How do you design and implement a personal development plan for your construction management career?

We get asked general questions like "what do you want to be when you grow up" that are so dang difficult to answer. I'm 40 and still can't answer this question. So let me provide some different questions to get you thinking and building on this difficult, time consuming but critical exercise: -Do you feel you have what you need to be successful in construction? Why or why not? -?What would you ultimately like to be known, remembered or recognized for within your career? -Who would you most like to help or provide a positive impact for? -What do you love most about the construction industry? What is most challenging? -What is one thing you wish others (outside of the construction industry) knew about who we are or what we do?

With any objective, it is instructive to visualize the end point. Where do you want to end up? Who is already there? What path did that person take? Is there a company in your region that is known for developing construction managers?

Gain Practical Experience: Seek opportunities to apply your newly acquired skills and knowledge in practical settings. Look for challenging projects, volunteer work, or opportunities to lead initiatives within your organization. Practical experience is crucial for reinforcing learning and building a strong foundation for career growth.

Not every skill/ task you master may seem directly applicable to your ultimate career goals, but its the path you take along the way that will put you on the right track to becoming a well rounded, knowledgeable leader.

Define and re-define! the more you learn, the more you find out you don't know. It's ok to refine or even completely change your goals as you grow.

One of my favorite sayings is that "luck" happens when opportunity meets preparation. It is the lucky ones that excel and are able to capitalize on opportunities that open up. The groundwork such as math and business understanding, accounting and budgeting, writing and speaking, appearance and demeanor are all aspects of getting prepared for your NEXT role. Be truthful in your self assessment and do the work to fill those gaps in your skills.

Find a mentor you trust (or two) they will not only help you see areas for potential growth and development, they will give you the tools and network to add strength to bridge those gaps in skillset.

When analyzing what my weaknesses were, the most significant weakness was my inability to understand the complexities and nuances of the "sticks n bricks" side of the business. Best decision I ever made was to pause my CM aspirations, step back and get a job as a framer wherein I learned how to read a 2D blueprint and turn it into a 3D structure having to incorporate and understand all CSI divisions and how they overlay, intersect and depend on each other. Has proved invaluable to be able to understand and assemble a proforma and CPM schedule as well as discuss with the contractors/subcontractors why the duct layout will not work with the shear wall configuration. Having my tool bags on was my most valuable education.

Know that some of these are habits more than skills so can take intention, time, and consistency to master. But also know that learning comes in SO MANY different formats. We can gain a plethora of information from training and development programs but also simply from intentional daily conversations or observations.? Enter everyday challenges, conflicts, and conversations (we have plenty in construction) with curiosity and intent to learn something new, it recalibrates a learning mindset and makes challenging situations easier to approach and handle. Our motivation to want to learn and our growth mindset matters most. If we don't want to learn something, we won't... Motivate yourself to want to learn, and nothing can stop you.

Think about what you enjoy doing and what you want to learn. Are you an individual contributor or a team member type? Are you introverted or extraverted, or do you want to go outside of your comfort level? Are you a planner or do you work best under pressure? There are roles in Construction Management for all types of people. Find the area that you will work best in for success. If you want to go outside of your current comfort zone, take small steps to work into the area that you are interested. Assist on a project or in finance or the field or wherever you want to go. Experience the challenges to figure out your personal plan to meet them. CM is very difficult, but the teamwork and ability to see your success is fun and rewarding!

The thing missing from this article is taking action. We can plan goals and access all we want. If you aren’t taking major action, following through, identifying outcomes and learning how to continually build on top of that process, you’ll hit a plateau. This leads to burnout or stagnation.