As I write this, I realise the fortunate position I have been in over the last year, remaining in employment. I have friends that have not been so fortunate, whether they have been furloughed, had their hours reduced, had to close their businesses or faced unemployment and redundancy. Needless to say whichever of the above you can identify with, please don’t give up hope. 

No matter what situation you find yourself in, we need to find some time to reflect and think what we can be doing for our continued professional development (CPD). 

Ask yourself one question…

When it comes to your professional development – where do you start? One thing that is going to help you work well is exploring what you enjoy at work. So ask yourself one question…

 ‘What do I enjoy doing?’ 

There really is no right or wrong answer to this question as it is personal to you. But it will help you to determine which direction you want to take your career in. Enjoying what you do is half the battle at being successful at it. Make yourself a list of things that you enjoy at work – it could be about your current role, previous roles, or even things you like the idea of.  Here’s an example:

What do I enjoy about work?

-        Meeting customers/clients

-        Creating copy 

-        Planning and writing strategies

-        Leading a team on a new project

-        Designing communication campaigns

How to act on your enjoyment

Once you’ve thought about what you enjoy at work, take a look at your list and see which of these you would like to further develop skills in. There are many different ways you can continue your professional development. 

This week (8-12 February 2021) is National Apprenticeship Week. There is so much information out there about taking up an apprenticeship. You can be any age to do this and there are many different course – from ones you may more readily associate with an apprenticeship (such a plumbing), to apprenticeships in HR or leadership and management. They are funded by the government and your employer and if it’s something that would advance you in your role, it’s worth having that conversation with your employer to see if it’s something they’d be prepared to fund for you. 

Apprenticeships are formal learning and lead to a qualification, but what if you just want to improve on your skills? Many organisations have moved courses, lectures or conferences online during the pandemic. This has been a great way to gain more knowledge in a subject area and making it accessible to more people and has even meant that the costs of the courses have come down – and many are even free. Have a look online at your identified areas of enjoyment and see what information comes up – you might be pleasantly surprised at what is available out there for you. It could even take your career in a whole new direction. 

A CPD success story

I can say that this is what happened to me. In 2011 I was working as a strategic development coordinator for an organisation that covered sites across the south of England. I knew that I enjoyed being creative, writing and communicating with others. But I noticed that the business didn’t have anyone that was formally responsible for communicating central messages across the business. 

Back then, I didn’t know anything about internal communication (I don’t think I’d even heard that phrase ‘internal communication’ before!). But I went online did some reading around the subject. I took a business case to my director about internal communication and the benefits the organisation could have from having a trained internal communicator in the business. From this, the organisation funded my course with the Institute of Internal Communication and I found a whole new career that I really enjoy. 

I’m still learning so much as this discipline is ever changing and evolving, and I still love it. I’ve built up a great network of fellow communicators. We regularly knowledge share on social media and messaging platforms, and also use this as an opportunity to build friendships. Remember that even these informal discussions can all add to your CPD.   

Enjoy your CPD

As you can see, CPD can take many different forms, and can even be free and create great friendships. Keep yourself open to different options and remember it may even take you out of your comfort zone. But whatever you do – Keep learning and keep enjoying!