Personality is the unique behavioral patterns that evolved from an individual’s environment. Honing them to make the best out of one’s abilities is personality development. Every person has unique traits. Not only physical traits but emotional and personality features are in the same boat. But, are these traits just gifted and fixed?
Or do you have some control over your personality development? The answer is neither simple nor that short. In simple terms, personality development has two stages.
1-Mandatory
2-Personal
But before we get into personality development, we must know the personality concept.
What is a Personality Concept?
The personality concept is one of the most discussed topics in psychology. A lot of notable names look at it differently. E.g., Freud, Adler, Wattson, and Lewin. The most qualified scientists in the field have developed many theories about the personality concept. Discussing the different theories around the personality concept is impossible. But we can talk about it generally.
A personality is a set of behaviors, thoughts, and emotional reactions to your environment. In the personality concept, factors ranging from biological to environmental and psychological shape character. But this only refers to the mandatory part of personality development. This article will guide you on how to work on your personality development in the personal section.
Mandatory
Mandatory personality development is part of everyone’s life, whether you like it or not. A child is not born with a personality. The child develops it because of the environment around him/ her.
The mandatory stages of personality development are more important for parents and people around the child. For better or worse, whatever he/ she feels will form the child’s personality.
There are five stages of personality development when it comes to the mandatory part. As these are not related to personal effort, we will only touch upon them.
What are the Five Stages of Personality Development?
The five stages of personality development are somewhat biological. According to Erikson (1950), every human being goes through these five stages with growing age. The steps do not care for gender or creed. We will touch upon how these stages affect personality development, but not the biology part. The five stages of personality development are:-
- 1-Oral Stage
- 2-Anal Stage
- 3-Genital Stage
- 4-Latency Stage
- 5-Adolescence Stage
1- Oral Stage
This lasts from birth to about 1.5 years of age. The child develops trust or mistrust in the oral stage. According to Erikson’s five stages of personality development, if the child is cared for, he/ she will be trusted. But, neglecting the child and not meeting their needs will lead them to distrust. The kids will feel that the people around them cannot be depended upon. As you can see, stages of personality development begin right from birth.
2- Anal Stage
The anal stage lasts to three years of age. Mishandling this stage could lead to the child losing confidence. Shame about whatever the child does may also be triggered. In the five stages of personality development, anal is responsible for developing autonomy in the kid. Because the kid gains control over his excretions, the parents have to guide him about appropriate behavior. If the parents allow the children a little freedom and gently guide them without shaming, they will develop autonomy.
3- Genital Stage
The genital stage of the five stages of personality development lasts until 6 years of age. It develops the child’s initiative. In this stage, the kids start physical and mental activities by themselves. Parents should support these if they are good. But, the wrong ones need to be gently guided in the right direction. If this stage is not handled finely, the kids may develop guilt about their thoughts.
4- Latency Stage
The latency stage is between 6 to 11 years of age. In other words, you can call it the school-going age. It is one of the important steps of personality development. If you handle this stage rightly, it can develop independence. In the school-going age, the kids start using their minds and making social contacts with their peers.
Kids should be encouraged to be social and not depend on others too much. But, if they are not guided during this stage, they start feeling inferior to others. This leads to a loss of confidence and social unease for the child.
5- Adolescence Stage
Also known as puberty or teenage, this stage starts around 12-13 and could last up to 18-19 years. Of the five stages of personality development, this is the one full of the most problems. This stage is the result of whatever was developed in the last four. It handles the making of self or identity.
In these stages of personality development, it is not uncommon for kids to associate with a hero or idol. This association needs guidance, and parents should accept the confusion that comes with puberty. Kids might behave erratically and show signs of trouble and indecision. In the end, all they need is love and support.
The process of personality development is mandatory until these stages. That means that no matter what you do, these eras will shape your personality one way or another. But are these gained traits final? The answer is no. After the necessary stages of personality development, you can work to make it better.
10 Smart Tips to Enhance your Personality
1- Personal
There are complete programs of personality development training available to you. But at a costly price. With these easy tips, you can have your personality development training. All you have to do is focus and be consistent. Personality development training is also like a gym, you need to be persistent to get good results.
So, before giving your tips for personality development, some things are important. Every person has a unique personality and needs to find what works for them. Trying to improve yourself is different from dissatisfaction. You should love and accept everything about yourself and be a little forgiving.
