In life, I have learned a lot. There was one thing that I always forgot. That one thing was personal development. I thought that life was about getting good at something and making a career. I never looked at the mirror and I never listened to any feedback, because I thought that feedback was something negative.
1. Feedback
I started with my software engineering study and I like every bit of it. I feel the passion and I am learning a lot. This year I started with my internship. I thought that I was already a professional. The time that my internship started, after the first week, everything went downhill. The reason for that was that I forgot something that I did not think about. It was me. My soft skills.I was very down and I did not know what to do. I got feedback from everywhere and I was getting negative about everything. I did not notice the missing piece about myself.
After a week, I sat down when I was at home and the only thing that I could think about was how bad it was for my internship. I got an email from my boss at my internship that my internship was going bad. In that mail, he made a bullet list of the things that I needed to change in order to become a better professional. I actually was a bit mad. After I was done reading the email, I was very happy. The reason I was happy, was because I changed my mindset. I did not see feedback as something bad anymore. I can tell that since I have this mindset. I became so much calmer in my head.
When you receive feedback, ask the person that gave you the feedback what you need to do in order to better yourself. Don’t take feedback as something negative. It is actually positive. It means that somebody believes in you and your talents and the person that gives you the feedback actually tries to help you. After all the feedback moments, I fell in love with personal development.Learning how to receive feedback will make you successful. Believe me. Always ask what you need to do in order to better yourself. Try to ask feedback. Asking feedback is really hard. but if you do it, you will become a better you.
2. Jim Rohn
I started looking for an inspirational speaker. I needed somebody to tell me how to develop your character and becoming a better you. So I found Jim Rohn. This man has one quote that I think about all the time since I changed my mind and started to change me.
Work harder on yourself, than you do on your job.
— Jim Rohn
You can listen to this great speaker and the inspirational man on YouTube. I felt that I was getting wiser and at work, I was getting better. Not because I was an outstanding programmer, but because I was changing me.
3. Journal
What also helped to better me, is my journal. When you write about the feedback you got from somebody, you can think about it and look at it from different aspects. Write down the things somebody tells you. So you have it everywhere you go.What the most important thing is when you use a journal, is that you can write down how you felled when you worked on your feedback. Write all the changes that you felled about yourself when you actually worked on the feedback you got. This way you will see how you have grown and that will motivate you even more. When I read my journal I see so much change in my personal writing which is a reflection of how mature I have become. It feels so rewarding.
4. Conclusion
Take personal development very seriously. I learned that working on yourself is much more important than people think. Be honest with yourself. Don’t be afraid to ask somebody for feedback. Listen to the seminars of Jim Rohn. Not one time but a couple of times and really implement the things you learn in your life. You will really become a better businessman but above all a better person.