Reflective Journal: Personal and Professional Development (PPD)

This assignment is a reflective journal and personal development plan submitted as part of a BA Business Studies module at the University of Suffolk. The journal reflects on the development of leadership and communication skills, analyzing strengths and weaknesses, and setting goals for improvement. It explores the importance of effective communication, time management, and problem-solving, along with the use of ICT skills for personal and professional growth. The journal also includes a personal development plan outlining specific skills to develop, timelines, activities, and measurement methods. The student reflects on their experiences, evaluates their progress, and sets an action plan to achieve their career objectives. The assignment references relevant academic sources to support the analysis and conclusions.

PERSONAL AND
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT

TABLE OF CONTENT
REFLECTIVE JOURNAL..............................................................................................................3
Description...................................................................................................................................3
Feelings........................................................................................................................................3
Evaluation....................................................................................................................................4
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................4
Action Plan..................................................................................................................................4
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN...........................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
Appendix..........................................................................................................................................9

REFLECTIVE JOURNAL
Description
In task 1 we were assigned to me for understanding the leadership skills and styles which
are required in leaders so that there is going to be an improvement in the employee’s
performance so that the company can benefit from it. From this report I have realized that there
is a requirement for me to develop a lot of skills and personality of the people which has to be
present so that the objectives can be achieved effectively. The report is a reflection on Jeff Bezos
who has the knowledge and skill of a successful leader which is going to make the company
achieve their objectives and goals from which individually there is a lot of learning from this
(Andreea-Gabriela, 2016). Through this report I got to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of
my own which have to be improved effectively in order to be able to compete with the others in
my career goals.
Feelings
It was in the beginning of this assignment that I felt a little uncomfortable and unaware of
the topic because I did not have a lot of knowledge on the leaders. There are skills and
knowledge which has to be developed in me to be able to achieve higher productivity as a leader.
There was a proper use of technology information to get the right knowledge and that took place
by the internet help so that I would be able to develop this report effectively. I was lacking one
skill the most which was communication since I am used to working individually and that made
me not be able to communicate effectively. The efficiency of the report reduced because of this
lack of skill and the quality does get affected because of this factor which has to be improved
effectively (Bornman and Louw, 2019). The goals to be achieved were important and the group
took a lot of time because I was not being able to coordinate effectively about the work which
was assigned to me. There has to be a growing opportunity which needs to be present so that the
satisfaction level of the group is going to be high with the end result of the report. There is a
feeling of a lot of confusion which is present in the report because of different views of authors
or even lack of communication which is present on internet. There was a growth in myself about
the information which I was finding out about these skills and styles which are present in the
market for leaders.

Evaluation
There has to be gathered information which was very difficult for me to gather which has
impacted the report as well. There has to be a good written communication as well which has to
be present so that there is going to be a higher productivity which can be gained. There were
better decisions as well which I made by gaining the right measures with the help of technology
which was not so good in me but I managed to learn very quickly. I had to divide by learning and
improvement so that the quality of working is going to be present and that is going to reduce the
pressure of working on me (Schwartz and et.al., 2019). There are new strategies which the group
tried so that there is going to be a better information which can be gathered and used for the
report and that would be very good for the results as well. For the future career goals I
understand the skills and styles which I must have from this report and they are going to be
helpful as well. Research did help me to be creative in a lot of ways and also helped me to self
analyse myself which is a great factor for the longer run since I will be able to develop myself
accordingly now.
Conclusion
There are a lot of factors which I have learnt from this report which are that there has to
be a good communication to be able to make the right decisions. Communication can help to
gather more information about the topic which is going to be good for the report as well. To get
the report ready I did not have a strong grasp on the technological aspect but I did a fair job with
the help of technology to be able to gather the right information (Baecher and Chung, 2020).
Knowledge and experience is very essential for the group to be able to present the right
information in the group and there has to be a good trait and characteristics which is reflected
through the report. Different skills and styles are present for different situations which are why it
is very important for the company to have the right skills and knowledge to be able to take the
decisions for the organization.
Action Plan
There is going to be a personal and professional growth which is going to be present and
that is going to make the company achieve the objectives as well. There is going to be a good
knowledge about the skills and in the future those can be improved upon so that there is going to
be a good leaders which can develop. There are higher skills which have to be learnt and

