In early 2010, I decided to take a step forward in my personal development and prepared for the American Society for Quality (ASQ) Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) exam. Considering the complexity of the exam and my limited spare time, this was really a challenge. But I worked hard and achieved the goal of becoming an ASQ CQE.

Personal growth is something most everyone engages in at some point in their lives. Learning new skills brings opportunities for personal and career development, and further develops your awareness. Increasing one’s knowledge helps quality professionals become effective leaders and recognize opportunities for improvement, which increases the possibility of creating a continuous improvement mindset.

But personal growth doesn’t happen overnight or accidentally. Often it seems we’re growing erratically with no specific plans, no vision about what we want to be or what we want to accomplish. As I learned and experienced, growth is the outcome of a well-executed process. I’ve reviewed my efforts and distilled them into a six-step process:
1. Be intentional
2. Set your goals
3. Know your baseline
4. Trace your way
5. Execute
6. Tweak as necessary

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