Untitled Book #2 – Part 12

Part 12:

Now, I want you to ask yourself the following question: What are those areas that you recognize need improving in your personal makeup. We all have them, so be especially real with yourself at this part of The Rightful Placement Process. You don’t have to share this list with the world. In fact, reserve it for your eyes only.

You’ll find that being honest with yourself and writing your honesty down on paper is somewhat therapeutic and it also gives you a concrete reminder of what you need to focus on to arrive at goals that you’ve set for yourself. I have a feeling that you’re highly aware of those nagging nemeses that bring you face-to-face with your imperfections, because living life has a way of easily pointing them out to you.

Here are another set of activities and questions I’d like for you to work through. These items will assist you in creating your list of opportunities for areas of improvement, instrumental in creating the most comprehensive version of your personal makeup.

• Look at your performance appraisal/review/evaluation from work. What does your boss/supervisor/manager say you need to work on improving?
• What don’t you have listed on your resume as your skills, experience, achievements, etc. that should be listed there? The items on your resume should truthfully reflect in a page or two those particular attributes you would be able to bring to a prospective employer. What does your resume leave out that are considered qualities that would make you competitively employable?
• What have others told you that you need to work on and areas in which you’re not considered as someone to seek assistance from?
• Think about your most challenging subjects in school. What skills did you need in order to successfully perform tasks associated with those subjects? Which of those skills did you need to improve upon? Were these subjects difficult for you or did you simply not enjoy doing them? Why do you think they were difficult for you and/or you didn’t enjoy doing them? In order to help you answer this set of questions, you can also refer to your past grade cards/school reports to see where your lowest grades came from.
• What do you look awkward at doing, where you feel inept in instructing others in doing that same thing?
• If you’ve taken a personality test or behavioral test, what did it say about you? What category do you fall in on the personality/behavioral spectrum? What character traits don’t you strongly possess (that you would like to)?
• What kind of extra-curricular activities do you enjoy but would never consider yourself as being able to participate in? Think of this in terms of organized sports, academics, the arts, hobbies, recreational fun, volunteering, personal and professional organizations and affiliations, etc. What are the requirements to take on these activities; and what knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) are needed to participate in these activities? Which of these KSAs do you feel you are lacking?
• What is something that weighs heavily on you — that you know you need to work on but that you just keep putting off because you consider it too challenging to pursue?
• Look at people you consider to be successful in their areas of expertise. What about them draws you to them? What qualities and traits do you see in them that you aren’t able to identify in yourself? You might note these qualities and traits through your personal face-to-face interactions with others as well as through social media outlets and entertainment programming that gives you a glimpse inside the personal and professional lives of others.