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Personal SWOT Analysis

Making the most of your talents and opportunities.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

"Chance favors the prepared mind." – Louis Pasteur

You are most likely to succeed in life if you use your talents to their fullest extent. Similarly, you'll suffer fewer problems if you know what your weaknesses are and if you manage these weaknesses so that they don't matter in the work you do.

So how do you go about identifying these strengths and weaknesses, and analyzing the opportunities and threats that flow from them? SWOT Analysis is a useful technique that helps you do this.

Benefits of Personal Swot Analysis

What makes SWOT especially powerful is that, with a little thought, it can help you uncover opportunities that you would not otherwise have spotted. And by understanding your weaknesses, you can manage and eliminate threats that might otherwise hurt your ability to move forward.

If you look at yourself using the SWOT framework, you can start to separate yourself from your peers, and further develop the specialized talents and abilities you need to advance your career and help you achieve your personal goals .

(You can find out how to carry out a wider SWOT analysis for your organization in our article here .)

Tips on How to Do a Personal SWOT Analysis

First print out our free worksheet , and write down answers to the following questions.

• What advantages do you have that others don't have (for example, skills, certifications, education, or connections)?
• What do you do better than anyone else?
• What personal resources can you access?
• What do other people (and your boss, in particular) see as your strengths?
• Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
• What values do you believe in that others fail to exhibit?
• Are you part of a network that no one else is involved in? If so, what connections do you have with influential people?

Consider this from your own perspective, and from the point of view of the people around you. And don't be modest or shy – be as objective as you can. Knowing and using your strengths can make you happier and more fulfilled at work.

And if you still have any difficulty identifying your strengths, write down a list of your personal characteristics. Some of these will hopefully be strengths!

Think about your strengths in relation to the people around you. For example, if you're a great mathematician and the people around you are also great at math, then this is not likely to be a strength in your current role – it may be a necessity.

• What tasks do you usually avoid because you don't feel confident doing them?
• What will the people around you see as your weaknesses?
• Are you completely confident in your education and skills training? If not, where are you weakest?
• What are your negative work habits (for example, are you often late, are you disorganized, do you have a short temper, or are you poor at handling stress)?
• Do you have personality traits that hold you back in your field? For instance, if you have to conduct meetings on a regular basis, a fear of public speaking would be a major weakness.

Again, consider this from a personal/internal perspective and an external perspective. Do other people see weaknesses that you don't see? Do co-workers consistently outperform you in key areas? Be realistic – it's best to face any unpleasant truths as soon as possible.

Opportunities

• What new technology can help you? Or can you get help from others or from people via the internet?
• Is your industry growing? If so, how can you take advantage of the current market?
• Do you have a network of strategic contacts to help you, or offer good advice?
• What trends (management or otherwise) do you see in your company, and how can you take advantage of them?
• Are any of your competitors failing to do something important? If so, can you take advantage of their mistakes?
• Is there a need in your company or industry that no one is filling?
• Do your customers or vendors complain about something in your company? If so, could you create an opportunity by offering a solution?

You might find useful opportunities in the following:

• Networking events, educational classes, or conferences.
• A colleague going on an extended leave. Could you take on some of this person's projects to gain experience?
• A new role or project that forces you to learn new skills, like public speaking or international relations.
• A company expansion or acquisition. Do you have specific skills (like a second language) that could help with the process?

Also, importantly, look at your strengths, and ask yourself whether these open up any opportunities – and look at your weaknesses, and ask yourself whether you could open up opportunities by eliminating those weaknesses.

• What obstacles do you currently face at work?
• Are any of your colleagues competing with you for projects or roles?
• Is your job (or the demand for the things you do) changing?
• Does changing technology threaten your position?
• Could any of your weaknesses lead to threats?

Performing this analysis will often provide key information – it can point out what needs to be done and put problems into perspective.

A Personal SWOT Example

What would a personal SWOT assessment look like? Review this SWOT analysis for Carol, an advertising manager.

• I'm very creative. I often impress clients with a new perspective on their brands.
• I communicate well with my clients and team.
• I have the ability to ask key questions to find just the right marketing angle.
• I'm completely committed to the success of a client's brand.
• I have a strong, compulsive need to do things quickly and remove them from my "to do" list, and sometimes the quality of my work suffers as a result.
• This same need to get things done also causes me stress when I have too many tasks.
• I get nervous when presenting ideas to clients, and this fear of public speaking often takes the passion out of my presentations.
• One of our major competitors has developed a reputation for treating their smaller clients poorly.
• I'm attending a major marketing conference next month. This will allow for strategic networking, and also offer some great training seminars.
• Our art director will go on maternity leave soon. Covering her duties while she's away would be a great career development opportunity for me.
• Simon, one of my colleagues, is a much stronger speaker than I am, and he's competing with me for the art director position.
• Due to recent staff shortages, I'm often overworked, and this negatively impacts my creativity.
• The current economic climate has resulted in slow growth for the marketing industry. Many firms have laid off staff members, and our company is considering further cutbacks.

As a result of performing this analysis, Carol takes the bold step of approaching her colleague Simon about the art director's maternity leave. Carol proposes both she and Simon cover the job's duties, working together and each using their strengths.

To her surprise, Simon likes the idea. He knows he presents very well, but he admits that he's usually impressed by Carol's creative ideas, which he feels are far better than most of his.

By working as a team, they have a chance to make their smaller clients feel even better about the service they're getting. This takes advantage of their competitor's weakness in this area.

Personal SWOT Analysis Infographic

See our Personal SWOT Analysis Infographic .

A SWOT matrix is a framework for analyzing your strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats that you face. This helps you focus on your strengths, minimize your weaknesses, and take the greatest possible advantage of opportunities available to you.

Use our Personal SWOT Analysis Skillbook to explore further how you can use this great tool!

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Personal Development SWOT Analysis: A Quick Guide

Explore the power of self-improvement with a Personal Development SWOT Analysis. Uncover your strengths, address weaknesses, leverage opportunities, and overcome threats on your journey to personal growth. Learn how this strategic assessment can help you achieve your goals and unlock your full potential in our insightful blog on Personal Development SWOT Analysis.

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SWOT Analysis for Personal Development is a strategic tool vital in shaping one's personal and professional life. This analysis helps individuals understand their unique attributes and the external factors that might affect their growth . 

Want to know how this tool can help you become a better person? Read this blog to Enhance your growth with the SWOT Analysis for Personal Development tool. Identify strengths, tackle weaknesses, seize opportunities, and overcome challenges for self-improvement. 

Table of Contents  

1)  Introduction to What is a SWOT Analysis 

2)  Exploring the elements of a SWOT Analysis 

3)  Tips for using SWOT Analysis in Personal Development 

     a)  Develop strategies to attain goals 

     b)  Enhance personal and professional development 

     c)  Understand your progress 

     d)  Enhance your career and personality 

     e)  Understand yourself as a person 

4)  Conclusion 

Introduction to What is a SWOT Analysis  

A SWOT Analysis, abbreviated as “Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats”, is a technique utilised over many decades to guide organisations in identifying the current and future trends.  

It is a strategic planning tool used to recognise and analyse the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to a project, business, or personal development. It's essentially a framework that helps individuals or organisations to focus on key issues. 

This analysis is conducted using a matrix, creating a visual representation that makes it easier to compare and contrast the different elements. It's a versatile tool used in various contexts, from business strategy to career planning and personal growth. 

Now, the strengths and weaknesses are considered internal factors, meaning they are within the control of the individual or organisation. These might include skills, resources, or anything else that can give an advantage or disadvantage in achieving objectives. 

On the other hand, Opportunities and threats are external factors coming from the environment outside the individual or organisation. Opportunities are circumstances that can be exploited to benefit the entity, while threats are potential challenges or risks that could harm it.  

Exploring the elements of a Personal SWOT Analysis  

A SWOT Analysis comprises of four key elements, described below as follows:  

Strengths  

Here are the various aspects of the Strengths element of the SWOT Analysis: 

a)   Identification of core competencies : Strengths in SWOT Analysis refer to the internal positive traits, characteristics, or competencies that an individual or organisation possesses. Identifying these core strengths provides a solid understanding of what sets you apart from others, highlighting areas where you excel. 

b)  Leverage for success : Recognising strengths allows you to capitalise on them, using these attributes to your advantage in personal or professional endeavours. For instance, if you have strong communication skills, you may excel in roles that require public speaking or client interaction. 

c)  Foundation for goal setting : Understanding your strengths lays the groundwork for setting realistic and attainable goals. By aligning your objectives with your strengths, you increase the likelihood of success. 

d)   Increased confidence and self-awareness : Identifying and acknowledging your strengths can lead to increased confidence and self-awareness. By focusing on what you do well, you create a positive self-image that can boost both personal and professional growth. 

e) Strategic planning and development : In a business context, recognising the strengths of an organisation allows for strategic planning that can position the company advantageously in the market. It facilitates decision-making processes that align with the unique capabilities of the organisation. 

Weaknesses  

Here are the various aspects of the Weaknesses element of the SWOT Analysis: 

a) Identification of areas for improvement : Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis refer to the internal limitations or shortcomings that an individual or organisation may have. These could be gaps in skills, resources, or other areas that may hinder progress. Identifying weaknesses is essential in pinpointing where improvement is needed. 

b)  Opportunity for growth and development : By recognising and acknowledging weaknesses, you can create targeted plans to address these areas. This approach fosters personal and professional growth as you work to turn weaknesses into strengths.  

c)   Risk mitigation : In a business context, understanding weaknesses can help in risk mitigation. If an organisation knows its limitations, it can take steps to avoid situations where those weaknesses might be exposed.  

d)  Enhanced decision-making : Recognising weaknesses allows for more informed decision-making. Whether deciding on a career path or a business strategy, understanding what areas may need further development can guide choices in a direction that minimises the impact of those weaknesses.  

e)   Building authentic relationships : On a personal level, acknowledging weaknesses can lead to more genuine and empathetic relationships. Accepting and working on our flaws makes us more human and relatable.  

Opportunities  

Here are the various aspects of the Opportunities element of the SWOT Analysis: 

a)  Recognition of external prospects : Opportunities in SWOT Analysis are external factors that could benefit an individual or organisation. These could be trends, changes in the market, or other external dynamics that can be leveraged for advantage. 

b)  S trategic alignment with goals : Identifying opportunities allows you to align them with your strengths and goals, forming a coherent strategy that utilises these external advantages. This alignment ensures that the identified opportunities are relevant and can be pursued effectively. 

c)  Competitive edge in business : For businesses, spotting opportunities early can provide a competitive edge. It can mean being the first to enter a new market or adapt to a change in the industry, positioning the company as a leader rather than a follower. 

d)  Personal growth and development : On a personal level, recognising opportunities can lead to personal growth and career advancement. Whether it's a new job opening, a chance to learn a new skill, or a networking opportunity, seizing these moments can have a significant impact on personal development. 

e)  Risk management : Understanding potential opportunities also aids in risk management. By knowing where opportunities lie, you can navigate away from threats and towards areas where growth and success are more likely.  

Understand the concepts of self-awareness and esteem by signing up for the Psychology of Personal Growth Training now!  

Threats  

Here are the various aspects of the Threats element of the SWOT Analysis: 

a)   Identification of external risks : Threats in SWOT Analysis refer to external factors that could adversely affect an individual or organisation. These could be economic downturns, regulatory changes, or any other external developments that might pose challenges or risks. 

b)   Proactive risk management : By identifying potential threats, you can take proactive measures to mitigate or even avoid those risks. Whether it's diversifying investment, seeking new markets, or developing new skills, understanding threats allows for strategic planning that can navigate around these obstacles. 

c)  Competitive insight in business : Recognising threats also provides insights into the competitive landscape. It might include understanding competitors' strategies, regulatory changes, or technological advancements that could affect your position in the market. 

d)   Career and personal development planning : On a personal level, awareness of potential threats can guide career and personal development planning. It may involve recognising industry shifts that could affect your job or personal circumstances that might impact your career goals. 

e)   Strategic alignment and agility : Understanding threats fosters strategic alignment and agility. By knowing what might go wrong, you can align your strategies to be more flexible and adaptive, allowing you to respond quickly to changes in the external environment.  

Tips for using SWOT Analysis in Personal Development  

Here are the seven key benefits of a SWOT Analysis for Personal Development, described as follows:  

Develop strategies to attain goals  

SWOT Analysis acts as a guiding beacon in the formulation of strategies. By clearly identifying your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, you can devise a tailor-made plan that caters specifically to your unique situation.  

Additionally, t his personalised approach enhances the efficiency of your planning process, enabling you to set realistic goals and develop strategies that are not only achievable but also align with your personal or organisational strengths and opportunities. 

Enhance personal and professional development  

In a professional setting, SWOT Analysis can facilitate teamwork and collaboration. By identifying and openly discussing the strengths and weaknesses of team members, the group can allocate tasks more effectively, leveraging each other's strengths and compensating for weaknesses. On a personal level, understanding one's SWOT can lead to more empathetic relationships as you become more aware of not just your traits but those of others as well. 

Understand your progress  

Tracking progress is crucial in any development journey. A SWOT Analysis allows you to take a snapshot of where you are at any given moment. By regularly revisiting and updating your SWOT, you can track changes and improvements over time. This understanding of progress can be a strong motivational force, providing tangible evidence of growth and improvement. 

Enhance your career and personality  

The insights gained from a SWOT Analysis can directly translate into career advancement and personality development. By understanding your professional strengths and weaknesses, you can pursue career opportunities that align with your competencies and avoid areas where you are less skilled. On a personal level, recognising your unique characteristics can lead to personal growth as you actively work to develop traits that enhance your personality. 

Know how to be a self-motivated individual by signing up for the Motivation and Goal Setting Training now!  

Understand yourself as a person  

Perhaps one of the most profound benefits of SWOT Analysis is the deep self-awareness it can foster. By taking a long, honest look at yourself and recognising what you excel at and where you could improve, you begin to develop a more nuanced understanding of who you are as a person. This self-awareness is the foundation of personal development, leading to more informed choices and a more fulfilled life. 

Maximise your strengths and decrease weaknesses  

SWOT Analysis is not just about identifying strengths and weaknesses; it's about acting on that knowledge. By recognising what you are good at, you can focus your efforts on areas where you naturally excel, maximising those strengths. Conversely, by acknowledging your weaknesses, you can take targeted action to minimise or even eliminate those areas of weakness, turning them into strengths over time. 

Explore and improve your soft and hard skills  

Both soft skills, like communication or leadership and hard skills, like specific technical abilities, can be explored and improved through SWOT Analysis. By analysing these aspects, you can pinpoint the exact skills you need to develop to achieve your goals.  

More importantly, this targeted approach to skill development ensures that you are working on the precise areas that will have the most significant impact on your personal or professional life, making your efforts more effective and efficient. 

Develop the skills to lead your team by signing up for the Soft Skills Training For Sales Professionals now!  

Conclusion  

SWOT Analysis for Personal Development is an invaluable tool for individuals seeking growth and success in their personal and professional lives. By systematically examining Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, it provides insights and direction, enabling strategic planning, self-awareness, and a proactive approach to challenges and opportunities. 

Enhance your assertiveness and self-esteem skills by signing up for the Personal Development Traini ng now!  

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Home Blog Business Personal SWOT Analysis: Quick Guide (with Examples)

Personal SWOT Analysis: Quick Guide (with Examples)

Job interviewers want to know what your weaknesses are. Your boss wants to know what plans you have for continuous improvement. And you want to know what threats to look out for that could stunt your growth.

If you identify with any of the previous statements, then it looks like a personal SWOT analysis might benefit you.

“A what?”, you ask. a Personal SWOT Analysis is powerful self-evaluation exercise. Let’s take a look at what Personal SWOT stands for and how you can leverage it for your personal life.

What Is a Personal SWOT Analysis?

A Personal SWOT analysis is an exercise in self-introspection to help you understand yourself and prepare for growth.

What Does SWOT Stand For?

SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. 

In order to make the most of a personal SWOT analysis, you’ll want to not only list out your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, but expand upon them. The amount of introspection and analysis you conduct will depend on you, but some questions you can ask yourself include: 

• Where does this [strength, weakness, opportunity, threat] come from?
• How does it affect me and my life?
• What am I going to do about it? What are the next steps?

Business SWOT Analysis Versus Personal SWOT Analysis

You may have heard of, or even used a SWOT analysis in a business setting. It’s a common tool for teams to generate ideas and work on business strategies oriented around their competitive advantages, gaps, and value proposition. This analysis can also help teams and businesses to identify the external and internal factors that might affect future performance.

Personal SWOT analyses have the same idea, though rarely are they prepared with teamwork (unless you’re consulting with friends and family). A big difference between a business SWOT and a personal SWOT is that for a business, it will usually be focused on products, strategies, and action plans. Whereas, for a personal SWOT, you can also add soft skills, emotional components, and feelings.

Where these two perspectives align is with action. To make the most of a SWOT analysis (be it for personal analysis or for business purposes), you don’t just self-evaluate and mark it as “done”. Both businesses and individuals should use this evaluation to inspire action, decisions, and growth.

Benefits of Conducting a Personal SWOT Analysis

The biggest benefit to performing your own personal SWOT analysis is the structure it gives your self-evaluation. Individuals might think about what they’re good at or what’s getting in the way of their personal growth, at least once in a while. However, abstract introspection doesn’t help us create change. Action is built into the SWOT analysis in the opportunities section.

Secondly, the SWOT focuses on both positive and negative aspects. If you only focus on the good things, then you won’t have a clear direction of what to improve or what needs to change. However, if you only focus on your weaknesses and threats, you might get overwhelmed and disenhearted before you make it to your action plan.

Thirdly, the SWOT analysis focuses on internal characteristics and factors that affect your opportunities. You’ll always have much more control over internal factors compared to external ones.

When Should You Conduct a Personal SWOT Analysis?

While you may not actually need to make a SWOT analysis in preparation of a (Tinder?) date, there are plenty of situations in which this self-evaluation could prove helpful, especially concerning career growth, planning a career paths and self-development topics.

Preparing for a Job Interview

Interview prep is one of the most common uses for a personal SWOT analysis. This is especially true since one of the most famous (or infamous) interview questions is “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” A lot of people think it is hard to come up with a list of appropriate weaknesses for job interviews, but forget that it can actually be difficult to create a good list of strengths as well. This is where the SWOT analysis can help before your job interview presentation . In addition, generate a strategy based on a 30 60 90 Day Plan will help you to present a work plan and demonstrate proactivity in front of employers.

After College Graduation

We have so much structure when we’re in college, that it can be a shock to graduate and lose it all. There are so many decisions to make about career, living situation, relationships, goals, and even pastimes that many recent graduates feel lost and directionless.

If this is your case, try evaluation yourself through the personal SWOT analysis format to help you decide what you want to do, what you need to do, and what the next steps are. The mere fact of going through this analysis as an exercise for personal assessment, could illuminate several aspects related to your potential career.

When Deciding on a College Degree

There are lots of college degree options out there. For some, simply looking at their strengths and interests will be enough. For others, they’ll need something with a bit more structure to help them decide what degree is best for them. Not only can you make a personal SWOT analysis to help you decide what you would be best at, but you can use it to evaluate each prospective college degree as well. 

During Job Self-Evaluations

Candidates in a job interview might have been asked to evaluate themselves at work before. It’s an uncomfortable experience, to say the least. Performing a personal SWOT analysis can both help you format your evaluation and impress your boss at the same time.

Whenever Your Life Needs a Change

There isn’t always a reason or trigger for self-evaluation. Sometimes we just want change. You may be feeling bored, stagnant, or even dissatisfied with your personal situation. Whatever the case, performing a personal SWOT analysis can help you figure out what needs to change and how to start changing it.

How to Make a Personal SWOT Analysis

Begin your SWOT analysis by choosing which of the four components to brainstorm first. We suggest starting with strengths or weaknesses. 

If you’re having a hard time getting started, try using a personal SWOT analysis template . Here’s a guide where you can see how to present a SWOT analysis template .  Here we’ll give you some ideas and questions to ask yourself for each component, as well as some personal SWOT analysis examples.

