I believe that personal growth and development in clinical research are more essential than we imagine, mostly because becoming stagnant can be negative in numerous ways. I have worked at a medical device company for over a couple years now and have seen many examples of both scenarios during my time so far. I believe that one goes about truly pursing personal growth by becoming passionate about the clinical research and wanting to go above and beyond to get "answers".

I worked alongside an individual who had a PhD in polymer science and was continuously researching for new advancements and possible changes that could be made to the polymers being used in the lab to further improve statistics like tensile strength or polymerization characteristics. I have also worked alongside an individual who was completing similar types of testing or research in the same department for many years without any necessary "growth". What I took away from these two examples was that one needs to have the true drive and passion to truly achieve that personal development, and the growth comes hand in hand with that. However, one may simply not desire any growth and that is dependent on each individual, but can be detrimental and negatively impact personal development in the long run. 

This is my option on personal development and growth within the workspace, what are your thoughts on this idea? 

I think that it is important for individuals, especially those pursuing research, to make advancements in their own personal development. Clinical research, like many other fields, requires you to be up to date with what is going on in the field of study in focus. Technology and science are constantly advancing and if you aren't learning and understanding new ideas from others in your field of study, then you will ultimately remain stagnant and even eventually fall behind. Research requires creativity from the individual, because it involves designing. Whether it be an experimental plan or a new medical device or product, new ideas stem from other ideas or new findings, so learning about other projects and experiments that are taking place can help improve or inspire new methods in your own research.

To gain a better understanding of other projects within your field of study to improve your own skills, knowledge and overall personal development, you can read scientific journals on topics of interest to your research. However, this method limits you to learn about completed research. It may be more helpful to also connect with and discuss the research of other peers within your organization or even other institutions. Having discussions about the research you are conducting will allow you to listen to a fresh perspective and also allow you to view other possible routes your research can go in. This is why attending conferences related to your field of study can be very beneficial since you will be exposed to many projects that you can take inspiration from and use to improve upon your own research. 

In my opinion, making advancements in your own research is a huge contributor to your personal growth, not only because you are achieving something, but also because the process to find the best technique, experimental method, material, or design builds up your skills and knowledge within your field of study. This skills and knowledge buildup allows for you to progress further in your career. 

Since I have not had much experience in clinical research thus far, I can further on the previous response of pursuing personal growth and development within one's own workplace. To be able to grow and develop, you must be able to self-reflect and see what areas you are lacking or are not as strong in as you would want to be. This can be as broad as communication with other team members or something very specific about the work you are doing. The objective is to identify where your faults lie and make a plan to better it in any way you see fit. In addition to this, it also does not have to be just done by yourself. You will be working alongside peers for your entire life and it is important to listen to any feedback they may have for you and act on it accordingly. 

Personally, I have struggled a lot since the start of my industrial career with giving impactful presentations. I knew this was an important factor in the area where I work and was always trying to make changes to how I gave and structured my presentations. Ways that I would work to improve myself would be to always try to sit in and listen to others who I knew do this skill well and take notes on what they were doing which I could implement myself. I also have gone through countless past presentations to see what kind of information they included and what stood out the most to me. While I am definitely not an expert on this yet, I can see myself improving and becoming more confident in what I talk about t and present to others. 

As I can't attest to your first question I would like to touch more upon the second question posed more towards personal growth more generally within one's work place. This summer I was fortunate to get an internship, but it was not in the field of biomedical engineering, what I have studied for the past four years. Instead I was working in a civil engineering firm far from my knowledge. Being the youngest in the office and least qualified, one could say I was a little nervous. But, I believe this experience helped me grow tremendously in my professional career by forcing me to get out of my comfort zone, sustain a growth mindset, and most importantly understand my strengths and weaknesses.

Knowing who you are is the most important thing to help personal growth and development. I knew I did't know much to anything when it came to civil engineering, but I was't afraid to learn. The desire to want to know more and push yourself outside of what you may know is valuable to personal growth. I would say the lack of knowledge was a major weakness of mine as I took part in my internship, but using some skills I knew I possessed, such as the ability to learn on the fly, truly helped me. Once again I emphasize knowing yourself, addressing one's weaknesses, and utilizing one's strengths is a valuable aspect of personal growth and development.

