To be characterized by humble beginnings is often the springboard that pushes us in a different direction. Experiencing big obstacles in life is one of the primary reasons that people choose personal development as a course of action for self-improvement, motivation, and growth. Another rewarding practice instrumental to influencing professionals is mentoring.

Whether it is done in a traditional setting of one-on-one, distant mentoring, or group mentoring – the expertise is valuable on life’s journey. I know of cases with positive outcomes and career advancement achieved through mentor relationships. Mentoring is a powerful tool for personal development and empowerment.

As much as you would like to have immediate results and realize the benefits of a mentorship sooner than later, you must be willing to put in the work first. A good example is to look at the length of time it takes for anything to grow and develop into near perfection. We see it in all levels of professionalism on a personal development journey. Mentors may enter a long-term relationship or function as an independent source of career advice and support. At a minimum, mentors and mentees should meet at least one hour per month for six months to a year. A mutual agreement is important to have open and honest discussions to determine if both parties have achieved objectives.

Managing your career development in life through effective mentoring will gain benefits over a lifespan. Effective mentors encourage mentees to focus on the essential framework for a successful relationship through communication, collaboration, and coaching. The rewards of mentoring go beyond teaching jobs or career skills. One of my most memorable mentoring experiences involved helping an employee who coped with her self-esteem. We worked on ways to improve her confidence by taking bold steps on her journey to believe in herself that increased her competence and heightened her performance level.

After forty years of dedicated entrepreneurship and management, I remember the special networks and shared connections that I received as a form of mentoring during my early business years. Then, it was important to be involved in professional associations and groups that provided support, education, and guidance. In those days, it was most essential for small businesses to seek mentoring through connections that were helpful in opening doors to collaborative opportunities for growth and development, leaving a lifetime of memories and relationships on the journey.

Is now a suitable time for you to have a mentor? Take a look at some reasons why you might want to have a mentor on your journey now. Personal Development; Source of knowledge or experience; Career Goals; Networking Connections; Honest feedback for changes in personal or professional life; Confidential Ally; Encouragement; or Someone who brings a fresh perspective on life and living with purpose. Whatever the reason, finding the right mentor takes time and research to find the best person. First, be clear about understanding your needs, second, define your why, and third, prepare yourself for mentoring to reach higher plateaus. Always be open-minded to the advice that will help you on the path to success and greatness.

Milestones are important to mark progress in life with accomplishments and creating fulfillment. Mentoring for life’s journey helps visualize the fulfillment that you want in life and adds more value to your personal development aspirations and lifelong learning. Whether you are working on your next accomplishment or seeking out the best in yourself to share with others, the pursuit can become a significant milestone with a good mentor.

The future of your journey for personal development and professional growth is driven passionately by your attitude and commitment to learning. Navigating the world of great opportunities throughout life will come with experience. A mentoring journey is having the support of an alliance that gives helpful guidance to your experience that provides meaningful and impactful connections. Fostering a culture of mentorship is a growing trend by thought leaders on the subject of developmental relationships for career advancement or skill-building.

The patronage, influence, and guidance in a mentorship are reciprocal and can involve social support factors through planned activities. Mentoring is a formal or informal relationship where a more experienced individual helps the less experienced individual in making significant transitions in knowledge, work or thinking, often in an organizational setting. It is related to self-development, professional growth and career development of the mentee. The key components of an effective mentoring relationship will include open communications and accessibility, goals and challenges, passion and inspiration, mutual respect and trust, exchange of knowledge, role modeling, and a caring personal relationship.

Discovering the power of a successful mentorship can help unlock your professional potential. Important qualities to look for in a mentor include finding a leader who you admire and tapping into their unique experience and perspectives that will help to elevate and build your career and support your personal growth. A good mentor is interested in helping you without any official reward but is someone who genuinely wants to see you succeed.

Mentoring is the ultimate sharing of expertise, values, skills, and perspectives. Mentors function as a catalyst for positive changes and directions on an individual’s personal life’s journey. Our entire lives are a journey. Mentoring may move us in experiences with amazing life gifts along the way. The benefits of being mentored go beyond achieving career goals. Self-improvement and personal development are extended rewards for those pursuing a transformative journey and seeking fulfillment in life.

