Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan · Throughout your professional leadership improvement process, you are encouraged to extend your comfort zone and take proactive

Personal Leadership Effectiveness™

Improvement Plan

Maximizing Your Potential through Self-Discovery and Development utilizing the MERIT Profile™

Copyright Future Achievement International®

All Rights Reserved

Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan™

MERIT Profile

Personal Improvement Plan

Overview

The information contained in your MERIT Profile can significantly help you grow personally and professionally. The key to

your success in using this information is to diligently craft and commit to implementing a Personal Leadership

Effectiveness Improvement Plan. Information alone will not take you to where you desire to go.

An effective improvement plan is essentially a partnership between yourself and a trained Coach. This could be an

Executive, Manager, Supervisor or another individual in your professional or personal spheres of influence that can help you

achieve the steps in your plan. A professionally trained coach can often see things that you may not be able to see.

Throughout your professional leadership improvement process, you are encouraged to extend your comfort zone and

take proactive steps to address the most important issues first. These are the things that can have the most

dramatic effect on your career advancement, as well as your personal satisfaction and sense of significance in life.

We suggest the following series of steps in creating your Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan.

Investigate Your MERIT Profile

Mull Over the Implications

Propose a Plan

Revise Your Plan with Input from Others

Organize Your Activities around the Plan

Verify Your Progress and Adapt

Enjoy Your Successes!

Remember that it is essential to clearly define your goals, measure your improvements over time and adapt to changing

circumstances. This process can be very rewarding and will allow you to become more effective in all dimensions of life. Just

remember…it's all about progression, not perfection.

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Investigate Your MERIT Profile

Let's review your MERIT Profile and consider the following questions in preparing for writing your plan. 1. Do I understand what it is saying? What are the main patterns and messages I should be seeing from the results?

2. Is this information accurate or are there areas where I need some further clarification?

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3. For the 2 highest scoring Character Competencies on my profile, how important are these Competencies to my

personal and professional life? How can I leverage these Competencies for maximizing my impact?

Highest: Next Highest:

4. For the 2 lowest scoring Character Competencies on my profile, how important are these Competencies to my

personal and professional life?

Lowest: Next Lowest:

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Mull Over the Implications 1. What are the potential positive outcomes of assertively addressing my developmental needs? 2. What are the potential negative consequences of not effectively dealing with my developmental needs? 3. What are the most significant barriers to achieving the change I would like to experience?

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Propose a Plan The next few pages are meant to stimulate your thinking as you prepare a draft of your Personal Improvement Plan. Take

the time to complete this process and then begin drafting your plan by using the four worksheets that follow.

Your Personal Improvement Plan should address both strength areas and developmental needs in relationship to the MERIT

Profile Character Competencies. This will ensure that you are optimizing your strong character qualities while also working to

improve in other areas.

You should create objectives that are aligned with your personal values and the goals of your organization. These are the areas

where you will receive the greatest support and have the most energy to accomplish the desired changes.

Following are some important, general elements of planning to consider as you draft your plan. Work through these next

few pages before you begin to craft a plan.

Overall Guidelines for Creating Personal Improvement Objectives Achievable

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Create objectives that meet the AIMS criteria.

Focus on 2-3 objectives for strengths and 2-3 objectives for development.

Identify objectives that will benefit both you and the organization.

Understand the potential obstacles that may stand in the way of achieving these goals.

Be prepared to adapt your plan to the realities of change around you.

Inspiring Measurable Shared

Developing Action Steps

An effective Personal Improvement Plan must follow logical action steps. Include the following in your thinking and

planning:

• Gather all of the information you need. This will include your MERIT Profile but may also include a recent

performance appraisal or other records that provide insights into your strength and developmental areas.

• Experiment with breaking complex goals into small steps that then lead to larger accomplishments:

Actions I can take immediately.

Actions that I can implement over a short period of time.

Actions that may require an extended period of time.

• Think about your learning style and the best ways for you to maximize your prospects for success.

• If your developmental needs are related to certain groups or situations, include action steps that involve practicing the

competencies with these groups or situations.

