personal development action plan essay

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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• Personal Development Plan Templates for Success

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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Are you reaching your full potential? A guide to personal development

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What is personal development?

5 areas of personal development, the benefits of personal development, 6 steps to developing a personal development plan, how personalized development can help.

I’m no stranger to feeling stuck. There are days I wake up and just go through the daily motions. I make coffee then sit down at my computer for a day of work. I’ll usually work out, walk the dogs, make dinner. Then, read, watch a show, go to bed. The next day? Wake up and do it all over again. 

Especially at the height of the pandemic, it started to feel like vicious monotony. Our lives seemingly stalled in bumper-to-bumper traffic. It feels like dreams, goals, and ambitions are buried in thick molasses or honey at the back of our brains. And even as we navigate this new normal , that “stuck” feeling might be stuck with us. 

The good news? You’re not alone — and personal development is here to help. 

I embarked on an intentional personal development journey well before I knew what it meant. I knew I wanted to see personal growth — and had reached a point in my life where I needed real change .

At BetterUp, personal development comes to life in what we call an Inner Work® practice . Inner Work® is deep work, a practice that isn’t always visible to the outside eye. But with the right personal development toolkit, you can build a lifelong practice of Inner Work® . 

My own personal growth journey has seen its series of ups and downs, failures and successes. Any personal development journey is a lifelong commitment, not a sprint or achievable task. It will weather bumps and roadblocks but it can also thrive in other areas of your life. 

If you’re looking for ways to up your personal development game, we’re here to help. 

It’s certainly not as easy as it sounds. Every person is unique. So, it only makes sense that personal development will look different for everyone. But what does it actually mean? 

Personal development is looking inward and focusing on ways to better yourself. Personal development increases your self-awareness, your self-esteem, increases your skills, and fulfills your aspirations.  

At BetterUp, we’re big believers in the practice of Inner Work®. In many ways, personal development is a form of Inner Work® . It is the act of looking inward to achieve a purpose or result, especially in the pursuit of clarity, purpose, and passion in life. 

Personal development is much larger than just career development or self-development. It encompasses all aspects of your life where you’d like to see personal growth — and it doesn’t discriminate on where it shows up for you. 

When it comes to personal development, it’s hard to not reference Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. According to Maslow, your basic needs need to be fulfilled in order to reach your fullest potential. In other words. To reach self-actualization means we’re reaching the highest levels of self-awareness , self-confidence , personal growth, and self-realization. 

Much like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we see five different areas of personal development. Different personal development goals can fall into different categories. 

Mental 

Exercising your brain and staying mentally fit is critical to personal development. At BetterUp, this comes to life in a few ways: coaching, learning opportunities , and career growth. For example, right now, I’m taking a creative writing course to help keep my mental creative muscles going strong. (And BetterUp foots the bill as part of our learning stipend.) 

Mental development can be anything from workshops, training sessions , or even just rest. Rest is just as (if not more) important than mental exercise. And as your mental fitness improves , so does your resiliency, innovation, and self-awareness. 

Social 

Social connections and relationships are also a must-have for any personal development. After all, self-improvement is not a solitary pursuit. Humans are social creatures — we need that connection to learn and grow. And from social connections, we gain important skills. Like communication skills , problem-solving, relationship-building, and the ability to receive (and give) feedback. We also learn from those around us and their experiences. 

Spiritual 

Personal growth and development — whether you’re religious or not — can come through in spirituality. It’s important to recognize that religion and spirituality are not synonymous. In fact, far from it. 

Spirituality means you’re investing in a deeper understanding of your own self in the world around you. It helps you get to know yourself and uncover your values. And in the context of Inner Work®, the spiritual personal development tool can bring greater awareness to self and change. 

Emotional 

Emotional personal development often goes hand-in-hand with emotional intelligence . At its simplest, emotional intelligence is the ability to understand feelings. Beyond feelings, it’s understanding how those feelings shape our thoughts and actions. 

Any number of experiences lends itself to emotional personal development. And those experiences can help you in your pursuit of self-improvement. Take your own Inner Work® journey so far. What experiences have shaped you into who you are today? When you reflect on your journey, what have you learned? 

If you’re looking back at your journey and identifying the growth, it’s likely you’ve fostered a sense of emotional development along the way. This requires emotional intelligence to understand what role your feelings and thoughts played. 

Physical 

A healthy body nourishes a healthy mind. There’s an intrinsic link between your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. 

This aspect of personal development is focused on physical health — like nutrition, sleep, exercise, and movement. When your physical self is nourished, it’s likely your mind is also reaping those benefits. Consider ways you can build this area of personal development and take note of how your body and your mind feel. 

There are plenty of benefits to personal development. Personal growth isn’t easy but the benefits will make the journey worthwhile. 

My friend at Google has worked with a BetterUp coach for the last year. In her own personal development journey, she's shared why working with a coach has transformed her personal growth journey. 