Mentorship has been advocated as a career and personal development practice for years. Mentoring became increasingly popular over the last two decades of the twentieth century. A mentor is a valuable teacher for any company. In addition, a solid mentoring program can be a fundamental cornerstone to a company’s success. More organizations are providing mentors in the workplace to help facilitate high potential leaders and as a learning and development initiative with a reported increase in productivity and profits. The benefits are vast for both the person being mentored and the person doing the mentoring. According to research, 84% of Fortune 500 companies have mentoring programs, and 100% of Fortune 50 companies (Source). Ninety-four percent of employees said they would stay at a company longer if they were offered opportunities to gain experience and grow.

Personal growth and self-improvement have been around since the beginning of civilization. Every human consciously or unconsciously has a path of development. Mentoring can be an integral part of the path of your successful development journey. Great mentors have the ability to leave an enduring impression. Look for these traits and characteristics when considering a mentor. Enthusiasm and passion, time for you, motivation, candid and truthful, exquisite listener, self-awareness and values, empathy, clearly communicates, implements initiative-taking feedback, and cares genuinely.

If you are interested in seeking a mentorship program for personal development, self-improvement, career guidance, or professional growth, please contact me here or visit here for more information.

Original article published in Brainz Magazine on October 10, 2023.

In today’s fast-paced world where we are always on the go and constantly overstimulated, it can be more challenging than ever to focus on personal growth. Focus is a skill that can be tough to develop while thriving for self-improvement. It is a valuable skill to have and can be improved by avoiding frequent distractions from establishing a mindset for concentration. A helpful tip is to create a life of focus, purpose, and mindfulness with habit resilience. Fearless routines help to cultivate a deep focus for stronger commitments to personal development.

Preparing yourself for greater heights begins by investing in your abilities and talents for the work to come. The journey starts with awareness, action, and consistency to build a strong momentum for your personal development and growth. These are the elements of focus with a devoted commitment needed to feed the passion of your purpose, goals, and vision. You depend on each one independently and collectively while pursuing your mission to fulfill the heart’s desire. Focus is about intention. This is where you prioritize and choose to concentrate on the desired commitment.

Personal Development is personal. Your development becomes your life and is a personal evolution. Awareness should be observed in the pursuit of clarity to follow your dreams and aspirations. Staying focused on your commitment requires planning the possibilities in life with powerful enthusiasm to expect what you want. To know you have the potential to become better in life is beyond amazing. It is one of your remarkable skills of excellence!

The most successful people are more inclined to take self-improvement at a higher level. We see it often in celebrities and those who need to maintain a positive public image. But the challenge to many is the vast commitment involving a relentless motivation of time, energy, and space to manage personal development activities. The desire to improve requires some organization in your life. Developing a clear vision of where you want to be and outlining a plan is an important process.

Navigating personal development includes creating an action plan based on awareness, values, aspirations, goals, and relationships for self-improvement. It outlines the areas you may need to change, and skills needed in areas of weakness. It is a guide used as a tool for mapping personal growth. A Personal Development Plan, also known as a PDP helps bring your vision into a reality and holds your more accountable in the process. Think of it as a detailed roadmap throughout your journey to successfully achieving your goals.

The procedure for writing a personal development plan should start with a reflection on yourself and past achievements to plan for the future. Focus on your character, skills, and capabilities. It is the design of your own life that can be used in various aspects including career goals and professional objectives. The good thing is you can prioritize objectives that matter the most to you or that will deliver the greatest benefits in your life.

The personal success that you want to achieve in life will determine your personal development journey. How you plan to navigate through the particular zones will be important to your overall success. The process of identifying and knowing where you are is crucial to mapping out and taking the right steps. The path to self-improvement is a process that requires moving in a direction that is manageable and supports the goals that you want to reach. Every personal development journey will have a set of rules to follow in order to accomplish the desired achievement for personal growth and success. It is a lifelong process and by focusing on a plan of self-improvement, it brings many benefits at every stage of development.

Successful people always invest time to work on themselves. Some people dedicate up to thirty minutes of their time every day toward personal development. There are others who dedicate a significant amount of time continuing to learn. A good place to start is to begin every day with something that gives enlightenment, encouragement, and brings positivity in your life. Identify areas that can help you improve or maximize your potential. Feed your brain with positive things and new information on a regular basis.

The method and means of personal development are a framework for people who are committed to their own personal growth. It involves assessing yourself to measure your improvement and address practical ways to increase your ability and handle challenges as you move to higher levels of advancement. When you take the time to assess yourself you think about how you want to grow and ways to strengthen your abilities. Personal development should be a lifelong mission that is never complete.

