A personal development plan helps you to grow and achieve. So why do so few people take the time to create one? Two potential reasons are:

• Lack of know how

• Fear of limiting themselves

There are 5 key steps in creating a personal development plan

1. Do a personal stock-take of your strengths and development needs. As well as your own assessment get the input of others. They can often see talents that you are not aware of or are failing to fully utilise.

2. Think about what development will help you most in achieving your professional and personal goals.

3. Decide which methods of delivery will have greatest impact on your learning. We all have different ways of learning so find out what works best for you.

4. Set out a calendar of development events for the next 12 months. This makes it real and more likely to be achieved.

5. Put an accountability structure in place to ensure you follow through. Often the lack of accountability can result in you losing focus.

So what are the benefits of creating a personal development plan?

1. You give a clear message that you take your contribution to business success seriously

2. You can start to work on the areas that are less developed so that you become even more of an asset to your employer

3. If things are not progressing as you would like career wise you can demonstrate to a potential new employer what you can contribute with real impact

4. You take informed choices about the type of roles you pursue rather than leaving it to chance

5. You continue to grow, be motivated and stretch yourself to achieve what you desire

Take the first step towards to realising and exploiting your real professional and earning potential.