Personal Development Plan - Essay Example

Personal development plan Name: Course: Tutor: date Personal development plan Introduction A personal development plan is “a structured and supported process undertaken by an individual to reflect upon their own learning, performance and / or achievement and to plan their personal, educational and career development”, Self Improvement Mentor (2008). This plan helps one to plan what to do, create a working schedule and a time line for the implementation of the plan. This is also useful in reviewing your personal growth thus helping one to keep on track. The development plan will help to quantitatively and qualitatively assess the progress that I have made in career field, and helping me to determine the areas that I have performed well or erred. This is a useful plan, which also helps one to determine the direction that he or she wants to take. Without a form of assessment, it is possible that one will lose focus and cannot easily focus on the set goals. The personal development plan helps one to set a course for action that will steer him towards achieving the personal goals, and maintain the position once achieved (Adair& Allen, 1999, 16). Personal resume I am a hard-working person, who is set on applying the many technical skills that I have in any given working environment to produce and nurture talents that I work with. I have excellent managerial skills that I have acquired to assist me to train, develop and manage other people, so that they can be effective and efficient at work, as well as be able to develop and improve their competence. I believe in investment in personal development to achieve personal and corporate goals, as well as teachable, patient, team player, honest and hardworking (Cottrell, 2003, 48). My vision is to be an all round manager who is well interested in putting value into the lives of others, to help them achieve their goals. My mission is to be a role model in my job and set an example in terms of performance (Self Improvement Mentor, 2008). To achieve this, I have set my own code of conduct and performance guidelines, which will propel me to the level that I want. This involves doing much training and attending personal development programs that will help me to be the person that I want to be and the character that the job market wants. I place considerable value on values that promote social unity, hard work, teamwork, and ecologically responsible lifestyle. Social unity is the building block for national unity and cohesion, which are some of our national values. They are fundamental values that can help one to blend together with others and be part of a big team, without being involved in complex and complicated adaptability issues. I embrace the values of compassion and kindness, which are an integral part of my Christian faith. In addition, I place substantial value on environmental management and ecologically sound livelihood, which takes care of the environment. I always participate in environmental conservation matters. Analysis There are several theories that are useful in self-assessment and developing one to achieve his goals and objectives, as well as providing a means of self-assessment. These theories help one to determine an appropriate course of action in the desired field of growth. One of these is the Goal theory. Goal theory involves setting of goals in order to motivate oneself to work towards achieving a specific set end. The goals act as a means of defining the path to use and also determining the end destination where one wants to be (Armstrong, 2003, 20).This is the essence of setting goals and it ensures that whatever I do is in line with the end purpose that you want to achieve. Setting of goals can be based on two perspectives. Each of the perspectives differs from the other in the way the standard of achievement is defined. It can be in the form of the standards that are set by others, or standards that one determines himself. A typical example is an athlete who trains to beat a specific time, setting his success on whether he can beat the set time. On the other hand, the athlete can choose to work to beat all the other participants in the race. In this case, the failure or the success will be based on the ability to beat the set time, irrespective of the time taken. In both cases, the key thing involves setting a standard and working towards achieving the set standard. This is can be a legitimate aspect of personal development since the it helps to define what one wants in life, as well as the means to that destination. Another goal that is related to personal development is self-image and perception theory. Self-image is a matter of how you see yourself, as compared to other people (Adair& Allen, 1999, 18). This self-image is determined by several factors like how you think you look, the way you see your personality and also the what you believe others think of you. In addition, how you like yourself, how you think other people like you and the status that you assume to have are some key components that determine ones self-image, which in turn influences the perception that a person holds on himself (Eysenck, 2004, 65). Self-image can have serious effects on the development of a person since the much that one can achieve depends largely, on the self-image that he has of self. Self-image determines how hard we pursue our goals, since this can limit what we think we can achieve and consequently, the goals that we will set. A poor self-image would be disastrous for a person since it would limit the steps and efforts that he would take to be prosperous and successful. On the other hand, a decent self-image leads to a highly vibrant and hardworking person, helping one to achieve more. Effectiveness is something that I must embrace in order to derive the satisfaction that comes from achieving my goals. It is extremely easy for one to fail to be satisfied whereas he has all that it takes to be in life. One therefore, needs to ensure that he or she has defined what it is to be successful, and can therefore be able to define that in a measurable way (Priskin 2006). This happens in many cases where you find that a person has lot of wealth, yet he lives a miserable life. Elsewhere, one can find a greater leader or a famous politician committing suicide due to lack of satisfaction in life. This is usually because of ineffectiveness in handling personal issues and in self-management. In my personal development plan, I have analyzed all the factors that need to be put in place for the sake of achieving the set objectives. Although setting of goals and having a