Strategic directions of development, spheres and areas of knowledge

Self-development

Dear friend, why do we engage in self-development? Why do you and I work on ourselves every day, read books on self-development, perform various exercises and practices, learn something, spend so much time and effort on all this? You will agree with me that self-development for the sake of self-development itself does not make any sense. We understand that self-development itself is an individual process of conscious personality development. And like any process, it must have an end point or goal. So let's think about what goals self-development pursues.

Self-development goals

The goal of self-development is the result that a person wants to achieve in the process of working on himself. What does everyone strive for? The clear answer is to be happy. Only the concept of happiness is different for everyone:

• love and harmony in the family;
• material well-being;
• health;
• beautiful appearance and slim body;
• brilliant career;
• constant self-improvement and realization of one’s resources;
• helping others, etc.

Thus, we can conclude that the goal of personal self-development is to achieve happiness through the implementation of personally significant priorities. Therefore, each person has his own goal of self-development, for example:

• improved health;
• harmony within yourself and with others;
• improving your consciousness;
• high level of personality development;
• success, etc.

In accordance with the assigned tasks, it is necessary to select tools for their implementation.

Sociology of personality I.S. Con

Soviet and Russian sociologist Igor Semyonovich Kon argued in his works that the concept of personality refers to one specific person and explains his individuality and difference from other people.

To the main distinctive personality traits of I.S. Cohn attributed:

• specifics of building a life
• individual characteristics
• the individual's activities

As for the importance of personal growth for society, here, of course, it plays an important role. Without a certain status in society, it is quite difficult to occupy an advantageous position. If an individual does not comply with social norms of behavior, then he will most likely face misunderstanding from the people around him.

The process of choosing personally significant goals for self-development

The choice of personally significant goals for self-development is called goal setting, that is, formulating the final result. Experts in the field of psychology, pedagogy, etc. argue that this stage is very important in the process of self-education. This is due to the fact that the correct definition of the goal is reflected in the effectiveness of all work on oneself.

A global and significant goal can radically change the course of life, but it will not be possible to achieve it instantly. Life goals and prospects should be realized through the achievement of daily work tasks in a short time.

For example, in the process of professional self-development several stages can be distinguished:

• learn to organize the work process productively;
• develop interest in work;
• improve communication skills, etc.

In each area of ​​life, certain goals can be identified that depend on the motives for self-development.

Self-realization

Maslow (1970) suggests that all people have a built-in need for personal development, which occurs through a process called self-actualization.

The extent to which people can develop depends on the satisfaction of certain needs, and these needs form a hierarchy. A higher level of need can only be achieved if one level of need is satisfied. However, as changes occur throughout life, the level of need motivating a person's behavior at any given time will also change.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: Physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging, aesthetic needs, cognitive needs, and self-actualization needs.

• At the bottom of the hierarchy are the basic physiological needs for food, drink, sex and sleep, i.e. survival basics.
• Secondly, there are safety and security needs, both physically and economically.
• Third, progress can be made in satisfying the need for love and belonging.
• The fourth level relates to satisfying the need for self-esteem. This is the level most closely associated with “self-improvement.”
• The fifth level is associated with the need for understanding. This level includes more abstract ideas such as curiosity and the search for meaning or purpose and deeper understanding.
• The sixth concerns the aesthetic needs of beauty, symmetry and order.
• Finally, at the top of Maslow's hierarchy is the need for self-actualization.

Maslow (1970, p.383) says that all people should see themselves as competent and autonomous, and every person has unlimited opportunities for growth.

Self-realization refers to the fulfillment of a person's desire to become what he wants. In other words, it is about self-realization and the need to realize your full potential as a unique individual. For Maslow, the path to self-realization involves being in touch with your feelings, experiencing life fully and focusedly.

Wheel of Life Balance

How to determine goals for self-development and choose a list of the best? Each person is individual and each person’s main areas of life are not the same, but it is important that they coexist harmoniously with each other. To identify “holes”, it is effective to use a simple tool - the wheel of life balance.

The essence of this technique is to visually represent all areas of life in the form of a lined diagram, from which you can see in which direction you should move and work on yourself. With the help of the Wheel, you can give a correct assessment of each area of ​​your life, determine priorities, and, accordingly, goals for self-development. In addition, a person clearly sees his strengths and qualities that require additional development.

