Creating a Personal Development Checklist

Many of us spent 12 to 16 years in school. Through it all, there was a syllabus telling us what skills we needed to develop to keep growing. Then we joined the working world and the syllabus vanished. For the first time, we were asked to own our development.

This was a jarring transition for me. Many of my teammates tell me they struggled with it too. So, last week, I started jotting down a personal development checklist in hopes of helping others make the leap from guided growth to self-guided growth.

The goal of this checklist is to give people ideas for spurring their own development—above and beyond their day-to-day work responsibilities. So far, I am encouraging the basics:

  • Read the books that influenced the people you respect. Read the books that define your field of interest.
  • Find a mentor to support and guide you.
  • Find a peer to relate and grow with.
  • Invest in your communication skills.

Before I get much further, I wanted to ask for your advice: Think of the people who own their personal development. What do they do to keep growing? What behaviors and activities do they seek out?

Email me your thoughts, and I will compile them here. Ideally, when we are done, we will have a meaningful list of things people can do to own their personal development.

Thanks!

—Max

 

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