Personal Development Plan: Importance, Goals, and Examples

This report discusses the importance of personal and professional development, the value of short, medium, and long term goals, and the significance of a personal development plan. It includes examples of goals and resources to achieve them. The report is relevant to BSc (Hons) Business Management with Foundation course and provides expert guidance on academic skills and PDP.

BSc (Hons) Business Management with
Foundation
BMP3001
Academic Skills and PDP
Assessment 2
Report on Personal Development
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Contents
1. Introduction
2. Definition of the concept of personal and professional
development
3. Description and discussion of the value of short term goals
identifying at least 3 personal examples
4. Description and discussion of the value of medium term goals
identifying at least 3 personal examples
5. Description and discussion of the value of long term goals
identifying at least 3 personal examples
6. Description and discussion of the value of a Personal
Development Plan
7. Conclusion
Reference List
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1. Introduction
Personal development plans is a set of activity that helps the individuals such
as students, organizational people in maintaining and improving their skills in the
most authentic way. It helps the individual in gaining knowledge and understanding
of the skills that are required by them and make sure that they are working
continuously towards their goals and objectives (Botha, P. and Dykes, G., 2019. ). It
will help in motivating the individual as when an individual achieves a short term
goals then the satisfaction that they get will make sure that they are on the right
track. The skills that are developing with the help of personal development plans will
work as a stepping stone in the career path of the individual.
2. Definition of the concept of personal and professional
development
Personal and professional development refers to the activity which helps the
individual in developing their skills and values which can help them in their personal
as well as professional lives. They develop the skill in the individual that are essential
for them in order to have success in their career (Chidler, M. and Plummer, E.,
2019.). It enhances the effectiveness and the efficiency of the candidate which helps
them in increasing their performance as well as their productivity. It makes the
individual persistent and gradual persistence will lead to expertise in certain topics
and areas which can be extremely beneficial for the candidate and its career.
Development of skills is a lifetime process and requires concentration of an individual
as they need to have focus on the actual skills and also have to maintain the
motivation to acquire skills continuously.
3. Description and discussion of the value of short term
goals identifying at least 3 personal examples
Short terms goals are the one that requires less than six months of time
period. They are generally for the personal development of the individual and posses
general skills that are necessary in the personal as well as professional lives of the
individuals. These are the small steeping stones in the career path of the individual
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and helps them in making sure that they are on the correct path. It helps the
individual in maintaining the motivation aspect as it requires less efforts and less
time but the completion of these skills will provide a sense of satisfaction to the
individuals. The three short term goals examples are as follows:
Communication skills: The first skill that is required in order to have
successful professional as well as personal life is to make sure that the individual
have effective communication skills that helps the in maintaining keeping their point
of view correctly and in avoiding any misunderstanding (Kneale, P.E., 2019.). It is
important to communicate effectively as communication is the life blood of any
organization and without effective communication the individual will not be able to
present themselves well. This skill can be included in the short term goals segment
as they can be achieved within a shorter period of time and will also make sure that
they are helpful.
Time management skills: These are the skills that are essential for an
individual if they want to complete their task on time and if they want to avoid any
late completion. Time management skills will help the individual in making sure that
they are managing their time effectively and efficiently also according to the time
period that they have as it will ensure success in the career path of the individual and
will also help the individual in saving some extra time for other aspects as well. Time
management skills will not only help in completing the task appropriately but will also
provide a scope for last minute changes that can help the individual in enhancing
their projects as well as skills.
Adopt a fitness routine: It is important for an individual to adopt a fitness
routine in order to stay healthy and active all day long. Fitness routine will help the
individual in making sure that the are having a good concentration power and will
also help in focusing on the particular tasks appointed to them(Loughlin, E. and
Dorian, L., 2018.). It will make the individual energetic and will enhance the
personality of the individual which is most important in both personal as well as
professional lives. The fitness routine will maker sure that there is no scope fore any
laziness or any unhealthy diets. Fitness routine is also very effective in building self
confidence of the individual which is important for professional as well as personal
lives.
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4. Description and discussion of the value of medium
term goals identifying at least 3 personal examples
Medium term goals are the one that helps the individual in achieving goals
that requires more time as compared to short term goals. It is important for the
individual to make sure that they are having realistic goals as unrealistic goals will
not get completed which is harmful for the motivation of the individual. It is important
for the individual to make sure that they have clarity in their goals which is why it is
important for them to use SMART approach which is an acronym for Specific,
measurable, achievable, realistic and time related. This approach will help the
individual in getting a clear focus on the management of the tasks as well as skills
that helps them in creating a clear goal. As the time stamp between medium term
goals and long term goals is high which is why the individual may lack the motivation
which is required to reach to the long term goals but this approach will help the
individual in getting appropriate amount of motivation and clarity.
Leadership skills: It is important for an individual to make sure that they
have leadership skills which can help them in their professional lives (Marshall, B.
and Geier, S., 2019, October.). Leadership skills will help the individual in giving right
direction to their team members and will also help in the growth of their career. It is
important to have skills that can help the individual in taking initiatives and in making
sure that they are influencing their team members effectively.
Completion of my professional degree: The completion of the professional
course of degree will help the individual in getting step ahead in their career path
which is extremely important in order to become successful and in order to have
growth in the career.
Starting up an internship: Completion of the professional degree will leads
to have secure internship which can help the individual in gaining knowledge about
the actual workings of the organization and will also make sure that the individual is
growing in the working environment of the organization (Mistry, U., 2021.).
