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I believe that personal growth can be just as effective and important as professional growth. Especially in a job like education, it is necessary that we become better people. We have to interact with people every day, and those interactions leave an impact. Therefore, if we continue to make ourselves better people, we can become better at our careers.

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This article shows the importance of personal growth. It also gives some tips on how to start a personal growth journey.

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People put a high value on education-up to a point. You go to school all through your childhood, then-for physicians-complete undergraduate and medical degrees as well as a residency to be able to do what you do. However, many people stop actively seeking to learn, develop, and grow different areas of their lives and interests when they graduate and move into the workforce.

The most successful business people and medical professionals out there, however, never stop learning, and I don't just mean continuing education or studying for boards. Self-improvement and personal growth are an important, and highly valuable, part of your career and life in general.

Is Personal Growth Really That Valuable?

When you have patients to see, a schedule to keep, charts to do, procedures to prepare for, and all the busy work of running a practice, investing in personal growth can seem like a waste of time or, at the very least, a luxury. It's something you get to when you have tons of extra time and aren't working so hard to keep your practice afloat.

What you see in the most successful people, however, is that they make time for their personal development and growth.

Personal growth is a process of both understanding yourself and pushing yourself to reach your highest potential. It means always asking yourself who you are becoming and how you plan to get there. It can involve working on new habits and hobbies, fostering new skills, and practicing new strategies to achieve your goals. While this development starts very personal, it radiates outward and touches every aspect of your life, including your practice and professional growth.

Self-Improvement in Your Practice and Your Life

Look at it this way. To have a successful practice, you need to be a great leader who communicates well with your staff. You also need patience (for your staff and the people you're treating), good listening skills, and a sense of organization, just to name a few things. These skills don't always come naturally to people, and even if they do, improving and developing those skills is still worth your while. What doesn't come naturally you can still learn.

Wanting to help your staff work together more smoothly? Looking to implement new protocols? Trying to adopt better habits? Needing to be more organized around the office? Feeling like you're not meeting your goals-in your practice or otherwise? Self-improvement and personal growth allow you to develop the skills and discipline to make all of that possible. Sometimes making successful changes in your practice requires making changes in yourself as well.

How to Get Started

Working on personal growth can mean a lot of things, from taking a class to reading a book. Looking to create a reading nook? Having a special place to curl up with a book may just be the motivation you need.

The place to start, however, is with your goals. Review your written-out goals and ask yourself the tough questions about whether or not you're achieving them in every area of your life. Then determine what you need to do for yourself to get there.
Personal growth and self-improvement are a big part of being successful in your life as a whole, as well as in your practice. Don't take it for granted. If you're not sure where to start, or have struggle with this in the past, our team at Top Practices can help you get started with your goals and invested in a Mastermind group that will keep you accountable to yourself and your own development. Just reach out to us for more information today! You can e-mail [email protected] or call (717) 626-2025.

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The Importance of Self-Improvement and Personal Growth

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People put a high value on education-up to a point. You go to school all through your childhood, then-for physicians-complete undergraduate and medical degrees as well as a residency to be able to do what you do. However, many people stop actively seeking to learn, develop, and grow different areas of their lives and interests when they graduate and move into the workforce.

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This article highlights the "Bucket Theory." When we think about our own lives, we all have a bucket containing how much we can realistically give to others. When others fill our bucket, we have a greater capacity to fill others' buckets. When we do things for ourselves, we can fill our bucket, as well. When we are pouring out of our bucket constantly, such as at work, we are reducing the capacity we have left to dedicate to other things. On the other side, if we pour out into our personal life and relationships, we have less to give at work. Likewise, if we surround ourselves with things and people who take from us, we have less to give. Personal growth helps us raise the capacity of our buckets, which in turn leaves us with more to pour into our professional goals. In education, we need to have the capacity to pour into our students' buckets, as it will build the confidence and expand the growth of the children we work with.

