A Guide to Creating A Personal Development Plan

Do you sometimes feel your personal growth has come to a screeching halt? Or you are not too satisfied with your progress? Well, then, all you need is a foolproof personal development plan! Personal development plans are the perfect way to reignite your academic or professional goals in the right direction! But we get it. Sometimes you just want to enjoy going with the flow or being spontaneous with your plans just for the thrill of it, but having a personal development plan can help you in the long run. That brings us to our first question: What is personal development planning?

What is personal development planning?

Well, “personal development planning” might sound a bit intimidating, but you might be wondering what’s all it about. Well, it’s exactly what it sounds like – having a structure that lets you take control of accomplishing what you want, personally and professionally!

The planning process also enables you to assess your existing skills and evaluate your shortcomings! In the long run, consciously and methodically working on yourself will push you towards the path of self-improvement, letting you reach your true potential!

In simple words, having a personal development plan assures you always have a guide every step of the way! 

Why create a personal development plan?

A personal development plan helps you identify your career aspirations, strengths and weaknesses! The personal development plan acts as a map of skills you need to work on or learn in your area of weakness!

Although we understand sometimes planning might seem tedious, think of it as a detailed roadmap guiding you throughout your growth journey to achieve your goals. Thus, breaking down goals into small milestones guarantees a clear understanding of your objectives and the steps you need to accomplish them!

A personal development plan outlines the following:

• What are your priorities?
• What do you want to accomplish?
• What powers do you have that can help you achieve your goals?
• What do you need to develop to reach your goals?

How to create a personal development plan?

A traditional personal development plan generally involves three stages:

1. Personal Analysis.
2. Setting Goals.
3. Set a deadline.
4. Get support!
5. Review, revise and adapt!

Let us break it down for you to give you a clear insight!

• Personal analysis, aka it, starts with YOU!: Self-awareness is an essential component of any personal development activity. Evaluating your existing goals, interests, strengths, even weaknesses will get you closer to understanding what pushes and encourages you to do what you do. But sometimes, identifying your goals and interests might take time as well. For that, you can take a psychometric test! This test includes a string of structured questions that will help you gain a thorough insight into the different aspects of your character and abilities!
•  Setting goals: Once you’re done identifying your strengths and shortcomings, the next step is establishing short- and long-term goals for yourself. On the other hand, if you are making a personal development plan for professional purposes, confer with a superior such as your supervisor or trainer, for better insight on establishing the right goals.

Once you’re in this stage, you need to ask yourself a set of questions: 

1. What should I concentrate on?
2. What help do I need to accomplish this goal?
3. How can I measure the success achieved?
4. How much time, work, and energy will I have to put in to accomplish this goal?

• Set a deadline: One of the most crucial steps in a personal development plan happens to be setting a deadline. Don’t set an unrealistic goal at first, and keep going and pushing even if you miss out on one or two tasks at first. Try to maintain and follow the deadline! Always remember being consistent is the key!
• Get all the support!: Let’s be honest; we all need a good support system. It might be your bestie who knows the real, unfiltered version of you or maybe a professional who’s there to guide and not judge you while you figure yourself out! While you’re putting in all this work and stepping out of your comfort zone, support will always come in handy and getting support is not something you should be ashamed of!
• Review, revise and adapt: Your personal development plan needs to be flexible and not set in stone. As you go through the initial steps of your plan, take the time to review, revise and adapt what appears to be working and what areas you’ll need to modify or change for your betterment! The best laid-out plans often need adaptability, so be ready to pivot whenever it’s called for! Reevaluating your plan daily will make you resilient as you strive towards your goals!

Ready set, GO!

Taking the time out to chalk and create a plan is always better than daydreaming about a life you could have.

Achieving your goals takes time, effort, and determination, but having a plan in your pocket makes it much easier. But we are here for you if you’re feeling stuck while creating the perfect plan for yourself! Take the psychometric test today and let the professionals at Mentoria help you achieve your dreams in no time!