The world keeps changing and it behoves on people to constantly update their skills, knowledge and competencies to move with the time, otherwise, they are left behind in the scheme of things.
Lack of personal development is among the leading causes of stagnation and inability to succeed in life. The world keeps changing and it behoves on people to constantly update their skills, knowledge and competences to move with the time, otherwise, they are left behind in the scheme of things.
Personal developement is a periodic act of assessing your life goal and values and building your skills and qualities to reach your potential. It involves the acquisition of life changing skills , educaction, behaviours and mindsets that will make you competitive economically and otherwise in accordance with current demands.
A lot of people have had to fall short of expectations on them after plunging into abject poverty or failed to meet certain goals, not because they were no opportunities but for their lack of requisite skills and capabilities to explore those opportunities. This is common among new couples. Due to some early marriage challenges arising from increased responsibilities and perhaps misplaced priorities, many fail to invest in their development, thereby becoming unfit for available opportunities. It is often said that education is the key to success. Yet joblessness appears now to be more among educated people. These educated people , mostly university graduates did either not read a thriving course, are proud to take up available jobs or have out-grown employability age brackets relative to the height of their certificates. These make it imperative for such people to invest in personal development to be current with current opportunities.
Have you thought of a career path that will make you a hot cake in the present word? Are you in want of skills, ideas and competence to make you a high flyer? Regardless of your course of study, these are among the areas of personal development that will help to equip you for greater exploit in this present globalised world driven by Information Communication Technology, ICT.
List of 21st Century Skills that will make you more marketable
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21st century skills are a wide range of skills, Knowledge, attitudes , characters , work habits and competences which are generally believed hold the key to the 21st Century economy driven by ICT.
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills lists three types of skills that every student needs to develop in order to succeed in the information age:
Learning Skills
*Critical Thinking
*Creative Thinking
*Collaborating
*Communicating
Literacy Skills
*Information Literacy
*Media Literacy
*Technology Literacy
Life Skills
*Flexibility
*Initiative
*Social Skills
*Productivity
*Leadership
These skills have been well discussed in various online publications.
Learning of handwork or vocational skills is also a major area of personaL development that people should embrace to be suited for the current world when white collar jobs are hard to find.
Guides for effective personal development
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While it is stressed that all should embrace personal developement , expert opinions are that certain things should be taken to consideration for you to achieve efficiency in your goal of reinventing yourself to move with the time.
The following will serve as guide for effective personal development;
-know your current situation: You must tell yourself the truth by knowing where you currently stand. This includes asking yourself some simple and obvious questions such as ; Why am i not yet gainfully employed? What kind of life do I want for myself? I am I actually ready to move ahead? What areas do i need to improve upon to be qualified for opportunities in respect to who i want to become?
–Overcome your fears: Fear is no one’s friend; it creates the impression of negativity making you feel that you can’t do it. But nothing is absolutely impossible if you have the will. So what are the things you want but think are difficult for you to do? Start doing them right away. Enroll in tutorial and find people to put you through. We become experts by doing something more often. So as you learn and practice those things, just very soon you will become an expert.
–Outgrow the blame game. Many people are in the habbit of blaming others for their misfortunes. Grow to realise that no one sails the ship of your life better than yourself. You must first of all be interested in your growth and even go ahead taking steps towards achieving it before people can take you serious. It is your life; work for it and not wait for others to do everything for you.
–Eliminate pride. Many had missed what could have been life-changing opportunities after feeling too big to participate in them. Do not downgrade offers. In choice of work, attention should be on what puts food on your table. What is the need of waiting endlessly for white colar jobs when you can easily learn a handwork that can make you ecomically self reliant within a short period of time? If your university certificate cannot get you job, common sense demands that you look for what works for you.
— Not money but you. Oftentimes, people blame their failure for lack of personal development on money. This is not entirely true. What determines growth is your mindset and determination to be a better person.Money will only enable one to move ahead quickly. In this digital age, a lot of training and empowerment opportunities are offered online free or at highly subsidised cost. Articles on most of the skills are online and can easily be downloaded by the touch of the button. Why would one be online everyday surfing the net ,yet fails to access materials that will lead to his/her development? This act of carelessness and ineptitude is exhibited by a lot of people, yet they keep complaining of lack of money to develop themselves.
Apart from downloading online materials, there are so many institutions offering scholarships and discount on school fees to certain categories of persons. Look for these opportunities and take advantage of them to better your life.
-Learn to read. It is sad that a lot of people these days are lazy when it comes to reading books. Treasures are hidden in books. Develop the habit of reading. Read just anything and everything especially educational and motivational books as well as news. Reading wide will help you see life from a broader perspective, thereby becoming vast in knowledge and reasoning. Reading also stimulates one’s mind to start thinking critically.
–Dont allow marital responsibilities limit you. Married people who give birth in quick succession without break most times find it difficult to progress speedily in their personal development plans , except probably in situations where they get help from extended family members. But even in this situation, some have been able to realize their personal development targets by maximally utilizing every opportunity that comes their way. As a constantly nursing wife, find a way of improving yourself by participating in virtual learnings. Also, keep an eye on opportunities by government. Government have so many skill acquisition programmes for youths and young women. Keep tab on the openings.
–Set a personal Development target. Setting a target by writing down what you want to achieve within specified period of time helps to keep you focused. After obtaining your First Degree, you Should be thinking of starting your Masters Degree in a couple years. Studies continue after Masters. These should be followed up with short courses, conferences and personal readings.
It is advisable qqqq to be versatile in order to fit in with opportunities.
Get a mentor: Personal development is interesting when you have a mentor that puts you through as well as monitors your progression. So, identify one who is excelling in the career path that you have chosen to be your mentor. As a mentee, do well to be loyal and faithful to your mentor
–Be close to God. You can do nothing without God. pray also for wisdom, understanding and the grace to achieve the goal you set for yourself. While praying, try to avoid sin to be a favoured child of God.
