There are many ways to help people to develop. One approach is to focus on their aspirations. It is then to offer them practical tools they can use to apply themselves and achieve their goals. Let’s explore these themes.
Aspirations
Every person has aspirations. They may have passions they want to follow, challenges they want to solve or goals they want to achieve. They can be helped to translate these into action and achieve success.
There are many ways to help people to focus on their aspirations. One approach to help them to channel their energy in a positive way and also provide practical tools they can use to achieve their goals.
Here are some of the questions that I explore before meeting a person. These can be also adapted when working with a team or organisation.
Who am I going to meet? What may be happening in their world? What may be the challenges they face? What may be their top priorities at the moment?
What may be their short-term and long-term aspirations? What may they want to do in their lives and work? What may be their life goals? What may they want to do to be healthy and happy?
What are the things that give them positive energy? What may be their vocation? What would they do if they had a guaranteed income for the rest of their life? How can they focus on these things in the future?
What may be their strengths? What may be their successful style of working? How can they do satisfying work? How can they build on their strengths and get paid a reasonable salary?
What may be the specific challenges they face? What may be happening in these situations? Bearing in mind what they can control, what would they like to happen? What are the real results they want to achieve?
What may be their purpose in life? What may be the principles they believe in following? How can they pursue their purpose, follow their principles and achieve their picture of success?
There are many other themes it is possible to explore when focusing on a person’s aspirations. Whatever route is followed, it is important:
To create an environment in which the person feels at ease and able to explore their aspirations;
To encourage the person to explore and then, when they feel ready, to settle on the goals they want to achieve;
To play back your understanding of the person’s aims and make sure you are clear on their picture of success.
Let’s assume that a person has clarified their aspirations. When appropriate, it can then be time to move on to the next stage.
Application
Imagine that a person has decided to work towards their goals. How to help them to take this step? One approach is to explore the following questions.
What are the person’s goals? Looking at the first goal, what are the real results they want to achieve? What is their picture of success? What will be the benefits of achieving the goal?
What are their possible options for working towards their goal? What are the consequences – the pluses and minuses – of each option? Which is the option – or the combination of options – that is most attractive?
What are the key strategies they can follow to give themselves the greatest chance of success? How can they build on their strengths – and compensate for any weaknesses – when following these strategies?
What is the route they want to follow to achieve their goal? How can they translate this into an action plan? How can they get the support they need? How can they get some early successes?
How can they prepare properly before moving into action? How can they rehearse following their chosen strategies? How can they rehearse managing any potential challenges?
How can they apply themselves properly when following their chosen route? How can they manage their energy? How can they organise their time in blocks? How can they set achievable goals and get successes?
How can I help them to help them to work towards their goal? What are the positive models and practical tools that I can share? How can I pass on this knowledge in a way they can accept and use to reach their goal?
Let’s assume a person has begun applying themselves to work towards their goal. When appropriate, it can be time to move on to the next stage.
Achievement
Imagine that the person is following their chosen strategies. It is important for them to keep reading reality. They can build on what is working and also tackle areas for improvement.
A person is also more likely to reach their goals if they know their successful pattern for finishing. They can follow this – plus maybe add other skills – to achieve their picture of success.
How to help a person to take these steps? One approach is to focus on the following themes and help them to achieve their aims.
How can I help the person to keep following their chosen strategies? How can I help them: a) to build on what is working; b) to tackle areas for improvement?
How can I help them to manage their energy? How can I help them to take time to reflect, re-energise and refocus? How can I help them to rehearse what they are going to do next?
How can I help them to buy time when faced by unexpected events? How can I help them to anticipate challenges? How can I help them to explore the possible ways forward and find solutions?
How can I help them to follow their successful pattern for finishing? How can I help them to reach their goals? How can I help them to maybe also add that touch of class?
There many ways to help a person to develop. One approach is to help them to focus on their aspirations. It then to help them to apply themselves and achieve their goals.
Looking ahead, can you think of a situation where you may want to follow elements of this approach? If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
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