decent self-image will work for my good, it is necessary that I carry out an external evaluation on my skills, knowledge, talents and abilities. This is best evaluated through a test that will reveal my abilities, strengths and my skill. The purpose of this evaluation is to ensure that whatever I plan to do is well backed by an independent external analysis of my abilities and capabilities. A psychometric test could help to measures my educational and general knowledge skills, as well as my psychological ability to follow up and achieve the goals that I have set to achieve both on short term and on long-term objective. In my development plan, I have realized that I need to improve my self-image and see myself in the way that I want the people who I will manage to have the perception about me. A strong self-image would work to develop confidence from other people as well as the way I perceive myself, since this is what will give me the confidence to lead others. Leadership is about leading others from the front, not pushing them from the back. Therefore, in preparation for a leadership position, I need to believe that I have the capacity and the capability to lead effectively, as well as making others believe that I am what it takes to manage their affairs and anything else that is entrusted to me (Career Test 2009). Goal setting is a defining thing in anybody who is entrusted with enormous tasks to carry out or significant responsibility to handle. The purpose of setting goals is to give a form of measurement or evaluation on how proficient one is performing, basing on the preset conditions or predetermined goals. In this case, goal setting is necessary in order to give one focus, while at the same time, helping to avoid unnecessary distractions that can get one distracted. In my personal plan, I have set specific goals that are defined in a specific time scope, helping to ease the burden of pursuing things that do not matter or unnecessary distractions (Price, 2004, 55). The goals that I have formulated are set to help me to become what I have purposed to achieve. There is a wide range of these. First, I need to improve my self-image and develop self-confidence, in preparation for my future career. This is a main character that is a requirement for anybody who is to take up a leadership challenge or role. In addition, to those mentioned above, I need to improve my leadership skills. These skills are developed with time, learnt in class and perfected through practice. Since I plan to work in a managerial or a supervisory position, having excellent leadership skills will be an added advantage over other applicants in the same field (Armstrong, 2003, 20). In addition to the above, it is particularly noteworthy that I complete my education. This is one of my top goals, and I am going to complete my PhD Degree in a period of one year and graduate. After graduation, I will need to take up internship program in a company that is in line with the career that I want to take up (Kolb, 1981). This will significantly help me to develop competency and develop my leadership skills. Additionally, it will help to secure a job as a manager or a supervisor within three years, since I will have developed the relevant skills and will have a three-year experience, which gives a lot of bargaining power when searching for a job. The fields that I plan to work in include managerial and supervisory positions in manufacturing industries, or any other similar firms (Henderson, 2008, 16). My Smart Action Plan Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant / Resourced Timed Improve my self-image and perception Read the book called ‘Managing Me’ or ‘Image Persuasion’ Write down and apply the teachings that I get from these two books. Order the books today from Amazon or Christian books Within the next two months. Develop confidence when addressing many people Dress well, and practice in front of a mirror (Career Test 2009) Take the initiative to address my classmates and actively participate in class activities Improve my current wardrobe to match my preferred taste Starting from now, until I finish my course. Improve my leadership skills Be a team leader and attend leadership nurturing seminars By taking a leading role in a future team exercise Book for leadership training course. Pay the charges By the end of the next semester Use my resource / investigator skills By the quantity and quality of references integrated into my assignments. Resource / investigation skills are my strength (Armstrong, 2003, 20). No costs involved In all my degree work. Subsequently in my career. Complete my MSc degree Degree awarded CMI accreditation Nearly completed first semester. Passed all assignments Key requirement to achieve career ambition. All fees / costs covered. 12.04.2012 Get a job in the management fiels Job as a manager or supervisor Logically follows from Self Improvement Mentor 2008 A logical progression from my work experience and education so far. Within three years of leaving University Conclusion The above work plan gives an overview of my the actions that I need to take in order to develop my competency for the sake of my career. These plans are meant to better my competitive advantages over the many other contestants in the same field, so that I will emerge as the most competent and stand the highest chance of being recruited into the industry. Additionally, it will help me to outperform others and stand out as a manager or a supervisor (Eysenck, 2004, 446). Bibliography Adair, J. & Allen, M. 1999. Time Management and Personal Development. London: Thorogood. Armstrong, M. 2003. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. 9th edn. London: Kogan Page. Career Test 2009. Prioritizing Life Values. Retrieved on 16 April 2011 from: http://www.career-test.biz/values_assessment.htm Cottrell, S. 2003. Skills for Success: The Personal Development Planning Handbook. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Eysenck, M. J 2004. Psychology: An International Perspective. Hove: Psychology Press. Henderson, I. 2008. Human Resource Management for MBA Students. London: CIPD. Kolb, D. A 1981. Learning Styles and Disciplinary Differences. California: Jossey-Bass. Retrieved on 16 April 2011 from: http://www.learningfromexperience.com/images/uploads/Learning-styles-and-disciplinary-difference.pdf Price, A. 2004. Human Resource Management in a Business Context. 2nd edn. London: Thomson. Self Improvement Mentor 2008. Quality Personal Development Plan Template. Retrieved of 16 April 2011 from: http://www.self-improvement-mentor.com/personal-development-plan-template.html Read More