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Professional growth can occur on different scales. In most districts, schools require a minimum number of professional development hours for their teachers to acquire every year. The teachers usually have a set number of PDs and PD days a year they are required to attend. Additionally, schools will provide links for finding one's own desired PDs. Attending PDs will allow for a teacher to continue to learn about the profession and stay up to date with best practices.

Another way to grow professionally is to observe and meet with more experienced individuals. During my first year teaching, I was given a mentor. Every month we would have a task to complete together to help me grow as a first year teacher. Additionally, my administrators were open and pleased with the idea of finding me sub coverage for a few days the first semester to allow me the chance to observe other teachers in the building and their practices.

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This is the link used in my home state of Alabama to find professional learning opportunities for teachers.

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Alabama Professional Development - Alabama State Department of Education

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The purpose of the Professional Development is to provide up-to-date opportunities for educators seeking to improve their knowledge and skills through professional learning.

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Typically, humans struggle with the idea of change. It can often feel like we are losing control. The loss of control means the loss of our safety net, the return to what feels comfortable for us. For example, we may be frightened to take the leap into a new position at work, even if it means better opportunities for us. This may be because we are comfortable with our current colleagues. We may be scared to become the outsider, or "new guy" with a new set of peers. We may feel as though we are better at the position we have held for so long, and fear failure.

The bottom line is that change is inevitable. Whether we change or not, those around us will continue to change. Friends will get married and start families. Coworkers will leave to find better opportunities. Families will move to new states for various reasons. All of those things happen regardless of if one changes or not.

So, what do we do about that?

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This quote is referring to how we react to change and how we work to change ourselves. Though change is scary, we have to use the changes in our life to change who we are. This is a huge part of growing up. You have to develop a sense of agency and discover who you are. It is important that you change with the changes around you. When we don't change, we become stagnant, and no growth can occur.

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Maya Shankar covers change and the fears that come with it in this TED Talk. She also touches on how to change for the better!

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Maya Shankar: Why change is so scary -- and how to unlock its potential

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Unexpected change like an accident, an illness or a relationship that suddenly ends is inevitable -- and disorienting. With a heartfelt and optimistic take on life's curveballs, cognitive scientist Maya Shankar shares how these challenging moments can inspire transformation, offering three questions to ask when facing uncertainty, so you can let go of rigidity and embrace change.

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What is the difference between change and growth?

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What is the difference between change and growth?

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When we experience change, we have a choice. We can stay the same, unwilling to accept the inevitable. Alternatively, we can choose to embrace the change and grow. Growth occurs when we dive into the unknown, the scary, and let it change who we are by challenging us. Growth is not always easy.

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Every spring, I plant a garden at my house. Gardening is one of my most favorite hobbies.

I live in Alabama. Summers tend to be hot and humid, with random storms popping up all the time. Those storms can bring with them thunder, lightning, and heavy rainfall. Think about the storm as the inevitable. I cannot control the weather. The plants can't either. There is always a change the wind from the storm might blow the plants around, causing them to look a little messy. The plants take a beating from the storm that happens. It can change them.

However, when the storm clears up, growth occurs. This growth is optional. I could take lots of measures, such as bringing potted plants inside during the storm, or covering up the ones that are not in pots. I do not do that though. The rainfall that comes with a summer storm does magical things for plants. I can water them every day with my watering hose, but the growth that occurs after a storm is unmatched. The natural rain, the rain I cannot control, is what makes the plants sprout up so quickly and produce more fruit.

In our own lives, we cannot control when something that seems scary or hard happens to us. However, we have the choice to take cover and hide from the change, or we can put our roots down, embrace the change, and grow.

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Here is a TED Talk on change and growth. The speaker, Saad Kiani, talks about how we can embrace change and use it as an opportunity for growth.

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Saad Kiani: Growth Comes from Change | TED Talk

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Saad Kiani, an engineering graduate from Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology explores the importance of change to achieve success in our lives. He also inclines on the fact that hard work with innovation, contributes to perfection through an example of his own life.