Strengths Analysis

Your strengths should encompass both what you are good at generally and what makes you special. If you’re having a hard time thinking of your strengths, then turn to other people in your life.  Here are some exercises and questions to help guide your brainstorming: 

• What have been your biggest successes? (think school, sports, work, group project) What characteristics made those accomplishments possible?
• What tangible qualifications do you have? (certifications, degrees, education, training, internships, etc.) 
• What projects have you worked on and completed? (whether in school, at work, or in your personal life)
• What values do you have that others might not have?
• What knowledge-based skills do you have? (languages, digital skills, software knowledge, and other technical skills)
• What soft-skills do you have? (teamwork, leadership, dependable, hardworking)
• What positive personality traits do you have? (friendly, funny, empathetic, enthusiastic, honest, patient)
• What do other people in your life say are your strengths? (friends, parents, coworkers, bosses, teachers)

Personal SWOT Strength Analysis Example

Example of Personal Strengths in SWOT Analysis

“I am a hardworking professional, an imaginative artist, and a compassionate person. I don’t get discouraged when something doesn’t work out, but look for solutions. I speak multiple languages. I can easily learn and understand technical concepts.”

• Problem Solving

Weaknesses Analysis

Before starting on your weaknesses, keep in mind that the point of this exercise isn’t to feel bad about your problems, but to understand them so you can work on improving them. If you want to make this personal SWOT analysis as helpful as possible, you can also make notes of what you can do to work on these weaknesses in this same step.

Try to be honest here. This isn’t necessarily the list you’re going to present to your boss or job recruiter. It’s for your eyes only. That being said, here are some prompts to get you thinking about what your weaknesses are in a constructive way: 

• What times have you “messed up”? (school, work, relationships, with your family, etc.) What about you or what did you do to cause that issue?
• Are you missing any technical qualifications from your education or professional experience?
• What situations and tasks do you usually avoid? Why? What does this say about you as a person? 
• What bad habits do you have?
• Have people ever complained about you? (Keep in mind that not all complaints are true reflections of a person) What have been the valid complaints?
• Think about things that aren’t necessarily weaknesses, but things that you could improve. 
• What would others say you could improve?

Personal SWOT Weaknesses Analysis Example

Example of Weaknesses Analysis:

“I need to improve my self control, especially when it comes to doing things that are necessary like budgeting or cleaning up after myself. I can be impatient and moody. My family says I’m messy.”

• Don’t keep track of income and expenses well
• Better at brainstorming than execution
• Sometimes I don’t say what I want to
• Have more artistic skills than technical

Opportunity Analysis

Your list of opportunities and potential opportunities will differ based on the reason you’re conducting the personal SWOT analysis. Here are some prompts broken down into three main categories of opportunities: work, education, and personal life

Work Opportunity Analysis

• If you’re looking for jobs: Look at job descriptions on LinkedIn or a career site. Look for jobs that call for skills that match the ones you put in your list. These could be opportunities for you.
• Are there any positions at your work that need filling? Are there any tasks that no one else likes to do or is able to do that you can do or learn to do?
• Is there a new project starting at work that you could join and contribute to?
• What potential could you have if you improved one or two of your weaknesses?
• What connections do you have that you can leverage to find work opportunities?

Education Opportunity Analysis

• Ask people you know who have had different jobs that you’re interested in what they studied and what characteristics they think people need for that job. If these match with your strengths, then they could be degree opportunities.
• What potential jobs could you get if you studied one degree or course compared to another?
• What kinds of courses have you been good at? 
• Do you know people who have gone to any schools you’re interested in going to? Could they tell you about their experience or even get you into a meeting with someone who works there?

Personal Life Opportunity Analysis

• What activities or hobbies could you start doing or learn to do?
• Are there any groups you can join?
• What could you achieve in your personal life if you improved on some of your weaknesses?

Personal SWOT Opportunity Analysis Example

• Work Opportunity: Jenny works at Microsoft and could get me into an interview.
• Work Opportunity: If I improve sales by 15% I can get a promotion.
• Education Opportunity: There’s a free online course for learning how to make a website .
• Education Opportunity: My highest grades in high school were in biology and physics. Could find success in a science degree.
• Personal Life Opportunity: A DnD group on the local Facebook page is looking for a new member.
• Personal Life Opportunity: The gallery downtown is offering watercolor classes.

Threat Analysis

What barriers or obstacles are keeping you from achieving your goals and dreams? These threats could come from people, organizations, policies, situations, or even yourself. Here is a list of questions to help you brainstorm the threats in your life: 

• Is there someone in your life holding you back?
• Think about your weaknesses: Does anyone in your life exacerbate these weaknesses or encourage them?
• Are there any new trends, technologies, or processes that you can’t or haven’t gotten involved in that are keeping you from advancing?
• Are there certain tasks, errands, or projects that bog you down and keep you from advancing?
• Is your job, education, or personal life getting in the way of advancing in one of the other areas?
• Do any of your personal traits of weaknesses directly lead to a threat to your success?
• Think about things that, if they were different, would help you move closer to achieving your goals. What are they?

Personal SWOT Threat Analysis Example

Example of Threats Analysis in Personal SWOT:

• Whenever I’m with my college friends, I’m tempted to spend more money.
• I lose motivation at work whenever I have to work on reports. 
• Working from home at my family’s house is too distracting.
• My impatience often leads to difficulties with people.

Your Personal SWOT Analysis is as Simple or Complex as You Make It

You can spend hours brainstorming an exhaustive list of your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and analyzing each thing you write down. 

Or you can go with your gut and write down a quick list of the first things that come to your mind and avoid overthinking. 

Both tactics can be useful. It all depends on your ultimate goal with the exercise. Do you want to know yourself better? Do you want to improve? Either way, the personal SWOT analysis can help you on your way. 

Discover our wide variety of SWOT Analysis Templates and create your own in a professional way.

1. Navigational SWOT Analysis PowerPoint Template

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18. Opportunities & Threats Slides for PowerPoint

19. Strengths & Weaknesses Slides for PowerPoint

20. SWOT Process PowerPoint Template

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How to Create a Personal Development Plan: 3 Examples

For successful change, it is vital that the client remains engaged, recognizing and identifying with the goals captured inside and outside sessions. A personal development plan (PDP) creates a focus for development while offering a guide for life and future success (Starr, 2021).

This article introduces and explores the value of personal development plans, offering tools, worksheets, and approaches to boost self-reflection and self-improvement.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques to create lasting behavior change.

This Article Contains

What is personal development 7 theories, coaching in personal development and growth, how to create a personal development plan, 3 examples of personal development plans, defining goals and objectives: 10 tips and tools, fostering personal development skills, 3 inspiring books to read on the topic, resources from positivepsychology.com, a take-home message, frequently asked questions.

Personal development is a fundamental concept in psychology and encompasses the lifelong process of self-improvement, self-awareness, and personal growth. Crucial to coaching and counseling, it aims to enhance various aspects of clients’ lives, including their emotional wellbeing, relationships, careers, and overall happiness (Cox, 2018; Starr, 2021).

Several psychological models underpin and support transformation. Together, they help us understand personal development in our clients and the mechanisms and approaches available to make positive life changes (Cox, 2018; Passmore, 2021).

The following psychological theories and frameworks underpin and influence the approach a mental health professional adopts.

1. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

As a proponent of the humanistic or person-centered approach to helping people, Abraham Maslow (1970) suggested that individuals have a hierarchy of needs. Simply put, they begin with basic physiological and safety needs and progress through psychological and self-fulfillment needs.

Personal development is often found in or recognized by the pursuit of higher-level needs, such as self-esteem and self-actualization (Cox, 2018).

2. Erikson’s psychosocial development

Erik Erikson (1963) mapped out a series of eight psychosocial development stages that individuals go through across their lifespan.

Each one involves challenges and crises that once successfully navigated, contribute to personal growth and identity development.

3. Piaget’s cognitive development

The biologist and epistemologist Jean Piaget (1959) focused on cognitive development in children and how they construct their understanding of the world.

We can draw on insights from Piaget’s stages of cognitive development, including intellectual growth and adaptability, to inform our own and others’ personal development (Illeris, 2018).

4. Bandura’s social cognitive theory

Albert Bandura’s (1977) theory highlights the role of social learning and self-efficacy in personal development. It emphasizes that individuals can learn and grow through observation, imitation, and belief in their ability to effect change.

5. Self-determination theory

Ryan and Deci’s (2018) motivational self-determination theory recognizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in personal development.

Their approach suggests that individuals are more likely to experience growth and wellbeing when such basic psychological needs are met.

6. Positive psychology

Positive psychology , developed by Martin Seligman (2011) and others, focuses on strengths, wellbeing, and the pursuit of happiness.

Seligman’s PERMA model offers a framework for personal development that emphasizes identifying and using our strengths while cultivating positive emotions and experiences (Lomas et al., 2014).

7. Cognitive-Behavioral Theory (CBT)

Developed by Aaron Beck (Beck & Haigh, 2014) and Albert Ellis (2000), CBT explores the relationship between thoughts, emotions, and behavior.

As such, the theory provides practical techniques for personal development, helping individuals identify and challenge negative thought patterns and behaviors (Beck, 2011).

Theories like the seven mentioned above offer valuable insights into many of the psychological processes underlying personal development. They provide a sound foundation for coaches and counselors to support their clients and help them better understand themselves, their motivations, and the paths they can take to foster positive change in their lives (Cox, 2018).

The client–coach relationship is significant to successful growth and goal achievement.

Typically, the coach will focus on the following (Cox, 2018):

• Actualizing tendency This supports a “universal human motivation resulting in growth, development and autonomy of the individual” (Cox, 2018, p. 53).
• Building a relationship facilitating change Trust clients to find their own way while displaying empathy, congruence, and unconditional positive regard . The coach’s “outward responses consistently match their inner feelings towards a client,” and they display a warm acceptance that they are being how they need to be (Passmore, 2021, p. 162).
• Adopting a positive psychological stance Recognize that the client has the potential and wish to become fully functioning (Cox, 2018).

Effective coaching for personal growth involves adopting and committing to a series of beliefs that remind the coach that the “coachee is responsible for the results they create” (Starr, 2021, p. 18) and help them recognize when they may be avoiding this idea.

The following principles are, therefore, helpful for coaching personal development and growth (Starr, 2021).

• Stay committed to supporting the client. While initially strong, you may experience factors that reduce your sense of support for the individual’s challenges.
• Coach nonjudgmentally. Our job is not to adopt a stance based on personal beliefs or judgment of others, but to help our clients form connections between behavior and results.
• Maintain integrity, openness, and trust. The client must feel safe in your company and freely able to express themselves.
• Responsibility does not equal blame. Clients who take on blame rather than responsibility will likely feel worse about something without acknowledging their influence on the situation.
• The client can achieve better results. The client is always capable of doing and achieving more, especially in relation to their goals.
• Focus on clients’ thoughts and experiences. Collaborative coaching is about supporting the growth and development of the client, getting them to where they want to go.
• Clients can arrive at perfect solutions. “As a coach, you win when someone else does” (Starr, 2021, p. 34). The solution needs to be the client’s, not yours.
• Coach as an equal partnership. Explore the way forward together collaboratively rather than from a parental or advisory perspective.

Creating a supportive and nonjudgmental environment helps clients explore their thoughts, feelings, and goals, creating an environment for personal development and flourishing (Passmore, 2021).

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A personal development plan is a powerful document “to create mutual clarity of the aims and focus of a coaching assignment” (Starr, 2021, p. 291). While it is valuable during coaching, it can also capture a client’s way forward once sessions have ended.

Crucially, it should have the following characteristics (Starr, 2021):

• Short and succinct
• Providing a quick reference or point of discussion
• Current and fresh, regularly revised and updated

Key elements of a personal development plan include the following (Starr, 2021):

• Area of development This is the general skill or competence to be worked on.
• Development objectives or goals What does the client want to do? Examples might include reducing stress levels, improving diet, or managing work–life balance .
• Behaviors to develop These comprise what the client will probably do more of when meeting their objectives, for example, practicing better coping mechanisms, eating more healthily, and better managing their day.
• Actions to create progress What must the client do to action their objectives? For example, arrange a date to meet with their manager, sign up for a fitness class, or meet with a nutritionist.
• Date to complete or review the objective Capture the dates for completing actions, meeting objectives, and checking progress.

Check out Lindsey Cooper’s excellent video for helpful guidance on action planning within personal development.

We can write and complete personal development plans in many ways. Ultimately, they should meet the needs of the client and leave them with a sense of connection to and ownership of their journey ahead (Starr, 2021).

• Personal Development Plan – Areas of Development In this PDP , we draw on guidance from Starr (2021) to capture development opportunities and the behaviors and actions needed to achieve them.
• Personal Development Plan – Opportunities for Development This template combines short- and long-term goal setting with a self-assessment of strengths, weaknesses, and development opportunities.
• Personal Development Plan – Ideal Self In this PDP template , we focus on our vision of how our ideal self looks and setting goals to get there.

“The setting of a goal becomes the catalyst that drives the remainder of the coaching conversation.”

Passmore, 2021, p. 80

Defining goals and objectives is crucial to many coaching conversations and is usually seen as essential for personal development.

Check out this video on how you can design your life with your personal goals in mind.

The following coaching templates are helpful, containing a series of questions to complete Whitmore’s (2009) GROW model :

• G stands for Goal : Where do you want to be?
• R stands for Reality : Where are you right now with this goal?
• O stands for Options : What are some options for reaching your goal?
• W stands for Way forward : What is your first step forward?

Goal setting creates both direction and motivation for clients to work toward achieving something and meeting their objectives (Passmore, 2021).

The SMART goal-setting framework is another popular tool inside coaching and elsewhere.

S = Specific M = Measurable A = Attainable/ or Agreed upon R = Realistic T = Timely – allowing enough time for achievement

The SMART+ Goals Worksheet contains a series of prompts and spaces for answers to define goals and capture the steps toward achieving them.

We can summarize the five principles of goal setting (Passmore, 2021) as follows:

• Goals must be clear and not open to interpretation.
• Goals should be stretching yet achievable.
• Clients must buy in to the goal from the outset.
• Feedback is essential to keep the client on track.
• Goals should be relatively straightforward. We can break down complex ones into manageable subgoals.

The following insightful articles are also helpful for setting and working toward goals.

• What Is Goal Setting and How to Do it Well
• The Science & Psychology of Goal-Setting 101

1. People skills

Improving how we work with others benefits confidence, and with other’s support, we are more likely to achieve our objectives and goals. The following people skills can all be improved upon:

• Developing rapport
• Assertiveness and negotiation
• Giving and receiving constructive criticism

2. Managing tasks and problem-solving

Inevitably, we encounter challenges on our path to development and growth. Managing our activities and time and solving issues as they surface are paramount.

Here are a few guidelines to help you manage:

• Organize time and tasks effectively.
• Learn fundamental problem-solving strategies.
• Select and apply problem-solving strategies to tackle more complex tasks and challenges.
• Develop planning skills, including identifying priorities, setting achievable targets, and finding practical solutions.
• Acquire skills relevant to project management.
• Familiarize yourself with concepts such as performance indicators and benchmarking.
• Conduct self-audits to assess and enhance your personal competitiveness.

3. Cultivate confidence in your creative abilities

Confidence energizes our performance. Knowing we can perform creatively encourages us to develop novel solutions and be motivated to transform.

Consider the following:

• Understand the fundamentals of how the mind works to enhance your thinking skills.
• Explore a variety of activities to sharpen your creative thinking.
• Embrace the belief that creativity is not limited to artists and performers but is crucial for problem-solving and task completion.
• Learn to ignite the spark of creativity that helps generate innovative ideas when needed.
• Apply creative thinking techniques to enhance your problem-solving and task completion abilities.
• Recognize the role of creative thinking in finding the right ideas at the right time.

To aid you in building your confidence, we have a whole category of articles focused on Optimism and Mindset . Be sure to browse it for confidence-building inspiration.

With new techniques and technology, our understanding of the human brain continues to evolve. Identifying the vital elements involved in learning and connecting with others offers deep insights into how we function and develop as social beings. We handpicked a small but unique selection of books we believe you will enjoy.

1. The Coaching Manual: The Definitive Guide to the Process, Principles and Skills of Personal Coaching – Julie Starr

This insightful book explores and explains the coaching journey from start to finish.

Starr’s book offers a range of free resources and gives clear guidance to support new and existing coaches in providing practical help to their clients.

Find the book on Amazon .

2. The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level – Gay Hendricks

Delving into the “zone of genius” and the “zone of excellence,” Hendricks examines personal growth and our path to personal success.

This valuable book explores how we eliminate the barriers to reaching our goals that arise from false beliefs and fears.

3. The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are – Brené Brown

Brown, a leading expert on shame, vulnerability, and authenticity, examines how we can engage with the world from a place of worthiness.

Use this book to learn how to build courage and compassion and realize the behaviors, skills, and mindset that lead to personal development.

We have many resources available for fostering personal development and supporting client transformation and growth.

Our free resources include:

• Goal Planning and Achievement Tracker This is a valuable worksheet for capturing and reflecting on weekly goals while tracking emotions that surface.
• Adopt a Growth Mindset Successful change is often accompanied by replacing a fixed mindset with a growth one .
• FIRST Framework Questions Understanding a client’s developmental stage can help offer the most appropriate support for a career change.

More extensive versions of the following tools are available with a subscription to the Positive Psychology Toolkit© , but they are described briefly below:

• Backward Goal Planning

Setting goals can build confidence and the skills for ongoing personal development.

Backward goal planning helps focus on the end goal, prevent procrastination, and decrease stress by ensuring we have enough time to complete each task.

Try out the following four simple steps:

• Step one – Identify and visualize your end goal.
• Step two – Reflect on and capture the steps required to reach the goal.
• Step three – Focus on each step one by one.
• Step four – Take action and record progress.
• Boosting Motivation by Celebrating Micro Successes

Celebrating the small successes on our journey toward our goals is motivating and confidence building.

Practice the following:

• Step one – Reflect momentarily on the goal you are working toward.
• Step two – Consider each action being taken to reach that goal.
• Step three – Record the completion of each action as a success.
• Step four – Choose how to celebrate each success.

If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others reach their goals, check out this collection of 17 validated motivation & goal achievement tools for practitioners. Use them to help others turn their dreams into reality by applying the latest science-based behavioral change techniques.

17 Tools To Increase Motivation and Goal Achievement

These 17 Motivation & Goal Achievement Exercises [PDF] contain all you need to help others set meaningful goals, increase self-drive, and experience greater accomplishment and life satisfaction.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

Personal development has a rich and long history. It is underpinned by various psychological theories and remains a vital aspect of creating fulfilling lives inside and outside coaching and counseling.

For many of us, self-improvement, self-awareness, and personal growth are vital aspects of who we are. Coaching can provide a vehicle to help clients along their journey, supporting their sense of autonomy and confidence and highlighting their potential (Cox, 2018).

Working with clients, therefore, requires an open, honest, and supportive relationship. The coach or counselor must believe the client can achieve better results and view them nonjudgmentally as equal partners.

Personal development plans become essential to that relationship and the overall coaching process. They capture areas for development, skills and behaviors required, and goals and objectives to work toward.

Use this article to recognize theoretical elements from psychology that underpin the process and use the skills, guidance, and worksheets to support personal development in clients, helping them remove obstacles along the way.

Ultimately, personal development is a lifelong process that boosts wellbeing and flourishing and creates a richer, more engaging environment for the individual and those around them.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free .

Personal development is vital, as it enables individuals to enhance various aspects of their lives, including emotional wellbeing, relationships, careers, and overall happiness.

It promotes self-awareness, self-improvement, and personal growth, helping individuals reach their full potential and lead fulfilling lives (Passmore, 2021; Starr, 2021).

Personal development is the journey we take to improve ourselves through conscious habits and activities and focusing on the goals that are important to us.

Personal development goals are specific objectives individuals set to improve themselves and their lives. Goals can encompass various areas, such as emotional intelligence, skill development, health, and career advancement, providing direction and motivation for personal growth (Cox, 2018; Starr, 2021).

A personal development plan typically comprises defining the area of development, setting development objectives, identifying behaviors to develop, planning actions for progress, and establishing completion dates. These five stages help individuals clarify their goals and track their progress (Starr, 2021).

• Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory . Prentice-Hall.
• Beck, A. T., & Haigh, E. P. (2014). Advances in cognitive therapy and therapy: The generic cognitive model. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology , 10 , 1–24.
• Beck, J. S. (2011). Cognitive behavior therapy: Basics and beyond . Guilford Press.
• Cottrell, S. (2015). Skills for success: Personal development and employability . Bloomsbury Academic.
• Cox, E. (2018). The complete handbook of coaching . SAGE.
• Ellis, A. (2000). Can rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) be effectively used with people who have devout beliefs in God and religion? Professional Psychology-Research and Practice , 31 (1), 29–33.
• Erikson, E. H. (1963). Youth: Change and challenge . Basic Books.
• Illeris, K. (2018). An overview of the history of learning theory. European Journal of Education , 53 (1), 86–101.
• Lomas, T., Hefferon, K., & Ivtzan, I. (2014). Applied positive psychology: Integrated positive practice . SAGE.
• Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personalit y (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
• Passmore, J. (Ed.). (2021). The coaches’ handbook: The complete practitioner guide for professional coaches . Routledge.
• Piaget, J. (1959): The Psychology of intelligence . Routledge.
• Rose, C. (2018). The personal development group: The students’ guide . Routledge.
• Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2018). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness . Guilford Press.
• Seligman, M. E. (2011). Authentic happiness using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment . Nicholas Brealey.
• Starr, J. (2021). The coaching manual: The definitive guide to the process, principles and skills of personal coaching . Harlow: Pearson Education.
• Whitmore, J. (2009). Coaching for performance . Nicholas Brealey.

