Following on from our last post:
It is important that you don’t spread yourself across too many goals as your development is important, but you have many other responsibilities across which you must spread your time. These goals are likely not mutually exclusive so developing in your current role will help for future roles. You don’t need to conquer these goals at the same time, parse them out over the course of the year, prioritizing your development accordingly.
Tip: Don’t be a Best Kept Secret! Consider some magic words at meetings: “I liked that idea” helps you encourage with a specific emphasis, “May I tell you what I just learned from you?” is a great way to surprise the other and reinforce for them what worked, “I appreciated…” is another way to help others really understand their influence. You can even use them when you are about to disagree: “I really liked what you said about _____, and I had a slightly different idea, would you like to hear it?” Of course, all three must be done genuinely, never manipulatively.
Your personal development plan is a dynamic document, so adjust if you decide there are more relevant or timely areas for your development. It’s important to remember that while you work with your manager to develop this document, it is your responsibility to execute the plan, after all it is your development. During your one-on-one session with your manager, at least on a quarterly basis, discuss your progress against the goals and ask for feedback.