Personal development is a challenge, a push, a battle. It is a lifelong process of acquiring and improving employment skills, of expanding self-awareness and knowledge, and enhancing personal skills. In his Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle talks about the significance of personal development. He defines it as a category of phronesis or practical wisdom, where the practice of various virtues leads to eudaimonia, which commonly translates to ‘happiness’, but could also be understood as ‘human flourishing’ or ‘living well’. In this sense, personal development is a key to achieving personal growth and acceptance.
But how is personal development related to the workplace? In 1977, management professors Sumantra Ghoshal of the London Business School and Christopher Bartlett of the Harvard Business School wrote that personal development creates economic value since: ‘market performance flows not from the omnipotent wisdom of top managers, but from the initiative, creativity, and skills of all employees’. Moreover, employees should also embrace the fact that their own work would always include personal development and continuous learning. Another study by Herminia Ibarra indicated that priorities of work and lifestyle continually develop through life, and it found that one’s career change often results in one’s identity change and vice versa. It could be said that people identify themselves with their accomplishments, and they determine their own value based on their achievements throughout a lifetime.
Many companies have realized the impact of fostering employees’ personal development on their businesses. One of those companies is Google, which in 2007 opened a school of personal growth that offered courses such as: ‘The Neuroscience of Empathy’ and ‘Search Inside Yourself’ to its employees. The main goal of this school was to promote happiness among the employees and allow them to understand themselves in a deeper way, thus encouraging creativity and cooperation. Its mission was to develop Googlers on all levels: emotional, physical, mental and spiritual. In order to do this, they built four curricula: mental development, physical development, emotional development and spiritual development that were later called ‘Beyond the Self’. The co-founder of this school, Monika Broecker, claims that the inclusion of a personal growth curriculum is essential to the success of companies, as it supports the most crucial business goals. Furthermore, it contributes to the job satisfaction and the work motivation, as well as the holistic health and cognitive abilities of the employee. This program helped Google to achieve further innovation, greater well-being and continued success, as well as sustaining a skilful and compassionate modus operandi in the midst of a corporate world dominated by self-interest.
Nevertheless, since not many companies implement such programs, what can an individual do for his or her own personal development? One must first decide what it is that they want to work on, whether it is in health and fitness, relationships, career or education. Once that decision has been made, one must commit themselves to the goal by learning from their experiences and staying consistent and dedicated to giving their best efforts. For example, if one wants to expand their prospects on the job market, he or she could learn a new language or take classes, such as Python or Java coding, or even obtain a certificate in marketing and management. Of course, personal development should not always be for work reasons. For instance, if one wants to lose weight, they would start a new exercise regime and change their diet, as well as some harmful everyday habits. At first look, it does not seem related to the workplace, however, such a change would eventually lead to improved health and thus, the employee might feel more motivated and be more productive at his work.
Another interesting example could be one of transferable skills. Let us imagine a woman who works as a business secretary in a medium-sized company. Her job requires her to manage databases and type forms, to answer calls and schedule appointments. She also needs to manage reception, greet clients, prioritize workloads, and organize service meetings. Nevertheless, she has always been interested in psychology, so in her free time, she volunteers as a teacher to children with autism. There she learns basic skills such as demonstrating professionalism and adapting to new procedures. She also learns some people skills such as how to build strong relationships, to counsel people and to resolve conflicts. All of these skills could enhance her management and clerical skills. For instance, if she learned how to resolve conflicts at her volunteer work, then this skill could help her become better at resolving schedule conflicts at the office between members and personnel, thus enabling her to efficiently carry out the meeting.
It goes without saying that many examples could be given and many opportunities are available for personal development. Nonetheless, as the word ‘personal’ implies, each person has different interests and abilities that could be tailored to his or her own development plan. Candidates and employees should consider carefully their habits and hobbies and seek improvement wherever necessary. Learning new skills and acquiring new knowledge contributes to one’s global self-esteem and satisfaction. In its turn, this could aid work satisfaction and motivation. People often identify themselves with their achievements in personal life and at work. If one is trying to improve and he or she allows space for learning, then they would always end up with a new accomplishment, no matter how small it could be.
What you do in your free time could have a major impact on your life. Many people are put off of personal development because the results are not always measurable. However, the greatest achievement is to learn the ability to manage oneself in a variety of situations, and that ability comes through personal development. Although it might not be easy to do so, do not be afraid to go beyond the core business. It may be a lot easier than you think once you get into it.
Keep learning!
Sources:
http://bigthink.com/big-think-edge/why-should-a-company-invest-in-personal-growth
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249490
https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/e/ethics/about-aristotles-ethics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_development#As_an_industry
Ghoshal, Sumantra; Bartlett, Christopher A. (1997) The Individualized Corporation: A Fundamentally New Approach to Management, Harper Collins, page 286