• Keep an eye open for opportunities to take risks that can stretch your skills.



Involving Others

Your success with a Personal Improvement Plan is highly dependent on the support of others.

Who will help you develop and monitor this process?

Name: Relationship: Name: Relationship: Name: Relationship:

Remember to:

• Share your improvement plan with others.

• Identify who can help you make progress and how they can help.

• Welcome feedback from others.

Establishing Target Dates

Identifying target dates for each of your action steps will help ensure that you stay on track toward achieving

your objectives.

• Examine each action step and decide what target date is appropriate.

• Remember to schedule your priorities, not prioritize your schedule.

• Determine the best way for you "check in on yourself" to ensure that these dates are realistic.

• Put some variation in the target dates in order to avoid too much pressure.

Think through the following questions right now as you prepare to develop your goals. 1. What do I know about my calendar and commitments over the next 6 months that I need to take into

consideration when setting these goals?

2. What are my initial thoughts about how I will make room in my schedule for working on these important goals?

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Identifying Your Focal Points Begin by studying your MERIT Profile and deciding where to focus. The MERIT Profile is presented in a manner that

scores your competencies from high to low, relative to the MAXIMIZERS Character Competency norms.

This makes it convenient for you to identify the areas in which you should focus.

As stated earlier, it is recommended that you concentrate initially on 2-3 goals related to your strength areas and

2-3 goals related to your developmental needs.

Part 1: Leveraging Your Character Competency Strength Areas

Your personal and professional success to-date is in part due to the Character Competencies identified as above the

norm scores on your MERIT Profile. These are your Competencies and qualities that you should strive to optimize

and leverage for further success.

As you think about your highest 2-3 Character Competencies, reflect on the following questions and make some

notes here.

It is recommended that you do this work first because it will be useful when drafting your plan. My Highest Character Competency is

• How could I broaden my use of this Competency? • Where could I personally or professionally make a greater contribution through this Competency?

• Who could benefit from my coaching them in this area?



My Next Highest Character Competency is

• How could I broaden my use of this Competency? • Where could I personally or professionally make a greater contribution through this Competency?

• Who could benefit from my coaching them in this same Competency?

Ways to Leverage Your Strengths

Take on a new project that will be more successful because of your contribution.

Offer to lead an important initiative to demonstrate your skills.

Mentor someone else who needs to develop the same strength.

Apply your strength to solve an important organizational challenge.

"A strength is "an activity that makes you feel strong." It is an activity where the doing

of it invigorates you. Before you do it, you find yourself instinctively looking forward

to it. While you are doing it you don't struggle to concentrate, but instead you

become so immersed that time speeds up and you lose yourself in the present

moment. And after you are finished doing it, you feel authentic, connected to the

best parts of who you really are." ~ Marcus Buckingham, Strength Finders

©Future Achievement International®

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Part 2: Addressing Your Character Competency Developmental Needs

Your personal and professional success to date is being limited due to the Character Competencies identified as below the

norm scores on your MERIT Profile. These are Character Competencies that you that you should strive to improve through

your personal and professional improvement process.

As you think about your lowest scoring 2-3 Competencies, reflect on the following questions and make some notes here.

It is recommended that you do this work first because it will be useful when drafting your plan.

My Lowest Scoring Character Competency is:

• What are the possible negative consequences, both personally and professionally, that may be resulting from this reality?

• What one thing, if I did it persistently and consistently well, could significantly move this from a

development need to a potential strength?

• What are the most significant potential barriers to making progress in this area?

Development Tip: Look for a Mentor.

As 19th Century U.S. Congressman John C. Crosby once said,

"Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction."



My Second Lowest Scoring Character Competency is

• What are the possible negative consequences, both personally and professionally, that may be resulting from this reality?

• What one thing, if I did it persistently and consistently well, could significantly move this from a

development need to a potential strength?

• What are the most significant potential barriers to making progress in this area?

Development Tip: Minimize your development needs and increase your contribution value by getting more strategic.

What is "being strategic?"

The opposite of reacting immediately and equally to everything.

Overall, big picture, business understanding.

Deciding on purpose; how you want to invest your time, and doing it.