5. Description and discussion of the value of long term
goals identifying at least 3 personal examples
Long term goals are the ultimate goals of the individual. They are the
important goals in the lives of the individual and short term as well as medium term
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goals are the stepping stones for these goals. These are the goals that take approx 5
years of time or above in order to get completed. These are generally related too the
career of the individual and plays an important role in the professional lives of the
individual.
Getting a job: it is one of the most important goal in the life of the individual
to get job of their dream (Mitchell, A., 2020.). Every person has a dream job and
they are motivated because of that job only. The long term goal can include a dream
job. It will be a measure as a success in the life of the individual.
Get promotion: the next long term goal in their life of the individual is to get a
promotion as it is one of the main focus in the lives of the individual in their career in
order to achieve the desired position.
Achieve expertise in the workings of the company: It is important for the
individual to attain expertise in the field in which they are working. it will help them in
growing their knowledge and understanding about the work (Parkinson, T., 2019.).
Also it will help the individual in having an upper hand in the management of the
company which is good for the career prospects of the individual.
6. Description and discussion of the value of a Personal
Development Plan
Personal development plan will help the individual in getting an idea about the
skills that are necessary for them to acquire. It is important for the individual to make
sure that they are continuously working towards their career path and it is important
for them to have a set process which can help them in attaining the skill set that is
essential for them (Passmore, J. and Sinclair, T., 2020.). The activity helps in
individual in having a process which is essential in order to obtain career goals. It
help the individual in moving forward continuously in their career path.
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7.0 Conclusion
From the above report it is concluded that personal development plan is and
essential activity for those who wants continuous success and growth in their lives. It
helps the individual in getting more and more expertise in the skill set and will also
enhance the capabilities of the individual. The goals are divided according to the
time period in which they get completed and according to the efforts that they require
in order to complete.
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Reference List:
Botha, P. and Dykes, G., 2019. Online self-coaching programme to enhance
employability of social work students. Southern African Journal of Social
Work and Social Development, 31(2), pp.1-19.
Chidler, M. and Plummer, E., 2019. Learning beyond the classroom. In Surviving and
Thriving in the Secondary School (pp. 162-173). Routledge.
Kneale, P.E., 2019. Exploring pedagogic tensions in final year programme design.
In Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Geography. Edward Elgar
Publishing.
Loughlin, E. and Dorian, L., 2018. Stand out from the crowd: Key skills for study,
work and life. Macmillan International Higher Education.
Marshall, B. and Geier, S., 2019, October. Targeted Curricular Innovations in Data
Science. In 2019 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE) (pp. 1-8).
IEEE.
Mistry, U., 2021. Enhancing students’ employability skills awareness through the
accounting professional body on an undergraduate accounting
degree. Accounting Education, pp.1-23.
Mitchell, A., 2020. A professional development program to facilitate group music
performance teaching. In Teaching and Evaluating Music Performance at
University (pp. 101-115). Routledge.
Parkinson, T., 2019. A trialectic framework for large group processes in educational
action research: the case of academic development for Syrian academics in
exile. Educational Action Research, 27(5), pp.798-814.
Passmore, J. and Sinclair, T., 2020. Personal Development Plans. In Becoming a
Coach (pp. 203-207). Springer, Cham.
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Appendix 1: Personal Development Plan
Skills to be
Developed
Development Plan Resources Target Date
effective
communication
It is important to have effective
communication in the workplace as well as
in personal lives. In order to achieve this skill
I an going to attend seminar that is soon
going to happen. It is about the topic of
effective communication and how to achieve
it. This will help me in gaining knowledge
about the communication process and how I
can make sure that I achieve this skill.
Kneale, P.E., 2019. Exploring
pedagogic tensions in final
year programme design.
In Handbook for Teaching
and Learning in
Geography. Edward Elgar
Publishing.
By August 2021
Fitness routine I am attending online classes that can help
me in building my routine. Also I am trying
options and finding the best suitable option
for fitness routine. It will have a routine which
can help me in getting fit and active along
with measurable growth.
Loughlin, E. and Dorian, L.,
2018. Stand out from the
crowd: Key skills for study,
work and life. Macmillan
International Higher
Education.
By September 2021
Leadership skills These are the skills that I have to achieve in
order to have success in my professional life.
It is important for me to make sure that I can
influence my team and can effectively direct
them. In order to obtain this skills I am
attending online seminars and classes on
effective leadership skills which is giving me
a clear idea about the basics if leadership
and how one can become an efficient leader.
It will also help me in increasing my
influencing power which is essential for
Marshall, B. and Geier, S., 2019,
October. Targeted
Curricular Innovations in
Data Science. In 2019
IEEE Frontiers in
Education Conference
(FIE) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
By June 2022
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growth and effective workings.
Getting a job This is one of the major focus of myself. it is
extremely important for me to find good job
and which is why I am working so hard. It will
help me in becoming independent. It will help
me in finances and will provide me job
satisfaction as well. In order to get my dream
job I am continuously trying hard to improve
my resume. My resumes and my skills as
well as abilities will help me in grabbing a job
of my own.
Mitchell, A., 2020. A professional
development program to
facilitate group music
performance teaching.
In Teaching and
Evaluating Music
Performance at
University (pp. 101-115).
Routledge.
By May 2025
Expertise in the
work I am doing.
I want to achieve expertise in the work that is
assigned to me. It will help me in getting
knowledge and understanding about the
workings that I am doing and will also make
sure that I have an upper hand on the
management of the company.
Parkinson, T., 2019. A trialectic
framework for large group
processes in educational
action research: the case
of academic development
for Syrian academics in
exile. Educational Action
Research, 27(5), pp.798-
814.
By December 2026
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