• Packed with activities proven to help you change - fast!
• Includes URL links to useful Web sites.

The Crash Course in Personal Development is an easy way to improve your skills fast. But it is far from a dry traditional course; as the author says, ‘be prepared to learn, but also be prepared to have fun’.

After an exploration the key elements that make for effective time management and stress reduction, the course itself consists of a programme of 150 exercises and techniques to help you to decide what you want from life – and get it! Targeted reading ensures that the practical exercises are backed up with expert knowledge. This dynamic personal development programme is split into 30 units, all designed to be completed in your spare time in one week. Alternatively, if you are under pressure to get results, a whole unit can be fitted in within a day. The final section provides a refresher course that pulls together key learning points, ideas for further reading, and detailed tables that will help you to select the right techniques to use in specific situations.

CONTENTS

Introduction

1. Getting the basics
   What's it for?
   The key elements
   Time management
   Stress management
   Negotiation
   Getting started
   
   
2. Work plan
   Introducing the course
   Checklist
   
   
3. The course
   Unit 1 A taster
   Unit 2 Fundamentals - understanding your motives
   Unit 3 Finding the switches - understanding your stressors
   Unit 4 What comes first? - prioritization
   Unit 5 There's nowhere like home - work/life balance
   Unit 6 I can't concentrate - handling distractions
   Unit 7 Chunking it up - breaking down your goals into manageable items
   Unit 8 Stopping - saying 'No' and throwing things out
   Unit 9 Managing meetings - don't let them rule your life
   Unit 10 A pat on the back - self reward
   Unit 11 Look around you - dealing with the environment
   Unit 12 Giving it away - sharing your burdens
   Unit 13 Making communications work for you - rather than for them
   Unit 14 Filling the gaps - using your spare time
   Unit 15 Devils and angels - anger and laughter
   Unit 16 Easing off - relaxation
   Unit 17 Dealing with a troublemaker - de-stressing the interaction
   Unit 18 Getting what you want - assertive behaviour
   Unit 19 Make the break - getting away from it all
   Unit 20 Bumf bashing - dealing with bureaucracy and paperwork
   Unit 21 The inner you - dealing with physical issues
   Unit 22 Development through knowledge - using information to your advantage
   Unit 23 Seeing through the fog - understanding what they're really saying
   Unit 24 Finding the levers - making negotiation work for you
   Unit 25 Selling yourself - don't shoot yourself in the foot
   Unit 26 Making the choice - supporting your decisions
   Unit 27 Going beyond the obvious - dealing with others differently
   Unit 28 Be prepared - planning for success
   Unit 29 Putting it across - communicating your message
   Unit 30 A sense of calm - further relaxation
   
   
4. Review
   Pulling it together
   Collected reading list