Archive for July, 2009

What The Heck Is A Formal Personal Development Plan?

Our ancestors believed that the written word was magic. If you wrote it down, it had to come true. In one sense, they were right. We are re-discovering the power of the written word today. Although whether or not writing has magical powers is debatable, the act of writing down anything, even a formal personal development plan, is not. The conscious act of writing out a plan seems to always get the subconscious to work on it.

Versatile And Individual

A formal personal development plan is very similar to a formal business development plan. To be honest with you, I'm not sure why the plans are referred to as "formal". The plans arent dressed up in tuxedos or gowns. However, the word "formal" is powerful word to your subconscious. Whenever it hears "formal", it thinks, "Uh-oh, this is serious. I better pay attention."

You can use whatever individual touches you want to your formal personal development plan. You can use a certain color ink or font (if it's on computer) and a certain color paper. You can add clip art, stickers, glitter whatever. It's your formal personal development plan. You can do what you want with it. The only thing is that you should store it where you can easily find it.

Modify Periodically

All a formal personal development plan is, is a written set of goals you hope to achieve in your lifetime. It could be about one aspect of your life or it could be about your life in general. Usually, though, the more specific you are about your goals, the more likely they will come to pass. "Live a happy life" would not be a good thing to write for your personal development goals. "Learn how to relax without booze" would be an excellent goal that would eventually lead you to live a happier life.

Another advantage of a formal personal development plan is that you can keep track of your goals, reminding your subconscious (and your consciousness) of what your overall plan is and how far you still have to go. You also can see how much progress you've made. This is always good for self-esteem.

But a formal personal development plan is not a binding contract. You can always change the details, omit a step or add other things. As you grow and mature, you will find that you are a different person than you were years ago. So, naturally, your goals and desires will change along with the rest of you.

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