Business Psychology: Understanding Self and Others at Workplace

This article explores the importance of understanding self and others at the workplace in business psychology. It discusses the core skills of focus and attention, team working, and written communication. It also provides a reflective personal development report and action plan for improving these skills.

Business Psychology

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Introduction and briefly evaluation of psychological perspectives to understand self and other
at workplace............................................................................................................................3
Reflective Personal Development report and Action Plan.....................................................4
Summary Action Plan.............................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Business psychology is a term which is used in order to refer to the science applied and
used for investigating how people and the entity can be made more effective and potential for
attaining better results by achieving all goals and objectives in the given time frame and period
(Roetzel, 2019). The process or study of business psychology make use of social scientific
methods for studying people, workplaces and organisation which allows to incorporate and align
the multiple needs towards common objectives. The report holds reflective journals focused over
three core skills that are Focus and Attention, Team Working and Written Communication.
Moreover a summary action plan is developed to reflect upon the development and improvement
for the three core skills which are identified in the above section.
MAIN BODY
Introduction and briefly evaluation of psychological perspectives to understand self and other at
workplace
Psychology is a broad area of study and evaluation which concentrates over individuals
and their behaviours accordingly. Psychology has several areas to explore and conduct scientific
investigations such as clinical, educational, forensic and so on with a very long list of segments.
One of such psychological study is related to business as well that is known as Business
Psychology. It is study conducted to understand and gain knowledge about the functioning of
individuals, workplaces and organisation in order to align their needs to a common source and
aim.
The research conducted for understanding self and others at workplace hold huge
importance assisting and enabling the individual to go upwards in career and attain higher
position as well as personal development also takes place. For a professional, gaining
understanding about owns self, different attributes, skills, incompetence’s etc. renders an
opportunity to develop and evolve according to the current requirements and in relation with
personal development that is beneficial till longer period (Strike, Michel and Kammerlander,
2018).
Moreover, knowing and increasing knowledge about other in workplace and their
perspectives likewise has its benefits and necessity attached. Knowing and developing
information about others in the work environment most importantly internal has power to keep

oneself updated and have an idea about the competition. It is must to know who are working
amongst us and what skills, capabilities, expertise, experience and background they hold for
performing self-evaluation and analysis. Understanding perspectives of others allows the
individual to increase their learning borders and earn higher competitive information. Moreover,
another benefit involved in knowing the perspectives of others at workplace is motivation and
enthusiasm. This approach enables workforce and professional to push their boundaries and
influence them to outperform other and their performance standards as well (Hassall, Boduszek
and Dhingra, 2015). A positive competition is developed amongst professional who keeps their
morals high while working for the organisation in workplace and aid them in developing better
skills and competencies on both personal and professional basis.
Therefore, understanding and knowing different perspectives that is self and others is
must at the workplaces. This psychological phenomena benefits the individual and organisation
both in obtaining personal and professional objectives by aligning them and staying directed
towards the common goal for short and long term both.
Reflective Personal Development report and Action Plan
FOCUS AND ATTENTION
What is the core skill to develop?
The core skill which is needed to be developed and very essential is Focus and attention. As
known focus and attention is 1 particular ability which is important art of self-development in
relation with professional enhancement and pertaining all the respective goals of an individual
that are set on personal and professional level (Palmer and Whybrow, 2018). For me it is very
important that I develop the ability to focus and be attentive as I am just starting my career and
this ability will allow me to grasp rapidly and learn better. Along with it developing effective
focus and attention will allow me to look over my long term perspective more efficiently and
precisely.
Why did I select this skill to reflect on? Why is this core skill important for your
development (personal and professional)? (use relevant theories and concepts from
psychology and business to support your answer)
The main motive and intention to choose the focus and attention criteria as a skill and for
further development is to look over the personal and professional objectives efficiently and to