Personal growth is a virtue that every individual should strive for regardless of their occupation, situation, or circumstance. From my personal experience I have seen personal growth in multiple forms which I believe can be easily translated into clinical practice. When I began my research career in an academic setting with an on campus research position, I was simply assisting a PhD student with his experiments so naturally when I started I was doing very basic tasks for him such as wiping slides and writing labels. I recall that I personally showed interest in what he was doing so when I asked him questions when he was conducting experiments he realized that I wanted to grow and learn what he was doing so that one day I could replace him - which is exactly what happened. Because of the extra hours that I spent after there was no one in the lab learning and practicing lab techniques, I was able to fill the void of his absence when he graduated. I was always going to learn the techniques just by being present in the lab, but because I put the extra effort to learn beyond the surface level I was able to have a strong understanding of the protocols and can now teach younger students that are joining the lab. Similarly, an individual who is in the clinical research space can go above and beyond simply by asking questions and taking advantage of opportunities given to them. For example, if an individual is working on a project which is in a space that is completely foreign to them, it would be best for that person to learn as much as they can about the subject so that whenever any issues or questions arise they would be able to solve and answer them. And if that is not possible then at least they would be in a situation where they would be able to know how to find the solution to the problem. There is a difference between someone who goes through the motions and someone who really wants to learn and understand what they are doing. Like how in math there is a difference between memorizing the formula and applying it compared to understanding how the formula is derived and its limitations in usage. One school of thought is using the formula as a means to an end while the other school of thought is to learn everything there is to know about the subject.

This makes me think, what are the pros and cons of these two different styles of learning?

Growth and development on a personal level are a part of life, each day naturally we evolve into different versions of ourselves and what we do to promote that growth can either lead you in a positive or negative direction. I consider the act of seeking growth and development in clinical research as a professional-level improvement. If one has an interest in clinical research, networking is one of the first steps to gaining opportunities to showcase or develop clinical research skills. The relationships created with professors, researchers, engineers, etc. allow you to get to speak with and learn from someone in the clinical research you are interested in. Trying to gain growth within the workplace requires curiosity, discipline, and practice. As you pursue growth within the workplace, every day you should see improvements in your skills and an increase in opportunities.

Personal growth and development are immensely important in any field. It's not just about acquiring technical knowledge and skills; it's also about continuously improving oneself to become a more effective professional. To pursue personal growth and development within the workplace, one should first have a clear understanding of their career goals and aspirations. Setting specific, measurable, and achievable goals is essential. This might include acquiring new certifications, attending relevant conferences and workshops, or seeking mentorship from experienced colleagues. Furthermore, actively seeking out learning opportunities within your organization is crucial. Engage in projects that challenge your skills and knowledge, and don't hesitate to ask for feedback from supervisors or colleagues. Recognizing your strengths and weaknesses allows for targeted development efforts.

I think there are two major steps to achieve personal growth and development in the workplace: having specific goals and always being willing to learn.

In order to achieve personal growth and development, you have to understand and figure out what that looks like for you. Where do you want to be in 10 years? 5 years? 1 year? 1 month? Setting long and short terms goals for yourself is crucial in being able to understand your position now and how you can get to where you want to be in the future. To develop, you need to have goals that you can see yourself achieving in the future.

Retaining the ability to learn new things (and being willing to do so) after completing one's studies is another critical component to personal development. One of my coworkers gave me the some really good advice when I started setting some goals for myself: "Get comfortable with being uncomfortable." This applies to so many situations that you'll likely encounter on your way to your goals. Actively seeking out and putting yourself in new situations, problems, and environments can only make you better at dealing with the unexpected and picking up new skills along the way. Helping out with a regulatory issue as a product development engineer might not make much sense on the surface, but broadening your perspective and skillset with a different team may make all the difference in undergoing your own personal development.

Developing oneself isn't a a project with an end goal in sight. It's an effort for continuous improvement. The ways to take your development into your own hands is to continuously set long and short terms goals for yourself and to consistently learn new things. Being active about your development can go a long way in one's career.