CS, I wrote this another thread. There is a practical way to improve oneself. It says והנה סןלם מצב ארצה וראשה מגיע השמימה this is compared to a human being who starts up from earth but by elevating himself has the potential to reach the heavens:
The Chasam Sofer gives us a strategy to improve oneself. There is always a conflict between the body and soul. We want to make peace between them as it says בקש שלום through ורדפהו meaning to create a small conflict. Let the soul do something small that the body does not like and allow the body to get used to it and then continue the cycle.