information must be gathered in order to be able to develop effectively and that is going to be
good for the future career growth (Maruniakova, Rihacek and Roubal, 2017). There are a lot of
capabilities which are present in one person but they have to be found out so that the changes to
solve the issues and improve accordingly must be present. In the career I have developed there
are a lot of issues which might rise but there has to be a good knowledge in me of the skills
which can solve those issues and be able to achieve the objectives which I have for myself.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Skills to develop Timeline Activities to improve Measurement
Time
management
skills
4 weeks There have to be a lot of task
which have to be allotted to me
so that I can manage them and
understand the value of each. I
have to not get distracted and
focus on the work which I have
in hand to be able to achieve the
goals. I have to develop these
skills for which mayo jar
activity is going to help me
understand the importance and
be able to manage my time as
well for a better functioning.
I have to develop the tasks
according to priorities and
performance level so that the
task can have a good result in
the end. Multitasking is a
talent which has to be
adapted by me so that I can
finish the tasks faster and in
less time. Tracking the time
is important so that there is a
better time management
which I can do for the other
tasks in hand and this is
going to be done with the
right technique and measures
for myself (Ivanova and
Skara-Mincāne, 2016).
Communication
skills
3 weeks There is going to be a lot of
reading which I would do
online and offline so that I can
I would ask for help from
friends and family so that
they can give me honest

increase the right knowledge
and be able to communicate
effectively. I have to work on
my vocabulary skill as well by
seeing and learning from
information classes and videos
to be able to achieve this skill.
feedbacks for written and
oral communication skills
which I am trying to improve
since they have an idea of the
strengths and weaknesses I
have (Sergeeva and et.al.,
2018). I also would undergo
online tests so that I can
ensure my achievement in
this skill.
Problem solving
skills
6 weeks There is a requirement for me to
attend a lot of brainstorming
sessions to be able to achieve
these skills. I have to participate
in a lot of math’s solving and
puzzle activities so that I can
get the technique of problem
solving which is going to be
good for a long run (Pedersen,
2017).
There are aptitude tests
online and office which I can
participate in so that there is
a better evaluation which I
can do for myself. There are
a lot of challenges which are
present and they have to be
taken better decision making
which are going to be
attended by me so that I can
understand them and use for
the future as well.
ICT skills 5 weeks Technological field is large and
use of this factor is present in
all the businesses in the market
which is why there is a need for
me to develop this skill so that
the work can be done in lesser
time. There is going to be a
quality and standard of work as
well which is going to be
It is very important for me to
use computer everyday so
that it gets a part of my life
and I can get comfortable
with it. The issues with these
skills are going to get better
and the practice is going to
be effective for me as well.

present.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Andreea-Gabriela, D., 2016. ANALYSIS OF PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES OF THE UNEMPLOYED: TRAINING
MENTORING AND COACHING. Economic and Social Development: Book of
Proceedings. p.318.
Baecher, L. and Chung, S., 2020. Transformative professional development for in-service
teachers through international service learning. Teacher Development, 24(1), pp.33-51.
Bornman, J. and Louw, B., 2019. Personal commitment statements: encouraging the clinical
application of continuing professional development events for health practitioners in
low-and middle-income countries. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health
Professions. 39(2). pp.86-91.
Ivanova, I. and Skara-Mincāne, R., 2016. Development of professional identity during teacher’s
practice. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences. 232(3). pp.529-536.
Maruniakova, L., Rihacek, T. and Roubal, J., 2017. How beginning counselors learn: The
interaction of personal and professional experiences in counselors with an experiential
orientation. Counselling Psychology Quarterly. 30(1). pp.48-66.
Pedersen, K.W., 2017. Supporting collaborative and continuing professional development in
education for sustainability through a communities of practice approach. International
Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education.
Schwartz, K and et.al., 2019. Early Childhood Teachers’ Lives in Context: Implications for
Professional Development in Under‐Resourced Areas. American journal of community
psychology. 63(3-4). pp.270-285.
Sergeeva, M.G and et.al., 2018. Psychological and pedagogical support for the social workers
professional development.

Appendix