"My experience with BetterUp has transcended the professional workplace. My coach knows me on a personal level, which allows for her to help me set boundaries, manage expectations, and receive feedback. Ultimately, it's helped me reach my biggest goal of having a work-life balance."   A Google employee, BetterUp Member 

• Increased self-awareness and self-esteem. Personal growth requires looking inward at your own thoughts, feelings, habits, and reactions. It requires attentiveness — and awareness — to who you are as a person in a present state. But it also challenges you to look to the future to where you want to go. By investing in yourself, you’re increasing your self-awareness and by default, self-esteem . 
• Increased mental fitness. Becoming mentally fit requires work. And many aspects of personal development aid in building strong mental fitness. With increased mental fitness, you’ll see a ripple effect of positive benefits. We’ve gathered data around the impact of mental fitness . People with strong mental fitness are more productive, are less likely to experience mental illness, and are more creative and innovative. 
• Greater resilience. With personal development, you gain greater resilience . This is another positive symptom of strong mental fitness, too. Investing in your personal growth means investing in your ability to bounce back after rough patches. 
• More knowledge and learned skills. Oftentimes, personal development comes with more knowledge and learned skills. This can come to life in different ways. For example, you may take courses in digital marketing that help you gain the skills you need to further your career development. Or, you may sign up for art or pottery classes, which help you gain skills in entirely different areas of your life. 
• Improved personal and professional relationships. Another personal development benefit is improved personal and professional relationships . This is an area that flourishes when you invest in your personal growth, especially in emotional and social aspects. 

11 personal development skills to work on

If you’re not sure where to start, consider working with a coach . Personalized coaching can help serve as your guide while you’re building your roadmap to self-actualization. 

Your coach will work one-on-one with you to help identify key skills to work on catered to your own experience. You can start by taking the Whole Person Assessment  to help assess where your strengths and areas of opportunity lie. 

We’ve identified some common areas of self-improvement and personal development you may consider investing in: 

• Communication and interpersonal skills 
• Problem-solving 
• Cognitive agility and adaptability 
• Self-compassion, self-care , and self-reflection 
• Conflict and conflict resolution  
• Navigating change and uncertainty 
• Future-mindedness  
• Organizational skills 
• Growth mindset 
• Teamwork and collaboration  
• Self-awareness 

Like any other goal, it’s important to put together a plan. By assembling your personal development plan with some structure, you’re more likely to achieve your goals. 

1. Identify areas where you’d like to improve 

This first step will likely require some Inner Work®. Take a minute to reflect on where you are right now. What are your strengths? In what areas do you want to focus? What growth and development do you want to see in yourself? 

If you’ve taken the Whole Person Assessment, this can help as a useful tool. Once you’ve reflected on your personal goals , identify the areas where you’d like to improve . 

2. Work with a coach or mentor to assemble a plan 

Even if it's your own personal development plan, you don’t have to do it alone. Lean on support systems — like life coaches or mentors — to help frame a plan. With the right structure in place (and feedback along the way), you’ll be better equipped to put the plan into action. 

3. Structure your personal development goals  

Stick to a routine — and build consistency. Start to examine your day-to-day and try to find ways to either build habits or stack new habits onto existing ones. 

In this last year, I wanted to build strength training into my fitness routine. The kicker? I never use weights. I decided to put a yoga mat with weights next to my running shoes. Every time I go for a run, I have to think about those weights sitting next to my shoes. It helps to remind myself to do a quick 5-minute exercise with some dumbbells.  

4. Find an accountability buddy 

Sometimes, having someone holding you accountable makes all the difference. If you and a friend are both setting intentions and goals, consider ways you can support one another. 

Every new hire at BetterUp gets a stack of great books during the onboarding process. My teammate reached out today to see if we could create an accountability plan . We’re each holding each other to 100 pages of reading a week. 

5. Be honest and aware of your progress 

Your personal development plan requires integrity. Be honest with yourself about your growth and progress. This also requires a level of self-awareness. You can also gather feedback from friends, family, and colleagues to help gather insight on how you’re progressing in your goals, too. 

6. Factor personal development into your mental fitness plan 

How does personal development factor into your mental fitness plan? Consider ways you can work with your coach on building aspects of personal development into your overall mental fitness. 

Personal development is just that: it’s personal. 

Every human is different. If our society cracked the nut on personal development, every self-help book would help everyone. Or every learning process would benefit every student. 

But we know from our life experiences that there’s no “one-size-fits-all” solution to anything when it comes to human nature. 

It’s important to lean on personalized support like coaching to help craft a catered plan that works for you. You won’t have the same needs, strengths, opportunities, and skills as your neighbor. So why would your personal development plan be the same? 

Push yourself outside of your comfort zone. By doing so, you'll be on the path to reaching your full potential .

While self-actualization and Inner Work® is a lifelong process, your personal development goals shouldn't be daunting. Start small — like building a new skill or even investing in work-life balance . By doing so, you'll set yourself up for success in all areas of your life.

If you're ready to make a change to improve the quality of your life, consider how personal and professional development coaching can help. With help from BetterUp, you can awaken your full potential .

