Personal development planning

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• Recommended reading
  • Careers
  • Planning for success
  • Self-management
  • People skills
• Useful websites
  • General
  • Careers guidance
  • Employment: companies
  • Employment: job hunting
  • Employment rights
  • Disability issues

Recommended reading

Stella Cottrell, Skills for Success: The Personal Development Handbook

The book covers specific issues relevant to PDP, such as developing skills and qualities. It includes activities and structured reflection on a range of issues such as:

• What success really means for you.
• Looking at your own life and life story.
• Increasing motivation.
• Identifying how you perform best.
• Improving your performance.
• Problem-solving.
• Finding solutions.
• Task-management.
• Assertiveness.
• Dealing with difficult people.
• Emotional intelligence.
• Giving and receiving constructive criticism. 
• Developing leadership qualities.
• Creative thinking skills.
• Using the brain.
• Writing CVs.
• Applying for jobs.
• Successful interview skills.

Careers

• Littleford, D, Halstead, J. and Mulraine, C. Career Skills(Palgrave Macmillan, 2004) – A useful workbook containing lots of valuable insights helping you to identify your personal selling points and use them on your CV, at interview and beyond.
• Bright, J. and Earl, J. Brilliant CV (FT Prentice Hall, 2000) - Useful if the jobs you apply for are mostly CV-based rather than form-based. 
• Chapman, A. and Giddings, B. The Monster Guide to Job Hunting (Pearson Education Limited, 2001) - Detailed guidance on using the Internet. Useful if you are not already comfortable using this resource.
• Jackson, T. and Jackson, E. The Perfect CV (Piaktus Books, 2005) – Today’s ultimate job search tool.
• Hodgson, S. Brilliant Answers to Tough Interview Questions. (FT Prentice Hall, 2005) - One of a number of books that are useful to focus the mind when preparing for an interview. 

Planning for success 

• Cottrell, S.M. Skills for Success: The Personal Development Planning Handbook. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003)
• Fanthome, C. Work Placements - A Survival Guide for Students (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004)
• Covey, S.R. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Hay House, 2004) – Careers advice and how to achieve success.
• Taylor, R. and Humphrey, J. Fast Track to the Top (Kogan Page, 2001) – Focuses on skills, attitudes, backgrounds and working habits of high achievers.

Study skills and learning styles

• Cottrell, S.M. The Study Skills Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Covers a wide range of study skills in depth, including improving memory; exam techniques; writing essays, reports, case studies and dissertations; critical thinking; analytical writing; improving reading skills.
• Cottrell, S.M. Skills for Success: The Personal Development Planning Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Looks at a range of learning styles and preferences and at creative and reflective thinking skills .
• Cottrell, S.M. Critical Thinking Skills (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005) – Takes you through an easy-to-follow, step-by-step approach to developing a range of critical thinking skills.
• Greetham, B. How to Write Better Essays (Palgrave Macmillan, 2001) – Takes you through the planning, researching and writing of an essay.
• Peck, J. and Coyle, M The Student’s Guide to Writing (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005) – Aimed at students wishing to perfect their writing skills, and carefully explains grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• Clarke, A. IT Skills for Successful Study (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005) - Will help students to develop intermediate or advanced IT skills in those areas most relevant to studying, and to use IT for maximum benefit.
• van Emden, J. and Becker, L. Presentation Skills for Students (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004) – This is a practical guide for speaking publicly, but also offers advice on job interviews.

Self-management

• Cottrell, S.M. The Study Skills Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Covers self-management in a study context - such as time management and increasing motivation to study. Useful resources for improving the management of your study.
• Cottrell, S.M. Skills for Success: The Personal Development Planning Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Covers self-management for a wide range of contexts. Includes structured activities to explore time-management, emotional self-management, dealing with others; managing tasks; identifying barriers to good performance.
• Covey, S.R.The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Hay House, 2004) - Careers advice and how to achieve success.
• Fennell, M. Overcoming Low self-esteem (Constable and Robinson, 2006) – Advice on careers and achieving success.
• Neenan, M. and Dryden, W. Life Coaching (Brunner-Routledge, 2001) – Shows how to tackle self-defeating thinking and replace it with a problem-solving outlook.
  
  

People skills

• Cottrell, S.M. The Study Skills Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Covers self-management in a study context- such as time management and increasing motivation to study. Useful resources for improving the management of your study.
• Cottrell, S.M. Skills for Success: The Personal Development Planning Handbook (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) - Covers self-management for a wide range of contexts. Includes structured activities to explore time-management, emotional self-management, dealing with others; managing tasks; identifying barriers to good performance.
• Belbin, M.R. Team Roles at Work (Butterworth-Heinemann, 1996) - For more information about using Belbin types for teamwork.
• Kozubska, J. The 7 Keys of Charisma (Kogan Page, 1997) - Particularly useful for those considering management, media and high profile jobs.
• Ribbens, G. and Thompson, R. Understanding Body Languagein a Week (Hodder Arnold, 2002) - Looks at body language in a range of everyday work settings.
• Taylor, R. and Humphrey, J. Fast Track to the Top (Kogan Page, 2002) - The skills associated with successful Chief Executives, including interpersonal skills.  
  
  

Useful websites

General

LifeCoachExpert contains over 80 articles all written by our team of experts and we add around 10 new articles each month.

Career guidance

www.careerskills.org.uk
www.prospects.ac.uk advice and jobs for graduates
www.drjob.co.uk advice and jobs for graduates
www.gradunet.co.uk advice and jobs for graduates
www.hobsons.com guidance and jobs for school leavers, young people and graduates
www.insidecareers.co.uk guidance and jobs for graduates

Employment companies

www.bloomberg.com international and entrepreneur site
www.companieshouse.gov.uk lists all UK public companies
www.vault.com what it is like to work for named companies

Employment: job hunting

www.career-index.com lists job sites
www.gisajob.com general
www.eteach.com teaching
www.fish4jobs.co.uk regional jobs
www.jobhunter.co.uk adverts that appear in newspapers
www.jobshark.com adverts; accepts electronic CVs
www.monster.co.uk job adverts and career advice
www.planetrecruit.com international jobs
www.stepstone.co.uk UK and European jobs
www.tempz.com temporary jobs
www.topgrads.co.uk graduate jobs; accepts electronic CVs

Employment rights  

www.cre.gov.uk Commission for Race Equality
www.emplaw.co.ukemployment law
www.adviceguide.org Citizens’ Advice Bureau
www.hse.gov.uk health and safety
www.i-resign.com/uk/home leaving your job

Disability issues  

www.ability.org/emp.html disability charity
www.skill.org.uk disability charity
www.disability.gov.uk Government’s disability issues site

For more resources, see useful resources.