Initiating, leading, and implementing necessary change and transformation.

Understanding investments, impact, outcomes, costs, risks and consequences.

Assessing the need for, and building support systems.

Achieving predictable success on long-term projects and goals.

Evolving your role to meet changing business needs.

Always considering what adds the most value, not just working hard.



My Vision of Success

In the previous section you worked through some important questions in preparation for drafting your PLE

Improvement Plan. These were important questions and you are now ready to create this draft.

It is important at this early stage to think through what success looks like and grapple with the question, "How will

I know when I reach my goals?" If you can get this vision clearly in your mind you will be able to maintain the energy

necessary to sustain your efforts.

It has been said, “Vision is a compelling mental picture of a preferred future.” With that in mind, respond to these questions: 1. How will I be a different person when I achieve these Character Competency goals?

2. What difference will these improvements make in my quality of life?

• In my professional life and relationships?

• In my personal life and relationships?



Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan Worksheets

On the following pages are worksheets for you to draft your Personal Improvement Plan. There are 2 sheets for strength

areas and 2 sheets for development needs. Make additional copies if you need them.

Using the insights gained from the questions and notes in the previous Propose a Plan section, complete these sheets and

schedule a time to meet with your Coach. Here are some questions you should be prepared to discuss when you meet for that

review. 1. What was the basis of your selecting these particular development needs?

2. What level of effort are you committing to in order to make the desired progress in these areas?

3. What do you feel you need from your Coach in order to help you achieve these goals?

4. How are we going to measure your progress in these areas? How often do you feel you will need

to meet with your Coach to discuss your progress?

5. What additional tools do you need to help you accomplish the goals you are setting? ©



PLE Improvement Plan Worksheet

Character Competency Strength to Leverage (Refer to MERIT Profile)

(write it here)

Objectives

Action Plans

Relationships

Involved

Target Dates

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Character Competency Strength to Leverage (Refer to MERIT Profile)

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Objectives

Action Plans

Relationships

Involved

Target Dates

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Character Competency Development Area (Refer to MERIT Profile)

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Objectives

Action Plans

Relationships

Involved

Target Dates

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Character Competency Development Area (Refer to MERIT Profile)

(write it here)

Objectives

Action Plans

Relationships

Involved

Target Dates

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Revise Your Plan with Input from Others

Your Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan should be viewed as a tool that evolves and adapts as you review it

with others and gather their insights. The probabilities of achieving your goals within this plan are substantially improved when others are bought into the process and make their own contributions to your success.

Although your Coach (especially in a work environment) is certainly the primary person with whom you will want to reach an agreement regarding these goals, others in your personal and professional network can certainly be a valuable resource to help you see the things you need to see and craft an effective plan.

Use the space below to record your thoughts from discussions you have with others about these goals. You will want to use this information as you finalize your PLE Improvement Plan. Once you have updated your worksheets

with this input from others, use the PLE Improvement Plan form at the end of this document to summarize your improvement plans when you are ready.

Feedback from

• My Coach: • My Professional Relationship: • My Friends and Family:

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Organize Your Activities Around the Plan

Once you have gathered all useful feedback and finalized your Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan, it's time

to make the necessary changes in your habits and daily or weekly routines that will support the accomplishment of these

important goals.

You have already experienced the use of two basic tools to help you achieve these objectives. Those tools were introduced

during the Achieving Authentic Success learning process and included the following:

• HABIT Form (Make Things Happen)

• Weekly Cross-Training Sheet (Integrate All of Life)

By continuing to use these tools you will find it possible to keep on track toward your desired goals. Here are a few

recommendations that you can follow:

Habit Formation

For each of the objectives in your PLE Improvement Plan, identify a specific habit that you could form to support the goal.

Take the time to spell out each step of the H-A-B-I-T process and focus on these specific habits for at least 21 days or until

you sense that these behaviors have significantly helped you to achieve each goal within your plan.

It might take only one or perhaps a series of habits to obtain and sustain the goals of your PLE Improvement Plan. You must

look at them as building blocks and be willing to set a strong foundation that will support your ultimate plan for the long

run.

