One of the important things that can get lost in the busyness of every day is our own personal growth. Being busy is normal. There’s no challenge in that. Being productive and increasingly productive, now there’s a challenge.
The danger is that we’re repeating this year what we did last year and not really learning and growing and developing.
Now, I’ve learned that personal growth doesn’t just happen. Sometimes it’s forced upon us by external circumstances, like changes in the market or in an industry or changes that a competitor is implementing or that a client is demanding.
The truth is that personal growth in business and in life doesn’t just happen. We’ve got to develop a plan for growth. That’s the best way to grow.
How do you develop a personal growth plan?
1.Look at where you want to be in five years. Clarify your thinking around what you really want out of your business or career.
2. Do a SWOT analysis on yourself. We often do that on our business but I suggest you do one on yourself. Try and understand what are the things that would really benefit you that you need to learn, or what are the things that you’d really love to learn that are going to help you get to where you need to go in five years’ time.
3. Research the best ways to do that. It could be a formal course that you do, or it could be to hire a mentor who can help you get to that place where you need to be, to develop those skills.
4. Set a time frame and a budget, and get on it; make it happen.
So, what would you like to learn this year that will set you up for the future?
In business, that could be technical skills or leadership skills. Or in your life, maybe you want to improve your golf game, or learn to cook, or learn some meditation, or learn ways of destressing.
What are you going to learn and put in your own personal growth plan?