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How to develop a personal development plan (PDP) to reach your goals

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What’s personal development?

6 types of personal development, what’s a personal development plan, how to create a personal development plan for work and life, bring your goals to life.

No matter where you find yourself in life, there’s always room for self-improvement. 

But whether you want to make more time for your family , learn how to advocate your boundaries at work , or pursue a master’s degree , reaching your goals is easier said than done. You might lose track of your progress or get too busy to continue the commitment.

Writing your goals down in a personal development plan (PDP) can transform big, impossible-sounding ideas into actionable changes in your daily life. 

Personal development is the process of looking inward and concentrating on ways to better yourself. It focuses on rebuilding habits and ways of thinking, like developing better problem-solving skills , practicing self-compassion , or fostering a growth mindset . 

But it’s far from simple. The techniques you use to connect with your inner self differ greatly from person to person, making the right path potentially harder to find. True development asks you to engage in honest self-reflection and strategic goal-setting at the same time — and sometimes, that’s a long process. 

That doesn’t mean personal development isn’t worth it. Striving for growth and continuous learning will push you out of your comfort zone , teaching you to be resilient and flexible to challenges . 

And the rewards are transformative. Embracing change will help you build self-awareness and push you closer to your personal and professional aspirations. The meaning of a PDP is to have something that tracks and supports your progress. 

Personal development is a never-ending process. You can always benefit from improving your know-how or adopting an entirely new skill. There’s infinite potential for personal development, and if that feels overwhelming, it’s okay. Start slow and small and let improvements build one on top of the other. 

To get started on a self-assessment of your potential objectives, here are six common categories of personal development goals:

1. Soft skills

Your unique personality makes some soft skills feel second nature. If you identify more as an introvert , your natural attention to your inner self may give you a deep sense of empathy or creativity . And if you feel more extroverted , you probably instinctively multitask or strike up conversations with new colleagues. 

According to a LinkedIn hiring trends analysis, your technical skills capture a hiring manager’s attention, but soft skills often determine whether they actually extend a job offer — so don’t overlook them. You might already have strong soft skills that come naturally to you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t learn others that push you out of your comfort zone. 

It isn’t just your professional life where these competencies come in handy. In your personal life, they shape friendships and nourish a sense of community and belonging . 

To identify areas for improvement, perform a skills assessment , reach out to colleagues or managers for constructive feedback , or start a daily journaling practice to identify behavioral patterns. Whether it’s fostering better decision-making or lowering your cognitive bias tops your list of goals, the soft skills you develop can make life easier and more fulfilling. 

2. Personal growth

Daily life is so full of tasks that you may not often stop to revel in the lessons you learn each day. Personal growth is about moving through your routines with intention, pushing to be a better version of yourself. 

Although personal growth is a lifelong journey, you can accomplish it through daily goal-setting. Try waking up early to have 30 minutes of peace, limiting social media usage , or setting boundaries to align daily life with your personal values . 

Personal growth requires a commitment to constant self-discovery . You change every day, and your personal goals for self-improvement should reflect that. Start by asking yourself self-discovery questions , reading books by self-growth experts you admire, or starting a manifestation journal to unlock your dreams.

3. Power to impact others

Personal power is more than your ability to wield influence — it’s about how you do it. Every day, you interact with people and impact them with your words, actions, and presence. Intentionality is the key to making your influence positive, uplifting and inspiring the people around you. 

To weave this power into your personal growth plan, reflect on the times others uplifted you and try to recreate them. Deepening your empathetic leadership , working on collaboration skills , and learning to treat others with respect are all ways to create nurturing environments and ensure that your impact leaves a positive legacy . 

4. Personal improvement

Personal improvement and personal growth may sound similar on paper, but each has a unique focus and objective. Growth focuses on a holistic exploration of inner fulfillment. But improvement often includes short-term goals that are easier to define, zeroing in on the specific skill sets that enhance your daily life. 

Learning negotiation skills , improving technical proficiency, or developing routines for financial wellness are all examples of personal improvement goals. These skills give you structure and know-how to work productively and remain resilient to challenges. And while it is distinct from personal growth, the skills you develop here will act as foundations that support broader development. 

5. Self-confidence

When you’re confident, you move through your day easily, stand up to challenges, and confidently share ideas. But unfortunately, not every day feels like this. Everyone has insecurities or worries that invite their inner critic to pop up and take over their positive mindset . 

While you may not be able to manifest a life free of insecurity or worry, you can take steps to improve overall self-confidence. Expanding your network, learning clear communication skills , and adopting a growth mindset can make you more resilient . That way, when challenges overwhelm you, you can step back and access tools to move forward confidently.

6. Personal analysis

It’s not always easy to see yourself from an outside perspective. But being objective and honest about your strengths and weaknesses is the key to self-improvement. After all, if you don’t know your starting place, it’s nearly impossible to build a path forward. 

This kind of self-analysis requires regular checking-in, which can be a long-term goal in itself. Consider reflective journaling, regularly requesting performance reviews , or taking a personality assessment like the Enneagram . However you analyze yourself, you’ll develop valuable insights about where you are and where you aspire to go. 

A PDP is a document that outlines individual development goals and breaks them down into achievable steps. It can be as simple as a bulleted list or as involved as a daily action plan . It’s up to you and how you prefer to grow, and it might take some trial and error to discover what works best.

Staring at the finish line can be overwhelming when you don’t know what your journey is. A PDP is a step-by-step action plan to transform big concepts into attainable short-term and long-term goals , motivating you as you move from one milestone to the next. 

Why is creating a personal development plan important? 

Now that you know what PDP stands for, you can put it into practice. But understanding its importance first can motivate you to create your own plan and put in the hard work to follow through with it. 

Here are some benefits of a PDP: 

• Provides a guide: Your personal and professional life is full of checklists. Between household chores, work responsibilities, and maintaining a social life , it’s easy to lose yourself in routines. Creating a clear PDP helps you keep your eye on your career goals and personal needs without neglecting your day-to-day. No matter how busy your day is, a coherent PDP ensures your goals are on your list of priorities.
• Adapts to your needs: Life isn’t predictable, and your PDP will reflect that. As you change and grow, or when something throws a wrench in your plan, you can always return to your PDP and readjust. This means it will always reflect your current aspirations, creating a relevant guide no matter where life takes you. 
• Fosters the power of time management: Learning better time management skills may be on your list of personal or professional development goals . But building an action plan is an incredible time management technique. PDPs depend on structure, helping you turn tasks into time-bound objectives and stay on schedule. This improves your focus and minimizes the time you spend on activities that don’t contribute to your goals. 

Makes big goals feel more attainable: Goals like changing careers, saving for a mortgage, or becoming a keynote speaker for your favorite industry seminar may feel so far away that they’re hard to begin. But whether five years away, 10 years , or more, a PDP breaks down big goals into manageable steps, with plenty of milestones to celebrate in between.

While your goals are unique to you, you can follow a general step-by-step guide to build an effective PDP. Here are seven steps toward creating a comprehensive and effective PDP: 

1. Set goals

The first step is always goal-setting. Take time to imagine what you want to achieve, charting out different goals you want to accomplish next week, next quarter, or by the end of the year. This is the hardest (and most important) step of building your PDP. If you overload yourself with too many goals or objectives you aren’t prepared to achieve, you might grow overwhelmed and give up before you can begin to make a dent. 

Start by reviewing the six types of personal development and reflect on what resonates with you most. To help you brainstorm, try hiring a personal coach or reaching out to your community. You may quickly build a long list of objectives, so aim to narrow them down. 

Splitting them into short-, mid-, and long-term goals might help you decide on a focus and evenly spread your energy between objectives.

Creating a daily skincare routine, adopting a new hobby , and pursuing a master’s degree at once evenly divides your resources and balances your progress. But trying to change careers, go back to school, and move into a management role might be too many steps to take at once. 

2. Prioritize your goals

Once you write your goals down, it’s time to break them into actionable steps using SMART goals . SMART stands for: 

• Specific: Effective goals are clear. Be sure to define the skill, knowledge, or experience you will develop. Rather than “improve time management skills,” plan to “adopt a new time management app, track times on common tasks, and delegate non-urgent tasks to other team members.”
• Measurable: Monitor progress along the way with targets or SMART KPIs to understand how you’re doing and adjust when necessary. Rather than “Improving self-care routine ,” you can plan to “Prioritize eight hours of healthy sleep, 150 minutes of weekly exercise, and one day dedicated to free-time activities.” Then you can check those off the list regularly and track the days you miss.
• Attainable: Being honest about your resources and time will help you separate unachievable goals from realistic ones. Consider everything you’ll need to accomplish every single milestone. If your goals aren’t realistic, you structure failure into your plan. 
• Relevant: Every step of your PDP needs to be relevant to your finish line. I f your professional goals include pursuing a project management certification, learning a new coding language will just distract you because it doesn’t contribute. Remember — you don’t have to accomplish everything at once. Choose what’s most relevant to your personal and professional goals and job role, and prioritize according to importance. 
• Time-bound: Setting deadlines holds you accountable. But meeting deadlines requires in-depth strategic planning , according to researcher Maroš Servátka in an interview with the Harvard Business Review . If you’re too generous with your time, you may consistently put deadlines off. Be careful to set realistic schedules with an appropriate amount of wiggle room. 

3. Conduct a SWOT analysis

A SWOT analysis identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that could affect your journey. While it can help you double-check that your SMART goals are accurate, you can also use it to consider the external factors that help or hinder your process. 

Poor time management skills might hinder your ability to balance a certification program, full-time work, and your home life. Identifying your need to get organized — which might be a weakness in your analysis  — can help you prioritize methods to build structure into your schedule. Also check for opportunities, like flexibility in your work schedule or stipends for schooling. 

4. Tap into your network

Personal development doesn’t happen in a bubble. Your network of friends, mentors, and loved ones is one of your most valuable assets, whether providing emotional support or insightful advice.

Let people know about your goals and share your plan to get there, encouraging them to hold you accountable, or find an accountability buddy. It’s also a good idea to let them know when to hold off and let you make your own mistakes.

5. Measure your progress

Find a tracking system that makes the most sense for you and your goals. For professional growth, this may include a new productivity app that tracks and visualizes your progress.

For smaller personal goals, like improving your sleep hygiene or exercise regime , regular journaling or to-do lists can be just as effective. Whatever method you choose, celebrate your wins and readjust when challenges get in the way.

Self-improvement doesn’t have to be overwhelming. With careful thought and strategy, your goals can turn into meaningful action. Start by analyzing your future aspirations, resources, and opportunities. From there, build your personal development plan with milestones to motivate and move you toward continued success.

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Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

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Personal SWOT Analysis: A Comprehensive Guide for Personal Development

Personal development is a crucial aspect for every employee, and there are various tools available to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. One of the most widely used tools is a Personal SWOT analysis.

SWOT, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, can be used for personal and professional development. This article will delve into the different sections of a Personal SWOT analysis and provide helpful tips on how to get started.

Investing time in personal development is a crucial step towards achieving your goals and advancing your career. By taking the time to reflect on your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, you can gain valuable insights that will help you improve your performance and overcome obstacles. This analysis can help you create a roadmap for your personal and professional growth and increase your chances of success.

The first section of a Personal SWOT analysis is strengths. This section is where you identify the things that you are good at or excel in. Strengths are the things that you do well, and they give you an advantage over others. Some examples of strengths include:

• Excellent communication skills
• Attention to detail
• Positive attitude
• Good problem-solving skills
• Ability to work well under pressure

When identifying your strengths, it's essential to be honest with yourself. Don't be afraid to ask others for their opinions, as they may see things that you don't. Ask yourself these questions:

• What are the skills or talents that come naturally to me?
• What do others consistently compliment me on or seek me out for?
• What have been my greatest accomplishments in my personal or professional life?
• What unique qualities or characteristics do I possess that sets me apart from others?
• What tasks or activities do I find easy or enjoyable?

The second section of a Personal SWOT analysis is weaknesses. This section is where you identify the areas that you need to improve. Weaknesses are the things that hold you back and prevent you from achieving your goals. Some examples of weaknesses include:

• Procrastination
• Poor time management
• Lack of confidence
• Inability to work well in a team
• Poor public speaking skills

When identifying your weaknesses, it's important to be objective. Don't be too hard on yourself, but don't underestimate the areas where you need to improve. Acknowledging your weaknesses is the first step towards improving them. As yourself these questions:

• What are the areas where I struggle or face challenges?
• What negative feedback have I received in the past?
• What are my biggest fears or insecurities?
• What skills or knowledge do I lack that could prevent me from achieving my goals?
• What tasks or activities do I find difficult or unpleasant?

Opportunities

The third section of a Personal SWOT analysis is opportunities. This section is where you identify the external factors that you can take advantage of. Opportunities are the things that can help you achieve your goals and move your career forward. Some examples of opportunities include:

• A new project or assignment at work
• Networking events
• Professional development courses
• The chance to work with a mentor
• A job opening in your desired field

When identifying your opportunities, it's essential to be aware of the external factors that can benefit you. Keep an open mind and be proactive in seeking out opportunities. Ask yourself these questions:

• What external factors or trends could create new opportunities for me?
• What new projects or initiatives are being undertaken in my workplace or industry?
• What professional development courses or certifications could help me advance my career?
• Who could I connect with or network with to expand my professional circle?
• What internal job openings or roles align with my interests and career aspirations?

The fourth section of a Personal SWOT analysis is threats. This section is where you identify the external factors that may pose a risk or challenge to your personal development. Threats are the things that can hold you back or hinder your progress. Some examples of threats include:

• Economic downturn
• Competitors in your industry
• Technological advancements that may make your skills obsolete
• Changes in the job market
• Health issues

When identifying your threats, it's important to be aware of the external factors that may affect your personal development. Keep an eye on the changes in your industry and the job market, and be prepared to adapt to the challenges that arise. Ask yourself these questions:

• What external factors or trends could pose a challenge to my career or personal life?
• What competitors or obstacles stand in the way of me achieving my goals?
• What economic or political changes could impact my industry or workplace?
• What new technologies or tools could render my current skills or knowledge obsolete?
• What potential health or personal issues could interfere with my performance or goals?

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In conclusion, a Personal SWOT analysis is a powerful tool for personal development. By identifying your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, you can create a roadmap for your personal and professional growth. Remember to be honest with yourself and seek out feedback from others. With the insights gained from a Personal SWOT analysis, you can take proactive steps towards achieving your goals and advancing your career.

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A Guide to a Personal SWOT Analysis: Preparing for Your Next Role

A SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis is a technique that has been used over the past few decades to assist organizations in identifying current and future trends.

This analysis is often used in developing strategic plans or in evaluating individual project conditions. You may be familiar with a SWOT analysis in assessing your professional projects or examining your organization’s internal and external environments. A SWOT analysis is more than just a business tool. It is a valuable developmental exercise that can be utilized to reflect, identify, and evaluate your own personal or professional goals. It can also be helpful for job seekers who are looking for new opportunities and those who are looking to climb the career ladder.

Your Reasons for a Personal SWOT Analysis

When conducting a personal SWOT analysis, think about your desired outcome. What is your goal? Do you want a new job or a promotion in your current organization? Are you looking for personal growth, or do you want to explore a new career path? Listing everything in a SWOT diagram (below) will help clarify your thoughts and shape your resume or proposal for promotion.

A personal SWOT analysis can provide insights based on your personality strengths, foreseeable challenges and present opportunities you can maximize in pursuit of career goals. Your awareness of your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats can be an invaluable advantage. If you can identify and understand your strengths and opportunities, you will know where to tread with confidence and security. If you can also realize the weaknesses and threats posed to you, it is possible to focus on and create a plan to improve and/or minimize the potential harm if left unattended.

How to Create a Personal SWOT Analysis

It is a quick and easy diagram to fill out—just like the one below. You can just write it out, or if you are like me, you can make it more organized and give it a professional look by typing it out. 

Take a Blank Page Approach

Follow the steps below to identify, prioritize, and act on your particular SWOT factors.

1. Identify your strengths

Explore your strengths. This first part is an opportunity for you to show off and jot down all the things you do well. Remember to make it as personal as possible and put yourself inside a prospective employer's head as you consider your strong points. What skills can you bring to the organization or role? Even better, what makes you unique? Try to avoid false modesty while being brutally honest and realistic with yourself. Start by making a list of words that describe you or how your friends and family would describe you. Your strengths can be your skills, abilities, or qualifications. You can also include work experience, education, additional training, and certifications. Recall your key achievements, including successful projects and campaigns. What other personal skills do you have? For example, are you calm under pressure? Are you an active listener? Are you a great leader? Listing your strengths can help you create a resume and cover letter that demonstrate your most relevant qualifications. If you are making a personal SWOT analysis while searching for a job, consider additional strengths such as the ability to relocate or the professional network that you can leverage.

2. Review your weaknesses

At first glance, this is honestly my least favorite part. No one likes to think about what they are not good at, right? But do not look at this as a crushing self-esteem exercise; it can be the most valuable part of the analysis.  And, when it is all said and done, it can be the most motivating part. In assessing your weaknesses, think about what prospective employers might consider being the areas you could improve upon. The idea here is to be completely honest with yourself. It does not mean being too hard on yourself, yet it requires you to be truthful with yourself. Facing your shortcomings now can give you a huge leg up in career planning. It is human nature that we find it relatively difficult to identify the areas where we are weak. List all your professional bad habits. Past performance appraisals and even your professors’ comments from school provide valuable feedback. For example, do you struggle with group work? Do you need to brush up on your communication skills?

Any area you could improve would be a weakness, such as needing additional experience for a potential job or building better relationships within your current organization. Think about this as your organization’s leadership would and where you want to go in your career. Reviewing your weaknesses will help you understand where you need to invest in yourself.

3. Define any opportunities available to you

Now it is time to think about external influences. Opportunities are external factors that can improve your situation. Your list of opportunities could be personal or within the industry that you are targeting. When creating your list of opportunities, consider resources, market trends, and other factors that could help you. Look at how the industry that you are targeting is developing. Are there any significant changes/advancements in your industry that you can take advantage of? If you are looking for an internal promotion, is there a new project in your organization that you can join to benefit your career? The list of questions can go on and on. The most important thing is to be on the lookout for opportunities. Opportunities can present themselves in many ways. In my opinion, the most common type of opportunity is the one you create for yourself to carve out your path. It is usually excellent if the opportunities you create match your strengths. But sometimes, great opportunities arise in areas that do not match your skill set. Do consider the pros and cons before disregarding them.

4. Understand your potential threats

When making your list of threats, consider external factors that put you at a disadvantage. You need to think of yourself as a company or a product and assess yourself against others. This way, it makes it easier for you to identify threats. Here are some ways to identify your threats: Is one of your peers doing a better job than you in a similar role? Are both of you competing for the same promotion? Are your traits hurting your career advancements? What are the obstacles (personal or professional) that prevent you from achieving your targets goals? Threats can also include changes in the job market (unemployment or even a pandemic), potential competitors, or new industry restrictions. Identify the threats and try to eliminate the ones you can. When it comes to removing threats, one of the easiest to fix is negative personality traits. Sometimes we are not aware of them and may need to examine ourselves and our current surroundings. Get professional help if necessary. For example, if time management is an issue, you can hire a productivity coach or practice scheduling and holding yourself accountable. Understanding potential threats can help you form plans to minimize the risk or turn it into an opportunity.

5. Make an informed decision

Some individuals know from an early age what kind of work will make them happy, while for others, nailing down a career that will bring them fulfillment comes from a process of exploring their interests, skills, personality, learning style, and values. From your SWOT analysis, you will have a road map that shows you how to capitalize on your strengths and minimize or eliminate your weaknesses. When reviewing your list, determine if the strengths and opportunities outweigh the weaknesses and threats. If you find more weaknesses and threats, consider how you can improve your situation before proceeding with a plan. You should then use these tips to take advantage of opportunities and avoid or lessen threats.

Time for You to Practice

Copy and paste the table below into a document and fill it out directly in the boxes.

