Discover where you are. Determine where you are going.

Plan how you’ll get there.

JOHN C. MAXWELL
 Developing Your 30-Day Growth Plan

Welcome to John C. Maxwell’s 30-Day Growth Plan! We’re glad you’re here, and we’re looking
forward to walking beside you on your leadership journey.

You downloaded this guide because you know something a lot of people with great potential
miss, every leader needs to embrace personal growth in order to create growth in their
business, team, community, or with anything outside of themseleves.

Everything you want out of life will come through your willingness to grow. That’s because you
can’t give what you don’t have, and you can’t lead where you don’t go.

Each section will be an exploration of a different facet of growth, complete with deep dives into
pressing topics, reflection time, and growth-oriented work.

The next 30 days will transform your approach to your daily life if you take this plan seriously.
Be intentional and you’ll see incredible results.

This guide is designed for you to take this personal growth journey alone OR with a friend or
group. It’s up to you. There are reflection and discussion guides throughout for both personal
and group study.

Let’s dive right in with two key two questions you need to consider:
• What keeps you from being authentic with others?
• What barriers to authenticity (beliefs, fears, experiences, etc.) do you struggle against?

Answering these questions lets you know if you’re being honest enough with yourself to take
this journey. It also tells you where your growth is going to be most important and most
challenging through this process.

Take some time to reflect and write out your answers. Then, if you’re feeling bold and really
want to ensure accountability, post it on social media or text your thoughts to a friend or
mentor. Keep in mind, a shared commitment becomes a strong commitment.

Once you’ve taken that first step, it’s time to dive in.

Get ready, get set, grow.

3 0 -DAY G R O W T H P L A N 1
 PASSION

Early in my career, I met a mentor who provided me with a personal growth kit—an all-in-
one guide to five areas of my life. I had never invested in myself in this way, and I soon
realized that growth is the only guarantee that tomorrow would be better than today.

So, it’s best to have a plan for strategic growth.

Growth always comes in two areas: choice and skill. As I teach, areas of choice are more
like soft-skills—attitude, belief, perspective, values, confidence, faith, and trust. Areas of
skill are more akin to hard-skills—writing, planning, strategy, coding, fitness, diet,
professional development, etc.
Over the next 30 days, we’re going to develop our growth
plans together along the following three axes—Assessment,
Ambition, Advancement.

These are better expressed in three questions:

• Where am I?
• Where am I going?
• How will I get there?

Your plan is going to be personalized and it’s

going to involve one area of choice and one area
of skill. Just follow along with this PDF
worksheet and you’ll end these 30 days with
your own personalized growth plan, as you rely
on my teaching from The 15 Laws of Growth to
help spur your thinking. Let’s get started.

Your friend,
 Day 1-3

The Law of Intentionality:

Growth is the only

guarantee that
tomorrow is going
to get better.”

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Intentionality” then come back to your worksheet.

As John said in the video, growth is not automatic.

Nature suggests that growth just happens.
But that’s not the truth.
Change is automatic.
Change happens whether you like it or not, but growth is guided change.
Growth requires planning, strategy, and focused effort. Growth is intentional. As a leader, you must first
invest in yourself because you can’t give what you don’t have.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

How many choices in your day are intentional? Of those, how many are choices
in the moment and how many are the result of a strategy?

Questions for Group Discussion:

In your opinion, why do people get change and growth confused?
Of the choices you make with your team, how many are made in the moment and
how many are based on strategy?

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 Day 4-6

The Law of Awareness:

You must know yourself to grow yourself.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Awareness” then come back to your worksheet.

No one can produce great

things who is not thoroughly
sincere in dealing with him-
or herself.”
The Law of Awareness tells us that in order to grow, we have to establish and face reality. As leaders, this
can be a challenge. We spend a lot of time assessing situations, and we often think we’re doing a great
job assessing reality. But there are some tendencies we have that we need to honestly address. Do you
walk around with:

• Rose-colored glasses - always seeing potential and not problems?

• The glass half-empty - with a pessimistic attitude?
• An Atlas mentality - where you carry all the burdens without help?
• A victim mentality - as if you’re powerless to effect outcomes and create change?