Transform your life

Make meaningful changes and become the best version of yourself. BetterUp's professional Coaches are here to support your personal growth journey.

Madeline Miles

Madeline is a writer, communicator, and storyteller who is passionate about using words to help drive positive change. She holds a bachelor's in English Creative Writing and Communication Studies and lives in Denver, Colorado. In her spare time, she's usually somewhere outside (preferably in the mountains) — and enjoys poetry and fiction.

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Maximize Your Potential With a Personal Development Plan

Personal development fosters individual growth while enhancing skills and self-awareness. It can facilitate adaptability to life’s changes, maximize your potential and contribute to fulfilling your personal and professional aspirations. The result can lead to a more enriched and purposeful life. But maximizing your potential requires a sound and strategic approach, which is where creating a solid personal development plan and template can assist you.

What is a personal development plan? 

A personal development plan (PDP) provides a structured and strategic approach to reaching your personal goals. It provides you with an opportunity for self-assessment, making the planning process itself an opportunity to better understand your drives, goals and needs.

Moreover, PDPs are actionable. By setting goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (that is, SMART goals), you develop a proactive means toward personal growth. And paying careful attention to your plan throughout the process gives you the opportunity to assess your success.

Here are eight aspects of personal development to keep in mind while creating your individualized plan:

• Self-awareness and reflection: Discover your true self with greater understanding of your strengths and weaknesses as well as values, drives and goals.
• Skill acquisition and knowledge: Commit to lifelong learning to gain new knowledge and develop new skills and enhance existing ones for greater empowerment and satisfaction.
• Emotional and mental health: Build resilience while managing stress and developing emotional intelligence .
• Physical health: Emphasis on improving health, including a better diet, proper sleep, exercise and other self-care regimens to enhance overall well-being.
• Relationships: Build and expand your personal network through development and better communication skills and empathy.
• Financial literacy : Relieve unnecessary stress and burdens with a personalized money management plan.
• Time management and productivity : The best time management strategies will increase your productivity while freeing up personal time.
• Spiritual growth: Noted speaker Jim Rohn considered spiritual growth key to personal development , whether that’s through religion, meditation or a connection to nature and the universe.

By identifying these aspects of overall well-being, you can embark on a personal development plan suited to your individual goals and needs.

What are the benefits of a personal development plan?

The decision to create a PDP is your first step toward achieving your goals. It shows a commitment to inner growth and a desire to lead a happier and more fulfilling life. As you dive in, you will develop a clearer understanding of yourself. This clarity fosters self-awareness through introspection. Your plan is not a “wish list” but rather a process of designing a more purposeful existence.

Your plan also provides clarity in making decisions that align with your values and goals. This calibration of your inner and outer worlds enhances personal motivation with a renewed sense of purpose. Monitoring your growth in desired areas of personal development likewise builds resilience as you see yourself more confidently clearing hurdles and navigating setbacks.

Furthermore, a professional development plan emphasizes continuous learning. This augments your adaptability skills so that perceived threats seem more like opportunities. You develop a growth mindset that builds your character and makes you more attractive to others, both personally and professionally. Every task becomes easier as you build a more enriched, empowered and purposeful life.

How do I create a personal development plan?

Crafting a PDP requires commitment. You must be willing to devote quiet time to deep introspection of who you are and who you want to become. With this understanding, you can set specific goals tailored to your personal growth. Each goal should be paired with strategic actions that are stepping stones toward your self-actualization.

It sounds like a lot to take on—but embarking on this journey does not need to be difficult. A personal development plan template provides structure, acting as a roadmap to guide you one step at a time on your lifelong journey.

Use this personal development plan template to get started.

Let’s begin with a personal development plan example to use as your own template.

1. Create a vision statement

Think deeply about what you aspire to and what inspires you. Make a list in multiple columns that addresses where you want to go and what truly motivates you on a daily basis. Then, narrow that list down, crossing off items where desire and motivation don’t align. Start from what remains to develop your personal growth vision statement.

2. Commit to a deep self-assessment

Now that you have brought into alignment what you want to achieve and what motivates you to get there, assess yourself. Identify your personal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats—that is, perform a personal SWOT analysis . Just as these analyses help businesses assess their standing, they also help individuals in developing a plan for personal development.

3. Set SMART goals

Next, set personal development goals for yourself. But remember: Goals are not wishes or dreams. Setting goals for personal development is simple, but it requires discipline. Set your personal goals with the SMART goal strategy in mind—determine goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. To facilitate the ease and success of this stage, consider using a goal-setting worksheet .

4. Determine action steps

Now that you know where you want to go, the challenge lies in getting there. Determine the course of action to achieve what you desire. Some personal development goals may only need a few action steps. Others may require more. The point here is to map out the actions you need to take to achieve your personal goals. Set realistic deadlines that help keep you on track, adhere to them and adjust only when necessary.

