If you are ambitious and want to learn more and more on various topics, your worst enemy could be time management and unrealistic goal setting. There is no doubt, implementing new tasks into your daily routine will require you to reinvent your schedule. Self-education is a process that has to be improved regularly, so try to look for new methods that will help you in doing that.
Learning new things is exciting, but also challenging. Despite the initial excitement, you may feel tired and not motivated enough to continue what you’ve started. That’s why searching for new books on successful learning or better time management methods wouldn’t be a bad idea.
In this article, you will find some useful tips on how to implement self-education into your daily routine.
Find a Learning Partner
Being accountable to ourselves is sometimes not enough to be successful. It would be best to find a learning partner in an online study group where everyone is committed to learning. It is proven that when we present our plans to others, the chance of their implementation increases. Look for people in your environment or online who are also crazy about self-development.
For example, you can start a Facebook Group where every member can share their progress on learning a new skill or some useful apps. You can share a blinklist review so your friends will get to know how the biggest book summary service works. Reading books is something inevitable in self-education, so why shouldn’t you do it faster with summaries?
Prepare a Studying-Friendly Environment
Nobody can concentrate when everything is in a mess. Clear your desk and make sure that each piece of paper has its place. You can buy binders and spend a day organizing all the documents you have. This will allow you to start learning with renewed energy.
Organizing your space will give you peace of mind and a feeling that nothing will hold you back from realizing your new duties. Buy headphones that will allow you to disconnect from your surroundings. Thanks to music, we focus better and achieve our goals faster.
Set Your Goals
There is no more efficient way of setting self-education goals than using the S.M.A.R.T. goal-setting framework. It’s straightforward and easy to implement. See how it works:
Specific – the goal must be clearly defined, without any understatements. It cannot be interpreted individually but must explain exactly what needs to be achieved and what results are expected.
Measurable – the exit criteria and the associated quantitative or qualitative measurement method must be clearly described. In other words, you need to be able to answer the question: “How will I know if the goal is achieved, and what evidence is required to prove it?”
Achievable – this point will allow you to judge whether the goal is realistic. You should ask yourself whether you have sufficient resources (books, online courses) and the means needed to achieve your goal. The goal cannot be reached at any cost, but through an effective method by which you won’t have to sacrifice other plans that you have previously established.
Relevant – the goal must be related to your priorities and the main idea that guides you – “self-development” Remember that new goals shouldn’t conflict with other objectives that also are important. It also requires checking that the time to achieve the goal is appropriate.
Timely – you need to know when your journey starts and when it should be finished. What are the steps and the most important milestones to achieve it? What are the expected intermediate results? Answering these questions will help you define the sense of priority and help you organize your tasks.
SMARTER is practically the same method, only expanded by two more points:
Evaluate – this point makes you see how important it is to regularly evaluate the project and see whether you are bravely overcoming any possible obstacles. Define specific milestones and related expected outcomes. Don’t wait for the goal to hit the time limit to provide feedback: it can be counterproductive and frustrating.
Recorded – it is crucial to write down your goals as it helps to keep you on track. It’s best to hang a card with your main goal in a place you see every day, for example, by your bed or on your desk. It will motivate you to work on its implementation constantly.
Get an Organizer and a Calendar
You will need some tools to be able to judge where you are in your self-education plans. And we don’t mean any sophisticated devices or systems that will measure the time spent on learning. Reach for an ordinary organizer where you can save your plans and improve them. The calendar can be a place to write down the deadlines for each learning stage you established.
Conclusion
Implementing new goals into the daily routine may be challenging, but there are many methods you can use to make this in the right way. Try to use our tips and see how fast you can “check” tasks on your list. We wish you a successful development!
