When I work with my clients, I always hear the same theme, which is that personal development is hard work and often does not make it on the priority list week to week. I get it, personal development is hard to fit in between all of the important things in your life, but it is pivotal to your success in all of the important things in your life.
When we have strong personal development habits, our mind expands, our capacity extends and we often feel a different kind of balance than we have before.
I am all for convenience and believe personal development habits need to be accessible in order for them be something you want to keep up with. It is like working out, if your gym is half an hour across town, you are less likely to go, but if your gym is in your basement and your partner is your workout buddy, you might be more motivated to go work out.
I want to share five apps that have been game-changers for my clients to build personal development habits using their phones that serve them in various areas of their lives. You are on your phone anyway, you might as well engage in some development!
Libby
Libby is an amazing app that connects to your library card and allows you to take out e-books or audiobooks for free, as you would in a library. There are times in my development journey when I felt I did not have the time to read, and Libby did the trick to allow me to listen to meaningful books between meetings or on walks. Plus, it is eco-friendly!
Pro tip: the wait times might seem super long, but they actually normally come quicker because folks will pass on books and skip them, so don’t be discouraged.
Here are some great things you can do after reading that great self-help book!
Loop
I encourage all of my clients to set big goals that will contribute to their success in a meaningful way. It can be hard to keep habits going when they seem out of sight or out of mind, which is why I always recommend a habit tracker. If a paper habit tracker doesn’t work for you, Loop is a great app for you to track everything online.
Keep it on your main screen and find a consistent time in the day to reconnect with the app by tracking some of your accomplishments towards your goals!
See related: How to create accountability appointments for your goals.
Headspace
Our world is so busy and creating a meditation habit seems like the last thing anyone has time for, but for many of my clients, meditating has been a game-changer for attitude adjustment and making space for development in many areas of life. Headspace is a great tool (and has a free trial!) to learn how to meditate and have on-going meditations sent straight to your phone!
Learning to meditate does not need to be an all-day affair. There are meditations that can be five minutes and even some that are intended for right before you go to sleep. You can learn at your own pace and engage in it as you need to!
7 Minute Workout
Just like meditating, sometimes the idea of working out can be so daunting when we feel strapped for time. Working out does not need to be a one-hour event every time, or even half an hour. Sometimes we can work out in smaller bursts when we feel we have some time and this can serve us and our mental health so much better!
The 7 Minute Workout app is great for this. It gives you a variety of options for working out, in both timing and structure. So, next time you have a 15-minute break and you run for Netflix, you can get your sweat on with the 7-Minute workout app!
Lumosity
Although a little less obvious than most other personal development apps, Lumosity provides a number of games that help train your brain and learn how your mind works. We all go straight for Instagram stories when we’ve got a few moments or some extra time, but with Lumosity, you can use that time to challenge your brain and expand your mind.
Ideally, not all of your personal development is online, but in the age of non-stop busyness and technology overload, there is a natural fit to integrate technology and our development needs. Check out some of these apps and see if they are a good fit for your personal development needs!
Want more apps for self-care? You know we got you. Here are 12 self-care apps for bettering your life.