5. Use all available resources

Putting step 4 of your personal development plan into action may be the most difficult. Thankfully, you do not need to attempt it without guidance. Experts can assist you. Take time to use available resources such as personal development courses and personal growth books . These proven experts will do more than guide you with tools and strategies; they will inspire you during your growth journey.

6. Track your progress

Tracking your personal development progress is vital to your plan. If you used a SMART goal worksheet to set deadlines, review the tasks regularly to ensure you are staying on track while also setting future goals. You may consider keeping a daily journal. If you choose this method, consider expressing gratitude in your journal, which can provide personal development benefits.

7. Review and adjust

Tracking your daily progress also offers you the opportunity to review and adjust your personal development plan. Go back and look at your worksheet and journal each week with time set aside for a monthly review. If you did not meet your goals, don’t be hard on yourself. You may simply have aimed too high starting out. Adjust your goals and timelines accordingly. And when goals are met, set new ones in incremental steps that adhere to the SMART goal-setting approach.

Ready to maximize your potential but still want help creating your personal development plan? The Win the Day Accelerator, hosted by James Whittaker, can help! The 8-part program is designed to unlock your full potential and help you achieve extraordinary results, personally and professionally.

Photo by mimagephotography/Shutterstock.com

Bryan Lindenberger

Bryan enjoys the digital space where arts and technology meet. As a writer, he has worked in education, health and wellbeing, and manufacturing. He also assists smaller businesses in web development including accessibility and content development. In his free time, he hikes trails in central Florida.

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Personal Development: 9 Skills, Tips, and Examples

Why personal development is so important and how to improve yourself..

Posted June 7, 2020 | Reviewed by Gary Drevitch

I am obsessed with personal development because it's helped me completely change my life. Only 10 years ago, I had no connections, no money, and worked a minimum wage retail job. Now, I have a Ph.D. from Berkeley, am the author of a book on how to generate happiness in the technology age , and have created a variety of well-being-boosting programs . And it's all because I worked on developing myself. So how do you make personal development work for you?

Personal development can include any skill that you build to improve yourself—your emotions, thoughts, or behaviors. It doesn't really matter which skills you want to improve; the key to personal development is taking the right steps—steps that help ensure that you reach whatever goal you are pursuing.

Learn more from the video below:

What are the most important personal development skills? It really depends on what you're trying to achieve. But here are 9 that I have found to be important to successful personal development.

1. Start by figuring out which personal development skills you need to build. The first step in any personal development strategy is to figure out how to best use your time. It makes little sense to learn how to code if you don't plan to be a coder or to bench press 400 pounds if you don't plan to be a weight lifter. These can be hobbies, but personal development is more about building skills to reach your personal goals . So it's good to take some time to self-reflect. (If well-being is a goal of yours, take this well-being quiz to see which skills you need to build.)

2. Develop entrepreneurial thinking. Everyone can benefit from learning how to think like an entrepreneur, regardless of whether or not you are one. Why? Because entrepreneurs are innovative, good at planning for all possible outcomes, and skilled at getting others to buy into their vision or dream. And perhaps more importantly for personal development, they tend to be adaptable to all sorts of situations.

By developing entrepreneurial thinking, you better adapt to whatever your circumstances are so you can more easily achieve your goals, whether those goals are to start a business that makes a positive impact in the world , to set yourself up for an early retirement , or climb Mount Everest.

3. Develop a growth mindset . If we have a “fixed mindset,” we may shy away from challenges that could help us grow. But this can be problematic because our fear of making mistakes can lead us to avoid challenges and new experiences—experiences which would help us grow, improve ourselves in important ways, and create the life we desire.

If we have a “ growth mindset ” we seek out challenges because we value learning and growth more than we value feeling smart or knowing what we’re doing. That's why those with a growth mindset often build new skills more easily: They believe they can and so they really work at it.

4. Develop your self-soothing mechanism. High levels of stress are not only bad for our health and well-being, they can prevent us from effectively pursuing and achieving our self-development goals. By learning effective, long-lasting relaxation techniques , your body and mind will be more equipped to handle the inevitable challenges that arise when you're trying to develop yourself.

5. Develop resilience . Resilience is that super-important skill that helps you bounce back quickly after being knocked down. This is one of the most important skills for success because none of us will achieve anything if we don't keep trying when we fail. We can build resilience by improving skills like emotion-regulation , mindfulness , and positivity.

6. Develop your value compass. It's not always easy to live by our core values . But when we go through life without following our personal values, we can easily get lost. We may suddenly "wake up" and realize that we are not who we want to be or where we want to be. This is why it's so important to stay in alignment with our personal values.

What are your values? Perhaps: kindness, curiosity, creativity , hard work, or personal relationships. Define your personal values so you know which actions are in alignment with those values.

7. Create a personal development plan. A good personal development plan takes all these factors into consideration—the WHAT, the HOW, the WHY, and the WHEN. And it focuses on long-term goals . So ask yourself:

• What skills will you build?
• How will you build them?
• Why will you build them?
• And when will you build them?