It’s time to take stock of ourselves and our team, as we dig into the truth about our strengths and
weaknesses.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

What strengths and weaknesses in yourself can you recognize? What are your team’s strengths
and weaknesses?

Questions for Group Discussion:

What strengths and weaknesses did you discover in yourself?
In thinking of your team’s strengths and weaknesses, what do you think your team would write?

BONUS:
John’s podcast on identifying leadership blind spots offers bonus insights into seeing yourself
realistically. Download the PDF notes and listen here:
https://johnmaxwellleadershippodcast.com/episodes/leadership-blind-spots

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 Day 7-10

The Law of the Mirror:

How we see ourselves determines how we invest in ourselves.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of the Mirror” then come back to your worksheet.

How do you see yourself? John often talks about our lives as a story—we’re living out a story for others
to read. If you don’t see yourself as the hero of your own story, you don’t have a high-enough
self-image. You determine what course your life will take. You decide what dreams you will chase, what
impact you will make, and what legacy you will leave.

The Law of Mirror is the perfect time accept and embrace the truth that you are worthy of
investment, and that your leadership lives or dies on the investments you make in yourself. In the
video, John said, “You have to bet on yourself first.” This is where we all must decide whether we’re
willing to make that bet. Are you all-in?

Questions for Journal Reflection:

What changes do you need to make to become the hero of your own story? What
would the outcome be for your team? When was the last time you bet big on yourself
and what were the results?

Questions for Group Discussion:

How is your self-image on a scale of 1-10?
How is your self-investment on a scale of 1-10?
What’s the difference between your self-image and your self-investment?

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 Day 11-13

The Law of Curiosity:

Growth is driven by wanting to learn more.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Curiosity” then come back to your worksheet.

Curious leaders are humble, self-aware, realistic, open, and willing to have a discussion just to learn.
Fixed-minded leaders are the opposite of all of that. A fixed-minded leader would rather not know,
thank you very much, because knowing brings with it the burden of doing.

Curiosity is the precursor to action. Leadership means embracing a growth mindset. No matter your
history or background, it’s never too late to live a life of curiosity and growth. Your leadership journey
will always have a next step as long as it’s fueled by curiosity.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

What are you curious about? Have you done much to investigate those subjects?
Why or why not? Who on your team is naturally curious? How can you tell? What can you
learn from them?

Questions for Group Discussion:

Which kind of person are you: the one who asks Why or the one who asks Why Not? Give
context to your answer
What kinds of things do you do to fuel your curiosity or feed your interests?

BONUS:
Writer and scientist Carol S. Dweck in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success writes that
fixed mindsets believe a person’s qualities are set traits and not capable of being changed. Growth
mindsets believe learning and intelligence can grow with time and experience. Explore which mindset
you embrace and think through your culture, upbringing, and experiences brought you to that mindset.

3 0 -DAY G R O W T H P L A N 6
 Day 14-16

The Law of the Modeling:

It’s hard to improve when you have no one else but yourself to follow.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Modeling” then come back to your worksheet.

It’s easier to grow when you have an example to follow. But as a leader, the bigger question isn’t whose
example will you follow; it’s what kind of example will you set? Even if you haven’t found a mentor, it
doesn’t mean you can’t be a mentor. In fact, one of the best ways to really understand what to look for
in a mentor is to become one yourself.

Chances are you might start your wish list of mentoring qualities with things like talent, success,
achievement, reputation. While those are good things to have in a mentor, it’s far better to have moral
authority. That means being a person of character, conviction, and integrity—and sustaining that life
over time. You don’t have the be the world’s greatest all-around human in order to have moral authority.
You can distinguish yourself in any number of areas while still growing yourself in others.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

If you could be known for one thing, what would you want it to be? What would it
take to get that level of respect? What value could you pass on as a mentor? Do you
know anyone who might want to learn from you? Who on your team has moral
authority with you? What makes you trust them in this way?

Questions for Group Discussion:

Where in your life do you want to develop moral authority? Why?

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 Day 17-20

The Law of the Expansion:

Growth always increases your capacity.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Expansion” then come back to your worksheet.

