Business English for Personal Development
Personal development, often called soft skills, is what employers look for alongside technical ability: communication, leadership, emotional intelligence and the way you work with other people. This track helps you handle these skills in English, in one-to-one lessons built around the situations you actually face at work.
What is personal development?
Personal development covers the activities that improve self-awareness, develop your talents and potential, and make you more effective with other people. It is what most people mean by soft skills, and there is real demand for them in today’s workplace, whatever the role. A sales manager, for example, needs to be self-motivated, communicate and negotiate well, and read a room. Learning to handle these areas in English helps you grow your communication skills in an international environment.
Why take a Business English course focused on personal development?
Soft skills are hard to use in a second language. Giving feedback, motivating a team, handling a difficult conversation or coaching someone all depend on tone, nuance and the right phrase at the right moment. A Business English course built around personal development helps you do this with more confidence, so the way you come across in English matches your ability in your own language. Instead of generic business English, you practise the language of leadership, communication and self-development.
What is included in the personal development English course?
Personal development is a broad topic, so lessons are shaped around the areas that matter most to you. They may cover:
- Change management
- Coaching and mentoring
- Communication
- Interpersonal skills
- Leadership
- Listening skills
- Motivation
- Negotiation
- Team work
- Time management
If you want broader coverage first, see our Business English course.
Try a lesson focused on personal development English, free.
Book your free trial lessonNo credit card required
Who is the personal development English course for?
Ideally your English is already at intermediate level or above, you are interested in personal development, and you want to practise English around these topics. The course is a particularly good fit if you work as a:
- Manager or team leader
- Coach, mentor or life coach
- HR or learning and development professional
- Trainer, teacher or facilitator
- Counsellor or guide
- Consultant working with international clients
Situations we train you for
Lessons are organised around real moments from working life, so you practise the exact English you need before you need it.
| Situation | What you practise | Useful for |
|---|---|---|
| Giving and receiving feedback | Phrasing feedback clearly and kindly, asking for it, responding well to criticism | Managers, team leads, HR |
| Leading a meeting | Opening, keeping a discussion on track, inviting input, summarising decisions | Managers, project leads |
| Coaching conversations | Asking open questions, active listening, helping someone find their own answer | Coaches, mentors, managers |
| Difficult conversations and conflict | Staying calm, disagreeing politely, resolving tension and finding common ground | Leaders, HR, team members |
| Motivating and influencing | Encouraging a team, building buy-in, presenting a change positively | Managers, change leads |
| Presenting yourself | Talking about your strengths, telling your story, networking with confidence | Anyone growing their career |
How the course works
When you choose the personal development track, you get access to a wide range of resources in the Study Box focused on personal development. The teachers who deliver your lessons online by Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or phone are selected for their knowledge and experience in this area, then trained in our teaching method. They are familiar with the terminology and the pedagogical resources of the course. One session a week works well if you already have a good command of professional English and mainly want to maintain your level. If your goal is to move up a level, two to three lessons a week are recommended. Learning with two teachers is also good practice, so you do not get used to a single accent.
Personal development English terminology
A quick glossary of terms that come up often when discussing soft skills in English. We go much deeper in lessons.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Soft skills | Personal and interpersonal abilities such as communication, teamwork and adaptability, as opposed to technical or hard skills. |
| Emotional intelligence | The ability to recognise and manage your own emotions and read the emotions of others. |
| Active listening | Fully focusing on a speaker, checking understanding and showing that you have understood before you respond. |
| Growth mindset | The belief that abilities can be developed through effort, learning and feedback. |
| Constructive feedback | Specific, balanced comments that help someone improve rather than simply judging them. |
| Empathy | Understanding and sharing how another person feels, and showing it in the way you respond. |
| Resilience | The ability to recover from setbacks and stay effective under pressure. |
| Assertiveness | Expressing your needs and opinions clearly and respectfully, without being passive or aggressive. |
| Change management | Guiding people and teams through change so they adapt and stay engaged. |
| Mentoring | A relationship where a more experienced person supports the development of someone less experienced. |
The native-English teachers selected for this track have experience in coaching, leadership and communication, and know how this language is really used at work. The personal development track is available on the PRO and PREMIUM plans.
Frequently asked questions
What level of English do I need to start?
How long does it take to see progress?
Which plans include the personal development track?
Do the teachers have real experience in this area?
Can I focus on one skill, like giving feedback or coaching?
Are lessons one-to-one or in a group?
Is there a free trial?
Ready to grow your soft skills and communicate with confidence in English?
Book your free trial lessonNo credit card required
Go further
See our prices and plans and enrol to start training. Explore more in our Business English blog. Meet the teachers or see how lessons by Zoom work.