2- Personality Development Training
The process of personality development is gradual once you get to the personal phase. Personality development training is more like tips towards improving yourself. But remember, your competition is with you as your journey is different. Personality development is all about using your best traits and improving on weak areas.
3- Confidence
Confidence is key to your personality development training. This confidence comes from within, and no amount of external drive can change that. Accepting yourself for who you are is vital to gain confidence. Know that you are going to make mistakes sometimes. Instead of letting these mistakes put you down, own them, and learn.
It is only by learning through your own and others’ mistakes that you can move forward. Think about it, haven’t all humans progressed that way? The whole process of scientific change is based on making mistakes and learning from them.
Be confident in yourself and your decisions.
That being said, arrogance can be the opposite of personality development. Know that you are only human and accept that you may not be right all the time. Here are some tried and tested ways to stay confident.
4- Knowledge
Expand your knowledge base and be eager to learn new things. Personality development includes your brain as well. Engage yourself in current affairs, science, logic, and other kinds of knowledge. Also, books are not the only way to learn. As a part of your personality development training, find smart people to spend time with and broaden your thoughts.
As the saying goes, if you are the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room. Engage in healthy and knowledgeable debates with other people and develop your mind.
5- Dress Well and Stay Fit
Your outlook, although not everything, is the first impression of your personality development. And your first impression would be the way you look. If you look toned and fit, it means you work hard and care. As a sound body cannot be bought, it requires grit and diligent work.
The second part of your first impression is the way you dress. Always be decent and sober and wear well and appropriate to the occasion. Dressing well does not mean spending extra money on useless things. A class cannot be bought with money; it is part of your personality development.
6- Communication Skills
After you look at the part, the next impression is the way you talk. The way you interact with the world around you is an important part of personality development training. And, communication skills are a reflection of your personality. Work on your verbal and written expression and develop your oral skills. Not only that, be polite and gentle when you speak.
Good communication skills not only create good impressions. They help you make the best of every situation. A person who can make his point can make the best of even the most adverse conditions. Not only that, but you can also resolve any clash through better communication, both in personal and social life. Here are some amazing communication skills that you need to master.
7- Maintain a Journal
Keeping a diary or a journal may help with your personality development more than you think. Recording your activities not only lightens your load, but it may also help in your personality development training. It makes you reflect on your actions and realize your own mistakes. Seeing your own mistakes through introspection will help you understand things about yourself that can be improved.
Although making mistakes is only human, you should know life is not long enough to make them all. That is why an important part of personality development is learning through others’ mistakes. As the saying goes, learning through your mistakes is intelligent, but learning through others’ mistakes is genius.
8- Optimism
Being positive is the key to personality development. Being a “glass half full” kind of person will always make you see the plus side of any situation. Positivity is key to moving forward. Even with the most hurtful experiences, if you keep a positive attitude, you can move forward.
Negativity and pessimism will root you in a bad event, and you will never be able to let go. But, if you be bright and look at what you gained from the situation instead of what you lost, you can mature. Optimism is an important part of your personality. Here is how to stay optimistic.
10- Be Kind to Yourself
Last but not least, you have to be forgiving to yourself. Know that you need to put yourself first sometimes, and you need care just like everyone else. Also, be kind to yourself. Do not have crazy expectations. Set doable goals and allow yourself the human margin of error and mistakes.
Once you learn to accept yourself as you are, it becomes easy to work on personality development with flaws. That being said, never be ignorant of your weak points. It is ok to accept that you have weak points and give yourself some space. But, it is never ok to leave them as it is.
Looking for a way forward is what personality development is all about. Forgiving yourself is a great way to deal with failure. Here are some amazing ways to deal with failure.
Conclusion
The process of personality development is constant, and these tips are not the final word. As it is said, there is always room for more. What is important is that you see the need to work on personality development. It is never too late to try and make yourself a better person. You can always opt for personality development.
Also, as in all walks of life, regular and hard work pays off in personality development. Never be shy to accept your mistakes and never give up. Also, do not be ashamed of your mistakes. Instead, learn from them and make yourself a better person. Lastly, accept the fact that you are a human being, and you will make mistakes.
Realize those mistakes and rectify them. But, never let them put you down.