After analyzing your strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities, you should use that information to plan how to market yourself. I have used this SWOT analysis every time I apply and interview for a new job throughout my career. Going through this exercise helps me ensure I am prepared for the interview and gets me ready to tackle tough questions from interviewers.

So, if you need help with a job search or to obtain a promotion, try creating a SWOT analysis based on the diagram above to sharpen your strengths, improve your weaknesses, identify development opportunities and neutralize or overcome your threats.

For more professional development resources and to explore Pepperdine Graziadio’s graduate degree offerings, visit our website .

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2013/04/15/how-to-conduct-a-personal-s-w-o-t-analysis/?sh=6fe3331e28d8

Learn more about how to achieve your career goals with a degree from Pepperdine Graziadio Business School.

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Creating a Personal Development Plan Using SWOT: A Blueprint for Career Success

General | 25 jan 2024.

Embarking on a journey of personal development is a crucial step towards achieving your career goals. A well-thought-out Personal Development Plan (PDP) can be your compass, guiding you through the maze of professional growth. One effective method to construct a robust PDP is by employing a SWOT analysis – a strategic planning tool that evaluates Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. In this article, we will delve into the intricacies of creating a personal development plan using SWOT and explore how it can positively impact your career.

How do you create a personal development plan?

Before diving into the specifics of a SWOT analysis, let's understand the broader process of crafting a Personal Development Plan. Below are a few things to remember when creating your personal development plan:

Define Your Goals:

Clearly articulate your short-term and long-term career objectives.

Align your goals with your personal values and aspirations.

Assess Your Current State:

Evaluate your current skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Identify areas that need improvement and recognize your existing strengths.

Research and Explore:

Investigate industry trends, emerging technologies, and skill demands.

Explore potential career paths and understand the qualifications required.

Set Measurable Milestones:

Break down your goals into smaller, achievable steps.

Establish measurable milestones to track your progress.

Identify Resources:

Pinpoint the resources – courses, mentors, books – that can aid in your development.

Leverage your professional network for guidance and support.

Create a Timeline:

Develop a realistic timeline for achieving each milestone.

Consider external factors like work commitments and personal responsibilities.

Now that you have a foundational understanding of creating a PDP, let's explore how integrating a SWOT analysis can elevate the effectiveness of your plan.

Start exploring your future career here!

What is a SWOT analysis for a personal strategic plan?

SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool that helps individuals gain a comprehensive understanding of their internal and external factors. It involves identifying Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats to make informed decisions and formulate effective strategies.

Defining SWOT Analysis:

Internal Positive Attributes:

Identify your unique skills, talents, and qualities.

Recognize achievements and positive traits that set you apart.

Weaknesses:

Internal Areas for Improvement:

Acknowledge areas where you lack skills or experience.

Be honest about personal habits or characteristics that may hinder progress.

Opportunities:

External Factors Favorable to Your Goals:

Explore trends and changes in your industry.

Identify opportunities for professional growth and advancement.

External Factors Potentially Hindering Success:

Analyze market trends that may pose challenges.

Recognize potential obstacles or competition in your chosen field.

Now, let's narrow our focus and understand how a PDP based on strengths and weaknesses can be a game-changer in shaping your career trajectory.

What is a personal development plan based on strengths and weaknesses?

Building a PDP centered on strengths and weaknesses allows you to capitalize on what you excel in and address areas that need improvement. This targeted approach ensures a well-rounded and effective strategy for personal and professional development.

Leveraging Strengths:

Identify your key strengths:.

List your skills, talents, and attributes that make you stand out.

Reflect on past achievements and experiences that showcase your strengths.

Maximize Your Strengths:

Integrate your strengths into your career goals and objectives.

Explore ways to leverage your unique abilities in your current role or future endeavors.

Seek Opportunities that Align:

Look for roles or projects that align with your strengths.

Capitalize on opportunities that allow you to showcase and enhance your key skills.

Addressing Weaknesses:

Acknowledge areas for improvement:.

Be honest about the skills or traits that need development.

Seek feedback from mentors, colleagues, or self-assessment tools.

Create a Learning Plan:

Develop a plan to acquire the skills or knowledge necessary for improvement.

Consider workshops, courses, or mentorship programs to address weaknesses.

Set Realistic Improvement Goals:

Break down the process of improvement into achievable goals.

Monitor progress and adjust your plan as needed.

Now that we understand the key components of a PDP based on strengths and weaknesses, let's explore the impact it can have on your career.

Impact on Career Development:

Once you have your personal development plan set up, it can also give a boost in your career. Living a happy personal life will help you thrive in your career and bring out the best in you. Employers nowadays are also concerned with your entire well-being as a human. Which is why there are a lot of companies that offer excellent employee benefits which you can use to balance your life inside and outside of work.

Increased Job Satisfaction:

Aligning your career with your strengths can lead to greater job satisfaction.

Utilizing your strengths fosters a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.

Enhanced Performance:

Capitalizing on strengths often results in improved performance.

Overcoming weaknesses through targeted development contributes to overall competence.

Career Advancement:

A strategic PDP positions you as a proactive and goal-oriented professional.

Addressing weaknesses and building on strengths makes you a competitive candidate for promotions and new opportunities.

Adaptability to Industry Changes:

Regular SWOT assessments ensure you stay aware of industry trends and challenges.

This adaptability positions you as someone who can navigate changes successfully.

Improved Decision-Making:

Understanding your strengths and weaknesses enhances your ability to make informed career decisions.

You can align your choices with your strengths and address potential pitfalls.

In summary, creating a PDP based on a SWOT analysis provides a structured and focused approach to personal and professional development. Now, let's provide you with a template to kickstart your own PDP using SWOT.

Here is a FREE PDP Template that you can use to kickstart a clearer goal in your life and have an excellent life and career ahead of you.

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How to Craft a Personal Development Plan that Inspires Meaningful, Long-Term Results

Overview : This in-depth guide provides a comprehensive 7-step roadmap to create a customized personal development plan template to help you actualize your true potential. It also provides a personal development plan template you can use (with examples).

______________

I leaped into the personal development world with a copy of Tony Robbins’ Personal Power program in the early 1990s.

If you’re old enough and living in the States, you know the one I’m talking about (late-night infomercials).

I was 18, and this audio program made a measurable difference in my outlook and behavior.

From that moment onward, I was hooked on personal development.

I jumped from seminar to seminar, book to book. Investing every possible moment I had, I covered a lot of ground in my first five years.

Reflecting over 30 years on my journey, I now see I was missing several vital ingredients essential for long-term, healthy development back then.

In this guide, I will share with you lessons learned and provide a roadmap for crafting a powerful Personal Development Plan. (Also, toward the bottom of the guide, you can download a personal development plan template and an example plan.)

Let’s dive in …

What is a Personal Development Plan?

A personal development plan is like a business plan for an individual. A personal development plan creates a roadmap for an individual’s growth in key categories of life and work.

There’s no set formula or template for creating a personal development plan.

Your plan can be a half-page, a full-page, or 20 pages long. It’s entirely up to you.

To clarify, “individual development plans” are generally more geared toward career development than a personal development plan (or “self-development plan”), but they all share common attributes.

The primary question a Personal Development Plan helps answer is:

Where am I going to place my available time and attention?

Personal Development Definitions

If you examine most people over a decade, you’ll observe little or no change in their development and behavior.

Development implies a permanent change in the structure of your being including your body, brain, or consciousness.

Just because you adopt a new habit , for example, doesn’t mean you have or will grow from it. If this new habit leads to internal growth over time , however, it will facilitate your development.

It’s all too easy to believe we’re developing when we’re not. I know I deceived myself for many years and there’s evidence of this throughout personal development communities.

Reading books in this genre, for example, doesn’t mean you’re developing. You might just be acquiring more ideas.

Personal development books can potentially provide a roadmap for development in certain areas, but real development comes through practice and repetition .

Our behavior and the development of skills, aptitudes, and desired tendencies are where we can observe signs of permanent change.

Personal Development Is Not Self Help

Self-help implies there’s something wrong with us.

The multi-billion-dollar self-help industry profits by subconsciously communicating these “deficiencies” to its unsuspecting audience.

Actual personal development is how humans realize more of their innate potential.

In an ideal environment, this process happens naturally .

Because this perfect environment doesn’t exist in society, the call for personal development is an individual’s choice. It’s up to each individual to say “yes” to their hero’s journey .

Why Personal Development Plans Are Important

When you don’t have a vision, a plan, or a goal, where does your attention go?

For most people, attention goes to entertainment and distraction. Sight, sound, and motion captivate our brains.

Television series, films, video games, social media, sports, and stock prices hook the primitive parts of our brains.

Even if you’re an overachiever who defines yourself by accomplishments and external status, your attention likely gets fixated on more work, higher productivity, and making more money. That’s fine, but this effort doesn’t necessarily support our personal development goals.

When entertainment, distraction, and workaholism consume our attention, something doesn’t feel right within us.

We may not identify it, but a deeper part of us isn’t fulfilled.

Focusing on Growth Needs

Psychologist Abraham Maslow noted that when individuals mainly focus on meeting their basic human needs like physiological needs, security, fitting in, and being liked and respected, they become neurotic.

Self-actualizing individuals, in contrast, are more focused on their growth needs.

Their motivation stems from an internal directive called intrinsic motivation instead of being driven by external forces. (All of our basic human needs are external.)

To have a full and meaningful life requires us to open to deeper aspects of ourselves.

A personal development plan can help us do just that.

But most people don’t know what’s available to them. I certainly wasn’t aware of the options when I started my journey.

Youthful enthusiasm and naivete guided those early years.

If you go to personal development seminars or read books in this genre, you may only think within the confines of the illustrations these resources provide.

7-Step Roadmap to Creating Your Personal Development Plan

Before we jump in, here’s a quick overview of the steps for creating your personal development plan:

Step 1: Discover the Human Potential Landscape Step 2: Envision Your Future Self Step 3: Select your Current Areas of Focus Step 4: Determine Your Key Practices Step 5: Establish Personal Development Goals Step 6: Set Your Schedule for Deliberate Practice Step 7: Monitor Your Ongoing Progress

Step 1 is what’s missing from many people’s approach to personal development.

So we’ll start our journey with a larger vision for our human potential.

Note : Toward the bottom of this guide, you can download a personal development plan template based on this roadmap.

STEP 1: Discover the Personal Development Landscape

One thing I was missing from my personal development journey was a roadmap of the terrain. How can you navigate through your development without a map?

Every good explorer has one. Such a map shines a much-needed light on the diverse areas of our potential.

A reliable map of human potential wasn’t readily available in the early 90s.

The fields of transpersonal psychology, developmental psychology, integral theory, and neuroscience, however, were converging on one.

Theorist Ken Wilber played a major role in synthesizing many fields of research into a cohesive whole.

Personal Development Categories

In my experience, I’ve found it helps to take an integrated approach to your personal development plan.

That is, know your menu of options so you can select from multiple areas that interest you.

To create a map for our development, we need to know the categories available to us. These categories include:

• Lines of Intelligence (also called Streams of Development)

Skill Development

Major life categories, behavioral change, personality development.

Let’s look at each of these categories in more detail.

Available Lines of Intelligence

While we used to associate “intelligence” with IQ; we now know there are many forms of intelligence.

One popular model comes from the pioneering work of Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner and his Multiple Intelligence theory. 1 Gardner, Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences , 2011.

In Gardner’s model, there are now nine lines of intelligence:

Logical-mathematical intelligence : logic, abstractions, reasoning, numbers, and critical thinking. This intelligence is associated with IQ and intellectual aptitude. This line is also referred to as cognitive intelligence as explored in Jean Piaget’s research.

Linguistic intelligence : words, languages, reading, writing, telling stories, and memorizing words.

Intrapersonal intelligence : to know oneself including one’s strengths and weaknesses, emotional triggers, and motivations. One’s ability to be introspective and self-reflective. Psychologist Daniel Goleman popularized this as  Emotional Intelligence .

Kinesthetic intelligence : one’s ability to control one’s body and one’s skill in using it. Also called body intelligence or body-mind connection.

Musical intelligence :  sensitivity to sounds, pitch, rhythms, tones, meter, melody, etc.

Visual-spatial intelligence : spatial judgment and the ability to visualize and imagine with the mind’s eye.

Interpersonal intelligence : sensitivity to others’ moods, feelings, temperaments, motivations, and their ability to cooperate with others. Goleman popularized this as  Social Intelligence .

Naturalistic intelligence : sensitivity to one’s environment; the ability to recognize flora and fauna; nurturing and relating to one’s natural surroundings.

Existential intelligence : sometimes called spiritual intelligence; relates to one’s understanding of oneself concerning reality or the cosmos.

Integral Theory’s “AQAL” Model of Human Development

Additional Perspectives from Developmental Research

Other developmental researchers have studied the stages of growth in morals, values, worldviews, emotions, contemplation, spirituality, needs, and psycho-sexual development.

Do you see the diverse range of our potential?

In  Integral Life Practice , Ken Wilber, et al. group these “streams of development” into four categories:

• Cognitive development
• Self-related intelligence (including basic human needs , morals, values, and self-identity)
• Talent lines of development (including musical, visual-spatial, mathematical, and kinesthetic)
• Everything else (including spiritual, aesthetic, emotional, psychosexual, and interpersonal)

We each have a different base level of development in each line of intelligence and an innate potential we can realize through deliberate practice.

Our environment often thwarts this potential in early childhood. As adults, our responsibility is to resume this upward march. A personal development plan can help us with that!

Skill development is a broad category that includes areas where you show interest and/or ability. You can develop skills for personal or professional reasons.

There are skills in problem-solving , communication , collaborating, drawing, computer programming, bookkeeping, writing, analyzing, martial arts, persuading, musical instruments, negotiating, learning , presenting, goal setting, listening, managing, planning, reasoning, and predicting, to name only a few.

All skills are associated with at least one line of intelligence listed above. With sufficient interest, practice, and the right methods, individuals can develop any skill.

One way to get more clarity on your natural skills is to take the free VIA Character Strength survey . Your natural strengths often translate to specific skills.

The Wheel of Life Exercise

In your pursuit of personal development, you may have come across the Wheel of Life .

The Wheel of Life is a standard tool that coaches use to illustrate the various categories of one’s life, measure an individual’s status in each area, and set goals to improve in those areas.

Your wheel might include physical health, relationships, social, finances , professional, personal growth, spirituality , creativity , and fun.

The message behind the Wheel of Life is that development occurs through conscious effort and being intentional about how you grow within these key categories.

Who doesn’t have behaviors they would like to change?

We all have set patterns of behavior that get entrenched by unconscious repetition.

Making positive changes to these habits requires repatterning the brain.

For lasting change to occur, we repeat the new habit or behavior over time under various conditions.

The time necessary to install a new habit varies; research suggests it takes 66 days on average. 2 https://www.spring.org.uk/2009/09/how-long-to-form-a-habit.php I’ve found that it’s usually much less.

Why do many personal development programs fail to produce long-term results? Because these programs are “one size fits all.”

Research shows there is a range of psychological types. In the Enneagram system, there are nine primary types and nine levels of development within each one.

Each type has varying propensities, habitual patterns, strengths, weaknesses, fears, and potentials.

If you want to create an effective Personal Development Plan, be sure you’re aware of your psychological type. Each type has a different pathway to higher development.

As a business coach to high-performing entrepreneurs for over 25 years, I went through and used most (if not all) personality tests on the market, including popular ones like Myers-Briggs (MBTI), Human Design Engineering (HDe), and DISC.

In my opinion, the Enneagram is the most efficacious, robust, and useful. (MBTI and HDE are insightful too.)

You can take a free Enneagram test here . You can find scientifically validated paid tests online as well.

After you get your results, read more about your type and see if it resonates. Then, look for ways to develop your type. (On the Enneagram Institute website, they offer “Personal Growth Recommendations” for each type.)

STEP 2: Envision Your Future Self

Consider what the above information means about our potential: Developing any line of intelligence gives us greater sensitivity to the world around us.

We can now process information in new and deeper ways. Every time we grow in a line of intelligence, we perceive the world differently.

We are more aware than before. We have greater sensitivity to the world around us. Our possibilities are remarkable to ponder.

Nietzsche believed it was our destiny to be Ubermensch or Superman. An Ubermensch is an integrated or whole human being accessing his full potential.

Numerous researchers in developmental psychology have come to a similar conclusion, calling the final stage of development “Integrated.”

Maslow called this stage of development self-actualization and later, self-transcendence .

Cast Your Vision

Now, in Step 2, it’s time to create your vision for your future self .

Your vision (and personal development goals) will inspire you if it is true to who you are.

Sometimes we create a vision based on what we  should want or what we hope will gain approval from others—our parents, significant others, colleagues, or friends). Such a vision will lack inspiration and will feel meaningless to us.

Don’t worry about creating a “perfect” vision or the “right” vision. Just craft a sentence or two that inspires you right now.

STEP 3: Select Your Current Areas of Focus

In Step 1, you see a diverse range of options available. Learning about these options can be exciting, but it can also be overwhelming. If you nailed your vision in Step 2, you have more clarity.

Now, depending on your level of clarity, Step 3 can either be the easiest or the most difficult part of this process.

Even when you have a compelling vision for your future self, selecting areas of development to focus on can challenge us because we have limited time and countless options.

We can’t do it all. Creating an aggressive or complicated personal development plan with many goals backfires over time. I can attest to this from personal experience.

An aggressive plan will create additional internal resistance that undermines your efforts.

Over-planning sets you up for failure and discouragement. Eventually, you will burn out (lose motivation) and abandon your plan.

Be Mindful of Your Available Time

We’ll discuss scheduling in Step 6, but consider how much time you have available to invest in your development.

Let’s say you only have 30 minutes a day.

Is it reasonable to expect to make significant changes in six areas of your life within three months?

Developing new skills, for example, may take a minimum of 15 minutes of daily practice.

To set yourself up for success, I recommend picking up to three areas to focus on within the next 90 days.

Where Should You Start?

Select the areas that interest you the most. You’ll learn faster in these areas and have an easier time staying engaged with your practice.

So the question is: What’s most important to you right now ?

What are the areas you are most interested in developing now ?

To help answer these questions, it helps to know what you most value .

Narrow Down Your Search

Be aware of the tendency to overthink the selection process.

Better to dive into something for a month or two and then determine it’s not for you than to analyze your options. Analysis, as the saying goes, often leads to paralysis.

If you’re still having trouble deciding, go with the classic categories of Body, Mind, and Spirit.

• Body : pick an area that interests you like strength training, stamina, aerobics, or functional training.
• Mind : select one to three topics you want to explore. Read relevant books for each one.
• Spirit : consider focusing on gratitude, acceptance, kindness, compassion, meditation, or service to others.

I also recommend you include shadow work as part of an integrated program.

Include Important Lines of Development

While everyone is different and will create their plan to suit their needs, there are certain areas I believe to be foundational (for at least most people).

Cognitive Intelligence

Research shows that cognition is “necessary but insufficient” for other lines of development. For example, just because you have well-developed cognition doesn’t mean you’ll have moral intelligence.

One way to improve your cognition is to read books that challenge your understanding.

Emotional Intelligence (EI)

EI is, arguably, as important as cognitive development. EI relates to your physical and mental health, the quality of your relationships, and your leadership abilities (including self-leadership ).

One way to grow your emotional awareness is through meditation training . In the context of your personal development plan, meditation is a skill-building exercise. You are developing the skill of attention .

Intrapersonal Intelligence

Your level of self-awareness and knowledge of yourself influences your behaviors, moral development, and psychological development.

The Enneagram system can support the development of intrapersonal intelligence. Another way is to practice self-reflection and journaling.

See this in-depth guide on developing intrapersonal intelligence .

Kinesthetic Intelligence

Your awareness of your body defines the degree of your connection to your instinctive self. The more connected you are, the more mental balance you experience (and vice versa).

You can develop your body intelligence through practices like Yoga and Qigong as well as dancing and functional training. You can also use centering exercises , grounding techniques , and Zhan Zhuang  to increase body awareness.

Of course, there are other important aspects of your development. I singled out these four because they influence so much of our behaviors and decisions. Also, many of us are unaware of the profound role they play in our life experiences.

Pushing Beyond Professional Development

One thing I’ve observed in working with high-performing individuals is they tend to focus only on professional goals.

Many of us want to profit from our self-development plan. I’m not suggesting there’s anything wrong with that. Developing your abilities and talents should make you more marketable and of greater value to others.

However, watch the tendency to invest exclusively in this area, denying other aspects of yourself that are still important to a deeper part of you.

If you create a diverse personal development plan, you’ll increase your chances of actualizing your plan. You’ll also find it to be a more rewarding experience.

