopped adding skills in my resume and made a promise with myself to continue it throughout the life. This is how everyone can start or enhance their self-improvement journey by continually learning new skills.

Self-control for Self-improvement:

Everyone knows the difference between right and wrong but can’t stop choosing the wrong things because all pleasures are hidden in them and the human mind seeks the same. Suppose you have a choice between watching your favourite series and going for a walk, opting for the former is more alluring and easy but more beneficial is the latter. This is just one example; our life is full of such routine faults which unknowingly form a detrimental series in result hampering our growth. For reversing this chain self-control is required. Exercising self-control is the sword to kill temptation; it pushes you to make the right choices no matter how uncomfortable you are with them. It gives your guts to ditch the pleasures and go for pain because important and fruitful things are done this way. Pushing yourself to do better is never a cup of tea but self-improvement lies within the pain and attainable by saying a “NO!” to the things which pull you back. Self-improvement is an everlasting process which you have to keep going, doing mistakes and cheating is humane but these should not surplus the correct actions you make towards your self-growth.

Self-care for self-improvement:

In this world if anything is most important to you then it is- “YOUR SELF”, every other thing revolves around, that is why you need self-care before anything. Self-care has many facets where you look after your physical and mental health, knowledge and appearance, financial and social status by bringing small changes in them towards the betterment. Don't misunderstand me with suggesting you be selfish because I am informing you to realize your value and duties towards you. Emotional, physical and mental wellbeing of a person stands on the top for having a happy self and surroundings. In family, friends, personal or professional space only a composed and tension free mind can ensure a healthy atmosphere that comes in existence if you are content with yourself. Self-care brings this state in your life where bit by bit your life becomes improved and progressive. It plays a pivotal role in self-improvement, calculating its value can never be enough. Hence Instead of staying the same, a move towards change where you put time and effort on your personality is the ignition to self-improvement because this brings the growth and growing continuous is the proof of you being alive.