According to the teachings of J. Meyer, the model of human life balance is displayed graphically in the form of a circle divided into 8 sectors, each of which corresponds to one of the areas of life:

1. Family.
2. Career, money.
3. Self-education.
4. Rest.
5. Health.
6. Friends, communication.
7. Living conditions.
8. Self-development, personal growth.

Benefits of using a model to work on yourself:

• sectors are formed and adjusted at the discretion of the user;
• ease of operation, no special knowledge and skills required, no additional training required;
• objective assessment, because the data is only for yourself, the main thing is to answer honestly;
• reflects the positive and negative aspects of all spheres of life, disharmony.

Based on the data obtained, goals for self-development and personal growth are formed. Read more about working with the model in the article “The Wheel of Life Balance”.

Possible errors may occur

Despite the fact that everyone has already understood for themselves where to start personal growth and decided on the tactics of their own actions, this still does not provide an absolute guarantee of success and the absence of failures. Many people who are strongly influenced by others initially choose a completely different type of activity that corresponds to the inner universe, making a huge mistake and dooming themselves to failure in advance. As has already been said many times, if you don’t have the heart for it, don’t try to force yourself by using arguments like: “it will be better this way,” “this is not a stupid thing to do,” and so on in the same spirit.

Don't forget about rest. The zeal for success and quick achievement of results is commendable, of course, but the rapid waste of one’s own energy not only does not contribute to increasing personal potential, but quite the opposite - it slows it down, creating the illusion of a complete lack of progress, which in the near future threatens you with a nervous breakdown. Wrong setting of your own goals can also interfere with your personal development, which is guaranteed to lead you to a dead end in the future. The most important thing in this situation is not to panic, but simply change the course of your own activities. To be completely fair, this is not a mistake at all, but a very logical and possible outcome of events that should not be feared.

The key mistake is the desire to cover as many different areas of activity as possible. In this situation, you are only dooming yourself to greater fatigue, as well as the relative surface of your own knowledge. Limit yourself to two or three areas of activity and begin to actively develop in the chosen direction

This will give you much more and, importantly, high-quality results. In the end, there was only one Caesar in the entire history of mankind.

Self-development goals for the year

Based on the resulting “Wheel of Life” model, the goals of self-education and self-development can be formulated. Each of them may have different periods of implementation, for example, it will take several months to restore health, and years to be appointed to the position of director. Therefore, it is important to plan your work correctly: set a close goal for self-development in the near future and create a list of goals in the long term, for a year, for 5 years...

To get started, it’s enough to make a list of 5-10 tasks in each area of ​​life, for example:

5 health goals:

1. Eliminate harmful foods from your diet.
2. Undergo a full medical examination.
3. Workout.
4. Do 10-12 massage sessions.
5. Get your daily routine and nutrition in order.

5 goals for personal growth:

1. Read a self-development book.
2. Learn or improve English.
3. Learn to draw.
4. Improve your writing skill: write a few articles.
5. Get into the habit of organizing things using time management rules.

5 goals in relationships and family:

1. Get rid of the habit of controlling everything.
2. Read the book “The Language of Man-Woman Relationships” by Allan and Barabar Pease.
3. Arrange a surprise for your loved one.
4. Show concern for your loved one more often.
5. Study a course on the topic “Psychology of Relationships.”

Goals can be divided into periods, or specific deadlines can be set so that the stage does not turn into infinity. For example, plan to read a book in a week and learn a foreign language in 5 months.

Barriers to self-development and the reasons for their appearance

On the way to a goal aimed at self-development, barriers may arise that can stop progress or even negate all achievements. Conventionally, the causes of obstacles are divided into two categories:

1. External and internal barriers.
2. Objective and subjective barriers.

In accordance with this gradation, the following groups of barriers are formed that prevent the achievement of self-development goals:

Yes, sometimes desire alone is not enough to engage in self-development. Lack of free time, inability to organize the process of working on oneself, a negative attitude towards the desire to improve on the part of loved ones can nullify all attempts to change one’s life.