STEP 4: Determine Your Key Practices

Excellent books like Daniel Coyle’s The Talent Code and Anders Ericsson’s Peak: The New Science of Expertise  show that talent isn’t born but cultivated through deliberate practice .

Once you have selected the areas of your Personal Development Plan, the next step is to determine your practices.

These practices are the actions you are committing to doing consistently to develop in your particular areas of interest.

Examples of Practices

For example, if you want to improve your writing, write at least 1,000 words every day and edit what you write ruthlessly .

Want to learn to play the guitar? Pick up your guitar for at least 15 minutes every evening.

Want to increase your strength? Determine your training routine and follow through three or four days per week.

You may not know what practices to follow in the beginning. At first, you’ll research different topics through books, videos, and articles.

This exploration will help you to pick your practices. You may also consider hiring a coach or trainer to help you establish your practices.

STEP 5: Establish Personal Development Goals

Another common mistake people make with their personal development plan is to set BIG goals.

Big goals are useful for businesses but suboptimal for your self-development plan.

A big goal might be to master a particular instrument within 12 months. Such a goal will go unrealized.

As Sun Tzu wrote in The Art of War , “Every battle is won before it’s ever fought.”

To win the battle for your development in the war of distraction, set mini-goals instead.

Mini goals help you build momentum because they’re more readily achievable than big goals.

Yes, have a big vision . But only set mini personal development goals that are fun, engaging, and manageable.

Examples of Mini-Goals

Instead of mastering an instrument, for example, perhaps you establish a mini-goal like learning how to read sheet music or comfortably playing your favorite song.

If you’re just starting with strength training and you can only do ten consecutive push-ups, perhaps you set a goal of 30 push-ups.

If you want to improve as a public speaker, maybe you set a mini-goal to speak in front of a crowd at least once a week.

If you’re getting into meditation, and you can’t sit comfortably for more than a few minutes, maybe you commit to sitting for just 2 minutes once or twice a day for the next 21 days.

These types of personal development goals will inspire your practice and help you build positive momentum.

STEP 6: Set Your Schedule for Deliberate Practice

Once you know your practices, ensure you block off sufficient time for making progress.

Many people struggle with scheduling for two primary reasons:

• They underestimate how long things take. They get too ambitious with their expectations.
• They don’t honor their calendar unless it involves other people. Time scheduled for ourselves is the first thing to get bumped.

Watch out for both of these common patterns. If you don’t honor your time, I can assure you, no one else will.

Ground Your Plan to Reality

So first ask, How much time can I reasonably commit to my personal development plan?

The question isn’t what you should do; it’s what you think is reasonable and practical in the course of your busy life.

This infographic from Inc. illustrates how 500 chief-level executives spend their day. The average business leader invests 30 minutes a day in personal development—right before bed.

For most people, the two easiest periods to carve out time for your personal development plan are early morning and late evening.

Both of these times share the same two qualities:

• There are fewer distractions and
• You don’t have to interrupt your work/life flow to jump into your practices.

The key is to find times when you can be consistent and then establish a daily rhythm with your practice.

This way you don’t have to make a daily decision of whether or not to practice. You just practice!

Just 10 to 15 minutes is sufficient when you have a busy schedule. On the weekends, you can carve out additional time.

STEP 7: Monitor Your Ongoing Progress

Feedback facilitates the learning process. Athletes and musicians excel when they have experienced coaches to provide the right practices and effective feedback .

In Daniel Coyle’s examination of exceptional talent, he found that having a masterful coach was one of the common denominators for producing talent. 3 Daniel Coyle, The Talent Code , 2009.

Be Aware of Your Overall Mindset

One reason many people fail to develop is because they have a fixed mindset . Individuals with a fixed mindset are more driven to avoid looking foolish than by the desire to learn. They evade any constructive or critical feedback from others.

In contrast, someone on the path to self-mastery accepts failure and mistakes as part of the learning process.

In The Art of Learning , chess master and tai chi champion Josh Waitzkin explains how he became a tai chi champion by challenging superior opponents.

Instead of sparring with opponents of equal or lesser ability, he sought more skilled martial artists. He was often defeated, but he learned quickly.

The Important Role of Attention

Other than outside feedback, the other key to monitoring your progress is to increase your awareness as you practice.

The goal is to become fully present-minded with your practice. (To assist in this process, try using something like The Mastery Method to increase your mental alertness and self-awareness.)

When you bring more awareness to your practice, you ignite an internal feedback loop that facilitates faster learning.

How to Develop Awareness

One way to develop greater awareness is through mind training.

Breathing techniques and meditation help develop parts of the brain (prefrontal cortex region) associated with awareness.

It’s also important to enter a centered state before you practice. It only takes a minute or two, and it will speed up your results.

Do Periodic Check-Ins

Finally, check in with your personal development plan often.

Scan it weekly and revisit it each month to see if there are any adjustments you want to make.

Are you making progress toward your personal development goals? If not, why not?

Evaluate and make course corrections as needed.

Your Personal Development Plan Template (Fillable)

To help you create your plan, I’ve designed a personal development plan template based on the roadmap and principles outlined above. The template is fillable.

Your free kit includes:

• Print-ready PDF of this guide
• Fillable personal development plan template
• Personal development plan example that’s already filled in

Download your free personal development plan kit below.

Note: After you enter your email, you’ll be redirected back here. Links to your free assessment templates will be right here.

Build Your Own Personal Development Plan Template

If you would prefer to create your own template, it’s easy to do. Just include the following elements we just discussed:

• Personal vision (the results from Step 2)
• Areas of focus (the categories selected in Step 3)
• Skills (you’re in the process of developing)
• Practices (you’re using to develop your skills and lines of intelligence from Step 4)
• Mini goals (associated with your skills from Step 5)

All of this information can fit on a single-page template. It will take effort to set up your plan, but once you do, it requires little energy to maintain and update.

Ready? It’s time to create your own Personal Development Plan.

Make Your Personal Development Plan Clear and Practical

It’s important to keep your personal development plan as simple and concise as possible.

The more complicated and robust your plan becomes, the less likely you are to follow through.

For years, I kept my plan on my desk. A 10-second glance at the document was often all I needed.

I used to help my clients create elaborate results plans that often grew into large report-sized documents. We found they were less functional the bigger they became. Eventually, we reduced these plans down to a single page.

Keep your plan to a single page if possible. A one-page personal development plan makes it easy for you to check in often.

Books Related to Personal Development Plan Roadmaps

First, here are a few excellent personal development books cited in this guide:

Mastery by George Leonard

The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle

The Little Book of Talent  by Daniel Coyle

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

From my experience, the most neglected step in creating a Personal Development Plan is understanding the terrain of human potential—what I attempted to summarize in Step 1.

Here are a series of books that opened my mind to greater possibilities years ago.

Integral Life Practice  by Ken Wilber, et al.

3 Vital Stages of Self-Discovery (and Activities for Each Stage)

A Practical Guide to Joseph Campbell and the Hero’s Journey

How to Change Your Mindset from Fixed to Growth

How to Transmute Sexual Energy: An Inner Alchemy Guide

About the Author

Scott Jeffrey is the founder of CEOsage, a self-leadership resource publishing in-depth guides read by millions of self-actualizing individuals. He writes about self-development, practical psychology, Eastern philosophy, and integrated practices. For 25 years, Scott was a business coach to high-performing entrepreneurs, CEOs, and best-selling authors. He's the author of four books including Creativity Revealed .

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Did you know you can make your dreams and aspirations a reality by focusing on your own individual  personal development plan ?

Your potential is limitless, and investing in personal development is a way to harness your many talents.

Establishing goals for what you want to achieve — where you would like to go in the short term or long term — can improve your personal development.

In this guide, I’ll help you understand what personal development means and its importance, what a  personal development plan  is and why you should make one, and how to write a personal development plan.

I’ll also share with you my personal development plan template to get you started on your path to reach your personal development goals, complete with helpful examples and resources to support you.

What Is a Personal Development Plan (PDP)?

A personal development plan is a guideline for your life and your future success.

Personal development is an ongoing process of improving oneself through conscious habits and activities. It is the pursuit of personal growth to enhance your quality of life and to achieve your dreams and aspirations.

When you create a plan, you start to define the kind of person you want to be, the skills you want to have, and the accomplishments you want to achieve. And then you map out your long-term and short-term goals to realize these aspirations and set timelines for when you want to reach them.

Many people underachieve in their careers because they do not realize the areas of personal development that can help achieve mastery in any field.

Effective leaders focus on continual self-improvement and know there is no substitute for hard work.

When you  practice self-discipline  by setting a goal, making a plan, and working on it every day, you will see personal development and progress within your career.

The Importance of Personal Development

Most of the time, what you think about is what you become. From the moment you wake up until the moment you close your eyes at the end of the day, everything you experience plays a factor in your development.

When you take greater control over your experiences, you can guide your personal development and accelerate toward what you want to become instead of leaving it to chance.

Setting, striving for, and meeting personal development goals opens up a world of new possibilities for you to increase your quality of life.

For example, as a result of creating and following your personal development plan, you may gain more responsibility for work and open up opportunities for higher pay. This growth could qualify you for a better career trajectory to increase your overall happiness, job satisfaction, and ability to provide for the life you want for you and your family.

Focusing on your personal development also gives you better decision-making abilities so you can avoid problems that may have plagued you in the past or are holding you back now.

At the end of the day, personal development helps you create more positivity and  harness the power of positive thoughts , which can transform your life.

When you give time to yourself by focusing on your professional and personal growth, you are better able to achieve  your version of success  because of personal development opportunities.

Personal Development vs Self-Improvement

Recognizing the difference between self-improvement and personal development can be a little tricky.

While they are similar in that they are both very instrumental in achieving your goals and improving yourself, there are key differences between a self-improvement plan and your own personal development plan.

Personal development is the work you are putting in to transform yourself on a daily basis. It’s the efforts you’re making to advance in your work, lifestyle, attitude, physique, and sociability.

Setting personal and professional development goals and creating a plan helps you take full advantage of any opportunity that may come your way and make the most of your potential.

Self-improvement is an inner transformation. It is a self-motivated study to improve one’s character, status, or knowledge by their own efforts.

Self-improvement is a lifelong process  of constantly searching for ways to change your habits so you can reach your fullest potential.

The specific efforts you put into personal development lead to self-improvement.

Start Achieving All of Your Goals Today! Download my FREE Personal Development Plan Template

The 7 Categories of Personal Development

Focusing on personal development categories such as personal skills, personal growth, and  personal power  can create habits for personal improvement.

Personal growth is founded on education and skill. Through education and experience, you increase your skill level and your ability to succeed in your field.

There are seven main categories of personal development.

Personal Skills

Personal skills can be ones you were born with as well as those you gain through deliberate practice. They’re often referred to as soft skills.

Examples of personal skills are decision-making, teamwork, organization, and communication.

If you’re looking to develop skills at work, try working on your personal skills. The highest-paid, top individuals in their field are the ones who focus on growing their personal skills.

Knowing what areas you excel in and which need development is very useful in your personal and professional life.

Personal Growth

Having a personal growth plan is one of the first steps toward bettering yourself and stepping out of your comfort zone.

Humans and the human mind are constantly evolving. Think about it: you are not the same person you were a year ago. You’ve learned more, grown in many different ways, and have experienced more life events to further shape your personality, beliefs, and world outlook.

To experience personal development and have a growth mindset, strive to be a better version of yourself today than you were yesterday.

Personal Power

Personal power is the authority others believe you to have in certain situations and is fueled by your contacts, knowledge, and financial status.

Developing an ever-widening circle of contacts, seeking to learn more, and growing financially increases the number of doors that others will leave open for you to step into.

Expanding your network, knowledge base and financial status will also allow you to help others do the same, further increasing your  personal power  and opportunities for personal development and growth.

Personal Improvement

Personal improvement stems from good work habits and having a positive mental attitude.

Thinking before you act is critical to developing a strong amount of personal improvement. To help you think first, try to set priorities on a list and consider the likely consequences before beginning.

Working on personal improvement and generating a positive mental attitude will also reduce the amount of time that it takes you to achieve your goals.

Personal Empowerment

Personal empowerment is similar to Personal Power, except empowerment is the power to reflect what you see within yourself, instead of how others view you.

Promoting a positive image and adopting creativity within your daily life can speed up the time it takes to achieve personal empowerment and your goals.

To help you increase your personal empowerment, consider looking for new, creative ways to finish a project in a faster, easier or cheaper way without compromising the end result.

Personal Analysis

It is very important to be conscious of areas in which you are naturally gifted as well as analyze areas in which you need improvement. This is called personal analysis.

Being truthful about where you currently stand is the first step to moving forward. You should be constantly evaluating where you are when achieving your goals and ambitions.

Personal Objectives

Ambition goes to waste when there are no clear goals in sight. Developing clear direction for short-term and long-term goals is a pivotal step in actually accomplishing them and growing as a person.

Having a set plan will help you have a clear understanding of which strategies are necessary to reach your desired destination.

Why Make a Personal Development Plan?

The reason you need to create a personal development plan is that making a plan will help guide you to better decision-making and remind you of where you want to go.

In other words, good preparation increases the probability of success and decreases the risk of things going wrong along the way.

Creating a plan for personal development helps you get a better sense of control over your life and will make you better prepared for whatever comes your way.

Consider these benefits of having one:

• It brings your vision to reality.
• It ensures you take appropriate and logically planned action.
• It helps you improve your  time management skills  so you can achieve your goals.
• It’s a plan to keep track of progress, which serves to motivate you when you want to give up.
• It’s been proven to reduce stress, improve balance in life, and increase self-confidence.

Developing your personal development plans and goals for work can make the difference between success and failure. Creating a self-growth plan for your personal life can mean the difference between life-long happiness and regret.

Skills & Objectives

The objectives of personal development are continuous personal growth, increased potential for success, and capitalizing on potential opportunities.

You can practice your personal development skills by setting aside time for the important people in your life, performing action exercises that force you to perform at the highest level, and studying growth performances to help ensure you continue to climb the ladder of success.

An action plan has to include measurable objectives so you know the exact steps it will take to reach your goals. Objectives break your larger personal goals into bite-sized pieces so you can know where you are headed and check off your progress along the way.

There are no limits except for the limits you place on yourself with your thinking.

Commit yourself to a life of constant learning. Even if you are at the top of your field, there is always something to learn.

Once you have mastered a new skill, move on to learning another one. Constantly learning new skills keeps your mind fresh and active and opens doors that would otherwise be closed to you.

You will become unstoppable and you will see your entire future open up in front of you if you live a goal and growth-oriented life.

How to Set Personal Development Goals

Before you can set up a plan, you need to do some self-reflection and answer personal goal questions.

A few questions you should develop before laying out an idea for a specific plan of action are:

• What do I want to make out of my life?
• What are my goals and ambitions?
• What is currently standing in my way of achieving these goals?

After answering those questions, you can create a personal plan that contains a few key components.

The key components you should focus on are having a specific outcome that you are constantly working towards, planning and paving a path towards achieving it, being mindful of the obstacles, and understanding the bigger motivation behind your actions.

When developing a personal development plan for work, you should focus on SMART goals. SMART stands for “Specific”, “Measurable”, “Achievable”, “Relevant”, and “Time-Bound.”

By following this easy-to-remember acronym when goal setting, you can improve both your personal and professional life:

• Specific:  Write goals that are detailed and clear instead of broad and general.
• Measurable:  Set milestones that will let you know you are achieving your goal.
• Achievable:  Make goals that are challenging yet can realistically be achieved.
• Relevant:  Align your goals with your personal self-improvement plan.
• Time-Bound:  Pick an end date by which you want to achieve your goal.

Set Goals for Professional Life

To make progress that you can see and track in your professional life, you need to document a detailed plan of action for your personal development.

Some examples include answering the following questions:

• What do I want to learn?
• What do I have to do?
• What support and resources will I need?
• How will I measure success?

Be as specific with your answers as possible. The more precise, the easier it is to track your progress.

Seeing how far you have come and how your hard work is paying off will give you a boost of confidence and provide a sense of accomplishment.

Some examples of personal development goals for work include the Golden Hour and the 21-Day Mental Diet.

The Golden Hour Rule

The  Golden Hour Rule  steers the trajectory of your day.

Beginning your day early and investing your first hour in yourself will make a tremendous difference in the way you feel, and you will begin to see positive results in your day.

You will begin to see yourself in a more positive light and improve on your self-awareness and personal development.

The 21-Day Mental Diet

The  21-Day Mental Diet  personal leadership plan example means waking up early and investing at least the first two hours of your day in yourself.

With this extra time, set clear goals you can work to achieve in the workplace. This can improve your productivity and efficiency to help you get that promotion or earn a raise.

Your goals may also include education. You need to learn more to earn more.

Try setting a goal to read something educational, motivational, or inspirational every day before you go to work.

Set Goals in Your Daily Life

Outside of the workspace, it’s important to focus on some personal goals as well. Similar to your work plan, your personal plan requires you to focus on key points to achieve your goals.

Here are some sample questions to ask yourself:

• What are the important goals that you want to achieve?
• When is your set deadline?
• What are your biggest strengths?
• Who or what are your biggest threats?

There are several aspects of personal development disciplines that will make achieving success possible if developed correctly.

A few of these disciplines include goal setting, planning and organizing, and concentrating on high-value activities.

Goal Setting

Goal setting can be done in the early morning and take only a few minutes of your day.

It can be as simple as purchasing a spiral notebook and writing out your ten goals at the beginning of each day. This will program them deep into your subconscious mind and help you actually follow through on accomplishing them.

Planning Your Day

Planning and organizing at the end of the day can help you better prepare for the coming day.

When you plan out your day, put it down on paper, you can begin to visualize your important tasks and make sure you are working to complete them throughout the day.

Concentrating On Your High-Value Activities

High-value activities are the things you choose to do throughout the day that will give you the biggest return on your efforts to get you closer to your goals.

Concentrating on your high-value activities will help keep you focused and contribute to your success as much as any other discipline you can develop.

Promoting the highest value activities will make a powerful difference in how quickly you achieve them and the goals they relate to.

Personal Development Plan Template

Creating a plan for personal development will help you get a better sense of control over your life and your goals…and it doesn’t have to be a daunting task!

Follow this template to get started and achieve your goals.

There are six core steps in this template that will help you take action and measure your progress.

Step 1: Set Your Goals

Write a list of the top 10 most important goals you would like to achieve. I encourage you to really write them down somewhere — on paper or on your computer — instead of just keeping them in your head.

People who write their goals and have a clear plan are 30% more likely to achieve their goals.

Search deep within yourself and identify the things you really want out of life. Do not be hindered by thoughts of roadblocks that may get in your way. Open yourself up to all the possibilities that would make you truly happy in life.

These are life goals. Life goals are meant to be challenging, so they may seem huge, overwhelming, or even scary. But that’s why they will be broken down into digestible and manageable smaller goals.

For example, providing for your family is an important long-term goal, but figuring out the steps to get there is the challenge. Your smaller personal development objectives will help you identify those steps so you have a clear road map to follow.

With each of the 10 goals you identify, also define your “why:” Why do you want to achieve this goal? What will it mean for your personal life, your career, your mental health or, your loved ones?

Knowing your why will help set you up for success. It will keep you motivated to continue progressing forward until you have achieved what you want to.

Step 2: Prioritize Your Goals

Once you have identified your top 10 goals, write which of those 10 is the most important to you and why.

Starting with your highest priority goal, identify the short-term goals and steps that are needed to achieve your long-term goals.

What needs to happen today so you can move on to the next movetomorrow?

This may require some research on your part, depending on your goal.

For example, say your goal is to become a leader in your field. Some of the short-term goals you will prioritize to reach this personal leadership plan example may include the following:

• Choose a topic or niche in your industry that you want to specialize in.
• Learn everything you can about the issue by talking to people in your industry, reading about your topic, attending seminars and webinars, and so on.
• Educate others by writing regular blog posts.
• Start a podcast and offer valuable information.
• Give interviews on podcasts, local radio and TV stations, and news outlets.
• Write a book  and get it published.
• Become a public speaker  at industry conferences or hold your own conference.

Step 3: Create a Timeline for Achieving Your Goals

Setting goals and deadlines in your process is crucial. Without them, your goals can get lost in the everyday chaos of life or forgotten completely.

Write down a specific timeline for achieving each of your goals, but be realistic in your timing and know the likelihood ahead of time of achieving your goal within a certain timeline to avoid discouragement.

While you may want to become debt-free by next year, you will first need to do what is necessary to earn more income or reduce your expenses. This could involve getting more education, finding a better job, or making major life changes, which could take more than 365 days.

