Personal Development: An Actionable Plan
Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s blog. Today we’re going to talk about personal development and how to develop a plan of action - basically ground zero; starting at the beginning and building up intention to set meaningful goals and strategies that work for you as an individual.
First of all, I don’t know about you, but I always found the term “personal development” to be elusive. I mean, it’s easy enough - it’s working on yourself, “upgrading” yourself to be a better person, and to increase your potential for happiness, employability, and to turn your dreams into reality. It’s elusive in that it’s all-encompassing. There are so many options and different things you can do to improve yourself. Does it mean changing your attitude, or building up a new skill set? Is it reading a lot of books, or devoting yourself to helping those less fortunate? The short answer is yes - it is all of that and more.
One might wonder how to go about starting a personal development journey. Most people have to work for a living. We spend most of our lives at a job, away from our families in order to support them. How in the world do we encompass all the things or find time to work on them? The trick is to take it one step at a time. and have a good goal system in place. (Yes! Personal development all comes down to goals, and your values.)
I have written blog posts about how to set meaningful and intentional goals (my favorite goal setting planner is by Cultivate What Matters). I also have an affiliate link if you are interested in checking this planner out: https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=927879&u=2840420&m=62537&urllink=&afftrack=. I know the system has changed my life. The past two years have been so good to me, but it’s all about what you make it. I have never been more charged or ready to take on life as I have been over the past two years. Ironically, this time frame aligns with when I started my online business. I have worked my ass off the last two years, and I am finally seeing results. It seems all my hard work has finally paid off, and now I can see the fruits of my labor start to grow. BUT! It doesn't stop there - oh no! Personal development and the act of working on ourselves is a forever journey.
My personal belief is that our entire existence is based on how we treat our bodies. If we live an unhealthy lifestyle, we either won’t live very long, or we will not have the energy to live a normal life. Now I’m not saying that you need to devote yourself to a hearty exercise regime, or go on a diet (I don’t believe in diets anyway). What I do think is we should start small. For instance, our necessary daily water intake to maintain health is 8 eight ounce glasses of water. Most people do not meet this daily requirement and are consistently dehydrated. We are usually too busy going about our day, or we are too busy consuming other drinks and don’t even give water a second thought. One of my personal goals is to drink 96 ounces of water daily, over and above anything else I drink in a day. When I accomplish this, I feel so good. My body is hydrated, my headaches go away and I have so much energy.
Another healthy eating habit is to allow myself to eat (almost) anything I want, but to keep the portion small. Usually when I’m craving something, all it takes is a bite to make that craving go away. The same goes for meals throughout the day. It is healthier to eat many smaller meals throughout the day than one to three large ones. When you eat a large meal, you feel bloated, sluggish and lethargic and are less likely to get up and be productive than if you were to eat lighter. I used to love large portion sizes, but I have forced myself to cut what I usually eat to a third. I eat slowly, take water in between bites and by the time I’m done, I feel full.
A good habit for your skin is to wear sunscreen, both summer and winter. This is one thing that I wish I had started sooner. Sunscreen protects our skin from the harmful radiation from the sun and atmosphere. (Plus, having healthy skin makes you look younger too!)
A very important thing to do for personal development is to read - A LOT. Read as many books in your lifetime as you can. Besides the obvious fact that reading promotes growth of brain cells, reading (versus watching tv) allows us to invent thoughts; we use our imagination. I have read thousands of books in my life so far. My only regret is that I wish I had read more informative books, such as non-fiction, self-help and guidance books. My favorite books to read are fiction, because reading them allows you to get lost in the story and forget about your real life problems for a little while. My current goal is to read four books a month for the remainder of 2021, and perhaps that goal will change when 2022 rolls around.
Another really good option for growth is to journal and reflect. You would be surprised at the clarity you feel when you start devoting your time to writing. One of the most useful things to do is answer pre-written prompts that allow you to reflect on your attitudes, behaviours, beliefs, and your overall life experiences. Simply reflecting on your day and how you choose to act towards others says a lot about you. Journaling allows you to focus and provides clarity on the next steps of your own personal journey.
These are the basic things I think EVERYONE should start with. As for continuing, it’s important to determine what your values are. Who do you want to be, or what kind of person do you want to be? Brainstorm some thoughts. Then pick at least five things you could do that would get you closer to each of those goals. For examples, if you wanted to be a more caring person, make it a habit to contact loved ones on a regular basis, and ask them how they're doing. You could also go through your household items, or clothing and donate it to the charity of your choice; maybe start donating to the food bank on a regular basis.
The important thing here is, to not do everything at once. Don’t overwhelm yourself, because if that happens, you are more likely to give up and accomplish nothing. Start small; create goals and break them down into actionable, small tasks. Get a planner and literally block off time in your day to complete your personal development goals.
STEPS TO START YOUR PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT JOURNEY
DRINK AT LEAST 8 EIGHT OUNCE GLASSES OF WATER
EAT SMALL PORTIONS
WEAR SUNSCREEN
READ A LOT OF BOOKS
JOURNAL
ASK YOURSELF WHO YOU WANT TO BE AND DO THINGS TO IMPROVE YOURSELF BASED ON WHAT YOU WANT YOUR FUTURE SELF TO LOOK LIKE
TAKE BABY STEPS AND PLAN OUT THE STEPS YOU NEED TO TAKE TO GET THERE
Thanks for reading and we’ll see you next time!
xoxo SAN 💕
