Personal Development as a Lifestyle for Young Adults

As parents, we often ask ourselves how to best prepare our teens and young adults for the world and their future. We love and support them in every way possible, from their education, to sports and extracurriculars, to emphasizing good habits, to seeing the best in them (even when they can't see it for themselves). But one area that is even more important to their learning and growth at this important life stage — is opening the door to their personal development journey.

In a recent episode of The Extraordinary Purpose Podcast, Erin and I discussed how personal development isn’t just something you do occasionally or try once — it’s a lifestyle that can become the foundation for a happy, productive, healthy, and successful life. And if you’re raising a teen or young adult today (like us), it might be one of the most valuable gifts you can introduce them to at this impressionable age. 

What Does The Term "Personal Development" Mean Anyway? 

We have learned from talking to so many parents and young adults that personal development is often misunderstood. It’s not about being perfect, fixing something that’s broken, and it's definitely not something that you do just once in a while. It’s about developing daily rituals and routines that help build self-awareness, emotional resilience, and a strong sense of purpose. It’s about learning how to manage your thoughts, handle setbacks, and grow through both actions and challenges. It's things that you intentionally practice every single day that put you into a growth mindset to keep your learning and moving forward every day. 

Imagine your young adult knowing how to navigate relationships, communicate with confidence and clarity, manage distractions, feel purposeful about their future, bounce back from failure, and cultivate motivation and momentum every day  — that’s the power of intentional personal growth!

Why Personal Development Matters So Much for Young Adults 

The teen and young adult years are pivotal to creating an identity and lifestyle that will set them up for their future. They’re making decisions about school, relationships, goals, self-care, and the future, often with limited tools. Most young people aren’t being taught how to think about themselves and their lives, and how important their choices and habits are to making this all possible. They're not asking themselves "why is this or isn't this important to me?" They’re constantly reacting to the world around them instead of proactively shaping it and creating a meaningful and empowering future. 

Some Examples of What Personal Development Provides Young Adults:  

• Improved Mindset: So they can begin navigating their thoughts, feelings, and negative self-talk, and focusing on what's truly important to help them. Feeling better, moving forward, and connecting with their values, strengths, passions, and future vision.  

• Goal-setting strategies: So they can dream big and learn how to take massive action. 

• Emotional intelligence: So they can expand and nurture their current relationships, learn how to cultivate new relationships, and understand the difference between reacting and responding to life's challenges.

• Clarity for their future: The more that young adults begin to see who they really are and what they're capable of, their future begins to open up to them in ways that they could never have imagined. Creating a clear and meaningful vision for the future cultivates intrinsic motivation to move forward. 

When young people learn to take ownership of their inner world, their outer world starts to change — school improves, relationships improve, and their confidence soars.

The Role of Parents

As parents, we are natural guides. But Erin and Chris emphasize that we don’t have to do it all ourselves. In fact, mentorship and guidance from a third party — like a life coach — makes all the difference.

Introducing your teen to personal development might look like:

• Listening to personal growth audiobooks or podcasts together, like The Extraordinary Purpose Podcast - best to keep it nonchalant and not turn these moments into preaching or teaching sessions - just simply listen together. Just because they don't say anything, doesn't mean they're not taking it in.

• Encouraging journaling or mindfulness practices. Again, just buying them a journal and leaving it on their bed with a quick note of "I love you" works wonders. 

• Enrolling them in a life coaching program or other mentorship, because let's face it, unfortunately our kids rarely want to hear their parent's advice!

• Simply having open conversations about purpose, emotions, and growth, when the mood is right:)

• Most of all, model your own personal growth journey. Although it can be the long game, there is nothing more powerful than your own example of growth, change, and what's possible!

It's A Lifestyle, Not a One-Time Fix

Personal development isn’t a phase or a one-time project. It’s a lifestyle that we help young adults become passionate about. One that evolves as your young adults grows and meets new challenges.

When your child begins to see themselves as a work in progress — not in a self-critical way, but in a self-empowered way — they develop the resilience and clarity to navigate life with purpose.

Final Thoughts

If you want your teen or young adult to thrive in a world that’s constantly changing, personal development isn’t optional — it’s essential. The earlier they start, the more natural it becomes. And the good news? You don’t have to have all the answers. You just have to be willing to open the door.

Let’s raise a generation of young people who know how to lead themselves before they lead anyone else.

With Much Gratitude and Love, 

Erin and Chris 

🎧 Listen to the full episode of “Personal Development as a Lifestyle for Young Adults” on The Extraordinary Purpose Podcast here: Listen on Spotify