Once you assign a due date to each of your short-term goals,  tackle the hardest goal first . This will help you realize you can actually achieve your goals faster and give you the motivation you need to propel yourself forward.

If you’re unsure of the timeline you should set for accomplishing your goals, speaking to other people who have achieved the goal you are striving for will help you set a realistic deadline.

Conducting online research could also help in defining a timeline to accomplish your goals.

Knowing that it takes four to five years to earn a Ph.D. in business lets you know how long it will likely take you. If you can only attend school part-time, you know it will take longer, perhaps twice as long.

Step 4: Analyze Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Write down your strengths and weaknesses. Remember that skills like perseverance, positive attitude, and creativity are strengths and weaknesses as much as educational level, experience, and having a strong network of professional contacts.

Focus on the attributes that are needed to achieve your goal. Then, write how your strengths can help you achieve this goal and how you plan to overcome those weaknesses.

Use a SWOT analysis to organize your thoughts and develop a strong strategy for achieving your goal. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Ask yourself questions similar to these to help you develop insights for each part of a SWOT analysis:

• What sets you apart from your peers?
• What is your competitive advantage?
• What do others regularly praise you for?
• What do people ask you to help them with?
• What parts of yourself are you confident about?
• What values are important to you?
• What do you usually avoid doing because you don’t think you can?
• What kind of tasks do you procrastinate?
• Where are you lacking in skills, experience, or education?
• What resources do you lack?
• What areas do you feel you need improvement?
• What gets in the way of your work performance or relationships with others?

Opportunities

• What technology can help you achieve your goal?
• What promotions or financial incentives are available at work?
• Who can help you reach your goal?
• What changes are happening or are projected to happen in your industry or personal life?
• What conferences, classes, or networking events are available to you?
• What are your competitors failing at that you can learn from and improve on?
• What obstacles do you face that may hinder your progress?
• Which of your weaknesses could lead to threats?
• Who is trying to achieve the same goal that may get in your way?

Step 5: Write an Action Plan

Write actions that you need to take to achieve your goal. These can be things you need to add to your daily routine as well as things you need to eliminate from it to  achieve the success in life  that you are looking for.

Doing this will help you to achieve each goal faster.

Whether you use a notebook or your computer, just make sure you’re also physically writing down your plan so you can see it every day and hold yourself accountable.

Step 6: Measure Your Progress

The final step in your personal development plan template is to mark your progress.

Write down what has been working well, what you have accomplished, what you still need to improve, and what skills or knowledge you have gained along the way.

People who set up a system to report on their goals weekly achieve 40% more than people who do not.

To help you in this final step, consider using a tracker to take notes, measure progress, and be analytical about what works and what does not.

Sometimes it is necessary to change courses midstream or add a step that you were not initially aware of. That doesn’t mean you should abandon your goal out of discouragement. It just means you need to adapt, and this is where a tracker can help you determine if it’s time to pivot.

Remember it’s okay to be flexible. Doing so will allow you to make changes when needed that will propel you toward your goal more efficiently.

This could be a good opportunity to use another piece of data about how people who write things down/journal are much more likely to be successful.

Personal Development Courses and Programs

Personal development courses, coaches, and programs can also help you hit your goals.

A personal development program accompanied by a personal development coach helps to keep you disciplined and moving forward.

If you are looking to transform your life, check out these courses and programs that include all of my knowledge, distilled into powerful lessons to help you achieve immediate success in your own life. They will teach you how to stop worrying and stressing out and how to take control of your life, forever.

Power Of Personal Achievement

Learn the right way to visualize your ideal future. This course will teach you how to set your goals and methodically achieve them with more efficiency than ever before.

This program will teach you how to ditch the negative emotions that have been hindering your success as well as how to redirect your energy and resources towards your personal mission.

The Science Of Self-Confidence

In this course, you’ll learn just about everything I’ve learned about self-confidence during the past four decades.

I reveal the secret of the four Cs that teach you how to escape the endless loop of failure. You will find your true self and, as a result, finally feel truly confident.

Maximum Productivity

This course will equip you with the skills to discover your special calling. You will learn everything you need to know how to take the shortest, fastest route possible to your destination.

Ultimate success is achievable when you know how to dramatically improve your productivity.

Create Your Personal Development Plan Today

Don’t wait to start improving your life.

Follow a personal development plan for work and your personal life or use a template to start accomplishing your goals and improving your life.

For the easiest way to get started, download my free  Personal Development Plan Template  to organize your goals over the next few months and years and optimize your success.

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About Brian Tracy — Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Twitter , Facebook , Pinterest , Linkedin and Youtube .

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How to write a personal development plan, and take charge of 2023

Advice on planning the next chapter in your personal story

Written by Dan Parry • 9 March 2022

Personal development plans are exclusively, shout-it-from-the-rooftops, all about you. While there’s more than one way of putting a plan together, whichever way you choose there’s a fundamental thing worth remembering about personal development. There’s also a simple mistake to avoid. Ultimately, it’s your own plan, the next chapter in your story. Here’s how to start writing it.  

Putting a personal development plan together

Appraisal season is approaching, bringing with it the traditional ‘List’. Sometimes, even the slenderest whisper of personal development can create a kneejerk need to start listing things – future goals, past failings and so on.

A list might feel like progress, kind of, but personal development is more than that. It’s a definition of who you are and who you want to be. It’s shaped by meaningful objectives. If you’re not sure about yours, it can be a mistake to rush into a list. Behavioural statistician Joseph Folkman believes that development plans are more likely to fail when they are “not driven by the individual”.

Skip lists for now and instead start by thinking about you, in honest self-evaluation. Focus on your future. What are your development goals over the next 12 months, or maybe the next five years? This might involve emotional fulfilment at work, staying open to new ideas, mental and physical health, and perceptions of yourself and the world around you.

These thoughts will shape your personal development plan (PDP), the next chapter in your story. It starts with where you are now and moves towards whatever you want next. You have to think about the end first, which is always the way when writing a story. Where do you want to get to?

SMART objectives

Personal goals can include more than just professional development at work. What are you looking to focus on overall, whether in your career or in your personal life?  For example, you might want a change in your personal circumstances (such as finding a new home), or you might feel that your job isn’t delivering the values you believe in.

These thoughts might help you see that you’re looking for additional income, or more recognition at work, or more responsibility. By focusing on broad objectives, you can begin to think about the necessary steps to achieve them. A SMART strategy brings structure to your objectives, making them easier to reach. SMART stands for:

• Specific: stay focused about what you want to achieve.
• Measurable: Keeping track of your progress will help boost your motivation.
• Attainable: Set realistic goals within your control.
• Relevant: Does your goal fit into your overarching objectives?
• Timely: Set yourself a deadline, this too will help with focus and motivation.

Writing your personal development plan – with SWOT analysis

Ultimately, your PDP is an action plan. Think of it as a narrative. It begins with where you are right now, then nails down the necessary steps that will help get you to where you want to be.

After you’ve worked out your objectives, maybe try a strategy such as SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats, it’s a planning technique widely used to help manage decision-making processes. Think about:

1. Strengths 

The skills and attributes you already possess, including your current position at work, your contacts, and your aptitude for bigger and better things. Together, they serve as your springboard towards achieving your objectives. Ask yourself:

• What do you know you’re good at?
• What skills and attributes give you an advantage over others?
• What resources or contacts do you have that are unique to you?
• What do people acknowledge you to be good at?
• What achievements – whether in or out of work – are you proud of?

2. Weaknesses

The areas you need to improve and develop to meet your objectives. Weakness here doesn’t mean ‘permanent failing’, think of it a temporary gap to be bridged. Weaknesses become weaker once they are identified and managed. Ask yourself:

• Which skills make you feel queasy when you think about them?
• Which skills do you know you should be better at than you actually are?
• What are the barriers in your head that obstruct development?
• Do you have any habits that get in your way?
• Do you sometimes feel undermined by a lack of confidence? If so, when?

 3.  Opportunities

What do you need to achieve your goals? More often than not, you’ll need to create your own opportunities. These can range from looking for a new role, a new company, a new contact, or even a new way of life. Once you know what your objectives are, you can identify the opportunities you need to achieve them. Ask yourself:

• Is your role/company/industry on the up? Is there a sense of momentum?
• If you’re looking for something new, is there an undeveloped niche to explore?
• Do you know the right contacts who can assist you?
• Can you hunt down the perfect role, even before it’s advertised?
• Is there something new at work you can do that will stretch your skills?

Change isn’t easy. Progress can be obstructed by lack of motivation, lack of obvious opportunities and a lack of support from others. In all these things, where there’s a will there’s a way – which is why you started with your ‘will’ (desire/objectives) first. Pursue your objectives. If they matter, you will find a way to achieve them. Ask yourself:

•  What do you need to keep an eye on? Eg, competition, software developments.
• How far are you able to control your weaknesses, and perhaps soften them?
• What’s on the horizon, externally? For example, is your company about to be sold?
•  Are you making any false assumptions? If so, think about your earlier self-reflection.
• Are you overly relying on hope? If so, look again at creating opportunities.

Lifelong process

A personal development plan is not a box to tick at an appraisal, or a list to make yourself feel better. It’s a process. It’s driven by thought, it’s shaped by objectives and it’s delivered by action. It can fulfil personal and professional ambitions, via new skills that can benefit both.

It’s the roadmap to your continuing professional development, which – according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development – is a combination of approaches, ideas and techniques that help you manage your learning and growth. In particular, skills in self-management and wellbeing will help you develop a mindset that’s ready for change. According to the NHS, learning new skills is one of five key areas that can support your mental wellbeing.

Once you’ve written your PDP, it doesn’t end there. Follow your plan and track whether you are achieving your outcomes or not. Personal development is a lifelong process. It’s never too late to start being who you know yourself to be.

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How SWOT Analysis in Personal Development Helps You Build Self-Confidence

Last Updated: Jan 22, 2024 by PESTLEanalysis Contributor Filed Under: SWOT Analysis

Personal development is an essential step for making yourself more appealing to employers and customers. It also helps boost your self-image, self-confidence, and self-esteem. People often fail to analyze themselves and as a result, end up making bad decisions. Yet, many apply SWOT analysis effectively with professional tactics to stand out in a sea of candidates. They want to secure the top position, however, it is not as easy as it sounds.

Self-analysis can get complicated but can play a significant role in personal progress. To be successful in today’s competitive world, it’s essential for one to be able to identify his or her strengths and weaknesses, as well as the opportunities and threats that are presented to him/her.

SWOT is seen as an analytical framework that can help companies facing great challenges. It helps to find the most promising new markets. The analysis was created by business gurus Edmund P. Learned, Kenneth Andrews, C. Roland Christensen, and William D. in the 1960s. They wrote about it in their book “Business Policy, Text, and Cases.”

Even though SWOT was originally used for business , it can help assess a person’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats too.  This kind of simple analysis structure will provide guidance as it looks at internal and external factors. Do not take the SWOT analysis lightly.

Self-analysis is perhaps one of the most complicated things. But, it plays a very significant role in personal progress and building on personal skills. SWOT analysis will help you to learn more about yourself. Carrying out a personal SWOT analysis is an important step towards finding life and career direction .

Follow all steps earnestly and create your own Personal SWOT analysis .

Before you allot precious time in the process, make sure that you are ready to provide honest answers to yourself. While we easily scrutinize companies, jobs, employers, and colleagues, criticizing ourselves is the first step here.

Dig deep and identify what your own contributions really are. The analysis entails finding out what you are good at and what you are terrible at.  SWOT is a tool for you . After you learn all the necessary details about yourself, you can make an effort to make positive changes which will lead to new opportunities. Basically, SWOT analysis provides a better picture of all pros and cons you have.

The outcome will depend on how you react to the findings. For example, you can react in 2 ways after you list all your weaknesses. You can either understand how they can be threatening to not only your career but also your personal life, or you can work to overcome the weakness. It is always wise to think positively . Act proactively to turn the weakness into strength. Also, try to eliminate all threats. Give importance to your strengths and take advantage of the opportunities.

SWOT for personal development can help the following people:

• Managers and Owners
• Professionals, Executives
• Career Starters
• Practitioners and HR
• Doctors and Engineers
• Husband and Wife

The elements of a Personal SWOT analysis

A personal SWOT analysis involves finding out the qualities of a person. SWOT is an evaluation tool used for identifying the loopholes and strong points and implementing them in an orderly fashion. After the evaluation process, an effort is required to implement changes that are positive and can lead to further opportunities. Carrying out SWOT analysis highlights the pros and cons a person possesses but the result will depend on how an individual responds to the analysis and implements it accordingly.

A SWOT analysis focuses on the 4 elements included in its acronym. Knowing about these positive and negative factors can help you make changes more effectively. Typically, a SWOT analysis is done by creating a table , divided into 4 columns. Usually, the strengths and weaknesses do not match the opportunities and threats listed. Remember that pairing external threats with internal weaknesses can help highlight the most serious issues.

An individual can react either by improving his/her weaknesses and overcoming the loopholes or taking advantage of the strengths but also realizing the threats that can overshadow strengths and opportunities. Working on weaknesses is an important step in implementing SWOT analysis. It is wise and productive to accept weaknesses and convert them into strengths, plus eliminate the threats.

How to conduct a SWOT Analysis of Yourself

For each of the SWOT elements, ask yourself some questions. I have listed some example questions below, but they may vary.

Strengths are internal positive attributes or capabilities a person has control over and can make full use of.

• Skills, competencies, knowledge
• Strong personality
• Commitment, enthusiasm, and passion
• Achievements
• Personal resources
• PR and connections

Questions that can reveal your strengths:

• What benefits do you have which others do not have? This could include skills, education, or connections.
• What are you better at than anyone else?
• What personal resources do you have access to?
• What do other people see as your strengths?
• Which achievements are you most proud of?
• What values do you believe in that others fail to show?
• Are you part of a network no one else is involved in? What connections do you have with powerful people?

Weaknesses are negative aspects and attributes which have little control over.

• Personal nature or tendencies
• Lack of education
• Lack of work experience or expertise
• Less resources
• Hygiene issues
• Lack of career direction or focus
• Negative work habits

Questions that can reveal your weaknesses:

• What work do you usually avoid because of lack of confidence?
• What do people think you weaknesses are?
• Are you happy with your education and skills training?
• Do you have any negative work habits?
• Which of your personality traits hold you back?

Opportunities

Opportunities are uncontrollable external events a person can potentially leverage.

• Favorable job or work trends
• Developed Improving economy
• Job vacancies and openings
• Training opportunities
• Technology advancements
• Demand for Expertise and skills

Questions to ask yourself when looking for opportunities:

• What new technology can assist you?
• Can you take advantage of the market in its present state?
• Do you have a network of strategic contacts to offer good advice or help you?
• Is any of your competitors failing to do something important? Can you take advantage of it?
• Is there a need in your company which no one is filling?
• Could you create an opportunity by offering solutions to problems?

Threats are uncontrollable external factors that might overcome or damage the strengths and opportunities.

• Job insecurity
• Downsizing and restructuring
• Changing market trends
• Fewer job opportunities
• Emerging competition
• Changing professional standards

Questions to ask yourself when looking for potential threats:

• What hindrances do you currently face at work?
• Is any of your co-workers competing with you for projects or roles?
• Is your job changing?
• Can technological changes threaten your position?
• Could any of your weaknesses lead to threats?

The Advantages of Conducting a Personal SWOT Analysis

The main purpose of a SWOT is to promote the identified strengths, reduce weaknesses, exploit the opportunities and have contingency plans to minimize threats.

There are many benefits and advantages of using SWOT Analysis for self-development. It is good for your success, self-confidence, and self-improvement. Some of the most common benefits of conducting a personal SWOT analysis are:

• It helps to develop strategies to attain your goals
• You can be better than your friends and colleagues
• Shows where you currently stand on the path of success
• Measures your scopes of reaching desired goals
• Boosts your career, life and personality
• Increases self-confidence and self-esteem and helps to better understand self-image
• Helps to better understand who you really are as a person
• Maximizes your strengths and diminishes your weaknesses
• Explores and also enhances your soft skills and hard skills
• It helps you understand your preferences and personality traits.
• Focuses on your attitudes, abilities, skills, capabilities and capacities

There are many other advantages of this analysis. Apply it to your situation and enjoy the awesome benefits of a personal SWOT analysis.

Implementing SWOT Analysis for Personal Development

Implementing the analysis simply means transforming weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities. It’s easy to think about, but it’s much harder to implement in life. The key is to understand what implementing means.

The first approach is to transform weakness into strength. For instance, if a person is not creative and decides to overcome that hurdle and become creative no matter what, the positive adrenaline changes his course of thinking and starts taking effect. Creativity is a skill, based on the growth mindset which can be cultivated.

The second option is to find a different context for weakness and try to see it as a feature. For example, a manager who has a hard time staying focused and is not good at dictating and getting things done can be a successful entrepreneur or take up some other profession. A good personality will mostly come from limitations, not strengths. It’s the outcome of working around shortcomings and using all the skills you can muster.

There is also a third option. In case a weakness cannot be converted or implemented, then minimizing weaknesses or avoiding them might sort the problem. The purpose is to neutralize weaknesses to a point at which strengths can be unfettered.

Avoiding complexity and overanalyzing the analysis might have the opposite effect. It’s good to keep the SWOT analysis short and simple by building different strategies and options. Testing some assumptions and performing regular updates would be necessary for continued results. A SWOT analysis helps in progress in life and building a superior strategy and executing it.

SWOT analysis can be ineffective if it is treated as a ‘laundry list’. The only difficulty with analysis is its authenticity of results, which can be biased because it’s not easy to evaluate yourself. Professional help or counseling should be taken in case you feel you need assistance. The results can be subjective and vulnerable to perceptional differences of each person. Moreover, lack of accountability is a major factor since an individual might not have enough motivation to change.

Image: Jirsak/ Shutterstock.com

What is a Personal Development Plan?

Last updated on 20th December 2023

In this article

To achieve success and happiness in your education, career and personal life, you should continuously improve your knowledge, skills and experience. This is known as personal development, which is a continuous lifelong process.

Personal development is beneficial for you as an individual and also for businesses and society as a whole. If you are making the most of your abilities and skills, this will positively impact your life and others around you. According to the NHS , learning new skills can improve your mental wellbeing, as it gives you a sense of purpose and boosts your confidence.

A simple and effective way of keeping track of your personal development is by completing a personal development plan. If you don’t have a plan, it will make it difficult for you to focus, and you are unlikely to meet your goals – whatever these may be. As Benjamin Franklin once said, “if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”.

It doesn’t matter how old you are or where you find yourself now. It is never too late to start your personal development plan. Most people have completed one at some point during their education or careers. If you haven’t, there is nothing to worry about, and there is no time like the present to start planning.

This article will help you learn what a personal development plan is and how a SWOT analysis can help you identify things that could help or hinder your progress. It will also give you tips on how to write a personal development plan and what to do after you have completed it.

What is a personal development plan?

A personal development plan, which is also known as a PDP, is an action plan that you can use to identify:

• Your individual goals and what you want to achieve.
• Your strengths and weaknesses.
• The areas you need to improve and develop to meet your goals.
• What you need to do to achieve your goals.
• Anything that could hinder your progress.

A PDP is a form of self-evaluation and self-reflection that is typically used in higher education and the workplace. However, it can also be a beneficial exercise in your personal life. For example, you may want to learn a new language before travelling overseas, and a PDP can help you achieve this goal.

In the workplace, a PDP is completed as part of an employee’s Continuing Professional Development ( CPD ), which is defined by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) as:

“A combination of approaches, ideas and techniques that will help you manage your own learning and growth”.

Employers will sometimes use PDPs as part of their appraisal process, which is known as a Performance Development Review (PDR).

Benefits of a PDP

The benefits of a PDP are:

• It provides you with clear goals.
• It helps you to identify your strengths and weaknesses.
• It improves your employability.
• It improves your performance.
• It increases your motivation.
• It helps track your progress.
• It improves your sense of purpose.
• It enhances your mental wellbeing and reduces stress.

Overall, a PDP gives you the best possible chance for success and maximises your potential.

Using a SWOT analysis

You can use a SWOT analysis as a starting point to help you create your PDP.  SWOT  stands for  S trengths,  W eaknesses,  O pportunities and  T hreats. You can use these four areas as a framework to identify what could help or hinder your personal development. If you don’t analyse your SWOT, it is unlikely you will succeed in achieving your goals.

When you are conducting your SWOT analysis, you should look at your current situation and ask yourself various questions relating to these four areas.

Some example questions are:

• What are you good at?
• What advantages do you have over others?
• Do you have any resources available to you that others do not?
• What do others say about your strengths?
• Do you have any achievements you are proud of?
• What skills do you struggle with?
• What areas do you need to improve upon?
• What holds you back?
• Do you have any bad habits?
• Do you avoid certain tasks due to a lack of confidence?
• What do others say about your weaknesses?