Cross-Training

Tailor the priorities on this weekly planning tool to achieve the kinds of specific results that will help you move toward

your PLE Improvement Plan goals. Ask yourself each week:

"What can I do this week in each of the 7 Life Areas that will move me closer to achieving my plan?"

"What daily priorities can I set and plan into my calendar to ensure I am progressing?"

When the week is over:

• Take time to reflect and plan again for the following week.

• Celebrate your successes and dig down deeper to find the answers to questions regarding your failures.

• Get some help from a coach, a friend or someone else who can give you critical feedback and hold you

accountable to your plan.

• To the best of your ability, never let a week go by without making some progress toward your goals.



Verify Your Progress and Adapt

Our best intentions for achieving personal and professional growth can fail for a variety of reasons. The enthusiasm to begin

the process may be there but the energy and support to maintain that effort over time may unfortunately

decrease.

You have been provided with information and resources throughout the Achieving Authentic Success learning process,

but achieving your ultimate goals depends on taking all of that and rigorously applying it every day. That is why writing and

following this Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan is so vital.

Here are some tips to help you verify your progress and adapt as your plan progresses:

• Keep a personal journal of your daily successes and failures and pay particular attention to what is going on around you

that contributes to both. These observations will help you to be flexible as well as recognize the kinds of things that may be

barriers. Once you begin to see a pattern you can become proactive in preventing these things from stopping your

desired progress.

• Keep short accounts with your advisor, coach or others to whom you have agreed to be accountable. Get used to

frequently asking the question, "How am I doing?" and then be ready to adapt based on the answers.

• Develop a mindset of measuring your progress in concrete terms. Not everything you may be setting out to do easily

lends itself to measurement in a quantitative sense but it is important to apply logical measurements whenever possible.

• Pay attention to how others are responding to your efforts to implement your plan. Their responses are important cues

reflecting how well your intentions are being received.

• Periodically meet with others to specifically ask them for feedback. Get their candid input, integrate it with your plan and

thank them for being helpful.

• Take advantage of opportunities to learn about yourself through assessments. The MERIT Profile should ideally be retaken at

least every 9-12 months after implementing your Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan, and then annually

thereafter.

"We all want progress,

but if you're on the wrong road,

progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road;

in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive."

~ C. S. Lewis

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http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/c/c_s_lewis.html


Enjoy Your Successes!

Writing and implementing a Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan can be challenging, but worth the

effort in terms of achieving important personal and professional goals. When you reach this point in the process and

have experienced growth over a period of time you deserve to celebrate your successes!

In the Make Things Happen Character Competency we discovered the power of habit formation as the key to

accomplishing important goals. One of those steps involved attaching pain and pleasure to the outcomes of our habit

formation efforts. Hopefully you have experienced more pleasure than pain so far and will be motivated continually by

the prospect of more success in the future.

As you continue the process of lifelong learning and application of what you have learned in this process, take the

time to enjoy your positive progress. There are a number of ways you can do this:

• Create some space in your life to reward yourself regularly for achieving your goals. Simply find an activity that you

can indulge in for the simple pleasure of it and while doing it be able to say to yourself, "I worked hard to deserve

this and I plan to just enjoy it."

• Become a coach or mentor to someone else who may be struggling in an area you have mastered. Helping

others is a great reward in itself.

• Periodically get away for a day or weekend to reflect on your progress and to think about taking new steps to reach

higher. This personal retreat can invigorate you and provide the motivation to continue growing.

• Simplify your life wherever possible. Our failures and obstacles to success are often the result of putting too much

on our plates.

• Learn to enjoy the success of others as much as your own success.

• Don't let someone else be the reason you could not achieve your worthwhile goals. Your success is determined

by your own efforts.

"People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are.

The people who get on in this world are they who get up and look for the

circumstances they want and, if they can't find them, make them."

~ George Bernard Shaw


Improvement Plan

Personal and Professional

Development

Documents

Personal Leadership Effectiveness Improvement Plan · Throughout your professional leadership improvement process, you are encouraged to extend your comfort zone and take proactive