I find myself struggling to keep up. I like to try to keep up with research and material in my field, but with the podcasts, blogs, journal articles, social networking groups, and on and on, how do we has professionals keep up?
With all of the budget cuts and taking on more responsibilities, how do we manage to find time to pursue our own professional development? I think it is important to still set aside time to improve yourself and learn new things in your field. One of the ways that I accomplish this is by making sure that I block out the time on my calendar to attend my local ASTD meetings. These include professional development opportunities and give me the opportunity to network with other professionals outside my office. I also submit presentation proposals to local conferences. My work no longer has the money to pay for these, but I set aside my own money to go to local conferences because I think it is important for my own professional growth.
What are you doing in these hard times to ensure you still grow as a professional?
