What is Personal Development?

People frequently ask; What is Personal Development? Some people and practitioners refer to it as Personal Growth, I prefer the term Education For Life. It can be delivered through self-study programs, reading ‘How To’ books, listening to podcasts, watching videos by hiring a coach or attending live events. All of these methods have value, but none have value if action isn’t taken to adapt and implement learning in daily life.

Answers To FAQ’s

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT focuses on a number of specific areas that relate to Education for Life. For the purpose of this brief presentation I will concentrate on four pillars of Personal Development and how they can assist the individual in creating a positive impact in their lives. An additional positive advantage of this is that other people also benefit.

Pillar One

PERSONAL AWARENESS helps build stronger relationships with others, enables decision-making clarity and contributes to an individual’s holistic well-being. It also enables people to understand and be mindful of their strengths and challenges.

Also, referred to as Self-Awareness, there are many potential advantages that benefit the individual and other people they interact with:

• By understanding and regulating the internal world and learning how to keep an open mind, it becomes easier to tune-in to the emotions of other people and respond without judgment.
• It helps us to focus and stay focussed
• Understand our values and how to set boundaries
• Clarify and strengthen communication skills
• Create structure in life and associated activities
• Enables focus and understanding of what leads to our actions
• Practice and develop self-discipline. This is a learned behavior that can lead to higher degrees of self-control and level-headed decision-making.
• It shows us where we end, and others begin and fosters respect and acceptance for self and others
• Identifies emotional triggers and how to manage these
• Personal Awareness develops the ability to know individual capacity and produce positive alternatives in challenging situations

Pillar Two

PERSONAL SKILLS

All aspects of Personal or Self-Awareness demand skills that lead to qualities. These Personal Development skills lead to the ability to maximize personal and professional potential when focus is placed upon:

• Communication Skills such as listening, speaking and writing
• Analytical Skills
• Flexibility and Adaptability
• Interpersonal Relationships
• Decision Making and Problem Solving
• Planning, Organizing and Prioritizing
• Operating Effectively in different roles

Pillar Three

LEADERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND TEAMWORK SKILLS

Combined, these skills make teams more effective. Some managers will find this process challenging until they understand the benefits of considering the needs of others and putting them first. This is often difficult until managers are able to know when to temporarily let go of their authority in the training or working environment.

Pillar Four

INTERACTING WITH OTHERS

Learning how to show genuine curiosity for the views of other people has been scientifically proven that “mirror neurons” contribute to the creation of empathy among individuals.

There are ways to sympathetically grow, stretch and change that enable opportunities to support and connect with other people productively.

It’s OK to be wrong on occasion. There are positive solutions to manage this.

We can engage other people sensitively and enable them to develop their self-esteem.

MINDFULLY ENABLING POSITIVES

Mindfulness started with the Buddhist traditions of Asia some 2,500 years ago. Mindfulness is a psychological process of bringing attention to experiences occurring in the present moment and, without judgment. Mindfulness can be developed through the practice of simple meditation and other training with wide-ranging benefits.

• Challenging negative and developing positive habits that benefit the individual and the wider-group
• Mindfulness enables proactive reflection
• Goal setting is simplified and effective
• Values are, challenged, discarded or strengthened as appropriate
• Purpose is understood and developed

O M I T DOUBT, EVERYONE BENEFITS

• Organisation
• Management
• Individuals
• Teams

Personal Development with ExGro

ExGro is accountable to the organizations we work with and individuals who personally choose our coaching services. Every individual or organisation are accountable to us for their learning and developmental progress. This is not just a system of delivery; it is Education for Life and it demands action.

• Programs are delivered 1 to 1
• In small groups (maximum 20 participants)
• In conference groups
• Delivery is live or online and can be a mixture of both.
• Some “outside of presentations” work should be expected.

There are many positives relating to Personal Development as outlined in this brief presentation. One thing that is particularly noteworthy where organizations are concerned is that the more investment we place on the individual leads to improvement in many aspects of life and external input and less time is taken to achieve goals.

Personal Development can have a positive impact on any area of individual life that is considered appropriate or necessary by the individual. It might be about how to best manage the household and all that entails or, how to be more effective at work or socially. Needs assessments are always carried out before any work is undertaken with any individual or groups.

More Tools That Help

Relating to these there are plenty of tools that can help with Mindfulness and your Personal Growth and Development whether you feel challenged or just seek to advance the way you respond to your world. If you would like a free 20-minute coaching session on some of these, please leave your contact details in the comments and you will receive a prompt response. Alternatively, you can send an email. Please understand that your contact details will never be shared outside ExGro.

Please note that free sessions are extremely popular and have become limited although every effort will be made to honor requests or refer to another available practitioner where appropriate.

Toolbox

There are many ways to effectively explore and advance your Personal Development in any area of life that matters to you. A box of tools to challenge the boundaries and move forward toward realizing success is extremely beneficial.

If you feel that you may benefit from help in any area with more than a 20-minute consult, please leave your contact details in the comments section below and you will be contacted by your preferred method. Please understand that your contact details will never be published, and your privacy is assured.

More Information

If you would like to know more about ExGro Services and Events, please click over to the Education For Life menu item.

Comments and Questions

Leave yours below. Your thoughts or questions may well ignite a positive spark in other readers thinking. You will always receive a prompt response to your questions and there is no such thing as a bad question; only the one that was never asked.

Namasté

I bow to the place in you that is love, light, and joy

Peace & Light

Steve Costello is a British Community & Youth Studies and Psychology honors graduate with over 30-years theoretical and practical experience coaching in the Personal Development public and private sectors. He founded ExGro in 2018 with business partner, clinical psychologist and friend, Leo Faerberg.