Personal Progress Resources




Personal Progress is a self directed, goal setting, spiritual achievement program program for young women ages 12 to 18. Its purpose is to help each young woman draw closer to Jesus Christ and prepare to make and keep sacred temple covenants.

I thought it might be helpful to search for and share some of the current LDS.org resources on the Young Women Personal Progress program. (sorry about the crazy spacing - Blogger is being difficult today)


Official LDS.org Personal Progress websites:

Handbook 2: Administering the Church - 10.7 Personal Progress

Personal Progress information for leaders

Personal Progress online

Personal Progress Book (full text)

Implementation instructions and materials list (pdf)

Frequently asked questions (pdf)

Young Women Manual 3 - suggestions for personal progress integration into Sunday instruction is included in some of the lessons. For example see Lessons 12 (scroll to bottom of the right sidebar)

The Honor Bee




"Bee a Mentor - Righteous influence," Elaine S. Dalton, Church News, June 19, 2010
Earning the Honor Bee in Young Women encourages every young woman to become a mentor. After a young woman finishes her Personal Progress and receives her Young Womanhood award and medallion, she can become a mentor to another young woman and, in the process, she can earn an Honor Bee. The Honor Bee is a symbol of someone who has gone the extra mile and beyond the requirements. read more


"Idea List: After Personal Progress," New Era, Oct 2010
If you’ve already received your Young Womanhood Recognition, one way to keep progressing is by helping other young women with their Personal Progress. This is called mentoring, and it’s easy. First, be a friend. Second, show and teach. Remember to work under the direction of your leaders, and you can be eligible to earn an Honor Bee. read more

Personal Progress Messages in General Conference

"Help Them on Their Way Home," Henry B. Eyring, Apri 2010 General Conference
Personal Progress helps young women prepare to receive the ordinances of the temple. They are helped by the examples of mothers, grandmothers, and every righteous woman around them in the Church. I have seen how parents helped a daughter achieve her goals and dreams by noticing and appreciating all the good things she does. read more

"Our Duty to God: The Mission of Parents and Leaders to the Rising Generation," Robert D. Hales, April 2010 General Conference
Fathers, mothers, and leaders of youth, we urge you to participate in Personal Progress and Duty to God with your children and with the youth. Not only will they grow; you will grow too. And just as importantly, you will grow together in a bond of faith and friendship that will allow you to strengthen each other and stay on the gospel path forever, to indeed be an eternal family. read more

Articles on Personal Progress

"Helping Youth Track Their Progress or Their Duty—Online," Ensign, March 2011
As parents, leaders, or teachers, we can help teens use the interactive, online versions of Duty to God and Personal Progress. read more

"Ribbons, recognition and relationships," Elaine S. Dalton, Church News, July 17, 2030
On a recent auxiliary training assignment to Africa, I met a new young bishop who shared his enthusiasm for the Personal Progress and Duty to God programs for the youth. He felt that since he was asking the youth to participate in these programs, he needed to become familiar with them as their bishop. Consequently, he started to work on both his Personal Progress and his Duty to God. read more

"What's New in Personal Progress," Elaine S. Dalton, New Era, Jan 2010
Personal Progress is not a program that is separate and apart from your life. It is a tool that you can use to draw closer to the Savior, serve others, be anxiously engaged in good works, learn leadership skills, develop relationships with others, and prepare for temple covenants. Personal Progress helps each young woman who participates develop daily righteous routines. When you do small things consistently, they become part of who you are and they change you. It really is “by small and simple things” that “great things [are] brought to pass” read more

"Young Women: Personal Progress," Church News, Dec 26, 2009
As part of the revised Personal Progress program, Latter-day Saint young women worldwide will receive specific items. Following is a list of the new items and their purpose: read more


"Fostering Spiritual Growth among Latter-day Saint Young Women," Church News, Dec 26, 2009
The Church's Personal Progress program — which now includes a revised booklet, a redesigned Young Women medallion, and other tools — will help young women in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints grow in faith and testimony of their Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ, said Sister Elaine S. Dalton. read more

"Five Reasons to Love Personal Progress: Why Personal Progress just might be one of the most important things you choose to do as a teenager," New Era, Nov 2006
You’re sitting in your bishop’s office for your birthday interview, and you’ve already talked about how things are at home and in school. Now your bishop asks how your Personal Progress is going. Are you (a) excited to tell him about the experiences and projects you’ve worked on this year, (b) embarrassed because you haven’t worked on it that much lately, or (c) blushing because you don’t even know where your Personal Progress book is? read more

Young Women's Stories about Personal Progress

"The Challenge That Changed My Life: I thought I was up to the task, but I found there was more to it than memorization," New Era, Nov 2010
The lump in my throat continued to grow as I slowly walked to the front of the room. I was a senior in high school, and this was my last Young Women in Excellence presentation. As I faced the audience of young women, parents, and leaders, I realized that my years of theater and speech experience were not going to help that night. read more


"Learning from Personal Progress: One little book helped lead me to joy and guide me through trials," New Era, Jan 2010
I remember my first Mutual activity. I went as a guest or investigator a couple of days after my 12th birthday, before I was even a member.


To be honest, I really didn’t want to be there. My excuse was that I didn’t know anyone who claimed they went to this Church. At the time, I was attending a different Christian program that was just mainly fun. I really liked my friends there and the competitive games provided by the youth directors. So technically I was comparing the two church programs to see which one I liked best, and I was sure that I already knew which one I preferred and didn’t need to prove it by going to Mutual.  Or so I thought. read more

"Prayerful Personal Progress," Liahona, March 2009
One day while I was working on Personal Progress, I started to work on an experience that included praying regularly for two weeks. One of the things I decided to pray for was that my friend would respect me and understand that the Church was very important to me. Two weeks later, when the experience was completed, I kept praying for the same thing. read more

"The Point," New Era, March 2008
What’s the reason for Personal Progress? These young women in North and South Carolina know it’s to help both you and those around you. “Make it work for you.” That’s how Mia Maid Megan Ross sums up her advice about participating in Personal Progress. But her mother, Deborah, the Young Women president of the Colfax Ward, Greensboro North Carolina Stake, adds this additional suggestion, which makes Personal Progress even more meaningful: “Use it to help those around you.”
read more

"Making Progress Personal in Panama," Liahona, Aug 2006
“I always thought the worst of myself,” says Melissa, 17, who is about to complete the Young Women program in the Cincuentenario Ward, Panama City Panama Stake. “But the Personal Progress program has helped me realize that I am worth something.” read more


Special Needs Personal Progress


"Personal Progress by Proxy:The service was sweet as these Young Women did something for their friend that she couldn’t do for herself," New Era, August 2009
A group of young women came to the Jordan River Utah Temple to do baptisms for the dead. As they were waiting, their leader started thinking. That day they were doing baptisms by proxy for people who could not do them for themselves. She starting thinking about a Laurel in her ward who, because of a terrible traffic accident, was not able to earn her Young Womanhood medallion for herself.
Could they all help? Could they do something like Personal Progress by proxy?
read more

"Skating with Jennifer: Young women in California find that it’s easy to adapt when you care enough to make progress personal," New Era, May 2008
It’s not unusual to see two girls giggling as they try to stay up on ice skates. But how often do they do it while working on Personal Progress? In this case, it’s one of many things young women in the Centerville Ward of the Fremont Stake in northern California have done to help one of their own. The skating activity was tailor-made to fit the needs of Jennifer Beck, who has Down syndrome. read more