In addition to patience and working smart, another necessary must-have in my opinion is resilience to manage any difficulties or challenges during the process. As you accept fresh responsibilities and enter into a new role working towards your goals staying focused on key priorities is critical to your accomplishment. The change in your mindset should serve as a constant reminder of the things you have to do, and the effort needed to keep the planning cycle in motion. Learning to trust and believe in your abilities is a major asset to personal development.

Life is about creating skills that recognize our values as we balance life, family, friendships, and all that connects the pathway on our journey. The elements of personal development will face spiritual qualities of humility, positive thinking, mental stability, physical, and social abilities.

Spend more time developing yourself as a person to appreciate who you have become. If you would like help on ways to improve your focus skills and strengthening your commitment to personal development, please book a complimentary call with me here.

Original article published in Brainz Magazine on June 12, 2023.

Take off the mask you have been wearing
and start to live a life of authenticity.

Show your true self because it is a crucial aspect of who you really are. We are perceived by our authenticity, and it significantly influences the pleasures we derive from our experiences. It also affects our engagements, practices, and our behavior in life. Learning how to be your authentic self is an essential part of building meaningful relationships and having a stronger mindset.

What you do in life aligns with what you say and your story. It is your deepest core speaking to who you are. Some people fear being unaccepted in their circles or being judged for who they are. Living in a world of pretense gives you the sense of false security that makes you believe something that you are not. The deception is a facade and not the real you. Simply put, your authenticity means you are true to your own personality, values, and your behavior is genuine.

Living an authentic life offers more abundance than hiding your true self. People can often tell when your character is presented inauthentically or fake. Honesty is an important part of being authentic. It fosters trust and welcomes a fulfilling experience with those around us.

There are benefits to being your authentic self. We stay true to who we genuinely are – no pretending. We follow our passions, do what makes us happy, and we live life to the fullest.

Other benefits of being your authentic self:

• Integrity – you don’t hesitate to do the right thing.
• Ability to deal with problems – builds strength and openness instead of procrastinating.
• Confidence and self-esteem – you trust yourself to make the right decisions.
• You experience personal growth.
• You have enriched relationships.
• You promote personal well-being.
• You have a complete feeling of being you and loving yourself.

How to Be Authentic

You can develop your authentic self through a lifelong process of discovery. It is a practice and requires patience, time, and dedication to doing it. Consider these strategies to make a start:

1. Live by your values
2. Communicate honestly
3. Identify who you want to be
4. Manage your emotions
5. Practice mindfulness
6. Be impeccable with your word
7. Learn to say no and define your boundaries
8. Listen to your inner voice to hear your hopes and dreams
9. Pay attention to your goals and reflect on your journey
10. Be grounded by the truest version of yourself

Living authentically is like any other learning process. It starts with reflection to pause and become self-aware of who you are.  From a place of strengthened self-awareness, you can begin to show up as your authentic self in life. Develop the courage to face your fears and take daily actions towards discovering and being yourself.

Enjoy living authentically!

Check out this link to an article on Psychology Today:

Develop Authenticity: 20 Ways to Be a More Authentic Person

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/click-here-happiness/201904/develop-authenticity-20-ways-be-more-authentic-person?eml

I recently learned from a family member of their concern about the demise of our family legacy. No surprise but some disappointment when you search for reasons that many families face during these unpredictable times. In my opinion, everyone has a duty and responsibility to build on the legacy gifted to them from birth. If you look back and examine your family’s history, something has been left and remains for you to cherish, remember, nurture, and continue planting the seeds of fruitful knowledge.

Legacy is defined as the long-lasting impact of particular events, actions, or benefactions. But legacy can take many forms. A legacy may be of one’s faith, ethics, and core values. Yes, it can be monetary or assets, it can also be measured by one’s character, kindness, inspiration, support, humility, integrity, forgiveness, and the life you lead – setting an example for others and to guide their futures.

Sure, we can leave money, houses, and land but leaving the legacy of love and faith is wisdom that will impart to live on in their hearts long after we are gone. We can display a legacy of love by teaching the power of family values by caring, sharing, and distant engagement through communication. The most important part of leaving a legacy of family love is what is happening now, while you are alive.

Live a life of fulfillment and your legacy will pass on. – Gloria Sloan

To read more click HERE

You become extremely excited and anxious when the time to go on what is perhaps a much-needed vacation or travel to an adventurous and fun destination. The itinerary and scheduled details for what, when, and where have all been planned and arranged. All you need to do is pack your suitcases and go. Everything for the trip is prepared and ready – you cannot wait to get there!