It can be helpful to create a 10-year plan to map out how you'll reach these goals.

8. Record your progress towards personal development. Keeping track of our progress as we move toward our personal development goals is key to making sure we're on the right track. Then we can pause and take a different direction if we've gone off course. By maintaining self-awareness and frequently checking in with ourselves, we can identify things that we need to devote more attention to. As a result, we can make better progress toward our personal development.

9. Keep developing yourself in new ways. The science is clear: The more ways we develop ourselves, the broader our skillset, and the more success we tend to have. So try learning some new emotional skills or do some activities to build new skills. You just might learn something that changes your life.

Facebook /LinkedIn images: GaudiLab/Shutterstock

Tchiki Davis, Ph.D. , is a consultant, writer, and expert on well-being technology.

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Home — Essay Samples — Psychology — Developmental Psychology — Personal Development Planning

Essays on Personal Development Planning

Personal development planning (PDP) is an essential process that involves setting goals, identifying strengths and weaknesses, and creating a plan to improve oneself. Writing an essay on personal development planning can help individuals reflect on their own goals and aspirations, and gain a better understanding of the steps needed to achieve them. Here are some essay topics on personal development planning:

• The importance of setting personal development goals
• Strategies for creating a successful personal development plan
• The role of self-awareness in personal development planning
• Setting & Achieving Academic Goals: Strategies & Examples
• Overcoming obstacles in personal development planning
• The impact of personal development planning on career success
• The relationship between personal development planning and mental well-being
• The influence of personal development planning on relationships
• The benefits of mentorship in personal development planning
• The role of resilience in personal development planning
• The connection between personal development planning and time management
• Mindful Career Planning: The Path to Success and Fulfillment
• The impact of personal development planning on academic success
• The influence of personal development planning on financial well-being
• The connection between personal development planning and physical health
• The role of emotional intelligence in personal development planning
• The impact of personal development planning on leadership skills
• The importance of accountability in personal development planning
• The role of self-reflection in personal development planning
• The influence of personal development planning on personal fulfillment
• The connection between personal development planning and goal attainment
• The impact of personal development planning on overall life satisfaction

When choosing a topic for a personal development planning essay, it is important to consider one's own interests and experiences. Reflecting on personal experiences and areas of improvement can help in choosing a meaningful and relevant topic. Additionally, considering the potential impact of the topic on one's own life and the lives of others can be a helpful factor in topic selection.

Personal development planning is a crucial aspect of self-improvement and goal attainment. Writing an essay on personal development planning can provide individuals with the opportunity to reflect on their own goals and aspirations, and gain a deeper understanding of the steps needed to achieve them. By choosing a relevant and meaningful topic, individuals can explore the various aspects of personal development planning and its impact on their lives and the lives of others.

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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.

Interested in Learning More?

Let us help with your personal development goals this year. Choose from a wide range of  business essentials courses , whether it be  Leadership and Management ,  Starting a Business , or  Coaching and Mentoring . You could have your CPD recognised certificate in a matter of hours!

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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• Essay on Internet

Personal Development Plan Essay Sample

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Internet , Development , Planning , Goals , Skills , Thinking , Leadership , Organization

Words: 1500

Published: 02/01/2021

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1. Baseline Self-Assessment

In order to develop my own sense of leadership, I have to determine exactly what kind of leader I am now. This will allow me to learn exactly what needs to change, and what needs to be maintained as I continue to grow and evolve as a leader. In terms of my leadership style, I would say that I am authentic and adaptive; these are the two primary concepts I would use to identify the way in which I lead. My authenticity comes from my ability to be honest and fair with my teammates and peers; I always made sure to place myself as transparent and open with my feelings. I do not want people to be sugarcoated or coddled, but I also do not want to be overly harsh to people if I do not have to. I just want to make sure that people know what I think if asked (George, 2003).

My adaptability is also a great strength of mine; I tend to go with the flow and make changes as the need arises. While I have a loose plan in place, I leave room for improvisation if something unexpected comes along. If something does not go as planned, I have little anxiety or problem with changing it. This makes me incredibly flexible and willing to go with what works, leaving little room for an ego to disrupt my thought processes (Heifetz et al, 2009).

Other strengths of my leadership style include my impulsivity - I will often run with the ball when I need to, carrying with my a great momentum throughout many of my projects. I am creative; I always am willing to look outside the box for solutions, and add a fresh perspective to things. I am very action oriented and proactive; I want to try to get things done, and I am very passionate in that pursuit. I have good communication skills as well - I do my best to keep everyone in the loop, and convey effectively what I need to get done.

While I can recognize my strengths, I also have to confess my weaknesses. I can tend to be disorganized; often I will run through a project fairly scattershot, which leaves little room to make sure that everything is set up. There are times in which I lose focus of the big picture, thus compromising my level of responsibility. This leaves jobs half-done, as I move on to the next one; this can spell doom for my endeavors. I also carry an inability to plan ahead; I do not think about the future as often as I'd like, and that can result in shortsightedness and negative consequences from running through a project too quickly.

