When was the last time you "S.W.O.T.TED" your own life

Commentary Columnist-Sherry Holliman

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In a world that is constantly changing at lightning speed, personal and professional growth are a must for everyone to keep up with society's ever-changing expectations. Whether you're adapting to new technology, shifting societal norms, or keeping up with the demands of a competitive workplace, continuous growth ensures that you stay relevant and ready. But how often do you pause to reflect on our own personal growth? When is the last time you took a step back and truly evaluated where you stand in life?? When is the last time you "SWOTTED" your life, not literally swatting at yourself like a buzzing insect but by using the SWOT analysis to reflect on your current choices? ?Do you know why you made those decisions? Probably not? Maybe it was your emotions or mimicking someone else’s behavior. It's time to stop playing around and literally start planning your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats with intention. You should create a S.W.O.T yearly to make strategic moves for your growth.

It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day demands of life and ignore life’s bigger picture. Do you realize how crucial it is to assess where you are and where you want to go? As you live each year, life will present new challenges, changes, and opportunities. To remain productive and adaptable, you need to understand yourself better, both as an individual and a professional. By performing a yearly SWOT analysis on your own life, you can pinpoint areas that need improvement, recognize new opportunities for growth, and prevent potential threats that might interfere with your progress. Regular self-evaluation ensures that you are not only keeping up with societal changes but also evolving in a way that aligns with your personal goals and ambitions.

Doing a SWOT analysis on yourself is like being both the detective and the suspect in your own life story. This technique is simple and will help you identify behaviors such as procrastination as one of your weaknesses, and determination as one of your strengths. This is a powerful free tool that is underutilized for self-reflection on a personal level.? To help you better understand what exactly is a SWOT analysis. It is understood to be a technique often used in businesses but can be just as valuable for individuals’ personal growth. A SWOT analysis can help identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, providing insight into the areas where change is needed to thrive in both one’s personal and professional life. To simply ask yourself, what areas need improvement? Perhaps you struggle with work-life balance. Are there new professional opportunities, educational advancements, or personal relationships that could help you grow? What external or internal factors could be harming your progress? This could be anything from economic downturns to your limiting beliefs that are preventing you from reaching your full potential.

Performing a SWOT analysis doesn’t have to be a complex process reserved for businesses. Individuals can apply it to personal and professional development, it can be as simple as writing down a list of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to your current life situation. Your SWOT analysis should always be age-appropriate and focused on your future. As life progresses, your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats will certainly change. It helps you stay flexible, resilient, and to think ahead, ensuring that you can not only meet but exceed the expectations placed upon you by you. The world will continue to change, and to keep up, so must you. By taking time each year to SWOT your own life, you gain clarity, direction, and a better understanding of how to grow both personally and professionally. So, ask yourself how soon can you S.W.O.T your own life? If it’s been a while, or you have never used this technique there’s no better time than now to start.