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Self-Improvement
Self-Improvement

Learn English: meaning of self-improvement

Date: Jan 14 2020

Themes: Health, How To

Grammar: Present Perfect Progressive

Intro

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Do you ever feel like you need a change in your life? Could it be that you want to study a different subject in school? Or do you feel like you need to move to a new place? Perhaps the change you need is within yourself.

Sometimes simple self-improvement is the key to change. Improving yourself can look like many different things. You can take a class to learn a new skill, or begin a new exercise routine to be healthier. Self-improvement is about making yourself better, and then feeling better, too.

Lily tells Marni that she has been feeling stressed out and doesn’t know what to do. Learn more in today’s English lesson about self-improvement.

Dialog

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Lily

Lily

Marni

Marni

Lily:  Marni, I just feel like I’m such a hot mess right now. I don’t know what to do with my life. I’m just so stressed out.

Marni:  Oh, no. What’s wrong? Do you think you need a little self-improvement somehow?

Lily:  Yeah, maybe. I’ve been looking in on a bunch of different books. Like this New Age author I’ve been reading who is trying to improve me from within. It’s like this big experiment. I don’t know if it’s working or not.

Marni:  Do you think it’s about self-acceptance? Do you just need to accept yourself as you are? I think self-care is really important. Take care of yourself. Love yourself. And honor who you are.

Lily:  That’s kind of the content of what this book is saying. Like you should accept yourself for who you are. And make yourself the priority as far as your self-growth is concerned. I don’t know…

Marni:  Lily, we’re all a work in progress. But we just have to learn and grow together, and accept who we are. And you’re going to do fine in life.

Lily:  Thank you, Marni.

Marni:  You’re welcome.

 

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Discussion

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Lily has not been feeling very good lately. Maybe working on self-improvement will help her feel better. She says that she’s been reading books by a New Age author to get ideas on how to improve herself from within. It’s been an experiment so far, and she’s not sure if it’s working.

Marni thinks it’s a good thing that Lily is making self-improvement a priority. She thinks that if Lily can learn to accept herself, then she’ll be able to feel better. If everyone understood that we are all a work in progress, then we wouldn’t be so stressed out.

Do you feel like you need self-improvement? How would you work on improving yourself from within?

 

Comments

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leain

leain

China

self-improvement is important for human beings,it helps you to meet the real yourself and to get what you really want,that’s the motivity of progress

03:41 AM Feb 12 2015 |

ola33

ola33

Japan

Love yourself- always and don’t let the others put your self esteem down by kinda labels of Snow queens.

02:16 AM Feb 12 2015 |

Seiyf_khawas

Turkey

maybe ,Self-improvement is very deep topic after love..along the centuries many writters,philosophers carried different waterdrops to this well..from Aristotle to Dale Carnegie..from Socrates to Leo Buscaglia..


Self-improvement is very hard ..its road has alot of barriers,difficulties,holes,pits..there are alot of inner and outer enemies in this road..


Inner enemies ; firstly our EGOs are the biggest enemy to improving ourselves..then alphabetically, fear,greedy,hatred, jealousity,laziness,pessimism, selfishness…Outer enemies, social restraint,strict religion rules,ethicks,


Self improvement says “dont tell a lie ” but  liar’s nose doesnt extend like a Pinocchio.


Self improvement says ” love yourself ” but people dont like Snow queen who loves herself too much and everyday asks to his mirror ” is there any woman more beautiful than me ? ” 


:)


11:38 PM Feb 11 2015 |

iftikhar659668

Pakistan

self-improvement is very necessary to achive your goal, i have been looking for new things and ideas that it makes me feel good. personaly i m interested to learn new things specailly in those areas where i feel stressed out. 


i am bit confused with my career i have just finished my studies but my abilites and interest is in another feild which is totally different from my first degree that i have achived. i dont know should i go for it?


 

10:28 PM Feb 11 2015 |

3 people like this

albasel1975

Germany

If you try anything, if you try to lose weight, or to improve yourself, or to love, or to make the world a better place, you have already achieved something wonderful, before you even begin. Forget failure. If things don’t work out the way you want, hold your head up high and be proud. And try again. And again. And again! You are essentially who you create yourself to be and all that occurs in your life is the result of your own making. 


How noble and good everyone could be if, every evening before falling asleep, they were to recall to their minds the events of the whole day and consider exactly what has been good and bad. Then without realizing it, you try to improve yourself at the start of each new day.


let me end with this astonishing  quote:


“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” 
― Ernest Hemingway

09:42 PM Feb 11 2015 |

JoyLym

JoyLym

Peru

waw, self-improvement, I really needed to read about this, i need to change my dayly life routine since I want to get a job but more important it’s because is time to face the real life.

09:14 PM Feb 11 2015 |

2 people like this

ola33

ola33

Japan

Self-improvement.. is like a habbit change. If you want to improve something means to change the direction of your daily routin, thinking, behaviour. It’s a pretty good peice of work to be done to make a plan, to put nicely on the paper, to write what makes you do that, how you feel, to identify lies and truth and then to stick to it. I like it. it’s challenging, but if you stick to it, you’re a winner! And who doesn’t like to be a winner? ;)

07:21 PM Feb 11 2015 |

alina-malina

Kazakhstan

Dears,


I so loved this lesson. You know, i believe that some things come in a right time. I mean i realized that i need to change my life. TA-DAM.. this topic is like a sign that i’m in a right direction.


