Personal Growth Plan: How To Do It And Not Leave It On Paper

The personal growth plan is only achievable if you take enough time to elaborate it with ambition, but also with realism. The plan itself should spark your enthusiasm. If not, you must redo it.

A personal growth plan is something that is usually fashionable at the end of the year. However, unlike the list of purposes for the next 12 months, this type of plan goes beyond setting objectives, is more detailed and covers longer periods.

Be it the list of purposes or a personal growth plan, the important thing is that it refers to goals that can be achieved. For that to be possible, it is necessary to go further. Proposing a strategy, identifying motivators and gamifying each objective are ways to achieve it.

It can be said that a personal growth plan is well prepared when you do not need “willpower” to fulfill it. It has to be attractive and stimulating for those who propose it, since otherwise it is very possible that it will stay on paper. How to make it? What must be considered? We will see it right away.

The personal growth plan: preliminary steps

Before starting to make your personal growth plan you should clarify some points. The first one is why to do it. Keep in mind that these types of plans are made to change life in a profound way, in one or more aspects. So ask yourself what are the reasons why you need that change and focus on that.

The appropriate thing is to raise that reason in positive. This means that instead of thinking things in terms of “I want to stop suffering”, rather put them in the perspective: “I want to be happier.” This is important as it helps you tune in to constructive motivation.

After this, you need to think about whether you are going to make a short, medium or long-term plan. If you have not done it before, or you have difficulties to fulfill the plans, it is best that you try it first in the short term, that is, a year. In the medium term it would be two to five years; long term, more than five years.

The seven steps of the personal growth plan

Once you are clear about the above, what follows is to advance a process that has seven steps. Take your time. The best thing is that you give yourself at least a couple of weeks to have the final version of your personal growth plan ready. The steps to complete are as follows.

1. Build a vision

In this part you must answer the question: what do I want to transform myself into? Again we insist that you put it positively. For example, “I want to be more independent” instead of “I want to be less dependent.” At this point it is worth dreaming and being ambitious. Then everything will be adjusted.

Also identify:

Your general purpose.
What makes you passionate about that purpose.
What inspires you to do it.
What values of yours are involved in that goal.

2. Land the ideas

Experts on the subject say that at this point it is ideal to apply a SWOT matrix (Weaknesses, Threats, Strengths and Opportunities). The goal is to discover what terrain you are on. That will help you redefine or refine your purpose.

3. Specify the goals

Goals are specific objectives that meet three characteristics: they must be concrete, measurable and achievable. Goals are the partial achievements that you have to achieve to reach the final purpose. It is advisable that you define deadlines to achieve them.

4. Define support habits

Supportive habits are those little daily tasks that help you achieve your goals and, therefore, your big purpose. The word “daily” must be underlined, as this is necessary so that the entire plan has continuous support.

5. Identify what you should not do

It is convenient to identify those behaviors in which you should not incur so as not to ruin your plan. Try not to make a long list of restrictions, as this could make you feel constrained. If you describe two or three actions, it is enough.

Woman writing down her personal growth plan in a notebook.

6. Establish feedback mechanisms

Some people find it helpful to devise a system of rewards and “punishments. ” Reward yourself periodically when you see that you stick to your plan, and when you deviate, sanction yourself, but not harshly. It is a way of conditioning yourself to move on.

7. Plan periodic reviews

Regular reviews are very important because they allow you to analyze and adjust what is not working. You may even need to redefine the core purpose at some point. It is completely valid.

By completing these seven steps, you already have your personal growth plan. Ideally, you make it very attractive, almost provocative for you. If you see it with reluctance or you feel that it is a burden or a very great duty, redesign everything. The secret is that it seduces you.