Several years ago, Nike released one of their most famous commercials. Simple and sparse, the
commercial features nothing but a runner, images of famous athletes projected onto buildings as the
runner passes by, a haunting piano score, and Nike’s most famous (at the time) tagline: “There is no
finish line.”

As John discussed in the video clip, finish line mentality takes a short-term view on the process of
growth; people with a finish line mentality want to grow right now.

Great leaders embrace a journey mentality. They understand that the process is the product—that what
you put into something shows up in the result. We have to lean out of our comfort zone and lean into
the challenges that will stretch us towards the person and lead we want to become.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

Where have you developed a finish line mentality and need to shake things up?
What is your biggest life dream?
How will you know when you’re achieved that dream?

Questions for Group Discussion:

Where is one place you’ve developed a finish line mentality with your team?
Why do you think that is, and what can you do to inspire fresh growth?

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 Day 21-23

The Law of the Consistency:

Motivation gets you going, but discipline keeps you growing.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Consistency” then come back to your worksheet.

Consistency sounds boring. But as John talked about in the Law of Expansion, routine only becomes
boring when it’s measured against a finish line. When we understand that daily habits compound into
excellence, it reframes our way of thinking.

One of John’s most helpful strategies in this area is the Rule of 5. For example, John doesn’t crank out
more than 100 books by just writing when he feels like it. Every day he does five things to stay
consistent in his writing: reads, thinks, writes, files, and asks questions. Consistency is achieved when we
can develop the necessary habits that will point us towards success, and habits are developed best when
they are strategic and simple. A daily Rule of 5 for yourself and your team are essential for growth.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

In what areas of your life are you most consistent or inconsistent? Why?

Questions for Group Discussion:

In what areas does your team struggle the most with consistency or do best with
being consistent? As a leader, why do you think they struggle in one area and
succeed in the other?

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 Day 24-26

The Law of the Environment:

Growth thrives in conducive surroundings.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Environment” then come back to your worksheet.

Growth is significantly diminished in unhealthy environments. In the video, John quotes the advice of his
mentor and friend, Elmer Towns, who told John to spend time with great people, read great books, visit
great places, attend great events, and nourish yourself. Sounds simple, but we often complicate matters.

Here’s the truth: If we don’t invest in ourselves first, no one else is going to. We don’t want to be cranky
and bitter. We want to be the leader who brings life to the team, who comes with a healthy perspective,
fresh eyes, a sense of wonder and amazement at what the world has to offer. That means making time to
create a growth environment that will help us be the best we can be.

Questions for Journal Reflection:

Who do you know who helps you grow?
What books in your areas of skill and choice do you need to read?
What changes do you need to make in your routine to nourish and refresh yourself?

Questions for Group Discussion:

Would you say you create a growth environment for your team? If so, what do you do
to create one? If not, what can you do to create one?

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 Day 27-30

The Law of the Design:

To maximize growth, develop strategies.

Watch and take notes on the video “The Law of Design” then come back to your worksheet.

We’ve finally arrived at the Law of Design, which is all about the strategies we develop to help us achieve
our personal growth. The final step in developing your personal growth plan will be filling out the two
Growth Plan Outlines that we’ve provided—one for you and one if you’re doing this exercise with a
team.

But the real work begins after today. You have to execute on the plan you’ve developed, otherwise all of
this work will be for nothing. This is where you have to determine again that you will pay the price to
grow.

We’re in this together. As you’re filling out these sheets, share them with a friend or mentor,
communicate your observations about your plan, and ask them where they see room to refine it. John
says that the key to making any growth plan stick is making it public, and after 30 days, you’ll not only
have a solid plan, but a community of support along the way.

3 0 -DAY G R O W T H P L A N 11
 Personal

My area of choice where I will grow is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My area of skill where I will grow is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A person I will ask to mentor/coach me in my growth is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I will read the following books to grow in my area of choice:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I will read the following books to grow in my area of skill:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My Rule of 5 is:

1. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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 TEAM

The area of choice where I will lead my team to grow is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The area of skill where I will lead my team to grow is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A person I will ask to mentor/coach my team in my growth is:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My team will read the following book to grow in our area of choice:
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My team will read the following book to grow in our area of skill:
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My Rule of 5 for my team is:

1. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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