Sorry for long introduction. 


I agree with buttafly that one of the main words here are about accepting ourselves and loving ourselves.


We need to improve ourselves and change our lives in a better way. We deserve it! But we shouldn’t forget that the main value is we and ppl we love. we always in a rush, trying to be better, to keep everything undercontrol and sometimes forget that we should be proud of our achievements and love simple things that are around us.


In other words, improve but don’t lose yourself and moments that will never be the same.

06:28 PM Feb 11 2015 |

buttafly

buttafly

Germany

Dear S&W and Julie3,


thank you kindly for your thoughtful words. I’m alright because I trust in the new path that unfolds with every new day.


and Julie3 ’The biggest trouble is laziness and fear for the new’ Exactly!


Unless we develop the talent to read a crystall ball we just have to dive in, sink or swim to make things happen :) Thanks, again! 


Thanks so much, Alston! Your (or Cher’s) words are always appreciated :) 

03:24 PM Feb 11 2015 |

englishteacher24/7

United States

Yes, I need self-improvement in the art of listening. I started my improvement program from recognizing the area I need to improve.  Shakespeare said in his Hamlet play “To thine own self be true!”  That’s part of my “New Leaf Program.”


S&W, I rejoice with you in the experience of your fish spawning, raising fish is one of my hobbies.


Anja, “Life after love” (song by Cher), keep on truckin!

02:38 PM Feb 11 2015 |

ScienceBoy

ScienceBoy

Turkey

Very interesting comments, Thank you all for making this lesson more fun :)


Great to hear that Julito, we should respect such mom who made her son “pefect” :)


Thanks a lot Julie, you always encouraged me. 


And S&W, it’s nice you’ll have many fishes. You may need a bigger fish tank. Well, this is a change :)

02:04 PM Feb 11 2015 |

S&W

S&W

China

I have been very excited the whole day,My pet fish spawned at this morning.A few days later i will have many small fishes.


@butterfly,You are a brave woman,you should be pround of yourself to end up that unhealthy marriage.Everything will be fine.God bless you.


Ditti

Ditti

Hungary

Dear Shoba an Julito !


Thanks your encouraging dear Shoba but there is only one which I never forget about and it is the money, especially if I borowed it! :-)


Have a nice day !


12:03 PM Feb 11 2015 |

Julie3

Julie3

Russian Federation

They always say: love urself and the world will love u. To accept urself as u are is  a good thing. It’s the beginning. The next step is to work out, to improve and develop. Personally I like changes very much, changes around and in myself. When u change u make a progress. A progress is a better life.


The biggest trouble is laziness and fear for the new. The first one can be defeated by practicing and making a habit out of it. The second is more difficult – sometimes it’s really scary even to imagine ur life in a new way. So there must be whether an impulse from outside or ur own will and courage. This is my idea.


Science boy, just start sports and make a habit – it will be ur chores soon.


and the story of Buttafly impressed my greatly. U gained that courage and did it. Hope u are much happier now, open for new and exciting. That was really a big step!

Shoba

Shoba

Sri Lanka



No way I’m going to lend you any money, dear Julito, if our Ditti is the one who is going to repay it. 



10:43 AM Feb 11 2015 |

 julito

julito

Argentina

Dear Shoba ,


now that you have  mentioned it, could you lend me  a thousand rupees to me . Ditti  will  be  in charge of  returning that money to you . jejejeje 

10:24 AM Feb 11 2015 |

Shoba

Shoba

Sri Lanka



Hi dear Ditti,


Thank you very much for your wise words.


Please don’t worry too much for being an absent-minded and disorganised person. Remember that we are all a work in progress. 


Anyhow, being absent-minded is not that bad all the time. You know, you can borrow money from your friends and forget all about it! 


Take care, Ditti. 



10:09 AM Feb 11 2015 |

Moriza

Moriza

Ukraine

To me  self-improvment might  be a constant item of our whole life with short intervals for a rest before next stages,phases.
 It’s natural to be lazy or have a fear of unknown circumstances or  fail  for all of us,but to do smth in any case is better than just want ,think …and no actions.
 Motivation is an efficient power on the way to success.Find out what can encourage you to gain the aim and go ahead.
 Never stop trying!

 julito

julito

Argentina

Unlike our scientific friend ,best known as ScienceBoy , i don`t need self-improvement, my mom made me perfect :)))) Ok, now i am serious again. I don`t know what to say or add , what our dear Buttafly  has written in bold print   is true ,first we must start by loving ourselves, self-acceptance  ,then embrace  with courage whatever changes are necessary in our lifes.  After all ,this world is a school in which  we  come to learn how to improve ourselves. 

buttafly

buttafly

Germany

Ditti, thank you. You are really kind.
I can feel you all here. There’s nothing more unforgiving than a glance in the mirror or household chores piling up. It does take a whole lot of self discipline to not put things on hold.
“Sometimes the kick in the pants we need must come from our own foot!”
― Toni Sorenson

09:57 AM Feb 11 2015 |

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