Personal Development Plan for Professional Success | Desklib.

This article discusses the importance of creating a Personal Development Plan (PDP) for professional success. It covers the process of self-analysis, personal reflection, and honest appraisal of strengths and weaknesses. It provides insights on how to develop strengths, set future goals, and manage challenges at university. It also explores the relevance of personal branding in job search.

KNOWING & DEVELOPING YOURSELF FOR PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN (PDP)
__________
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What is a personal development plan?
The aim of creating a personal development plan is to document a process of self-
analysis, personal reflection and honest appraisal of your strengths and weaknesses.
This should enable you to evaluate your current position and where you are right now
and consider your future development. The purpose of Personal Development Plan
(PDP) is to encourage you to learn and plan by becoming more aware of your
capabilities and the opportunities around you .The PDP can be applied in a range of
contexts, changing the way you approach your studies, make choices in both
youracademic and personal life and prioritise your actions.
What do I need to do?
As part of your assignment you are required to complete this workbook. You should
carefully review what you have learned during the Knowing and Developing Yourself
module (including assigned readings) and apply this in the PDP document.
The word count for the PDP should be 1,500 words.
You should include copies from your strengths reports and reference the resources that
are available to you through the Clifton Strengths for Students web site, these will be
highlighted and part of your homework during the module.
Assignment Marking
The submitted plan will be marked using the following grading criteria:
Coherence (30%) – Does the plan link with the goals and the student’s current
situation? Has the individual thought through what development needs to take place
and how this will be achieved?
Engage with course materials (30%) – Has the individual drawn on the content of the
module to construct the plan? Has the individual used core theories, models, or
frameworks to provide a structure to the plan? Has the individual used the analysis
techniques presented in class in the planning process? What other evidence is being
used to support the plan?
Wider Reading and Reflection (30%) – Has the student demonstrated wider reading and
reflection outside of the classroom? Are there new materials and reading being
introduced? Has the student continued the reflection process beyond the course? What
other evidence is being used to support the plan?
Communication (10%) – Is the student able to communicate effectively his/her plan and
the rationale for this? Is there a structure to the plan? Does it have a conclusion?
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PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
____________________________
KNOWING YOURSELF
MARSHALLOW TEAM CHALLENGE
Questions Responses
What did you learn from this
activity?
(Consider how the team collaborated
and worked as a team, and your role
within the team)
Learning about the Marshmallow challenge gave me a lot of insights on
what actually means to develop a particular process. The main motive of
the Marshmallow challenge did not just focused on how a particular
structure needs to be build based on the materials provided but how
teamwork collaboration affects the success or failure of a structure. As it
has been found that the most successful in this challenge has been the
kindergarten kids, I have also learnt from their success that finding a
priority factor in a process is the most important thing, then a prototype
based in the priority; following which would be a continuous feedback
process that helps in knowing that if the prototype is feasible.
Within the team, I would like to attain the role of an executive admin who
would be able to understand the feasibility of the built structure.
How will this help you when working
in teams as part of your MSc?
Why do future employers look for
team-working skills?
As per my belief, this would be a huge help to the structure of the
marshmallow challenge as being the executive admin would help me for
developing the structure of the entire structure step by step making sure of
the success and failure of the structure. At every step of the structure,
feedback would be generated as well as the executive admin would help in
identifying the team structure based on the skills every person possesses.
I believe that team-working skills are essentially important since the
feasibility of teamwork makes sure that the structure of a team is
generating feasible results utilizing the skills of every person within the
team. Future employees do look for essential team-working skills as there is
a probability of learning from the skills of the different people present within
the team as well as enhancing the personal skills as well as a result of
working within a team consisting of different people with varied levels of
skills utilized for an unified outcome.
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VALUES
Questions Responses
What are your top 3 values & why are
they important to you?
According to self assessment, I believe that the top 3 values that I possess
are Innovation, Creativity and Recognition. These 3 values that I possess
are much important to me as I believe that for developing a proper
teamwork and understand the requirement of a specific project and its
outcome would be feasible if a person possesses the values that I do.
How will knowing these values help
you during your studies and in your
future career?
I believe that this would help in understanding the problems within the
teamwork, innovating ways by which the problems can be handled, making
creative approaches towards utilizing the skills of different people within a
team and recognition helps in recognizing the needs of the project
outcome and utilize the skills of the project team members according to
that. Therefore, the values that I have are the prime factors of
differentiating me from other team members in an organization or a project
and would enable competitive advantage over them.
What steps could you take to ensure
you live by these values? Think of
some actions you can take?
I make sure that with every day I practise my skills, the values I possess
only become improved and does not fade away from my character and I
follow very generous steps that help me ensure that I effectively live by
these values.
I make sure that I keep on taking challenges in the projects that I have
been assigned to and make sure that I keep on developing different ways
of solving the same issue over and over again to brush up my innovating
skills and make sure that I recognize every point of the outcome. I keep on
practising more complex and challenging projects so that all the value that
I possess gets brushed up and improved.
Download the Values Inventory from Blackboard
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StrengthsFinder
Questions Responses
Name your top 5 from your strengths
profile?
1. Focus
2. Strategic
3. Adaptability
4. Competition
5. Activator
What surprised you when reading the
report?
Identify any specific words or phrases
that you agreed with and why?
While reading the report, the point in my strength profile that surprised me
is my activator spirit. I have never recognized the fact that my strengths
include my skills as the activator of a specific project and how these would
help in rational thinking and how I naturally have the ability to thinks and
make decisions accordingly.
I have identified that the word “Activator” itself in the strengths list has
surprised me. Since I know the skills that a person has being the activator, I
did not have the idea that I would be such a person who naturally
possesses these skills at such an enhanced level.
