Megan Edge talks about the importance and benefits of engaging in professional development throughout your career.

When I first started out in my career, which was in the field of Human Resources at the time, I was puzzled when colleagues who were much more senior than myself would rush out of work at 5pm to make it to class. Isn’t school over once you’ve graduated?!? Suffice to say I was incredibly inexperienced and naïve.

Having changed careers within the last 5 years and being a bit more knowledgeable about the world of work, I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about some of the benefits of professional development and what these opportunities can look like as it isn’t just the traditional classroom setting anymore.

The benefits to professional development at any career stage

For junior professionals entering the workforce, professional development can help them to refine their skill sets while also learning about business practices and principles, however, professional development opportunities aren’t just for recent graduates, as Robert Half, a global recruitment firm, notes in their Professional development training – a win for the entire team article. “[Ongoing] professional development is very appealing to many employees today who are looking to keep their skills relevant in a rapidly changing world”. In the field of communications, there are new tools regularly emerging, ranging from apps that can help make our jobs a little bit easier to new online marketing channels we need to develop content for. Taking relevant (and current) courses are a great way to refresh your skill sets and potentially develop a whole new ability and/or knowledge base.

For any career stage, professional development offers learning opportunities that can not only help employees move up the ladder into roles with more leadership opportunities, but it can also help to develop a strong network of individuals to share knowledge with or use as leads for a new role if you’re looking to take the leap.

Interestingly, Digital Marketing Institute found that “[making] more money isn’t the only benefit of continuous learning. There’s evidence to suggest a correlation between learning and improved health. For one thing, learning is like exercise for the brain, and just like exercising the body it contributes to better physical health and mental health”. Not only are you providing yourself with the opportunity to develop a highly marketable set of skills, you’re also exercising your brain.

Opportunities for professional development aren’t limited to educational courses or programs

If you’re looking for learning and development opportunities, courses offered at an educational institution are never a bad idea – they’re often taught through continuing education schools who have instructors that work in the field; however, it’s not the only way to gain new knowledge, skills and perspectives.

If you’re working for an organization, check in with HR to see if they offer any type of professional development incentives. This can range from having unlimited access to online learning platforms such as LinkedIn Learning to having a dollar allocation you can put towards educational courses or conference registrations.

Alternatively, if you’re a freelancer it can be difficult to justify the cost if it’s not subsidized by an organization, especially if it means taking a day off to attend a conference or workshop and missing out on income. Forbes, however, published an opinion piece on why you should opt for continuous learning, despite your work situation. “Many people…walk away from professional development invigorated with new business plans, new pricing strategies, and new ways of maximizing business. The results, along with new knowledge, can often translate into high compensation”.

Other opportunities include associations, such as International Association of Business Communicators, who often host networking events, workshops and lunch and learns and have volunteer positions available to its members. Taking advantage of these opportunities means you can network outside of your organization, have access to additional resources through the association and volunteer your time to either mentor someone else, find a mentor for yourself, or utilize your skill set to do something you truly enjoy.

Within the workplace, there are often opportunities for mentoring, job shadowing or cross-training to help employees learn new skills for jobs they might wish to apply for in the future. What I have personally found most helpful in my professional development, is working with my boss to take on projects that are outside of my comfort zone or area of expertise; it’s a great learning opportunity and often provides the chance to work with others who may be subject matter experts that share their knowledge for the duration of the project. Do you have a colleague who recently attended an interesting conference or workshop? Ask for their highlights and thoughts on the content – people often love to share what they’ve learned, particularly if they’re passionate about the content.

Additional resources include online forums and Facebook, for example, where you can find individuals within your local community who have similar career or personal interests that could lead to networking with like-minded individuals or joining groups that hold workshops and other events for learning and growth.

The takeaway

No matter what career stage or path you’re in, there is always an opportunity to learn something new or refresh a skill set. When your mind is full of knowledge, skills, plans, ideas and abilities, your possibilities are endless.

This article was submitted to the Toronto chapter of International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) and was published in their May, 2019 e-newsletter to its members.