Personal awareness

1. Assessing who you are and where you are now

How does your personality affect the choices you make? What fears do you have that might hold you back?
To what extent do you feel your values are reflected in the work you do? How do these values enhance your effectiveness as a manager and leader of other people?
What personal qualities do you have that could be usefully harnessed and developed to enhance your leadership and management potential?

2. Assessing your professional life

What aspects of work do you consider to be most important?
Which features of your job fit best with your personal style and who you are?
How do you set yourself new targets within your job to keep your interest alive and provide new challenges?
How do you nurture your relationships with colleagues?

3. Assessing your work–life balance

How does your current work impact on your family and friends and other aspects of your non-working life?
How satisfied are you with your lifestyle and time spent outside work, e.g. sport, relaxation, hobbies, travel?
Do you spend enough quality time with your friends and family?
Are you happy with the balance between your work and other aspects of your life?

4. Making changes

What interests and motivates you to work effectively?
What has limited you from making changes in the past? Have you overcome those constraints or barriers now? If so, how?
What do you most want to achieve in your role? What are your career goals?
Do your goals and ambitions fit with your ethics and values? Do your career goals conflict with your personal goals or ambitions?

Now, reflect on what you have written and, in the box below, highlight any self-defeating beliefs you have uncovered. Then make a statement of positive intent of how you might use your personal strengths to counter these.

Next step: moving forwards

Self-defeating belief:
Positive statement of intent for change, i.e. what you are going to do differently