These leadership aspects have come from my long history with groups and situations, where I am very good at taking charge and getting things done. However, it can be difficult for me to look beyond what is immediately in front of me, and my enthusiasm gets the better of me. These things are all aspects that I wish to change for the better.

2. Leadership Development Vision

Developing my leadership capabilities involves a great deal of forethought and consideration; I have several things I wish to improve about my leadership. In terms of my authentic leadership, I wish to improve my level of insight and impact. I want to be able to make a difference, all while demonstrating superior decision making skills. With adaptive leadership, I wish to become cognizant of new challenges, improve my improvisational ability, and still keep a firm grasp of essential values and capacities.

Actionable changes I wish to make in my leadership ability include: becoming a better long-term thinker, increasing my level of organization, and gaining a greater amount of patience. If I am able to improve these aspects of my leadership, I believe I will have achieved a net positive result from this exercise. In the end, I want to be a leader that can accomplish tasks quickly, in an organized fashion, with a great deal of forethought. I wish my projects to work out fantastically on a long-term basis; not only should my accomplishments work now, they should be helpful far down the road and not cause problems. I wish to improve the command and respect of my peers that I have worked hard to gain so far, and ensure that I can lead with greater authenticity and adaptability.

3. Concrete Action Plan

My goals for leadership development have been divided into three distinct action points: improving my patience, improving my ability to think long-term, and improving my level of organization. Over the next five weeks, I will be making concrete, measurable steps toward these goals, and will ensure my ability to improve as a leader.

In order to improve my long-term thinking skills, I will look at my current projects and determine their consequences five years down the road. For each of my projects, I will envision a five-year goal for them and determine the consequences of each action for the foreseeable future. Considering all of the factors relating to the project, I will write down a journal for each project, detailing how each will develop over the next five years. This will help to develop my long-term thinking. Five weeks after starting, I will have complete five-year plans for at least five major projects.

Next, I will improve my level of organization. In order to do this, each week I will set up meetings with each of my colleagues in order to refresh myself on the status of our current projects. Following those meetings, I will make sure to collect and organize all paperwork and documents relating to my projects in project-specific folders (whether hard copy or electronic). By the end of the five weeks, I will have complete portfolios for at least five different projects. These will include the five-year plans for them.

Lastly, I will attempt to improve my patience; by this, I mean I will temper my enthusiasm for a project to a reasonable degree. Some of these activities will tie in closely with the first goal's actions; in creating the five-year plan, I will also be working to create action points along a reasonable schedule. Instead of having 80% of the action items on a list performed in the first week of project starting, I will set up a schedule wherein I space out the actions, and I will perform them on time. By the end of the five weeks, I will also have a set, even schedule with evenly-distributed action points for five different projects.

The net result of these action goals will be to have five major projects of mine completely organized and set down, as well as spaced out in reasonable, patient action items, over a five-year period. In practicing these aspects of my leadership, I will learn to adapt these habits into a broader scale within my own practice.

4. Final Report

At the end of the five weeks, I have gone through a tremendous amount of change and growth. Participating in these action plans has helped me to learn an incredible amount of patience, organization, and long-term thinking.

For the first point, I managed to successfully draw up five-year plans for four of my major projects. The fifth project included many variables that I was simply unsure of; in the time that it took to do the research needed to make a decision, the five weeks were up. However, these four projects also have complete portfolios, containing every bit of relevant information on them. This has proven absolutely invaluable, and has saved a tremendous amount of time in desperately searching for lost documents. Furthermore, all of the action items are spread out in an even-handed fashion, so as to allow me the freedom to not rush my projects.

This project, overall, has helped me immensely in my leadership development. It has led to the creation of a personal organization and scheduling system that keeps my own impulsivity in check. From now on, I am able to think ahead, plan ahead, and remain organized while doing so. While the actual long-term thinking and action item schedule was incredibly difficult, I managed to give myself the willpower to do it, and do so effectively.

Works Cited

George, William. Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value. John Wiley & Sons, 2003. Heifetz, Ronald, Grash, Alexander, & Lindsky, Martin. (2009). The Practice of Adaptive Leadership. Harvard Business Press, 2009.

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Personal and Professional Development Plan Self Evaluation Essay

People admire living a healthy and happy life despite the challenges that experience. They work hard to achieve their dreams, even though sometimes it becomes difficult to meet some targets. The desire to accomplish personal and professional goals pushes people to invest their time and money in various issues like education, training, health and research (Driessen and Tartwijk 196). This paper outlines my personal and professional development plan.

Strengths and Weaknesses

I am hardworking and believe in the possibility of achieving my dreams. I aspire to be a nurse leader and invest my time, money, body and skills to benefit all nursing stakeholders. Moreover, I plan my schedule properly to avoid lateness and ensure work is delivered before the deadline expiry. I do not postpone my responsibilities and believe that all work should be done at the correct time and place. My team leading skills, teamwork and cooperation enables me to work in diverse environments with partners from different backgrounds. I believe that research and additional training are necessary to expand my knowledge regarding leadership in nursing and that is why online and physical libraries have become my companions. However, I am very impatient and like things being done as soon as possible. I do not believe any person can outdo me in anything. Corrections and reprimands discourage me from doing my work properly. It is not easy to persuade me to change my mind once I am set to achieve a goal. Sometimes I overwork and this reduces my efficiency.