Life’s journey requires some preparation with enthusiasm and eagerness much like planning for an exciting trip. The skill of preparation actually gets you ready to do the work. Planning is the original step to help get life-changing wisdom off to a good start. The desire to have a life of fulfillment is universal. By human design, we naturally seek to not only survive but to live life to the fullest. It is wise to plan to make the most of what you have.

The art of preparation is a skill that you can hone. It requires self-discipline and practice. Life is about preparation and the willingness to put in the work and time to become great at what you desire. The challenge is to repeat and be great over, and over again. The preparation to live fully is an ongoing process.

To prepare yourself for greater heights begin by investing in your mind to set the emotional tone for work to come. Program your mind in the “golden hour” of the morning to start the day with fresh positive vibes. The golden hour is the first hour after sunrise and the last hour of light before sunset that produces natural light, also called the magic hour. Developing a healthy morning routine can make you feel more in control of what is to follow in your day.

The minute you wake up, every decision you make drives your brain into exertion searching for influences and discipline. Map out what you can the night before. The start of a good morning embarks a sense of well-being that supports readiness to prepare for actions and planning.

• Make planning a habit
• Use time management
• Make a to-do list

Plan and Assessments

Living human beings have dreams, wishes, and desires of the heart. Plan for the possibilities in life with a written promise to yourself. If it is in your mind and you want it, write it down and go for it. Be flexible and make necessary changes as you grow to achieve and succeed. Expectations can be a powerful attractive force when used in your life plan. The more you expect what you want the harder you will work on planning to achieve it.

Creating a life plan will help you to establish a roadmap to prioritize the decisions you want to make in life. A life plan becomes a personal guide to how you want to live and what you need to do to achievement fulfillment. It will also serve as a good reference for managing a personal development plan that I will discuss later in more detail.

Focus on what you want in your life plan. Too often more attention is given on what others expect of us. Be creative and give yourself permission to dream. Ask yourself what really matters in your life? What would your best life look like?

There is no defined rule for learning how to create a life plan other than being realistic and true to yourself. A good life plan will include:

Self-Assessment

• Look for past motivations
• Review failures (you are not alone)
• Examine habits or disabling situations
• Clear your direction for a bright start

A Vision

• Plan with what you believe (values)
• Consider what would bring you more joy and happiness
• Interpersonal relationships and social roles
• Think about what you want to accomplish

Priorities

• Make a chronological list of them (future plans)
• Put things in order that you want to achieve
• Show details of how they can be carried out
• Determine and outline a time schedule

Sometimes it is a matter of taking small manageable steps on the path of getting where you want to be. Experience the accomplishments with gratitude while sustaining motivation to make positive changes as you move forward. Reflect on current priorities in life and what is important or needs to change. Create systems surrounding your life that will support these changes. This includes staying close to your faith for the spiritual direction during uncertainty or when challenges exist.

Managing Your Steps

Planning the steps needed for growth requires a self-developing attitude with a strong willpower to reach the destiny of your desires and passion.  Everyone’s path to success takes a different route and some may travel a longer or shorter distance. The steps you take will be the ones that will fuel the drive to succeed.  direct your future. If you step outside the path, tread back on course, and learn from any mistakes that were made. Stay focused on what is important and if adversity shows up, rely on your strength.

Look around at people you know who have made great strides at success. Whatever level of accomplishments they made it took vision, courage, commitment, and planning but the most important thing was managing every step along the way.

Navigating Personal Development

Living offers a wealth of opportunities that afford us the possibility to progress in life and find the roads that branch out to discover our passion, purpose, and potential. When you look at your life in pivotal review and see complete fulfillment, know that you are blessed. But even when you seem to have it all sometimes there is a feeling of unrest to satisfy the inner soul.

Personal development has many distinct sectors that take place in your life during the advancement process as you venture for possibilities. It will consist of activities that develops a person’s capabilities, potential and build human capital. Personal development can be any skill that you want for self-improvement – the key is taking the right steps that will help to ensure achievement that reaches your goal. Personal development is a process that never ends, and you are the deciding factor that controls the destiny.

Successful people always invest time to work on themselves. Some people dedicate up to thirty minutes of their time every day toward personal development. There are others who dedicate a significant amount of time continuing to learn. A good place to start is to begin every day with something that gives enlightenment, encouragement, and brings positivity in your life. Identify areas that can help you improve or maximize your potential. Feed your brain with positive things and new information on a regular basis.