fulfil them at right time as prescribed and available for it. Therefore I selected focus and
attention to be one of the skill to reflect upon. According to me focus and attention is a core
skill that is need to be developed by me as a professional who is going to work within an
organisation as a nurse for my personal agendas too. Focus and attention is one of those skill
which is important for my development as it is give me a direction towards my objectives and
the right path that is chosen by me with the help of the skill to follow for the potential
achievement of goals and objectives.
Reflect on your current competence regarding this skill. How did you assess your
competence? (use your self-assessment findings, feedback from peers and your tutor, plus
your own reflections on your thoughts, feelings and behaviours to answer this question)
Focus and attention is a very crucial but most beneficial ability that is an individual is expected
to develop. In accordance to it my current competency of staying focused and being attentive
is is not sufficient enough. I have a assessed my competency in relation with focus and
attention by my past experiences and the feedbacks I received from my tutors.
Can you identify any contradictions from your analysis above? For example, is there a
match between how you see yourself and how others see you, or not?
In relation to the analysis conducted about by me of my capability to stay focused and be
attentive I do received some contradictions. In Opinion of my peer group and my family
members they do not match with my viewpoint that I lack focus and attention while
performing particular task. On the other hand my tutors and professors were in my favour
stating that I do lack the ability to stay focused and attentive to a minimal level which can be
easily improvised and developed with the help of few practices and techniques.
How might this skill help me in the future?
The role of focus and attention in my career and my future is very crucial and influential which
concludes that I have to develop better focussed perspective and be attentive in my personal
and professional environment. In relation with the same this skill will be helpful for me in my
future enabling me to perform with my best competency in my professional setting and
attaining higher position in my organisation. As well focus and attentiveness will provide me
clear objectives to work upon that will embrace and uplift my personal life.
TEAM WORKING

What is the core skill to develop?
The core skill which is needed to be developed is of Team Working. An ability to work in
collaboration and by cooperation with other members at workplace and specifically those of
the team (Wasylyshyn, 2015). Team working is a collaborative action and efforts made for
attaining group objectives by working in a team and by aligning tasks with other members. I
need to develop this skill firstly to be employable as it is a basic interpersonal skill which is
aspired by every employer to be in their employees. Also, team work is necessary for my
personal and professional growth enabling me to learn new things form others in my team
either co-workers or leaders that will make me more competent and skilful.
Why did I select this skill to reflect on? Why is this core skill important for yor
development (personal and professional)? (use relevant theories and concepts from
psychology and business to support your answer)
I selected this skill to reflect upon as this is one of the most important employability factor
which is being focused by employers. Also, this is the ability which will aid me in my personal
and professional development for long term. Moreover, team working spirit will enhance my
formal and personal relations with other staff in workplace and in my team.
This core skill of team working is important for my development because while working in a
team I will receive several new learnings by expertise, knowledge and experience of other
members. This factor will embrace and polish my exiting abilities and also aid me in gathering
fresh learnings.
Reflect on your current competence regarding this skill. How did you assess your
competence? (use your self-assessment findings, feedback from peers and your tutor, plus
your own reflections on your thoughts, feelings and behaviours to answer this question)
According to my analysis and understanding current competency regarding my team working
skills is low. First assessment criteria is I have never worked in a team in any professional
setting that implied that I do not hold any experience of working in a professional team,
applying practical knowledge for attaining real life objectives. I have worked in teams at the
time of my academic learning but my experience was not enough knowledgable and beneficial.
Also, according to my tutors feedbacks I have potential understanding about my lack of team
working skill. I have found several issues and difficulties I faced while I was working in a

team with my class mates on a practical assignment and was very incompetent at that time as
well.
Can you identify any contradictions from your analysis above? For example, is there a
match between how you see yourself and how others see you, or not?
No I do not find any contradictions or opposite thoughts in relation to my analysis about team
working skills I hold. As reflected that my peer and my tutors agree with me and my thoughts
in relation with incompetency and lack of capabilities to work in a team efficiently and
effectively. I am well aware about my self and my inefficiency of not being able to concentrate
and perform in a group in comparison with when I am working alone on any theoretical or
practical objective.
How might this skill help me in the future?
As I have elaborated and discussed the importance and necessity for me to have team working
skill as it has impacts over my personal and professional development. In the same manner this
skill is essential for my future as well. The main reason being in whole professional career I
have face situation where I need to work with others and which can not be ignored. As well as
it will improve my personality too making me more flexible and adaptable in separate dynamic
environments.
WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
What is the core skill to develop?
The core skill that is needed by me to develop is written communication. In lives of human
beings communication is the most fundamental and basic practice which is used by them
(Harvey and Allard, 2015). Communication takes place in two form either in formal or
informal. Written communication belongs to both the categories. Again the same perspective
for this skill as well that is written communication is essential at personal and professional
levels. Written communication is when I am interacting and engaging in conversations with
people either colleagues or others by writing the message.
Why did I select this skill to reflect on? Why is this core skill important for your
development (personal and professional)? (use relevant theories and concepts from
psychology and business to support your answer)

