CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Since March this year, the planet has been put into a state of lockdown, with the concept of social distancing and self-isolation becoming an overnight “norm” for humanity. And along with this came the forced adoption of corporates, big and small, to mobilise their workforce from an office environment into a working from home one…and overnight the virtual workforce became a reality!
Suddenly the global economy was being supported and driven by home workers. Not only did this pandemic force this monumental change, it also resulted in millions across the globe being forced into unemployment. “Challenging times” was instantly all the buzz, for all and sundry now confined to their homes for the imminent future.
Enough to drive even the best of us a little stir crazy, with work and life suddenly merging into one big blur of zoom meetings, stockpiling of toilet paper, clients mobiles being a standard issue and online Pilate’s…was mayhem; mentally, emotionally and physically….24/7.
And boom, employed or not, self-reflection and self-evaluation was suddenly staring us full frontal. Time to look at how to best utilise this period most effectively, from a CPD perspective. And where and how do we start, what do we do?
From a KISS perspective, I felt it best to break into professional and personal, and go from there, and a note to all, keep it realistic TOO, it’s meant to be self-development while having some fun.
- Professional – looking at two aspects; firstly, revising and refreshing your area of expertise, and secondly, further knowledge across areas of interest, be it across the different departments you support or it could be something completely non-relevant to your particular job, but relevant to the sector, economy or basic business changes across strategy, process, technology and the likes. The main hurdle that is often encountered is the cost factor, especially if one is unemployed, so, being resourceful is key. There are many ways to skin this cat for free, so be innovative. In most instances, your employer will cover the costs associated with your CPD when it’s done through your professional accounting body. Another great place to look is the free webinars offered by government agencies. https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/seminars-webinars. For further reading, check out https://businesschicks.com/about-us/ – full of great ideas. And this article by indeed was quite informative: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/management-skills
- Personal – covering the following: mental, physical, emotional and spiritual, pick one or four, but once again, make sure it’s realistic with regards to time and energy. Each to their own, but I always recommend making the physical a standard, as it seems to act as a great platform for the rest to flow from. I suppose the main aims are, enhancing the quality of our lives, achieving more, becoming better people, and trying to be a better version of ourselves. That is why personal development ought to be part of our everyday lives. And another great little article by indeed was well worthy of a share: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/improve-your-personal-development-skills
CPD is as the label, continuous, so the key is….to start it!
So, get onto it, do a SWOT analysis on yourself, and get cracking, it’s bound to be enlightening.