Identification and explanation of Resources to Be Used to Achieve My Plans

I have registered for personality development part-time classes to learn how to work with others without feeling offended when reprimanded. These classes are planned to help me manage organizational conflicts that occur when leaders have conflicting opinions. Part-time classes are scheduled to meet the specific needs of individuals and this means that I will learn how to develop my personality by knowing how to work with others (Hadar and Brody 154). Moreover, it will shape my perception towards corrections and reprimands and this will make me a better administrator. I am doing a lot of online research (journals and websites) on personality development to identify ways of correcting my weaknesses. The research includes reading testimonies of people who have successfully achieved personal and professional growth. There are numerous testimonies on the internet about people and how they managed personality weaknesses within a short time (Stone 44). Some of their weaknesses like being impatient and ignoring corrections from others are common in many people including me. I learn how they manage and avoid them in the future and that is why these testimonies are useful resources for my personality and professional growth. The people around me play important roles in shaping my personality by evaluating my behavior as an aspiring leader. Friends, family members and colleagues can monitor and advise me on my performance and this helps me to identify areas that require attention. They represent the whole society and the work environment and thus their expectations are similar to those of my future publics (Sonnino 37). Moreover, I use self-evaluation skills that include preparing a worksheet that shows my accomplishments in meeting my personal and professional development goals. It is easy to measure my performance using a daily checklist that shows the progress in developing my personality and professional development (Calderhead 15). Sometimes it is not easy to know whether an individual is changing without comparing behavioral statistics. Lastly, I benchmark my performance with that of other successful people around me to determine what I need to do to be like them. An administrator is supposed to possess excellent leadership and management skills (Moon 79). I spend a lot of time monitoring the performance of successful administrators and studying what they did to be where they are. In addition, they will be my role models and align my objective with theirs to ensure our paths are similar. The similarities between their aspirations and mine are likely to make me a good administrator in the future.

How I Will Be a World Changer in the Next Five Years

I aspire to change the world by becoming a better administrator. My objective is to introduce new energy to youths in administration and challenge the existing administrators to realize that their positions are not only reserved for the elderly. I would like to prove to them that age does not matter in offering quality services as an administrator. Secondly, I wish to challenge youths who want to be administrators when they are 40 years or older to know that this is their time to become leaders. I will motivate them to seek leadership positions in organizations and this will induce competition in managerial positions. Moreover, I will implement effective leadership that involves identifying the responsibilities of this position and how to combine various resources to maximize production and profits. I hope to become a personality and professional development speaker and guide people on how to become good managers in their organizations. This will involve helping them to identify their strengths and weaknesses and working on them to become better people. Lastly, I will transform the perception of managers by other employees and ensure they perceive each other as useful resources for achieving the objectives of an organization.

Works cited

Calderhead, James. “The contribution of research on teachers’ thinking to the professional development of teachers.” Research on Teacher Thinking: Understanding Professional Development 13.2 (2012): 11-18. Print.

Driessen, Erik and Jan van Tartwijk. “Portfolios in personal and professional development.” Understanding Medical Education: Evidence, Theory and Practice 16.4 (2013): 193-200. Print.

Hadar, Linor L. and David L. Brody. “The interaction between group processes and personal professional trajectories in a professional development community for teacher educators.” Journal of Teacher Education 64.2 (2013): 145-161. Print.

Moon, Jennifer A. Reflection in Learning and Professional Development: Theory and Practice . New York: Routledge, 2013. Print.

Sonnino, Roberta E. “Professional development and leadership training opportunities for healthcare professionals.” The American Journal of Surgery 206.5 (2013): 727-731. Print.

Stone, Ashley. NASPA’s New Professionals Institute: Exploring the Personal and Professional Impact of a Two-Day, Intensive Professional Development Experience. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.

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IvyPanda. (2022, May 19). Personal and Professional Development Plan. https://ivypanda.com/essays/personal-and-professional-development-plan/

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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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Personal Leadership Development Plan

Personal leadership development plan: essay introduction, my strengths and weaknesses as a managerial leader and the basis for your assessment, options for improving my skills in the next three month, sustainable improvement process (next 30 days, 60 days, and 180 days), detail plans on how you will evaluate your improvement efforts and adjust as needed, personal leadership development plan: essay summary.

Managerial leaders drive an organization with the kind of decision they make; the quality of decision creates a competitive advantage to a firm. Leaders have the role of implementing strategies, entrepreneurial and mandated with the role of creating a winning team. This paper is a self-evaluation of my leadership traits and weaknesses.

