In my Tuesday Focus post I asked the question, “Do you have a personal growth plan?” In this Friday Focus message I want to talk more about the personal growth plan and give some examples of what it looks like from my life to help you create your personal growth plans.

Personal growth is a never-ending process. As I mentioned in the Tuesday Thought, we are all either growing or stagnant in life. Hopefully we all want to grow and the personal growth plan helps us do that. It is a guideline for your life where you list your goals, how you intend to achieve them, and the skills and habits you need to master to get there. You can develop a plan for any area of your life.

I’m going to share the growth plans I have for 3 areas of my life: faith, fitness and career. The first thing I had to do was understand the goal I was trying to achieve and why. The why is important because when it is strong it will fuel you and push you through the tough times as you work your plan.

The goal for my faith life is to further develop my personal relationship with God. My why is the desire within me to connect with my Creator and feel His love and grace daily. My method to do this is daily reading and learning through His word. I use a few apps to do my daily reading and bible lessons which also provide a tracking mechanism to see if I am staying on schedule. I write this daily task in my journal which makes it a scheduled part of my day and provides accountability.

The goal for my fitness life is to lose 20 pounds and once at my target weight to stay there. My why is the need to stay as healthy as I can so I can enjoy my life with Jen and the kids, and at some point in the future my grandkids. My method to do this is daily workouts and intermittent fasting. Again, I use apps to help track both the workouts and the fasting which again provide a tracking mechanism. I also write these daily tasks in my journal so they are scheduled parts of my day and I’m accountable.

The goal for my career is to enhance my leadership skills by taking a year to learn about leadership. My why is the desire to positively impact the careers and lives of those I influence at work. My method to do this is absorbing leadership lessons and principles from successful leaders like John Maxwell, having senior leaders as mentors at work, and taking leadership courses. I read from leadership books and listen to leadership podcasts daily. I have regularly scheduled mentoring sessions and I’ve enrolled in several leadership courses. I also write these daily tasks in my journal to make them scheduled parts of my day and again for accountability.

The theme running through all of this is defining a goal, establishing a method to get there and being consistent and accountable. Your personal growth plan is your roadmap. It allows you to get to the point where you become the best version of yourself. The version of you that feels fulfilled and is ready to grow more.

My growth plans have helped me to become closer to God, lose 15 pounds and grow as a leader. I’m asking you to take the next step and develop your personal growth plans today so you can achieve your goals. The alternative is remaining stagnant.

Evolution of Self!