Success in the workplace hinges on more than just being proficient at the tasks you have been assigned and expanding on the academic aspects of your resume. These days, employers are also interested in seeing personal development in the employees they are considering for promotions, added responsibility, and bigger rewards.
Personal development refers mainly to the soft or essential skills that make up an important part of your identity, for example communication and presentation skills. This growth can have a profound impact on both your professional and personal life. It can be most easily seen in how you nurture your talents, learn new skills, achieve personal aspirations, enjoy your leisure time and improve your health. Anything from learning a language to completing a triathlon. Here is why you should consider personal development important for your career.
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- It grows your confidence
Confidence plays an important role in both personal and professional growth. It can be easier to try to be more assertive in your personal life and have that inspire the same attitude at work. To become a successful leader, you need to have high self-esteem. Whether it is participating in a new hobby or learning a new skill, you will find that with every accomplishment made, your confidence will grow and become a natural facet of your character. Push yourself to try out new activities and stick with them. The more you succeed in these personal endeavours, the more confident you will likely become even in the workplace.
- It will test your commitment
Learning a new language, hobby or skill can be tough. You need to commit yourself for an extended period before you begin to see results. When you learn to be committed and consistent in your efforts in one area of your life, you can likely learn to do the same at work. Learning something new can often get boring along the way, but when you stick to it, it can be quite fulfilling. The same applies when it comes to career growth. Certain tasks can take a while to bear fruits, so learning to be patient and consistent with your effort helps. This is an attitude that your superiors will likely notice and appreciate.
- It will challenge your character
When you feel motivated to try a new activity in your personal life, it can encourage you to try out new things at work. The best employees are those that avoid getting stuck in a rut. They are willing to take up new projects, help out in other departments, or look for innovative solutions. This may mean having to move out of your comfort zone, but with high risk, there can also be high rewards. There is better personal and professional growth achieved when a person seeks to push boundaries and improve on themselves along the way.
- It encourages better goal making
As your personal and professional life progress, you get to learn more about yourself, your ambitions, and your motivations. This will help make it clearer what goals you want to achieve in life and make a plan for them. For instance, as you learn a new language, you can become motivated to travel more and organise your vacation time to accommodate this goal. As you become more aware of the things you want to accomplish, you can better plan your professional and personal life to ensure you can become fulfilled.
- It allows you to strike a work-life balance
A healthier lifestyle is achieved when you can enjoy a good work-life balance. This means not only being able to pursue career success, but also ensuring you are investing as much in ensuring a happy home life for yourself and your loved ones. This will in turn ensure you enjoy better physical, mental and emotional health.