How to understand that you have stopped developing

People who stop in their development can be divided into three categories:

1. Those who look for answers to all questions on the Internet and consider themselves experts in everything. At the same time, they tell others how to live. They give out unsolicited advice to anyone and everyone who comes their way. Such people form the opinion that it is enough to read the information in order to be an expert in a particular issue. Their development does not go beyond the Internet.
2. Those who have gained knowledge, gained experience, have reached a certain point in their development, both professional and personal, and call themselves a guru. There is no need for them to strain themselves anymore, because it is much more comfortable to be in a familiar rut.
3. Those who live with the thought: I am the smartest and most gifted. In this case, the importance of self-development disappears by itself. He’s already too smart and too good, and let those who really need it do self-development.

It is important to remember one simple truth here: “Knowing and doing are two completely different things.”

Ways and means of achieving the goal of self-development

How to achieve your life goals and step-by-step self-development tasks? To do this, just use a simple algorithm of actions:

1. Decide on your desires. The key word is “their own”, not imposed by society, parents, a loved one, etc. Most people have a really hard time figuring out what they really want. At the first stage, it is enough to highlight one goal in each area of ​​life.
2. Imagine the end result. Visualization and a clear understanding of what should happen in the end allow you to believe that the goal will be achieved!
3. Divide the path to achieving the goal into several stages, developing a strategic plan for the process itself. It is difficult to dream of career growth without imagining the entire career path to the position of director of Romashka LLC.
4. Act based on your own inner beliefs. The goal and methods of achieving it should not be contrary to the beliefs of the individual.
5. Look for sources of motivation. Only understanding and awareness of what and why this is needed will allow you to move forward towards the goal of self-development.
6. Be prepared for obstacles and setbacks. The process does not always proceed exactly according to plan; obstacles arise. Overcoming these difficulties and being able to mobilize your resources in the event of a small setback is a big step forward towards your goal.
7. Plan your self-development! It is difficult to predict the entire process with 100% accuracy, but it is much easier to plan the stages along the way to the goal. A good habit of planning your day in the evening, it allows you to effectively start work in the morning, without wasting time and energy thinking about a plan of action.
8. Summarize. Analyzing which items were completed during the day and which were not will allow you to feel satisfaction that everything is going according to plan. This is an additional incentive to move on and, in case of failure, to work on the mistakes further.
9. Shape and change your environment. It is important to consider two aspects here. There should be people nearby who support your endeavors and those who are able to share their experience and knowledge on the path to each specific goal.
10. Relax!

Happiness and inner harmony are a worthy goal for every person, but everyone comes to them differently. Therefore, it is impossible to clearly identify the means on the path to the goal of self-development; everyone has their own. Some people come to inner balance through love for their neighbors, others through material well-being, etc.

The goals of self-development and self-education must be divided into long-term and short-term perspectives. You can formulate tasks using the “Wheel of Life Balance” model. Anyone can cope without any special knowledge and skills. Having analyzed all areas of life, it is easy to determine which of them need adjustment, and how to set self-development goals in accordance with them.

Personal growth tasks

The tasks of personal growth can easily include improving one’s capabilities and improving obvious positive qualities. Personal growth, the objectives of which are self-improvement and self-knowledge, is important at any stage of an individual’s life path. After all, without development, we lose ourselves and our essence, stand still and do not have the ability to move on.

It is worth noting other tasks of self-development:

1. Development of awareness.

The modern world does not stand still; it is also changing. New technologies appear and full automation occurs. And not everyone is able to quickly adapt to a completely different way. To do this, you have to constantly be in a fast pace of life, and not be afraid to accept all modern innovations.

2. Time appropriate.

Remember when people lived without the Internet and abundant telephones? Now everything is different. And in order to keep up with the times, a person also has to change, become more mobile and modern.

3. Filling your horizons with knowledge.

The present time does not accept the old foundations and rules, it modernizes and changes them. Nowadays it’s not enough to be a narrow specialist; it’s much more important to learn a little about everything around you. If a person is not able to maintain a conversation, then it will be difficult for her to contact the current society. It requires being smart, capable, successful.

4. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

The latest trends instill a craving for a healthy lifestyle. It's not only fashionable, but also useful!

5. Leverage talents and strengths.

An important point in the development of personality are talents, which sometimes need to be revealed. If you already know about your capabilities, then don’t be afraid to use them! By constantly seeking their help, improvement will be just around the corner.