Opportunities

• Is the industry you are in/looking at in a promising position?
• Is there an undeveloped niche in certain markets that you can tap into?
• Do you have contacts in your network who could assist you?
• Can you take advantage of the mistakes others are making?
• Is there an opening for a position not advertised externally yet?
• Is there a project you can assist with that will help you develop different skills?
• What could derail your success? E.g. competition, finances, changes in technology and any other obstacles.
• Is there a risk of your weaknesses becoming threats?
• Are there any external changes beyond your control that could be a threat?

It is important to be as honest as possible when answering these questions, particularly when looking at your strengths and weaknesses.

How to carry out a SWOT analysis

The above is just an example, and you are likely to have far more detail in your own SWOT analysis.

  A SWOT analysis aims to:

• Promote your strengths.
• Reduce your weaknesses.
• Exploit the opportunities available to you.
• Minimise threats to your success.

You can learn more about SWOT analysis on the CIPD’s factsheet .

How do I write a personal development plan?

All PDPs are different. How you write yours will depend on whether you are completing one for personal, education or work reasons. A PDP is also specific to you and based on your individual goals. Therefore, your PDP and what you include will be different from anyone else’s.

In education and work, PDPs are likely to be in a specified format. Employers may also have their own procedures and processes for conducting PDPs as part of an annual appraisal (PDR). In these instances, you should follow your employer’s procedures when completing your PDP.

Regardless of the reason why you are completing a PDP, here are some general steps you can follow to help you write yours:

Step 1 – Complete a SWOT analysis

You should complete a SWOT analysis as the first step of your PDP and as a self-assessment.

That way, you can:

• Identify what could help or hinder you in achieving your goals.
• Evaluate your existing skills, knowledge and interests.
• Identify if you have any transferable skills that could help you achieve your goals.
• Use the results when setting your goals.

You can use our free SWOT analysis template to help you. Please hyperlink here if you want to use the template and/or delete this sentence.

Step 2 – Set your goals

Think about the things you really want to achieve in your education, career or personal life. To meet your overall aims, you should set goals so that you can fulfil your objectives.

Make a list of your goals and ensure they are SMART, which means they should be:

• Specific – Your goals should be specific and precise rather than generic. – You should state exactly what you want to achieve or change. – An example of a generic and weak goal would be – I want to be a better public speaker. – An example of a SMART goal would be – I will attend a training course on presenting to help me improve my public speaking skills, as I lack confidence in this area, and it’s holding me back.
• Measurable – Having a quantifiable goal will make it easier to track and achieve. – For example, I will compare three different courses for content and price. I will enrol on my chosen course within one month.
• Achievable – Your goals must be realistic and attainable. – Ask yourself whether you can achieve them in a certain timeframe. – For example, I have got the funds available to pay for the course. I also currently work part time, so I have enough time to study.
• Relevant – Your goals should relate to your overall aims and longer-term ambitions. – For example, a lack of confidence in public speaking is one of my weaknesses, and I feel it is holding me back in my career and personal life.
• Time-bound – Set realistic timescales to achieve your outcomes. – Ask yourself when you want to achieve your goals by. – Split your goals into short term, medium term and long term. – For example, I will complete my course within the next three months. I will also evaluate whether it has improved my public speaking skills.

Having SMART goals makes it easier for you to achieve them and updating your PDP when you have completed them.

Step 3 – Create your action plan

Once you have your clear SMART goals, you should break them down into action points, which will make them more manageable. You can put these points into an action plan with your priority goals at the top.

There is no requirement for your PDP action plan to be in any particular format. It can be handwritten or typed and tabulated or free-flowing text. Whatever format you choose, you should ensure that it is easy for you to produce, follow and update.

Step 4 – Detail the strategies and resources for achieving your goals

You now have your list of goals in your action plan, but how will you go about achieving them? Now you should write down your strategies and resources you need to achieve your goals.

It can include:

• Further training, e.g. enrolling on a course.
• Research, e.g. websites, journals and books.
• Hands-on experience, e.g. volunteering.
• Taking on new projects or responsibilities.
• Professional advice, e.g. from a mentor.
• Guidance and shadowing during supervision.
• Speaking to people in different roles.
• Time needed for the strategy to be effective.

Step 5 – Assessing your progress

Finally, you should note in your PDP how you will monitor and assess the progress of your goals. For example, you may be continually assessed throughout a course, and you would use the assessment results as milestones for achieving your goals.

Checkout our free PDP and SWOT templates below!

Download our free PDP template

Download our free SWOT Analysis template

What happens once I have completed my personal development plan?

Once you have completed your PDP, it doesn’t end there. You need to follow your plan and track whether you are achieving your outcomes or not. If you are not achieving your goals in your specified timeframe, you should identify the reasons why, rectify and update your plan. If you are successful in achieving your goals, you can tick them off and add new ones to your list. Remember, personal development is a lifelong process.

You may find that things do not go according to plan, but you should not worry or let this put you off. Your PDP is not set in stone. It is a flexible guide that you can adapt as and when the need arises. Ask yourself whether you are making the correct choices to get to where you want to be.

It is important to remember that a PDP is not a one-off exercise. It is a continuous process of development, and it should be a working document. You should regularly review and update your PDP to make the most of your personal development.

Personal development (whether it is for education, career or personal reasons) is important, as it helps you achieve your desires and fulfil your potential. If you are achieving what you want in life, it will improve your mental wellbeing and overall happiness, which will have a far-reaching positive impact.

Some, particularly in workplaces, will look at PDPs as an unnecessary exercise that cannot help them achieve what they want. In these cases, it is usually due to PDPs being used as a tick in the box when annual appraisals come around. To prevent this, employers must look at PDPs as an investment, as employee personal development will benefit their business. Employees should also use it as a good opportunity to improve their knowledge, skills and experience.

If you complete your PDP properly and use it in planning and achieving your goals, you are more likely to succeed in your career and life in general. If you don’t have a plan, you are likely to procrastinate and flounder. Remember what Benjamin Franklin once said, “if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”.

Why not use our free PDP action plan template to help you. Please hyperlink here if you want to use the template and/or delete this sentence.

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About the author

Michelle Putter

Michelle graduated with an MSc in wildlife biology and conservation in 2012, but her career has taken quite a different turn to the one expected. She started in health and safety in 2009 and has worked in several industries such as electrical engineering, aviation and manufacturing. She has been working with CPD Online College since 2018 and became NEBOSH Diploma qualified in 2020. In her spare time, Michelle's passions are wildlife and her garden. She has volunteered for many conservation organisations and particularly enjoys biological recording. Michelle also likes hiking, jogging and cycling.

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The Ultimate Personal Development Plan Template That Will Get You Noticed

• What is a personal development plan?
• How to use a personal development plan
• How to make a good personal development plan
• Personal Development Plan Template
• What are personal development goals?
• Best practices for setting personal development goals
• Examples of most common personal development goals
• Personal development goals for work examples
• Common mistakes to watch out

Employees look for training and personal development opportunities at their respective companies. The lack of these opportunities is one of the main reasons they decide to quit. HR professionals and team leaders can avoid this using a personal development plan template to help employees reach their personal development goals. In such a case, it would be a win-win situation for both the company and the people working there. 

A proper template ensures you help individual employees work on their weaknesses and build up their strengths. This is a direct way to set personal development goals and find the shortest way to reach them.

According to a survey , 94% of respondents said they would stay at the company longer if it invested in their careers. In addition, professional and personal growth leads to higher retention. Besides, 58% of employees claim that professional development contributes to their job satisfaction. Moreover, employees who feel respected, empowered, and as if they are making a difference are much more likely to stay in a company—those who don’t have less than a 35% chance of staying. 

A proper template ensures you help individual employees work on their weaknesses and build up their strengths. This is a direct way to set personal development goals and find the shortest way to reach them. It enriches their experience at work and has a positive impact on their career. 

On top of that, it also attracts new hires to your company. Almost 60% of millennials list development opportunities as key factors in applying for a job. As this is the case, it’s high time you work on your employees’ personal development.

Let’s take a closer look at a personal development plan and see how it correlates with personal development goals to tap into each employee’s power. Keeping that in mind, we should start with a personal development plan and later proceed to personal development goals for everything to make perfect sense. 

A personal development plan (PDP) is an agreement between an employer and employee that outlines that team member’s objectives. It wants to empower employees to analyze their professional life and work on self-improvement. Employees can easily achieve goals when they have a clear picture of their performance. They understand what it takes to reach a specific milestone because of their personal development plan.

HR professionals and managers usually help employees create a personal growth plan. However, team members don’t need to wait for their next performance review to learn new skills and identify areas that require improvement. They can make a personal development plan themselves. Employees can establish short-term or long-term goals and set realistic deadlines to fulfill them.

Having a personal development plan template helps all parties. You can just fill in the required fields and create a clear plan for an individual’s development. Add an HR management tool to that equation, and you’re set to take your workplace to the next level.

  Related: Top 12 Performance Review Software in 2023 ‍

Remember that a PDP must be tailored-made for a specific employee. You can’t take someone else’s plan and expect it to work for them. Each person has different skills and experiences. The plan reflects that.

Why is it important?

 Personal development is all about a process of self-improvement. The plan helps employees:

• Outline specific goals and what they should do to achieve them
• Identify the strengths that ensure they grow in their personal and professional life
• Recognize what skills they need to overcome their existing weaknesses ‍

It is essentially a roadmap that guides them through the process of achieving goals. ‍

What kind of benefits can you expect from a personal development plan? Here are the improvements you will see with a good PDP in place:

• Boosts employee motivation – a personal development plan makes employees aware of their strengths and weaknesses. They can use their strengths to work more productively and learn how to minimize their weaknesses. This boosts their motivation and encourages them to do more. 
• Minimize staff turnover – it can cost more to find a new hire than it does to retain an existing employee. You should give your employees a personal development plan template to show them you’re committed to their improvement. They are more likely to stay at the company if they have a plan.
• Advances existing skills – employees create a career plan focusing on their development. They identify performance development areas so that they can grow in the workplace. While improving existing skills, they also acquire new ones to achieve career goals.
• Improves goal-setting – a PDP outlines both long-term and short-term goals. Managers can teach employees how to break down those goals to make them more achievable.

A PDP benefits both the company and the employee. Introducing personal development plan templates makes the process easier for managers and HR professionals. ‍

Let’s see how you can use a PDP.

According to research , 74% of surveyed employees think they don’t progress at work due to a lack of development opportunities. You can help them reach their full potential with a personal development plan.

A PDP is an effective way to learn a new skill or master a particular one. Employees can also use it to boost their careers. They just need help from their managers or HR team members. ‍

If you’re a team lead or an HR professional, you can use a personal development plan to:

• Conduct a skill-gap analysis – a PDP helps you understand which skills your employees lack. The company’s subsequent training efforts should strive to fill the gap.
• Identify employees who want to grow – this plan also identifies team members who want a promotion. For example, let’s say your company is looking for a Project Manager. Instead of hiring someone outside the company, you can promote one of your employees.
• Align employee goals with business goals – one-on-one meetings reveal individual goals. When you know a team member’s career growth plans, you can align them with business goals and help them grow. ‍

Related: 5 Meeting Agenda Templates to Use Right Away ‍

Remember, most employees crave professional development opportunities. If you disregard their development needs, you’ll have a team of dissatisfied members. How can a company grow when the employees aren’t happy?

You should go through several steps to create an effective personal development plan. We’ll list those steps below.

• Ask employees to perform a self-assessment

It all starts with us. We can’t grow or improve if we don’t reflect on ourselves. That’s why your employees must do a self-evaluation first. After all, they know their interests, professional life goals, skills, and knowledge best.

You can ask them the following questions to fuel their path to self-improvement:

• How satisfied are you with your work progress?
• Is there something you can do to reach your full potential?
• What are your career goals? Do you have the skills to achieve them?

Employees can reflect on their performance and determine what they can do to develop personally and professionally. ‍

Get started with templates and save time

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• Set clear goals

Every employee should know what they want to achieve in their career. If they don’t, you can help them set and achieve goals. These objectives should reflect their strengths and personal development plans.

When creating a PDP for your company, we suggest you focus on SMART goals. They are:

• Specific – the goal should be precise and to the point. There’s no room for ambiguity. For instance, instead of saying, “I’m going to write an article this week,” your employee should say, “I’m going to write a 2,000-word B2B article.”
• Measurable – there should be criteria that measure progress. You can agree on how you will assess whether they’ve achieved the goal.
• Achievable – ensure your employees don’t set unattainable objectives. They should know if their skills and resources make it possible to achieve a goal.
• Realistic – your employee should be willing to work towards achieving an objective. This depends on their skills, so they should evaluate them before agreeing to something.
• Time-bound – encourage them to set a realistic deadline to meet their duties.

Setting these goals helps employees split their objectives into smaller, more manageable milestones. They complete a goal one step at a time which derives great pleasure and satisfaction. 

Related: The Best Performance Improvement Plan (+Template)

• Determine which strategies to implement

After setting the goals, it’s time to consider how employees will achieve them. The strategies vary depending on the objective. For example, if an employee wants to work their way up the career ladder, they might want to attend an online course that helps them expand their knowledge. They should consider the skill set they need and the best way to build those skills.

• Explore resources

Employees cannot achieve professional and personal growth without any further resources. It’s impossible to learn something new if you don’t have some help along the way. You can help employees determine which resources they need. Those resources include online courses, learning platforms, interactive flipbooks , conferences, niche-specific articles, webinars, and even training. Look at their personal development plan to figure out what can benefit them.

If you follow the above steps, you can make a good personal development plan for your employees. One thing that can help you—having a personal development plan template.

As your company grows, you’ll have to focus on more and more employees. Each of those employees requires their own plan. Not to mention, you must follow their career development and growth after the goal-setting process. What can you do to make the process more manageable? You can use a personal development plan template. PDP in HR is a popular way to track personal and professional development progress and make adjustments along the way.

Using a template for personal development needs is quicker and more efficient. Imagine if you need to create personal development plans for every employee. This would be time-consuming. Don’t make this mistake—use personal development plan templates. These PDP templates help you create a clear picture of your employee’s goals and the steps they should take to reach them.

You won’t need to worry about missing important information that can affect your employees' personal development. We have prepared a personal development plan template to jumpstart your team members’ success! The PDP template is concise and identifies areas your employees need to answer to achieve success. 

You can use the following personal development plan template to help your company grow with talented individuals.

Personal development plan template ‍

Employee name: _________________

Position and title: _________________

Date: _________________

Development area: _________________

Personal development goals: _________________

Top strengths: _________________

Areas to improve: _________________

Development opportunities: _________________

Action plan: _________________

Skills and knowledge needed for personal growth: _________________

Necessary resources: _________________

Evaluation period (how often will you check the progress): _________________

Deadline: _________________

Review (How am I doing): _________________

Personal development plans are the way best to get to know your employees and see how your company can influence their success and growth.

Here is a filled-in PDP sample you can use as an example of what a completed personal development plan template should look like:

Employee name: John Doe

Position and title: Social Media Manager

Date: July 30 2022

Development area: Time management

Personal development goals: Organize my time better to help my team members and learn how to prioritize tasks

Top strengths: Social media planning and delivery, communication skills, writing engaging content

Areas to improve: Time management and organizational skills

Development opportunities: Become a team leader of the company’s social media department

Action plan: Use to-do lists to better organize my day, track each task’s progress, report my progress to a supervisor

Skills and knowledge needed for personal growth: Time management and leadership skills

Necessary resources: Online courses about social media marketing, tools to better track the performance of social media posts and analyze our audience

Evaluation period (how often will you check the progress): Every month

Deadline: Three months from today

Review (How am I doing): N/A (to be completed every month)

Use personal development templates like this to make the process of creating a PDP for employees simpler and more time-efficient!

How to get started with a template

Achieving personal growth is easier with personal development plan templates. But the journey doesn’t end there. You must also take certain steps to ensure your employees are improving and meeting their goals.

Here are some strategies you can take after an employee submits their personal development plan: 

• Review the plan immediately – make sure to go over an employee’s plan. You must check if their goals are attainable and clear.
• Remind employees to check the plan periodically – a team member might forget what areas they need to improve. You can remind them to read their plan to see if they are working on the right skills.
• Assess their improvement so far – you can plan a one-on-one meeting with an employee. Ask them to be honest and tell you how they are doing, if they need additional help and which changes they see.
• Determine their success – personal development plans are about creating specific goals. The plan would be futile if you don’t check if an employee has made progress towards their goals.
• Decide what to do next – if you find any issues, you must devise a solution. Don’t abandon your employee—show them you're committed to their success!

When you know all about the personal development plan, it is time to proceed to the next crucial step, setting personal development goals. These two aspects come toe-to-toe and are vital for making goals and planning a reality.

‍ What are personal development goals?

Personal development goals, or self-improvement goals, are the objectives people set to improve themselves in many ways, including habits, mindset, skills or even work ethics.  Although personal development goals are not necessarily connected to the job setting, they can help people improve their professional and personal lives.

Some of the most common areas for personal development goals include:

• change of mindset
• improving hard skills
• working on social skills
• character building

How can they help people?

Working on personal development goals has many benefits, but here are five areas where it can help employees the most:

Better focus  

One of the biggest benefits of setting personal development goals is a better focus and a clear sense of direction. Clear goals inspire people to act and easily decide on their next steps. This pushes them to be proactive and get more things done in their personal and professional lives.

Free time endlessly scrolling on the phone without a clear purpose or spreading work throughout the day is easy. Specific goals will motivate people to become more proactive and efficient.

Increased productivity

Goal setting teaches individuals prioritization techniques. This way, it is much easier to decipher what matters the most and take care of it instantly. Another major advantage has concrete, measurable goals to work towards. This makes it possible to evaluate people’s success precisely and encourages them to keep improving. The more goals they tick off, the more satisfied they will be. Over time, this will also increase general productivity. 

Better professional relationships

Self-improvement goals can improve the quality of people’s relationships with their colleagues and business partners. By becoming a better version of themselves, they're inspiring everyone who gets in touch with them to do the same. Their growth mindset is reflected in others as well. As a consequence, positive relationships in your team could dramatically improve. People in self-development tend to be better listeners and more compassionate toward others.

Improved work-life balance

Employees that don’t have a healthy work-life balance are prone to burnout more than others. That’s why this aspect shouldn’t be neglected. Employees should be encouraged to pursue their passions and learn new skills that don’t have to be work-related. Personal development goals can help people find time for themselves and remember who they are outside of their job. Consequently, they will become more motivated, and their productivity at work will improve.

Career advancement  

Finally, working on personal development goals can positively affect professional life and bring professional success to everyone. Many skills are transferable, meaning one can use them in other areas. Communication skills, soft skills, and creativity — are all crucial for success at work. New skills can help employees better serve customers and even get promotions. Sometimes working on personal development goals can bring insights and ideas that can revolutionize how you work.

As an HR or business mentor, your job is to share some resources on goal-setting with your team. Of course, each person’s goal will be different, but here are some universal strategies that everyone can benefit from, regardless of their goal.

Here are some points you can ask your employees to do:

• Identify what you want

 This is a fun exercise you can do as a team. According to one statistic, employees engaged in meaningful activities are 87% less likely to leave the company.

You can ask them the following questions:

• What goal would make the biggest difference in your life? 
• Is that goal in alignment with your vision for the future?
• What is something you’ve always wanted to learn but never seemed to have enough time for?

This exercise helps them connect with their personal development goals deeper, which will help them commit. When it becomes hard, and it feels like quitting, it's important to connect with your why and remember why you started.

• Set milestones for your goal

Big goals are not only frightening, but they can also be too vague. The next step is to break your personal goals into achievable milestones.

There are three good reasons to do so:

• The goals become more doable.
• You feel more motivated to work towards your goals.
• It's easier to measure your progress.

For example, someone's personal development goal could be to learn French. That's too vague. That person would be much more motivated if they created smaller goals for each month or week. 

• Set a day and time to work on your goal

As Michael Hyatt once said: What doesn't get scheduled, doesn't get done. Set yourself up for success by turning your goals into plans. It means that you should allocate time and space where you will be dedicated to working on your goal.

It will be much easier if your goal becomes part of your routine. It doesn't have to take a lot of time, especially in the beginning. The most important thing is to make it a habit.

