| We believe that good planning
will help you find and become good mentors. This is the third
activity in our series on planning. If you missed the first two,
see Creating or Revising Your Personal
Vision (Tool #1) and Writing a Personal
Vision Statement (Tool #2).
If you've completed the first two exercises, you're now ready
to write a Personal Development Plan for yourself.
Below you'll see a sample Development Plan and a blank one for
you to use. The sample is only to trigger your thinking.
Your own plan will probably look very different. Notice how the
person plans to work on three objectives. For each objective,
there are measures, development activities, potential mentors,
and a timeline. Try these steps:
1. Print out the blank Plan.
2. Look at your completed Draft Vision Statement again, and choose
one goal that will help you take a first key step toward reaching
your vision.
3. Write the goal in the space, "My First Major Goal."
4. In the first column, write up to three steps/objectives
that will help you accomplish one key part of your Goal.
Write the objectives as skills, knowledge, or attitudes
to attain. Some people choose easy objectives that can be reached
immediately (in order to build success and momentum). Others choose
the most important objectives that will ensure they'll master
the goal.
5. For each objective, choose a measure/proof to show
you've reached it, at least one learning/development activity
(class? book? internship? research on the Web?), some potential
mentors who could help you, and finally a target completion
date (December 31, 2003?) by which you'll reach the objective.
Take at least an hour to work on your plan. Use a pencil if that
feels better than a pen or computer. Talk to someone you respect
about your proposal, and make changes as needed. Be sure your
plan is challenging and compelling enough to excite
you every day but not so difficult that you won't do it.
Tool #3: Personal Development Plan: SAMPLE ONLY
| My First Major Goal: I
will make significant progress on my formal education by the
end of 2000. |
Knowledge to Gain/Skills to
Build/Attitudes to Develop (What must I
acquire/improve?)
|
Proof
(How will I know
I did it?) |
Development
Activities
(How will I
actually gain/
build/develop
these?) |
Potential
Mentors
(Who might
help me with
my development?)
|
Target
Completion
Date
(When will I
be there?)
|
| 1. Enroll in an appropriate
Internet-based degree program. |
-Have list of programs
-Receive acceptance letter |
-Research Web
-Contact potentials
-Submit transcript
-ID best
Apply |
-Mary (did this last year)
-Chen (knows Web) |
End of month 3 |
| 2. Complete 2 required
courses for degree |
-Receive final grades (at least
B+) |
-Do all assignments |
-Assigned instructors
-Jack (retired teacher) |
Ends of months 6 and 9 |
| 3. Complete 1 elective
course that counts toward degree |
-Receive final grade (A) |
-Do all assignments
-Teach my sister the subject |
-My spouse
-Assigned instructor |
End of 2003 |
Tool #3: Personal Development Plan
| My First Major Goal: |
Knowledge to Gain/Skills to
Build/Attitudes to Develop (What must I
acquire/improve?)
|
Proof
(How will I know
I did it?) |
Development
Activities
(How will I
actually gain/
build/develop
these?) |
Potential
Mentors
(Who might
help me with
my development?)
|
Target
Completion
Date
(When will I
be there?)
|
| 1.
|
|
|
|
|
| 2.
|
|
|
|
|
| 3.
|
|
|
|
|
Repeat this process for your second and third major goals.
Congratulations! You've not only prepared a draft of your Personal
Vision, you've also identified several steps you can take to make
it happen. You now have something tangible to use as you identify
potential mentors and negotiate helping partnerships
with them.
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