2016 has come and gone in what seems a blink of an eye. With the New Year upon us, as always there are changes both good and bad, along with the challenges of dealing with those changes. One of those changes which may seem as another unnecessary or unwanted task by some, but is actually a great opportunity, is the implementation of Individual Development Plans (IDPs). We tend to be turned off by goal setting, and we live such hectic lives that sometimes when great opportunity is presented we have blinders on and do not notice what is right in front of us. IDPs are for your individual benefit, and can be a great tool for your professional, personal and career growth.
Developing an IDP can be seen as a cumbersome task, but when weighed against the potential gains there is no question that the effort is more than worth the time you will be putting in. Whether you are starting a new career, planning your retirement or anywhere in between, we all have professional goals and objectives that we want to meet. The IDP forces us to sit down and think about what those goals are, write them down and communicate them. We than have to come up with a plan of action of how we will meet those goals, this process may seem daunting and freighting, as we have to delve deep into ourselves to come up with the goals and plan.
Consider that some of the most common reasons we do not achieve our goals are lack of commitment to the goal, inactivity, lack of real destination, lack of a plan, and not taking responsibility for your goals. If we put in genuine effort and time to develop our goals and put them into the IDP we will be holding ourselves accountable to meet those goals and have another individual who we will have communicated our goals and will help us reach those goals. Putting ourselves and our goals out there can be quite intimidating, that is why IDPs are designed to help us overcome our fears and better ourselves. Please take the time to really create the best possible IDP as you will be the only one who will benefit from meeting your goals.
Written by Marco Mahecha