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Here are the most common personal development goals related examples: 

• Improving your communication skills . This goal can improve professional relationships, the atmosphere of the whole team, as well as the results you get with clients.
• Mastering time management - Time management is one of the most important skills for your own success. Today it's even more challenging due to the distractions around us. One can learn different time management strategies from books, but it's important to try them and choose those that work in your life.
• Mindfulness - Mindfulness is one of the most effective stress management techniques, and everyone in the corporate world needs it. Your mindfulness practice could consist of meditation, visualization, breath work, or sitting silently for a few minutes every morning.
• Developing a growth mindset - A growth mindset is essential for success. Maybe you need to work on your mindset if you've been stuck lately. Some of the ideas include journaling, affirmations, or reading self-improvement books.
• Networking - One of the common goals is to grow your network and meet more people. This can be done through organizing networking events or joining clubs and communities on the topics that interest you.
• Learning a new skill - The best way to keep your brain sharp is to challenge yourself to learn a new skill! Choose something that interests you, whether crochet or graphic design and be patient with yourself because every new skill takes time.
• Creative thinking - Many people don't know it, but creativity can be learned! You need to give yourself space to let your mind wander, and ideas will come. There are also different exercises to boost your creativity, from design thinking to creative writing.
• Reading habit - One of the most common New Year's goals is: I'd love to read more books this year! Reading has many benefits, and it can be a life-changing habit. It's important to set realistic goals for yourself. Your first goal shouldn't be to read one book a week. Instead, your goal should be to get into the habit of regularly reading.

We'll now go into more detail and show you how to set personal development goals properly.

Improving leadership skills

Leadership is one of the most valuable assets that can benefit your employees in many ways. According to Forbes , it helps employees boost productivity, engagement, and independence.  ‍

Here is how your organization could help employees improve this skill:

• Organize internal workshops - You don’t need famous motivational speakers and leaders to organize a successful workshop. You can also organize internal workshops where managers and executives share their practical experiences with younger employees.
• Organize leadership challenges - It’s important to understand that one doesn’t need a title to be a leader. It’s about behavior and the way you treat others and tackle problems. To make it more fun, you could organize leadership challenges where each employee has to do one small task that shows leadership capabilities.

Become a better networker

If one of your team member’s goals is to become a better networker and create stronger relationships, you should first ask them to define what it means for them and why it's important. Next, they should list actions that will get them there. The steps should be concise and easy to follow.

The list may look like this:

• Read a book about communication
• Talk to people that are great networkers
• Practice being an active listener
• Commit to going to networking events every month
• Reach out to your new connections

They should also set some milestones, for example, I want to meet 10 new people by the end of this month. And then, you can create a plan of how they will do it. If you know that someone in your team lacks accountability, you can encourage them to share their goals with your other colleagues so you can support each other. 

As an HR, you could also introduce your team to the concept of an accountability buddy. It means that each person gets another person that keeps them accountable. They’re here to support each other and track their progress together.

Common mistakes to watch out for when setting development goals

Here are some of the most common mistakes people make when they set personal development goals:

The goal is not measurable

One of the first rules of goal setting is that personal goals should be clear and measurable. If people can't measure your progress, how can you know they're going in the right direction?

Some might say that certain goals are simply not measurable, and that's true. However, in that case, you can help people track their activities. They can measure how much time they dedicate to the goal weekly to ensure they're on the right track.

The goal is not something people want

The worst thing is to choose a personal development goal just because it's something that's "good for people" and "should be done". Achieving personal development goals requires time and dedication. That's why it's essential to help your employees choose a goal that's meaningful to them.

People don't have the right mindset

A positive mindset is crucial for continuous self-development. Even if some goals are out of people’s comfort zones, they can still work on those. Many people have limiting beliefs that prevent them from achieving their highest potential.

The rule is - if you want to succeed, it's essential that you believe that you can do it. If you lack self-confidence, you won't be motivated enough, leading to procrastination.

Now that people have set their personal development goals, it's time to do an honest assessment and see where they currently are. The best way to do it is during one on ones with employees.

Take some time to think about the following topics and encourage people to be honest with themselves. Here are some questions to ask employees should ask themselves:

• Did I allocate enough time to my personal goals?
• Did I have all the resources I needed for achieving this goal?
• What were the biggest obstacles?
• What can I do differently next time?
• Where can I get the support when I need it?

Even if they haven't achieved their goal, they should be patient with themselves. They can start again, but this time with a better strategy and more support. 

On the other hand, what if people achieve all personal development goals with success?

First, take time to celebrate and congratulate your employees. Too many people take their success for granted and always look for a new challenge. Right now, they should be proud of how far they've come!

Here are some things you can ask your employees:

- ‘’If you enjoyed working on this skill, you may want to take it to the next level. You can challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone once again and become even better at it. At this point, you may even consider getting a certification or something similar.’’

 - ‘’Or, you can choose a completely different area to work on. If you worked on your physical health, you could now switch to emotional intelligence or the other way round.’’

Conclusion: Personal Development Plan and Goals

Helping your employees work on their personal development plan creates a positive workplace. Employees are satisfied to see their company cares about them and doesn’t see them just as “seat-fillers.” With an effective personal development plan template, you can easily discover each person’s skills and weaknesses. You get to grow the talent you already have and nurture an impressive company culture.

As you can see, self-growth is a never-ending process. There's always room for improvement. Adopting a growth mindset and entering the field of personal development could be one of the most positive things you've done for yourself. If you're a manager or business owner, you should encourage your people to set personal development goals. They will not only make your employees happier and more productive, but they will influence everyone around them in a positive way.

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FAQ: How to Set Personal development goals

A personal development plan (PDP) is the practice of consistently adding new skills , knowledge and competencies to yourself in areas of your choice. It is a clear and documented outline that shows what you aim to achieve to attain better fulfillment and growth. A personal development plan does not have to be restricted to your career alone, as it also concerns your finances, education, relationships and other interests.

What is a personal development plan example?

A personal development plan could simply be 'Get a promotion at work next January'. To achieve this, you need a detailed plan to guide (documented) and steps to get the promotion. Such steps will include: taking a management training course, requesting a performance appraisal with HR, networking better with the line manager, etc.

What are the key elements of a personal development plan?

A personal development plan should include the following elements:

• A clear reason showing why you want to achieve your plans.
• A defined vision of where you want to be.
• A defined timeframe to help you prioritize the different areas of your PDP.
• The skills and resources you need to meet up with your plans.
• Your expected milestones to keep you on track.

What are individual development goals examples?

Some of the most common personal development goals include learning a new skill, developing a positive attitude, breaking bad habits, effectively managing your time, etc.

What are the 5 areas of personal development?

These are the 5 main areas of personal growth:

• Mental (working on your mindset, learning new skills)
• Social (working on your communication and networking)
• Spiritual (inner peace, meditating)
• Emotional (emotional intelligence, personal boundaries)
• Physical (physical health, proper self-care, fitness)

What are 3 goals for your career development?

The following 3 goals can influence your ongoing professional development: becoming a better communicator, enhancing your networking skills and learning leadership skills.

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A Personal Development Plan (PDP) Guide & Template

What is a personal development plan.

Personal development is an ongoing process that drives you to improve your knowledge, skills and experience, so that you can achieve your goals. A personal development plan (or PDP) is a method of focussing your goals into achievable steps, which helps you keep track of your personal development.

Download Free PDP Example/Template

Why Should I Create a Personal Development Plan?

Your plan may be aimed at your education, career or personal goal, or a mixture of all three – that is up to you to determine. Whatever the case may be, a good plan will provide you with a clear sense of focus. It helps you map out a path towards your goals, strategise a plan to achieve them, record the actionable steps you will take, and set a timeframe for completing them. Focussing your goals into a PDP helps you maintain your vision, keep on track to achieve your targets, and reflect on your progress.

Simply put, a PDP can help you build a clear understanding of what you want to achieve and how you are going to achieve it.

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A clear plan can also support your positive mental wellbeing and improve your level of satisfaction. It can provide a sense of direction, purposefulness and a feeling of success as you start to fulfil your potential. All of these can have very positive impacts on your mental health. 

Therefore, discovering what your goals are, getting organised and giving yourself a sense of direction can be incredibly beneficial. This article will give you an understanding of how to write a personal development plan, as well as provide you with a handy template to support your development journey.

How to Write a Personal Development Plan

There are seven steps to writing a PDP:

• Set yourself goals.
• Prioritise those goals.
• Set yourself deadlines for when you want to achieve them.
• Recognise threats and opportunities.
• Develop your skills or increase your knowledge.
• Use your support network.
• Measure your progress.

1. Set Yourself Goals

The first step is to set yourself goals . Think about what you want to achieve, whether that’s within a few weeks, within a year, or over your lifetime.

Deciding what you want is not only the first step in planning, it’s also the hardest. Once you’ve figured out what you want to do, that goal will provide clear direction and a structure for your resulting plan.

At this stage, your goals will feel big. You might be wondering how you are ever going to achieve them. Don’t worry – the next step is to prioritise and turn those goals into smaller, actionable steps that will support you on your way to achieving them.

2. Prioritising Your Goals

Now that you have your goals, the next stage is to break them down into smaller steps. When doing this, it’s important that your goals are SMART:

• Specific. Avoid large, ambiguous steps. These won’t support you on your way to achieving your goals. Insted, make sure that your goals are specific and clearly highlight the skill, knowledge or experience you want to develop.
• Measureable. You need to be able to monitor and reflect on your progress. Therefore, your goals need to be measurable, such as by setting a goal to develop your SEO knowledge with a measurable target of growing your website traffic by a set, defined percentage.
• Attainable. Your goals need to be achievable and realistic. You need to think about if it is something you can realistically achieve with the time and resources you have. If not, you will likely be setting yourself up for failure. 
• Relevant. It’s important to keep your overall goal in mind and make sure that every step you take is supporting you to achieve it. You don’t want to be spending time doing things that don’t get you where you want to go.
• Time-bound. Set yourself key targets to achieve and deadlines in which to achieve them. This will help you stay focussed on achieving your goals. However, it’s important to make sure you are realistic in what you can achieve in any given period. Don’t try to achieve everything all at once. It’s unrealistic and you won’t be setting yourself up well to achieve them. Remember that personal development is a journey – your PD plan can continue to grow and develop as you take those steps towards your goals.

Once you have your goals, you’ll need to prioritise them. 

In your PDP, you should be setting yourself mini goals to make the big ones happen.

For example, if you wish to pursue a career in academia as a senior lecturer and then a professor, a necessary step to succeeding in this goal is to achieve a PhD. So that would be one of your long-term goals. You then need to break it down into steps, such as:

• Learn about the PhD application process.
• Find a suitable university and supervisor for a PhD.
• Look at routes for funding.
• Find studentships to apply for or apply to your university of choice.
• Write and submit your PhD application.

3. Set Yourself Deadlines

Knowing when you want to achieve a goal is crucial, and picturing your future is an important source of motivation and inspiration.

Having goals and a set deadline will drive your motivation to achieve them. For example, if your goal is to buy a home, knowing when you want to achieve it will help you calculate exactly how much money you need to save each year in order to get your deposit. The same is true for your skills, knowledge and experience development. As mentioned above, setting realistic and time-bound goals are essential to achieving them. 

One good way to understand more about achieving your goals is to speak to those who have previously trodden a similar path. Learning about  their experiences can help you understand key barriers to, or methods of, success that may also be applicable to your PDP.

4. Recognise Threats and Opportunities

When considering your goals, you should identify your own strengths, consider areas of weakness you can develop, look at the opportunities available to support you in achieving your goals, and any threats that may hinder you in your progress. This is called a SWOT analysis. Note that these threats may be external or they may be core skills that you can develop as part of your PDP.

For example, a lack of motivation could hinder your plans to apply for a PhD. However, once you’ve identified your tendency to procrastinate or lose focus, you can put in place methods that will keep you motivated.

There are also going to be things that you could do, and connections with people or resources you could take advantage of, that will help you on your way. These are your opportunities that you should commit to doing.

For example, if there’s a conference coming up, take advantage of that. Go along and network, stay up to date on the latest knowledge, or even present a paper. These are all opportunities that could help you achieve your goals.

5. Develop Yourself

Once you have an idea of what could help or hinder you, this is when you can capitalise on those opportunities you recognised. Make an action plan about how you’ll make that progress.

Whatever it is that hinders you, there’s a way to stop it. Your plan is the first step to making sure you stay on track. 

So, why not take a look at how to upskill yourself , develop transferable skills in today’s rapidly changing jobs market, or even discover an online learning opportunity .

6. Use Your Support Network

The next thing you need to realise is that:

You don’t have to do everything by yourself.

And you shouldn’t. The support network around you is a valuable asset, so use it and don’t underestimate it.

In your PDP, list the people who can help you. This could be a financial advisor, a friend, or a colleague. People are often so happy to help you, more than you might realise.

7. Measure Progress

After you’ve achieved some progress, whether it’s big or small, take time to reflect on how far you’ve come.

Recognising what has gone well is an effective way to bolster your motivation and remain dedicated.

And after a setback, this is another time to take stock.

Wallowing – briefly – is a good way to feel what you need to without holding on to it. Holding onto sadness, anger or frustration, however, will only deter you. These emotions will take you nowhere and will only hinder you.

You should also spend a little time figuring out why it went wrong. Can you identify a skills or knowledge gap? 

 If you can, then you can get yourself back on track by focussing on your next step. This will reignite your sense of purpose and help you regain control, which is integral to making progress.

Continue to reflect on your progress. You can gain significant insight from your reflections and this can help you grow. Remember that you should update your plan where necessary. Don’t overload it at any one time but, once you have achieved your small steps, reflect and then update your plan to focus on your next move.

Free Personal Development Plan Example & Template

In this article, we have discussed how you can create your own personal development plan, so you should now feel ready to start considering your goals and developing your own plan. To help you produce an effective personal development plan, we have created an editable template that you can use. Take a look at our example PDP, and download your free template below:

Further Resources:

• How to Upskill Yourself
• What are Personal Development Goals for Work?
• Using Key Phrases in Performance Reviews & Appraisals
• Resilience Quiz
• Resilience in the Workplace: What are the Benefits and How Can Businesses Develop It?
• How to Stand Out in a Virtual Interview: Preparation Tips
• What is CPD? A Guide to Continuing Professional Development
• Writing A Professional Development Plan – Example & Template
• Business Essentials Courses

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Her favourite article is Five Top Learning and Development Trends for 2020

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S.W.O.T Analysis For Personal Development

Simply put, SWOT Analysis is a process of measuring your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats at present. Carrying out a SWOT analysis of self can help you understand yourself in a much better manner.

Many people consider SWOT analysis to be something restricted for businesses only, it’s an analytical framework which can help companies facing great challenges, and it can help to find the most promising new markets. The analysis was created by business gurus Edmund P. Learned, Kenneth Andrews, C. Roland Christensen and William D. in the 1960s.

But think again… because SWOT analysis of self is as effective a tool as for any business plan.

Analysing yourself accurately in an unbiased manner is one of the most difficult feats to achieve. Either we end up being too hard on ourselves or too easy. When it comes to analysis, SWOT is one of the most used assessment tools.

Simply put, SWOT Analysis is a process of measuring your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats at present. Carrying out a SWOT analysis of self can help you understand yourself in a much better manner. For personal development, in any area of your life, it can be a useful and manageable tool. It can help you assess your performance against your goal for yourself in different areas of life such as career, relationships and skill development. You can use the result for your personality development by sustaining your strengths and building upon the opportunities while you have to curb the weaknesses and threats.

Many people think that conducting a SWOT analysis of self is a very easy thing to do. This is where most of them are mistaken. Before you grab a pen and paper, and jot down the first basic things coming in your mind, you need to observe and brainstorm. Carrying out the analysis in a hurry will be not of much use. You should keep your list specific, simple and most importantly realistic. If you feel the need, you can ask around for a general perception of yourself from other people before you start, but do not make comparisons with others.

Many people are often confused about how to go about sorting things in different quadrants when they are carrying out a SWOT analysis of self. The strengths could be your personal set of capabilities and resources that makes you stand out among others. Any habit or skill that needs to be improved or eliminated can be counted as a weakness.

Opportunities include the potential of benefits in the external environment due to current trends and how you can exploit them to your advantage. Threats to you can include anything that you think stands in the way of your success. It can often be other’s strengths that can be a threat to you.

The only difficulty with the tool is the authenticity of its results. Since you are carrying out a SWOT analysis for self, there are too many chances that the result may be biased. The results are subjective and vulnerable to the perceptional differences of each person. Moreover, lack of accountability is also a major factor as you may not have any motivation to change yourself.

SWOT analysis can be a useful self-assessment tool that can help you in personal development. However, the extent of improvement depends not on the results of the analysis but on your own motivation to change.

It’s been a long time since I’ve done one on myself, I think it’s time to give it a go again!

I would be interested to hear what conclusions your own SWOT analysis has brought you to, drop me an email and let me know.

Here’s to your success Andrew Cussons Business Coach

E: [email protected] Tel : +44  07801 612889

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How to Use SWOT Analysis to Plan Your Career and Get Hired

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What is SWOT analysis?

How to use swot analysis for career planning.

• Example of a career planning SWOT analysis

An analytical framework can help you develop a successful approach to career planning. With SWOT analysis, you can identify career options that fit your qualifications and objectives. In this article, you will learn how to use SWOT analysis to plan your career and set professional goals.

SWOT analysis is a review of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This technique can clarify your approach to a variety of professional challenges by listing all the pros and cons of a particular situation. When you use this framework, you can make informed decisions to develop a career strategy that fits your skills and experience.

You can create a SWOT analysis by creating a grid with four squares. Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats each get a square, then you fill in the squares with the information you need to make a decision. You can also make a SWOT analysis list.

Follow these steps when creating a SWOT analysis to plan your career:

1. First, separate internal factors from external factors

Before beginning your SWOT analysis, make sure you understand the difference between internal and external factors:

• Internal factors include strengths and weaknesses and relate to your qualities and experiences
• External factors include opportunities and threats and involve circumstances beyond your control

For example, you may have experience with a particular software, which is an internal factor. The ability to take a course to learn the latest version of the software is an external factor.

2. Second, consider your professional strengths and qualifications

Write down your education, skills and work history that give you an advantage over other candidates. An extensive work history, technical skills, college degrees and professional certifications are all strengths. Soft skills, such as problem-solving, decision-making and critical thinking, are also strengths.

Other strengths can include the ability to relocate or professional connections in your field.

3. Next, list your weaknesses and areas you could improve upon

Create a list of your disadvantages compared to other candidates. Weaknesses could include needing additional education, certifications or technical skills to be successful in your potential field. Other weaknesses could include limited work availability because of school, the inability to move or a limited professional network.

4. Then, identify professional opportunities in your career

Consider professional opportunities where you can apply your skills and experience. Review job listings and company expansion announcements to determine if there are a lot of openings in your area. Look at the larger trends in the job market and areas of occupational growth that fit your strengths. Consider learning a new technology that might help you distinguish yourself from other candidates.

5. Next, understand threats and risks in your career path

Create a list of the biggest threats to your career path. These factors could include a decreasing job market or increasing competition from qualified candidates. Rapidly evolving technology and policy changes can also be threats if they challenge your qualifications. Consider trends in your potential field, such as companies using more contract employees rather than full-time employees.

6. Last, compare the four SWOT elements to make a decision about your career

Once you have made a list of the four SWOT factors, compare each element. If your strengths outnumber your weaknesses, your field of interest could be an excellent path to pursue. If your weaknesses outweigh your strengths, consider creating a plan to learn additional skills or earn a certification. You could also consider changing your path to fit your current qualifications.

Example of a career planning SWOT analysis 

Reviewing an example of a SWOT analysis can help you frame your own career planning process. This example is for someone who wants to pursue a career as a construction manager:

• I have a valid state contractor’s license, and I am pursuing a bachelor’s degree in construction management.
• My decision-making skills and ability to motivate teams could make me a strong leader.
• I completed a construction apprenticeship, giving me two years of on-the-job-training.
• I only have three years of experience in construction, while most construction managers have five or more years.
• I don’t belong to any professional construction organizations in my area.
• I don’t have formal experience as a manager.

Opportunities

• All of the top construction companies in my area are hiring for management positions.
• Analysts predict an 11% growth in construction management jobs in the next 10 years.
• My construction apprenticeship certification is valid in all states, meaning I can easily relocate.
• Government regulations are currently under review, and any changes could mean I’ll have to retake the licensing exam.
• Two local universities offer construction management degree programs, meaning I could have additional competition.
• My license is only valid in my current state, so I would have to get a new construction license if I move.

I am already qualified for my field. Joining a construction management organization could help me stay connected and learn more about job opportunities. I could find a mentor who could work with me to develop a long-term career plan. Strong job market growth and numerous local opportunities outweigh the potential threats, so I feel confident in pursuing a career as a construction manager in my area.