What is personal development?
Personal development is all about improving yourself. It is the process of self-improvement in any area of your life. It involves setting goals to become a better version of yourself. Personal development is essential for you to overcome challenges and seize opportunities. This could be gaining the skills to get a new job, improving at your hobby or gaining confidence in social situations.
If you have ever decided that you want to become better at anything – you have engaged in self-development.
So how do you actually improve?
Be proactive. This means taking charge of your life. Instead of waiting for things to happen, make things happen. Take action. Taking action is a great way to learn.
If you don’t know what to do, it’s ok to do some research. Researching where to get started can be a valuable investment of your time. Then take action based on what you learn. Be careful not to waste time over researching. This is where you need to be honest with yourself. Are you researching because you genuinely don’t know what to do, or are you hiding from what you should be doing by “preparing”?
Now that you know what to do, the best way to learn how to do it is by simply getting on with it. So be proactive and take action
Growing your confidence through action
Confidence comes through action. While it’s easy to feel uncertain about your abilities, taking proactive steps will help build your confidence. Whether your actions result in success or failure, you will become the kind of person who isn’t afraid to act.
The inventor, Thomas Edison, famously said, "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." He conducted thousands of experiments to develop the lightbulb. Edison believed in perseverance and learning from unsuccessful experiments. This approach will teach you that being unsuccessful is not something to fear. You should expect setbacks on the road to success. This makes you resilient and builds your confidence in the process.
While it can be scary to step out of your comfort zone, the results will be worth it. Here are some ways confidence grows through action:
Facing Your Fears - Stepping out of your comfort zone is often intimidating. Doing things that scare you isn’t easy. But taking action allows you to confront your fears and each effort helps prove to yourself that you can succeed.
Gaining Experience - Every time you try something
new, you learn. Every action you take contributes to your experience. Whether
it results in success or failure that experience is growth. It builds the
foundation for your next step.
Celebrate the Small Wins - It’s important to notice your successes and celebrate them. Big or small. Little victories can really boost your confidence. This creates a positive feedback loop, encouraging you to continue striving for the next goal.
Have a Positive Attitude - As you take action and see the results of your efforts, you'll begin to feel better about your abilities, which in turn boosts your confidence. This positive outlook will allow you to approach the next challenge with even more assurance.
Recognizing your growth
It’s important to recognize how much you’ve grown. When you embark on any journey you have to know where you are as well as where you are going. Otherwise, you can’t follow directions. Knowing how much you have grown helps you decide on your next steps. To some extent, you will keep track of this in your head. However, like everything, you will get better results by being deliberate. There are several ways you can maintain awareness of your progress. To do this, you could:
Keep a journal – Writing down your thoughts and experiences will help you see how far you’ve come over time. As you look back on your earlier thoughts, you'll see that you now think on a higher level. The process of setting out your thoughts will almost certainly lead to better understanding and growth in the process.
Track your goals – You are setting and achieving goals anyway. Why not keep track of them so you can look back and see how far you have come? This not only reinforces your progress but also boosts your motivation.
Seek feedback – Ask for feedback from anyone who interacts with you in the area you are trying to grow. The more capable the person is, the better insight they can likely provide you. Act on this to grow more. Don’t underestimate feedback from your peers. They can help you see the progress you might not notice yourself.
Self-reflection – Introspection is paying attention to and examining your own ideas, thoughts, and feelings. If you are honest with yourself, you can learn a lot. Take time to think about yourself. Even when it is uncomfortable. Consider what you've learned, how you've changed, and what you still want to achieve. Developing this skill will reward you.
Seize opportunities
Taking initiative in your personal development not only builds your confidence but also helps you recognize and seize opportunities when they arise.
There's a relatively well-known quote by Roman philosopher Seneca that says, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” This means that when you prepare yourself through learning and personal growth, you put yourself in the position to take advantage of opportunities.
When you work on yourself, you're better prepared for surprises. Imagine you’ve been meaning to ask someone for help with something, and as you go about your day, you see them walking towards you. You consider stopping to ask, but as you walk past, you chicken out. Instead of asking, you offer an awkward smile and keep going. Now you're full of regret, wondering why you didn't ask. Had you worked on your ability to initiate small talk in advance, you might have secured the help you need. Maybe it's time to read your copy of How to Win Friends and Influence People now? That way, you'll be ready to take advantage of the opportunity the next time you see someone you want to ask for help.
The possible examples are endless. You can’t take a job as a software engineer unless you actually learn how to code. Develop yourself now to grab those opportunities later!
An unusual example
Many people have used personal development to change their life and achieve success. The internet is full of examples. You might already have individuals whose stories inspire you. Sometimes it can be easy to miss the deliberate choices they made which that led to their success. It may seem that truly world-leading individuals are so brilliant they were destined for success, but don't fall into that line of thinking. Many of their personal development choices are internal and, therefore, invisible. That doesn’t mean they didn’t happen.
A great example of deliberate choices leading to success can be seen in the British cycling team’s "marginal gains" philosophy. As an organization their choices are external and that much more visible. This makes it easier for you to see the decisions that led to their success.
The approach, adopted by the team under coach Sir Dave Brailsford, focused on making small improvements across a variety of areas. The principle was to break down everything that affects an athlete’s success and then improve it by 1%. These “marginal gains” provided significant improvements when they were all put together and contributed to an era of Olympic dominance for the team.
This approach is just as relevant to personal development and is the subject of the book Atomic Habits. It’s just harder to grasp that someone has improved their communication, organization, leadership, etc., all by 1% and that has led to their success. However, you can apply this philosophy to your life. Simply make the conscious choice to improve individual areas of your life by small amounts and the combined effect will be significant.
How to start your own personal development
Here are some simple steps to kickstart your personal development:
1. Identify your goal – Think about what you want to achieve – you likely already know. Write down your goals so you can see them clearly. Don’t be shy about this. They are your goals and no one else has to know.
2. Make a Plan – Plan the small steps which will lead you to achieve your goals. It doesn’t matter if you get it wrong. Its your plan. No-one is marking you. If you realize you can have a better plan, don’t waste time, change it.
3. Take action – It doesn’t matter what it is. Take action. Be open to new things. If you think it will help you achieve your goal, do it. Read a book. Attend a class. Do the thing. These experiences can help you grow.
4. Review your progress – Use a planner or an app to keep track of your progress. A notepad works great too. Whatever it is that helps keep you focused.
5. Repeat – Your personal growth should never stop. Re-adjust as you learn, become more capable and grow in confidence. Set new goals and go again.
Overcoming Challenges
While pursuing personal development, you will encounter challenges. By the very nature of wanting to improve you are pushing yourself beyond your current ability. Remember, that you will grow in confidence through taking action. It’s okay to fail. Failure is the price you pay for the growth that follows. Use setbacks as opportunities to learn and improve. Be like Thomas Edison, embrace growth through failure. Stay focused on your goal. Remind yourself of what it is you are working towards. It takes courage to strive for more, so be kind to yourself. Don’t make excuses but try not to beat yourself up. You can do it.
Conclusion
Through deliberate action you can shape your future. If you genuinely want to achieve more and are prepared to push yourself, personal development will become a part of your life. It may sound cheesy but it’s a journey. Remember to recognize your growth along the way. The confidence will come. The key to personal development is taking initiative, being proactive and making things happen instead of waiting for them to happen.
With dedication and effort, you can
achieve amazing things and make a positive impact on your life and those around
you.
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