What can you do to invest in these
talents to become strengths?
Identify some specific actions – list at
least 3
As I have described earlier, I would like to invest time in turning the talents
that I possess into specific skills. For this, I would like to do the following:
 Set a goal every day with my given modules and works that are
assigned to me
 Develop easiest way to solve the impending matters that I possess
and every day try to develop easier and innovate ways to solve the
issues.
 Take up more and more challenging tasks in my course that would
ensure that I develop my skills of adaptability and self competition.
Competing with self would ensure development and improvement of
the skills that I possess
How can others see these strengths
as perceived weaknesses?
(sometimes known as basement)
As per wisdom advises, strengths can also become the weakness of a
person. My competitive spirit and the way I can make people work within a
team can sometimes be perceived as my weaknesses. The way I motivate
people can appear to people that I am pressurising my team mates to earn
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a competitive spirit and making agitation work within the project team.
What have you learned from your
strengths profile?
Consider what you discovered about
yourself and how this might relate to
you as a person and your career
interests.
From my strengths profile, I have learned that I can work effectively as an
executive administrator. This would help in the identification of problems
while the project is progressing and take feasible steps to eradicate these
problems. The proper utilization of teamwork and skills of the team
members are also identified through the strengths I have.
Attach your strengths insight report and highlight those words and phrases that relate to you.
Attach your prioritised student action items and highlight those key action
DEVELOPING YOURSELF
Setting Future Goals and Aspirations
SWOT Analysis
Before setting your personal development plans, you should conduct a personal analysis: Eg - What are my
strengths and weaknesses? What external opportunities or threats might affect any plans I might make?
Strengths
1. Focus
2. Strategic
3. Adaptability
4. Competition
5. Activator
Areas for Development
Developing the strengths more and more and
improving the skills of focus and strategic planning
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Opportunities
This would help in the ultimate goal to become a true
team member who initiates the best project management
skills and provides the skills to generate the best outcome
of a given task or project.
Threats
The only threat that can occur does the way by
which other people can perceive my strengths as
weaknesses and can be antagonized believe that I
would appear as a pusher than a motivator or
activator for any project.
Create at least 5 specific goals – these can be a mix of Career, Academic Studies, Personal Development, New
Skills, Feedback that you have received or personal health goals.
What do I want to
achieve?
(short / long term
goals)
How am I going to
achieve it?
What additional support
and resources will I
need?
What strengths can I
use to help achieve
these goals?
By When?
Example – I want to
achieve a distinction
1. I want to gain the
degree that I am
currently studying with
distinction
2. I want to achieve
skills as the project
head for any kind of
project under my
expertise
3. I want to be
successful in every
project I take in
I will dedicate
6hrs per module
for studying
1. I would invest 6
hours for studying
each module.
2. I would develop
my skills by taking
up challenging task
every time within
my module and out
of it.
3. I would dedicate
all my strengths and
Regularly follow up
with tutor
1. Take feedbacks from
my tutor and keep
updated with them
about my developments.
2. I would note down
every obstacle I face
and innovate the best
way to overcome it.
3. I would ask help from
my tutors to assign me
with more challenging
Focus and
Discipline
1. Focus and
discipline
2. Competitive and
adaptability
3. Adaptability
4. Activator and focus
5. Focus and
competition
Next 3
months
1. Within the
next 3
months
2. Within my
course
completion
3. Within my
coursework
completion
time.
4. Within the
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4. I want to make sure
that my project team
members do not
underperform
5. I want to make a
career according to my
skill levels and
gradually increase my
skill levels as well as
elevate my career.
values in every
possible way to the
projects I take.
4. I would keep on
motivating them to
enhance their skill
levels and invest
more time in
developing their
morale
5. I would invest
more time in
enhancing my own
strengths and skills.
tasks.
4. I would ask for the
feedbacks from my
team members about
how my motivation is
helping them.
5. I would ask for
feedbacks from my
tutors
first 5 years
of my career
5. Within the
time of my
coursework
Managing and Dealing with Challenges at University
Outline the key challenges you might face in the next few weeks and months?
- I might be perceived as a pusher given my strengths being perceived as my weaknesses.
How can I go about managing these?
- Without making they understand about my strengths, I would make them understand how my skills
would be feasible in developing a proper plan for any project and project the effective outcomes in the
most innovative ways possible.
Knowing my strengths what can I do to overcome these challenges?
- I believe, taking insights form the feedback presented to me by my tutors and planning my
improvement of skills according to that would make me overcome the challenges.
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PROMOTING YOURSELF
Personal Branding
Questions Responses
What is a Brand? Branding is the identification of a product and its development and
manufacture under the name of a specific organization.
Why do we buy one Brand over
another?
There are several reasons which makes a person prefer a particular brand
over other, but I believe it is mostly loyalty to a particular brand as it has
previously been successful in meeting the customer’s expectations.
What do we expect from our brands? To provide the manufactured products as per the requirements and
expectations of the customer.
How many brands do we come across
daily?
Daily we come across numerous brands all over us.
Why is this relevant to my job
search?
This is relevant to job search as personal branding is essentially important
for a person’s professional life and career.
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In the box below write down what three words would you like someone to use when describing you?
Dedicated, proactive, innovative
Attach responses to personal feedback form
What do I do Next?
Write down below all the different ways (touch points) you will be promoting Brand You.
1. Innovation
2. Teamwork
3. Effectiveness
PERSONAL REFLECTION
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What did you learn from this module? What did you discover about yourself and others? How can you put
this into practice?
Reference any specific reading / videos / personal thoughts that inspired and encouraged you whilst completing your
PDP
This module helps me in learning about my key skills and strengths and how I can develop in improving
them more to make myself a responsible brand to the customers.
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