How to Create a Personal Development Plan

Learn how to create a personal development plan that can transform your life for success. As the saying goes "if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail". We will discuss how to create a plan for our personal development. It can help you get in touch with your internal feelings, determine exactly who you want to be, and how you want to live your life. 

 A personal development plan is often used by young people who are always pressured by their peers. However, adults like you can benefit greatly by creating your own personal development plan. This single step in drafting your plan can transform your life for good. Below I have expatiated 5 steps you can take to craft a personal development plan.

1. Make a List of What You Admire

It is imperative to first decide exactly what types of qualities you admire in people around you that you would like to internalize on your own. This may be qualities that are easy to measure such as staying physically fit or losing weight. It may also include taking on a better and healthier diet, or living a life full of integrity.

Choosing the right types of traits that you find in other people you admire should be on the top of the list. Again, decide which three qualities you would like to incorporate in your own life, in order to begin the process of transformation. The types of qualities you should focus on are the ones that are outside your personal comfort zone. Besides, they should not be unattainable, so as not to quickly discourage you from achieving that goal.

2. Learn to Set SMART Goals

In order to be successful, you will need to set goals. If the qualities you selected above are tangible, like physical fitness, you will need to understand exactly what the goal looks like. It may include participating in a marathon, simply walking the neighbourhood, or changing bad eating habits to healthier ones.

If the qualities include living a life with high integrity, you will need to detail exactly what that looks like to you. It may mean ending bad behaviours, making better habits, or asking for outside help to achieve the goal. Read more on goal setting here. 

3. Flesh It Out

Once the goals are firmly in place, it is time to flesh them out, to give them substance. It is time to expand the plan to add meat to the bones. It is impossible to skimp during this part of the process. Expanding the plan might include attaching some form of timelines or benchmarks where you need to reach a specific goal at a specific time. Be realistic, and flesh out the goals on a timeline that can be easily achieved.

4. Find the Support

It is much easier to obtain these types of goals in your personal development plan with support. You can solicit the help of a family member, friend, therapist, physician or an exercise buddy that simply wants to take the route with you. With enough support, it is easy to achieve nearly any type of goal as long as it has been set in a realistic time frame.

5. Celebrate your Success

Finally, a personal development plan should include a way to celebrate your success. You can do this by keeping a journal, or checking off a long list of necessary goals. You can also include taking stock of past experiences and activities so you can determine exactly how far you have come on the journey of success. Remember that failures are part of the process, and you will need to forgive yourself if you need to start the process all over again.

In a nutshell, learn to create your personal development plan with these five (5) simple steps and get on the way to become successful in life. It will take time but you will surely be transformed for good. 

You may also want to read these related articles.

1. What does personal development mean to you. 

2. How to set your career goals.