The reason behind the selection of this as a core skill to develop is the frequency of me being
engaged in communication with others either professionally or personally. As a individual in
order to share my opinion or any information to others I have to communicate. I can engage in
verbal communication but if I do not get the opportunity to so I will need to engage in written
communication. This highlights its importance and requirement.
The core skill of written communication is importance for my personal and professional
development because in formal world that is workplaces mostly this form of communication is
used for sharing any important information rendering evidence for future use. In personal
scenario I will be using written communication to interact with my friends and family that is
essential for me personally a human being to develop and maintain my relations with others.
Reflect on your current competence regarding this skill. How did you assess your
competence? (use your self-assessment findings, feedback from peers and your tutor, plus
your own reflections on your thoughts, feelings and behaviours to answer this question)
In my opinion my current competence in relation with communication and written
communication skills I still lack. I am very fluent in communicating verbally but in written
communication I am lacking. I always feel pressurised while being in middle of any written
communication. Through this I can reflect that I do not hold efficient written communication
skills. I have assessed my competency on my personal level by evaluating my past experiences
in some formal communication with my superiors.
Can you identify any contradictions from your analysis above? For example, is there a
match between how you see yourself and how others see you, or not?
No I have not found any contractions from my evaluation and analysis presented above. There
is a match about how I see myself and how other see me as my peer have the same opinion too
for my written communication abilities as they have many times raised this issue. Moreover,
my professors have their agreement with me too. My fellow students and professors have been
into few written communication with me either formal or informal through which it is easily
just that I am not efficient enough in my written communication skills according to the
requirements of a professional job role and what employer expects from their employee.
How might this skill help me in the future?
Communication is one of the major ability which is required to be developed by a professional
in order to be successful in his or her career. Moreover communication plays a vital role in day

to day lives of individuals as well. That whole it can be concluded that for me attending
official written communication is must as it enable me to enable me to share my point of views
and opinions effectively in front of others most importantly in front of my superiors. Therefore
effective written communication skill is very helpful and efficient for me in my career and for
attaining future goals.
Summary Action Plan
Priority Skills Current
Ability
Development
Opportunity
Criteria to
Judge
Success
Time Frame
1st Priority FOCUS
AND
ATTENTI
ON
As stated
and discuss
to above
pro-forma i
do work
with focus
and by
being
attentive but
at certain
level my
current
competency
in relation
with the
ability is not
enough and
productive
for attaining
my goals
and
In order to
develop better
focused and
attentive
capabilities
There are
several
opportunities
through which I
can improvise
my current
competencies
for the same.
Therefore in
order to do so I
will adopt
several
scientific
techniques and
psychological
practices that
As I am
taking help
of my tutors
and
professors
the best
judgement
can also be
provided by
them and
therefore
their
feedbacks
will help me
to analyse
my success
for the same.
6-8 months

objectives in
life on
personal and
professional
level.
are beneficial
for me through
my professors
suggestions.
2ndPriority TEAM
WORKING
As per the
discussion
and self
evaluation
and analysis
conducted
through the
pro-forma it
is clearly
stated that
my team
building and
team
working
abilities are
not
sufficient
enough to
be working
in a
professional
environment
as a less for
my personal
life. I do
need to put
Team working
is a
employability
skill which is
essential for a
professional to
hold and that is
expected by all
employers in
their employees.
So in order to
develop
efficient team
working
abilities I can
enrol myself for
numerous
virtual training
programs which
gives me
theoretical
knowledge and
for practical
implementation
I can get into
seminars and
In order to
seek
knowledge
about my
success as a
team worker
I can depend
upon the
feedbacks
from my
peers and
leaders of the
team.
Approximate
ly a year.

efforts for
developing
better team
working and
collaborativ
e practices.
sessions that are
specifically
conducted for
the purpose of
training people
fore working
collaboratively
and in a team.
3rdPriority WRITTEN
COMMUNI
CATION
According
to my
personal
perspective
and by
others
perspective
as well it is
thoroughly
identified
that I do
lack written
communicat
ion abilities
and have to
further
enhance my
capabilities
for the same
in order to
be
productive
and attend
For developing
effective written
communication
abilities the
most suitable
resource and
opportunity
available for me
is taking
guidance of my
tutors and
seeking their
knowledge and
expertise to
develop further
in the respective
area.
In relation to
this ability
I'll be using
my personal
judgement
and also will
be taking
opinions of
my peer and
family
members in
regarding my
success.
5-6 months.

my personal
agendas as a
professional
.
CONCLUSION
The discussion conducted and information acknowledged in above report summarises the
need and importance for understanding the perspectives and several attributes of self and others
in workplace for gaining knowledge for those areas which required development of better skills
and also for attaining personal and professional objectives along with growth. Furthermore, three
core skills are evaluated in the report through reflective journals for knowing self-perspectives,
abilities and skills for further development. At the end, a action plan is also made for getting
assistance in future for making improvement and improvisation in identified skills. The plan is
developed by specifying the action required for attaining the prescribed targets.

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