One character of a leader is decisiveness. A saying goes “better make a wrong decision than not decide at all”. I am a person who is decisiveness and I do not hesitate, however, I realize that it is not always that I am right so I consult before I make a decision. I have good listening skills as well as communication skills. This attribute assists me in listening to people’s points of view but I still am aware that the final decision comes from me. This character also boosts my team roles. I am creative and innovative. When faced with a problem I do not sit back and observe things go wrong I rise to the occasion and look for a solution. I have undergone through formal and informal education where I have gained attributes that help me understand various issues and developments in society. I have a college degree and am almost to finish my Masters’s education where I will come out a professional in my field.

What weaknesses or areas do I need to improve upon?

Human beings are not perfect they have weaknesses. One of my weaknesses that can affect my leadership is being a perfectionist. I find myself dictating how I want things done. This character makes me gauge other people’s performance levels not recognizing that different people have different capabilities. I sometimes find myself pushing other people to perform beyond their limits.

Another area that I think is a weakness is an extreme peacemaker and keeper; sometimes may find it not worth confronting someone on a certain issue he or she has done to me; this can make my communication skills be hampered. To keep the peace of mind that I always look forward to having; I ensure that I intervene in issues when I am wanted to; this can result in a late intervention.

Having undergone through the course successfully; I have decided to start a program that will improve my skills in the next three months, I will engage in activities and take some side courses with the main aim of improving my skills. The following are the activities that I will undertake:

Develop informal and formal groups

Within the three months, I will mobilize my classmates and we make informal groups to address different issues in the communities. The activities include cleaning the city, planting trees, educating the youth, and visiting old people’s homes. In the groups, I will ensure that I take some leadership roles and have my peers evaluate my skills; I will also allow the teams to criticize my skills as well as the strengths that I have. This approach will assist me to know the areas that I need to improve as well as know those areas that I have a strong point that needs to be reinforced.

Short management courses

Within the three months, I will look into any management program taking place somewhere with the guidance of a professional and enroll in the program; I will ensure I listen to what the scholars have to advise on certain issues and aim at improving the areas portrayed. When in the programs, I will take note of the advice to improve my specific weaknesses given by the facilitators.

Use of information technology

Currently, there are several computer videos through you-tube and other applications; I will search for documentaries and videos that advise on how to improve one’s self more so in my area of weakness. I will also use media articles to learn the stand of the management in the current trends; the articles will update me with the trend in the market and probably the skills that are required for proper leadership.

To ensure that I remain relevant and effective in my leadership, I will ensure that I continuously improve my skills through learning, and attending educative seminars; the materials I will be learning will be those that can improve my skills and make me a better leader. Occasionally, there are seminars operated by scholars in leadership, I will make a point of attending them and learning a thing or two. I will ensure that I attend these training and seminars at least once a month.

In the modern computer world, there has been the invention of computers; they offer chances for virtual teams that can be of great use especially getting information on leadership and updating myself on what is happening in the business arena. I will enroll in the teams and become an active member; from the study; I have come to realize that leadership skills can only be grown when a person practices the art; every time there is a chance to lead, I will be volunteering and ensuring that I get a chance to learn something new. Leadership can be improved further through enrolling in a management course; I will enroll in the courses to ensure that my skills have been sharpened further.

Occasionally, I will be appraising myself and look into the areas that I need improvement; in the current leadership set up, leaders do not wait to fail before they perform appraisals on their skills. There are certain questions that leaders should always embrace when they want to evaluate their skills. As people who influence others, they should ask themselves how and where they do influence by actually knowing their level of influence. The next question is how they should improve on people’s skills that would enable them to have the ability to solve problems. The question should be how you are with others and do you have a healthy relationship. Another question that I will be asking myself is whether I have a positive outlook and attitude because a negative attitude will affect the leadership potentiality of an individual and therefore the question should be whether you see possibilities or obstacles. The above are among the questions that I will be using to evaluate my skills.

Another important evaluation of strength and weakness is the ability of a leader to see evidence in him as able to have growth in personal or self-discipline. Certain questions that can be asked include the ability to manage time well and achieve worthwhile goals. The other way to evaluate your strength or weakness as a leader in your ability to have proven records of your past exemplary performance in your field. A leader should also be able to predict future success while backdating on the previous achievements, able to accept the status quo, and at the same time have the ability to spot a problem in an organization. A leader should be able to have a large pictured mindset that would enable him to think in a wider perspective. I will be using this approach from time to time to ensure that my skills are growing.

If the self-evaluation, I have realized I have strong leadership potential that I need to develop. My decisiveness and courage are the strongest strengths that I have. To improve my strengths further, I will be reading leadership articles published in periodicals and dailies. To get a wider perspective and develop better management skills, I will use the internet to access international news, articles, and participate in virtual teams.

In later days, I am looking forward to being an article writer in local and international Media like the internet, newspapers, magazines, and journals, when I write them, I will seek to get feedback from my leaders that I will constantly review and see whether I can improve my skills. When I strengthen my leadership skills, I believe every day will be a day of renewed strength.

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